Major Update: Auto-Delete Media Now Live

In our relentless pursuit of giving you ultimate control over your data, we're excited to announce a powerful new feature: Auto-Deleting Media. Sryptos is designed to leave no trace, and this update brings us one step closer to that vision by ensuring your shared media doesn't last forever unless you want it to. This aligns with the privacy-first philosophy of our parent company, BHK Vision Labs.

What is Auto-Delete Media?

By default, all media files—images, videos, and voice notes—sent through the Sryptos platform will now be automatically and permanently deleted from our servers after 30 days. This applies to files that are pending delivery and those that have been delivered.

This feature is a core part of our "digital hygiene" philosophy. It drastically reduces the digital footprint of your conversations, enhancing your privacy and security. If a device is lost or compromised, the window of exposure for your shared media is significantly smaller.

How It Works: The Backend Code

The process is handled entirely on the backend by a scheduled Cloud Function that runs every 24 hours:

1. Scan: A cron job triggers a Firebase Cloud Function that queries our Firestore database for all message attachments older than 30 days.
2. Identify: It identifies media files hosted on our secure Google Cloud Storage.
3. Delete: The files are permanently deleted from the storage bucket. The corresponding message documents in Firestore are also purged to remove any lingering metadata.

Importantly, this process does not require access to your decrypted data. The deletion operates on the encrypted blobs of data, ensuring your privacy is maintained throughout, as detailed in our Privacy Policy.

User Control is Key

While 30 days is the default, we believe in user choice, a core tenet of the tools developed at BHK Vision Labs. In an upcoming update, you'll be able to customize this retention period on a per-chat basis. Furthermore, you can always manually delete any message or media at any time using the "Delete for Everyone" feature.

For important files you wish to keep, we recommend using the "Save" feature or backing up your chats to your personal Google Drive, which keeps an encrypted copy of your data under your control.

A More Private Web

Features like auto-deleting media are more than just conveniences; they represent a fundamental shift in how online platforms should treat user data. Data should be ephemeral by default, not permanent. We're proud to take this step and will continue to build tools that put your privacy first.