Consent records
What we keep when someone signs up, and why it's the exact wording.
Every form submission is recorded with the evidence you’d need if someone later asks why they’re receiving your email — or if a regulator does.
What's recorded
- The exact wording they agreed to, copied at the moment they submitted.
- When they submitted, and when they confirmed.
- Their IP address and browser, as corroboration.
- Which form and which lists they joined.
It’s captured at the moment of signup because it cannot be reconstructed afterwards.
The wording is a snapshot, not a link
This is what makes the record worth anything
Forms get edited. If a consent record merely pointed at “this form”, then editing the copy would silently rewrite what every previous signup appears to have agreed to — evidence of the wrong thing.
So the text is copied as it stood on the day. Change your form freely; old records keep their own wording.
Which makes the copy on your form worth writing carefully. “Sign up” records almost nothing. “Get our monthly newsletter about coffee and occasional offers” records what they actually agreed to.
Why the IP address is kept here
This is the only place a raw IP address is stored. Everywhere else — in analytics, for the country on a click — the address is resolved and immediately discarded, because there the IP is a means to an end.
For consent it is the evidence: it’s what corroborates that a real person at a real connection submitted the form, rather than a row someone typed in later.
What it doesn't cover
Only form signups produce a consent record. Contacts you imported, typed in, or created through the API have no such evidence — their consent is something you assert, and you’d need your own records of it.
That’s the practical argument for pushing signups through a form wherever you can: it’s the only route where the proof creates itself.
Common issues
Someone says they never signed up
Check the form’s submissions for their address. A confirmed double opt-in signup is strong evidence — only the person holding that mailbox could have completed it. Either way, honour the request: they’re already unsubscribed if they used the link.
I need to prove consent for imported contacts
We can’t help there — those didn’t come through a form. Keep whatever the original source gave you. Going forward, route signups through a form.
FAQs
How long are records kept?+
For as long as the contact exists. They’re only useful if they’re there when someone asks, which is usually much later.
Does deleting a contact delete their consent record?+
Yes — which is a reason to prefer unsubscribing over deleting. The record of what someone chose is the thing that protects you.
Is a single opt-in signup still recorded?+
Yes, with the same detail. It’s weaker evidence, because anyone can type someone else’s address into a form — which is one of the reasons double opt-in is the default.