Why this page. Organizations that entrust their data to Serveurs du Peuple (SdP) often ask the same questions: where the data is, who can read it, where the backups go, what Québec’s Law 25 requires. The answers below describe what actually exists, checked on our servers on November 12, 2026. When something is not done yet, we say so.
🌿 Young page: it has been checked, but it will grow with your questions. Write to us to add one.
This page is not legal advice. The French version is the reference.
Where your data is
Where is my data?
On our servers, in a data centre in L’Île-des-Sœurs, Montréal (Caramania). It lives there every day, and that is where you work with it.
Who can read my data?
SdP’s administrators can, technically. The server has to read your files to show them to you, preview them and search them. Your written agreement forbids administrators from looking at them unless you ask: here, the agreement protects you, not the technology.
Are my files encrypted?
Between your device and our servers, yes: the connection is encrypted (HTTPS). On the server, your files are not end-to-end encrypted. Nextcloud can encrypt a folder end to end, but we do not offer it yet: a folder encrypted that way can no longer be edited online or by several people, and a lost key makes it unreadable forever. We will open it when we know how to support it.
Are my Talk calls end-to-end encrypted?
No. The connection is encrypted, but our video-meeting server sees the sound and the image pass through during the call.
Do transcription and AI send my data to an outside company?
No. Transcription of voice messages and calls runs on our own AI server, in Le Bic, Québec. Nothing goes to OpenAI, Google or any other provider.
Backups
Where do the backups go?
To two places, every night:
| Copy | Where | Encrypted | Kept |
|---|---|---|---|
| Local backup copy | same data centre, in L’Île-des-Sœurs | no, but it stays in Québec | 30 days |
| Remote copy | Hetzner, in Helsinki, Finland | yes, before it leaves Québec | about 6 months (7 daily, 4 weekly, 6 monthly) |
The main server also keeps its own snapshots, for up to 6 months (from December 1, 2026; until then, 12 months).
Why a copy outside Québec?
If the L’Île-des-Sœurs data centre were lost (fire, disaster), the local copy would go with it. The Helsinki copy is the only one that would survive. It is encrypted in Québec before it leaves, and the key stays in Québec: Hetzner only holds unreadable data.
Can nobody erase the backups?
Not from our main server. If someone took control of it, they could not destroy the Helsinki copies: that is our protection against ransomware. Only an SdP administrator, on the backup server itself, can erase them.
Can I exclude my data from the Helsinki copy?
Yes, if your data is in a container of your own: backups are set container by container. If your data shares a Nextcloud with other organizations, no, because the backup takes the whole container.
Without the Helsinki copy, your only copy outside the main server is in the same data centre. If that centre is lost, so is your data. We do not have a second backup location in Québec yet. Let’s talk before you choose.
Who keeps the backup encryption keys?
One copy is on the main server. Another, sealed, is kept in Québec, outside the data centre. Losing L’Île-des-Sœurs therefore does not make the Helsinki copy unreadable.
Have you ever done a restore?
Yes, partial restores from Helsinki. A complete cold restore, done by someone other than Alain Lauzon, has not been done yet. We will note it here when it is done.
What if Alain Lauzon is no longer there?
This is the weakest point today. Three trusted people have agreed to each keep a share of the recovery key. The sharing has not been done yet. Until then, recovering the backups still depends on Alain.
When you leave
Can I get my data back?
Yes. Your files stay in their original format (documents, spreadsheets, images, Markdown), and you can download them whenever you want.
Is my data destroyed when I leave?
It is erased from the main server when you leave. The copies disappear when they expire: 30 days for the local copy, about 6 months for Helsinki, up to 6 months for the main server’s snapshots (12 months until December 1, 2026). If your data is in a container of your own, we can also destroy its copies the day you leave, without waiting.
Québec’s Law 25
Who is responsible for personal information?
You, the organization that collects it. SdP keeps it for you: the law calls this a mandatary. It requires a written contract between us, and that is the agreement we sign.
Is the Helsinki copy a transfer outside Québec?
Yes, even encrypted. Before communicating personal information outside Québec, the responsible organization must carry out a privacy impact assessment (PIA). Encryption with a key kept in Québec weighs heavily in that assessment, but it does not replace it. Your privacy policy must also name that location. We give you everything you need for the assessment: locations, providers, encryption, retention periods. Have your approach confirmed by a lawyer who specializes in personal information protection.
Your accounts and your computers
Can I turn on two-factor authentication?
Yes. A six-digit code, produced by an app on your phone, plus backup codes. It is not mandatory, but we recommend it for any professional use.
Is a security key (YubiKey) mandatory?
No. Our workstation security guide recommends it for sensitive data, and you choose your level of protection. It cannot yet be used as a second factor on our Nextcloud servers: we first need to add the module that supports it.
One exception we recommend: any account that can administer your clients’ data should have a key. That is where a stolen password costs the most.
If my organization uses keys internally, must I require them from my clients?
No. Your internal security and your clients’ security are two separate things.
Can I use a key only to unlock my computer?
Yes, but it depends on the system and the key model:
- Linux: the
pam_u2fmodule accepts any FIDO key, even the simplest. - Windows, local account: as far as we know, you need the Yubico Login for Windows tool, which requires a standard Series 5 key, not the FIDO-only edition. Windows Hello sign-in with a key requires a Microsoft work account (Entra ID). Check Yubico’s documentation before buying.
- Mac: key sign-in goes through the smart card (PIV) function, also missing from the FIDO edition.
- Always buy two keys, and store the second one elsewhere. With a single key, losing it locks you out of your computer.
The key locks the session, but it does not protect a stolen disk: encrypt the disk as well.
What must I protect myself?
Your computer. A synced file exists in clear on your computer, and a stolen or infected computer gives access to your files without going through us. The minimum: an encrypted disk (BitLocker, FileVault or LUKS), automatic session locking, regular updates. Our workstation security guide goes further, in four levels.
Checked on our servers on November 12, 2026. Does an answer seem wrong or out of date? Write to us: this page gets corrected with you.