Security
What happens to a file you send us
Confidentiality here is a set of mechanisms that run whether or not anyone remembers them. This page describes each one in the order a file meets it. It is linked from every upload point on the site.
- 01
Upload
Files travel over TLS and are stored encrypted at rest. The RFQ builder holds files in your browser until you send the enquiry; nothing leaves your machine before that.
- 02
Access
Every open and every download is logged against a named individual at Almost Aliens. There is no shared login and no anonymous access path to a customer file.
- 03
DFM review
An engineer reviews each line. Findings are recorded against the enquiry, not sent to any third party. No vendor sees a file at this stage.
- 04
Vendor release
A drawing reaches a vendor only after the vendor's NDA is on file and only for the job class they are qualified in. The vendor RFQ carries our job reference; your company name is structurally absent from it.
- 05
Revision control
The revision is pinned on every vendor document. When a new revision issues, the superseded drawing is withdrawn from vendor access so it cannot be cut by habit.
- 06
Retention
Files are retained for the life of the job and the traceability period after it, then deleted on request or on schedule. Ask and we will tell you exactly what we hold.
The rule behind it
Your identity is a default, not a checkbox
The record that becomes a vendor purchase order has no field for a client name. The one that carries a vendor's price cannot reach your quote until it is flagged as confirmed in writing. These are properties of the data model, so a busy day cannot switch them off.
- client_name_hidden
- true, by default, on every vendor RFQ and PO. There is no variant of the record that shows the client.
- confirmed_in_writing
- Required on a vendor price before it can flow into a client quote line. Unset means it cannot.
- access_log
- One row per open or download, with the named individual and time. Available to you on request.
Questions
Frequently asked
Can I send files before an NDA is in place with Almost Aliens?
Does any vendor ever see who the end client is?
Where are the files stored?
What about export-controlled work?
Which file formats do you accept?
Questions about a specific programme's requirements? Raise them in the enquiry notes and an engineer at Almost Aliens answers before any file is released. See also the quality page.
Start an RFQ- ISO 9001in progress
- AS9100D2027 roadmap
- NDA before any vendor sees a filestandard practice