Security Comparison (at a glance)
| Control | SaaS Enterprise | Hybrid (Recommended) | Airgapped |
|---|---|---|---|
| Data residency | Runtime in region of choice; customer data stored in region-specific shards (e.g., EU) | All data (requests, responses, logs) stays in your VPC/on‑prem; control-plane metrics region is customer’s choice | Fully offline; all data stays inside isolated network |
| Runtime data path | Requests hit nearest regional edge gateway (e.g., EU only when EU is chosen) | Gateway runs inside your network; model calls stay local | Gateway and model calls run entirely offline |
| Control‑plane metadata | Minimal operational metadata in Portkey control plane | Metrics are always sent to Portkey ClickHouse; ClickHouse region can be customer’s choice; IP/URL redaction supported | None (no outbound traffic) |
| Logs & retention | Logs 90 days; metrics 365 days by default; zero‑retention available; PII scrubbing and “metrics‑only” mode supported | Logs in customer S3 or any S3‑compatible store; IRM/lifecycle policies; native export to SIEM/observability | Same as Hybrid, fully offline |
| Secrets & KMS | Provider keys in Portkey vault (envelope encryption) with KMS support; BYOK | BYOK; integrate with AWS KMS/Azure Key Vault/GCP KMS | BYOK; same KMS integrations offline |
| Identity & access | SSO (SAML/OIDC), SCIM, fine‑grained RBAC | Same; plus local gateway RBAC | Same; plus local gateway RBAC |
| Egress | To Portkey control plane and model providers in chosen region(s) | To Portkey control‑plane public APIs and container registry; data‑plane↔control‑plane over Internet or private tunnel/peering | None (no outbound calls required) |
| Subprocessors exposure | Yes (published list and notifications) | Minimal (control‑plane only) | None |
| Supply chain | Signed images, SBOMs, standard vulnerability SLAs | Same | Same |
| BCP/DR | Published RTO/RPO; multi‑AZ/region architecture | Customer‑owned backups/DR; Portkey provides guidance and tooling | Customer‑owned backups/DR, offline procedures |
| Feature parity | Full | Full | Full |
What leaves your environment?
- SaaS: Runtime traffic remains in the selected region. Minimal control‑plane metadata is stored centrally; customer data (logs/metrics) retained per policy (90/365 by default) with zero‑retention and PII scrubbing options.
- Hybrid: Application data, prompts, responses, and logs stay entirely in your VPC/on‑prem. Metrics are always emitted to Portkey’s control plane (ClickHouse) and can be hosted in your region of choice. IP/URL redaction supported.
- Air‑gapped: No outbound network calls for any purpose (including licensing and updates). All data remains inside the isolated environment.
Data flows (per model)
SaaS Enterprise
- Control plane is centrally hosted (no customer data resides here).
- AI Gateway is deployed on regional edge; requests are served in the chosen region (e.g., EU‑only when EU is selected).
- Persistent data stores (logs, metrics) are created in the customer’s chosen region (e.g., separate EU shards for enterprise customers).
Hybrid (Recommended)
- Gateway runs inside your VPC/on‑prem; prompts, responses, and logs never leave your environment.
- Operational metrics are always sent to Portkey’s control plane (ClickHouse); the ClickHouse DB can be hosted in your region of choice.
- IP and URL redaction supported; data‑plane↔control‑plane connectivity can be Internet or private tunnel/VPC peering.
Air‑gapped
- Fully disconnected deployment—no outbound traffic required for licensing or updates.
- Container images are delivered via private registry or offline media; updates applied offline on your schedule.
Common security questions
Where does our data stay?
Where does our data stay?
SaaS: Customer data is stored in your selected region (e.g., EU). Runtime requests are served in‑region via edge gateways.
Hybrid: All prompts, responses, and logs remain in your VPC/on‑prem stores that you control.
Air‑gapped: All data remains entirely within your offline environment.
What does Portkey see?
What does Portkey see?
SaaS: Minimal control‑plane metadata and region‑pinned logs/metrics per your retention policy.
Hybrid: Only operational metrics are sent to Portkey’s ClickHouse (always). IP/URL redaction supported. Your LLM logs explicitly reside in your databases; the control plane has no access to them.
Air‑gapped: No outbound telemetry; Portkey receives nothing.
How do we handle PII and retention?
How do we handle PII and retention?
SaaS: Default retention is 90 days (logs) and 365 days (metrics). Zero‑retention and PII scrubbing are available; a metrics‑only mode is supported.
Hybrid/Air‑gapped: Logs live in your S3/S3‑compatible store with your lifecycle and IRM policies. Fully offline for Air‑gapped.
Secrets and KMS
Secrets and KMS
SaaS: Provider keys are stored in Portkey’s vault with envelope encryption; KMS is supported (BYOK).
Hybrid/Air‑gapped: Bring your own KMS (AWS KMS, Azure Key Vault, GCP KMS) for envelope encryption.
Identity, SSO, and RBAC
Identity, SSO, and RBAC
All models support SSO (SAML/OIDC), SCIM, and fine‑grained RBAC. Hybrid and Air‑gapped include local gateway RBAC.
Network egress and connectivity
Network egress and connectivity
Hybrid: Outbound destinations are Portkey control‑plane public APIs and the container registry. Data‑plane→control‑plane can be over the Internet or a private tunnel/peering. Control‑plane→data‑plane can use a tunnel/peering as well.
Air‑gapped: No egress—period.
SIEM and observability
SIEM and observability
Native exports (e.g., syslog/OpenTelemetry) and documentation are provided. In Hybrid/Air‑gapped, all integrations run from your environment.
Compliance, pen tests, and subprocessors
Compliance, pen tests, and subprocessors
SOC 2 Type II and other certifications are available via the trust portal. Pen test cadence and reports are available. Subprocessors are published with a notification policy (SaaS); Hybrid exposure is minimal; Air‑gapped has none.
Shared responsibility
| Area | SaaS Enterprise | Hybrid | Air‑gapped |
|---|---|---|---|
| Data storage & residency | Portkey implements region pinning; you set retention | You own storage, residency, and lifecycle | You own storage, residency, offline lifecycle |
| Metrics & telemetry | Portkey stores minimal metadata and metrics per policy | Metrics always sent to Portkey control plane; redaction supported | None |
| Secrets & KMS | Portkey vault with KMS support | Customer KMS integrations | Customer KMS integrations |
| Identity & RBAC | SSO/SCIM/RBAC in SaaS console | SSO/SCIM + local gateway RBAC | SSO/SCIM + local gateway RBAC |
| Patching & CVEs | Portkey SLAs | Portkey supplies signed images/SBOM; you apply updates | Same, offline process |
| Backups & DR | Portkey managed | Customer managed (guidance provided) | Customer managed (offline) |
Why Hybrid is usually the right choice
Data stays put
Enterprise velocity
Operational safety
References
- Hybrid deployment guide: GitHub (Helm)
- Trust & compliance portal: trust.portkey.ai
- Contact:
[email protected]