Skip to content

Frequently Asked Questions

Common questions about Aegis Preflight.

General

What is Aegis Preflight?

Aegis Preflight is a Data Loss Prevention (DLP) solution designed for AI applications. It detects and prevents sensitive data from being sent to AI tools, vendors, or customers.

How is Aegis different from traditional DLP?

Traditional DLP Aegis Preflight
Network-level Application-level
Email/file focused AI/API focused
Heavy agents Lightweight SDK
Complex rules Simple policies
Days to deploy Minutes to deploy

What data types does Aegis detect?

  • PII: SSN, email, phone, address, names
  • PHI: Medical records, health IDs
  • Financial: Credit cards, bank accounts, tax IDs
  • Secrets: API keys, passwords, tokens
  • Custom: Define your own patterns

Security

Does Aegis see my data?

No. Content is processed locally by the SDK. Only metadata (timestamps, decisions, detection types) is sent to the cloud in default mode.

For maximum privacy, use METADATA retention mode - no content is ever stored.

How is my license key protected?

  • License keys are validated against signed JWT tokens
  • JWTs use RS256 asymmetric encryption
  • Keys can be rotated instantly from the dashboard
  • Revocation is immediate and cascades to all policies

Is Aegis SOC2 compliant?

Yes. Aegis maintains SOC2 Type II compliance. Contact sales for our compliance documentation.

Integration

Which languages are supported?

Currently:

  • Python - Full SDK with LLM integrations

Coming soon:

  • JavaScript/TypeScript
  • Go
  • Java

For other languages, use the REST API directly.

Does Aegis work with LangChain?

Yes! Native LangChain integration:

from aegis_sdk.integrations.langchain import AegisCallbackHandler

handler = AegisCallbackHandler(license_key="...")
llm = ChatOpenAI(callbacks=[handler])

Does Aegis work with OpenAI?

Yes! Protected OpenAI client:

from aegis_sdk.integrations.openai import SafeOpenAI

client = SafeOpenAI(
    api_key="sk-xxx",
    aegis_license_key="aegis_lic_xxx"
)

Can I use Aegis without a license key?

Yes, in offline mode for testing:

aegis = Aegis(offline_mode=True)

This uses default patterns without cloud policy sync.

Performance

What's the latency overhead?

  • Cold start (first check): ~100ms (license validation)
  • Warm checks: < 5ms (local detection only)
  • Cache TTL: 5 minutes default

Does Aegis slow down my AI calls?

Minimal impact. Detection is local (sub-millisecond). The only network call is periodic license/policy sync, which is cached.

Can I use Aegis in production?

Absolutely. Aegis is designed for production use with:

  • Automatic retries and fallbacks
  • Connection pooling
  • Graceful degradation
  • No blocking on cloud failures

Policies

How do I create a policy?

  1. Dashboard: Organization → Policies → Create Policy
  2. API: POST /api/orgs/{org_id}/policies
  3. SDK: Policies sync automatically from cloud

Can different departments have different rules?

Yes! Use Policy Groups:

aegis = Aegis(license_key="...")
engineering = aegis.with_policy_group("engineering")
marketing = aegis.with_policy_group("marketing")

What actions can policies take?

Action Behavior
BLOCK Prevent content from being sent
MASK Redact sensitive data, allow rest
ALLOW Permit content (for audit only)

Compliance

Is Aegis GDPR compliant?

Yes. Aegis helps with GDPR compliance:

  • Data residency options (EU, US, APAC)
  • METADATA mode (no content storage)
  • Audit logging for accountability
  • Pseudonymization via masking

See GDPR Compliance Guide.

Is Aegis HIPAA compliant?

Aegis can be configured for HIPAA compliance:

  • PHI detection and blocking
  • Audit trails
  • No content storage mode
  • BAA available (Enterprise)

Can Aegis help with SOC2?

Yes. Aegis provides:

  • Access controls
  • Audit logging
  • Data protection
  • Monitoring and alerting

Pricing

Is there a free tier?

Yes! The Trial plan includes:

  • 1,000 checks/month
  • All detection types
  • Basic policies
  • Dashboard access

What's included in Standard?

  • 50,000 checks/month
  • Multiple policies
  • Policy groups (departments)
  • Email support

What's in Enterprise?

  • Unlimited checks
  • Multi-organization management
  • Data region selection (EU/US/APAC)
  • Self-hosted deployment
  • SSO/SAML authentication
  • Custom retention policies
  • Dedicated support
  • SLA guarantees

Contact Sales for Enterprise pricing.

Troubleshooting

"License validation failed"

Causes: 1. Invalid license key 2. Expired license 3. Network connectivity issue

Solutions: 

# Check license status
aegis license status

# Validate manually
curl -H "Authorization: Bearer aegis_lic_xxx" \
  https://api.aegispreflight.com/v1/license/validate

"No detections found"

Causes: 1. Data format doesn't match patterns 2. Policy rules are disabled 3. Wrong destination specified

Solutions: 

# Test with offline mode
aegis = Aegis(offline_mode=True)
result = aegis.check("SSN: 123-45-6789", "AI_TOOL")
print(result.detected)  # Should show SSN

"SDK import error"

Solutions: 

# Reinstall SDK
pip install --upgrade aegis-sdk

# Check Python version (3.9+ required)
python --version

Support

How do I get help?

  • Documentation: You're here!
  • Email: [email protected]
  • Enterprise: Dedicated Slack channel

See Also