Glossary

Databeamer reuses a few everyday words with a precise meaning. This page lists them by theme. Within each theme the terms are alphabetical.

Security and keys #

Audit log #

A record of what happened in your account, under Settings › Audit log. Entries are either signed by your own device or recorded by the server, and are sealed into chained epochs so they cannot be altered afterwards. See Audit log.

Device #

A browser or phone on which you have set up Databeamer. Each device holds its own copy of your keys, protected by its own PIN, and can be revoked from another device. See Devices and unlocking.

Device approval #

The way a new device gets your keys without the recovery phrase. The new device shows a code; a device you already use approves it under Settings › Security › Device approvals.

End-to-end encryption #

Files, messages and answers are encrypted on the sender's device and decrypted on the recipient's. Everything in between, including Databeamer's servers, only sees ciphertext.

Epoch #

A sealed batch of audit log entries, roughly one per hour. Each epoch links to the previous one, which is what makes the log tamper-evident.

Identity check #

The panel Databeamer shows before you select someone as a recipient: their organisations, groups you share, how long they have been a member, and an Identity verified by Databeamer badge if they have one. Databeamer has no safety numbers to compare by hand. See Contacts.

Key rotation #

Giving the remaining members a fresh group key after someone is removed, so the person who left cannot read anything added afterwards. Databeamer does this automatically on removal; a Key rotation required banner only appears when it could not, and Rotate now finishes it. See Groups.

Master key #

The key everything in your account is ultimately protected with. It is created on your device during setup, never stored in one place, and never sent to Databeamer. See Recovery phrase and shares.

Passkey unlock #

Unlocking a device with Touch ID, Face ID, Windows Hello or a security key instead of typing the PIN. Set per device; the PIN keeps working alongside it.

PIN #

The 6-digit code that unlocks Databeamer on one device. Other devices have their own PIN. It protects the keys on that device; it is not your account password.

Recovery phrase #

24 words shown once during setup. Together with the server share they rebuild your master key when you have lost every device. Databeamer cannot replace it for you. See Recovery phrase and shares.

Security alerts #

Events that deserve attention, such as a new device approval or a PIN lockout. They appear on the dashboard and, depending on your settings, by email.

Security details #

The collapsed blocks on many pages that list the cryptographic operations behind a feature, written for security officers and auditors. Everyday use never needs them. See Welcome to Databeamer.

Security scan #

Databeamer checks encrypted uploads for known threats in a way that keeps the content private. The result is shown under a file's Details.

Shares #

The three parts your master key is split into: a device share on each device, a server share held by Databeamer, and your recovery phrase. Any two rebuild the key; one on its own reveals nothing.

Unlock #

Entering your PIN or using your passkey when you open Databeamer, which makes the keys stored on that device usable. Stay unlocked on reload asks only once per browser session.

Zero-knowledge #

Databeamer's design principle: the server stores and relays your data without ever being able to read it, because the keys exist only on your devices. See Welcome to Databeamer.

People and spaces #

Account #

A person who has signed up and set up their keys. Only accounts can be messaged, be readers of a request or be members of a group.

Contacts #

Your personal address book. Adding someone is one-sided; they are not notified. Each contact has private notes that only you can read. See Contacts.

Group #

A shared space inside an organisation with its own Drive, chat, transfers and requests, encrypted with a key that every member holds. See Groups.

Group type and document type #

Classifications with states and labels that an organisation defines. These labels are visible to the server, unlike file contents, so keep them free of sensitive details.

Guest #

Someone without a Databeamer account who opens a transfer, request or secure mail through a link. Guests unlock content with a passphrase or a code by email.

Guest page #

The branded page a guest sees. Its logo, wallpaper and background gradient come from the organisation, and can be overridden per group or per request.

Organisation #

Your company or team inside Databeamer. It owns groups, has its own storage and limits, and decides how guest pages look. See Organisations.

Outside collaborator #

A group member who does not belong to the group's organisation. Shown as a badge next to their name.

Public profile #

A setting that lets other Databeamer users find you by name or email. Off by default.

Roles #

What a member may do. In a group: Owner, Admin, Member or Reader. In an organisation: Owner, Admin or Member. Owners can do everything, including removing the group or organisation.

Self-declared labels #

Text people add to their own profile. Nobody checks it, so treat it as what they say about themselves.

Single sign-on (SSO) #

Signing in through your organisation's identity provider over OpenID Connect or SAML 2.0. New SSO users wait under Pending SSO members until an admin approves them.

Files #

Drive #

Your encrypted file storage, personal or per group. File names are encrypted too, so search runs on your device. See Upload and organise files.

Entry #

One dated item in a journal, with headings, lists, checklists and tables, and optional tags.

Journal #

A document made of dated, tagged entries, stored in Drive. In a group every member can write in it. See Journals.

Save to Databeamer Drive #

Copying files you received through a transfer or request into your own Drive, so you keep them after the transfer or request expires.

Trash #

Where files go when you move them out of a folder. They still count towards storage until you choose Delete forever or Empty Trash. See Trash and deleting.

Transfers, requests and mail #

Activity #

The log on a transfer or request showing who accepted, declined, downloaded, submitted or exported, and when.

Code by email #

The easier way for a guest to unlock: they request a 6-digit code that Databeamer emails to them. Anyone who controls the mailbox can then open the content, so use it when the inbox is trusted.

Collaborative, individual and open #

How a request is fulfilled. Collaborative: one submission completes it for everyone asked. Individual: each person submits separately. Open: anyone with the link can submit, as often as needed.

Deadline #

The date after which a request accepts no new submissions.

Exchange #

The sidebar area that holds Transfers, Requests and Secure Mail: everything you send and receive.

Expires after #

How long a transfer's files are kept, from 1 to 30 days. After that the files are removed; the record and its activity stay.

Passphrase #

A code in the form XXXX-XXXX-XXXX-XXXX that a guest needs to unlock a transfer or secure mail. Shown once to the sender, meant to be shared over a different channel than email. See Send a transfer.

Reader #

An account that may read a request's answers besides the requester. Set under Answers to when creating the request, or under People later.

Request #

A secure form through which you ask people for files or answers. They fill it in through a link, with or without an account, and everything is encrypted for you before it leaves their browser. See Create a request.

Retention #

How long a request's submissions are kept, from 1 day up to a year, capped by your plan.

Retract #

A sender can withdraw a submission for 24 hours after sending it.

Secure Mail #

An encrypted conversation with a subject, a thread of messages and attachments, with accounts or with guests. See Secure Mail.

Submission #

One answer to a request: the uploaded files or filled-in form from one person. See Manage submissions.

Submission URL #

The link to a request's form, which you can share yourself as well as through the invitation email.

To do #

The list on your dashboard of transfers to accept and requests to answer.

Transfer #

A one-off delivery of files to one or more people, with or without an account. Its status is Pending, Completed, Expired or Cancelled. See Send a transfer and Track and receive transfers.

Chat #

Chats #

On desktop, the floating window with your direct messages; on a phone, the tab the app opens on.

Direct message #

A one-to-one, end-to-end encrypted conversation with another account. See Chat and direct messages.

Group chat #

The conversation that belongs to a group. Every member can read it.

Tag #

A word starting with # in a chat message or on a journal entry. Click a tag to find everything that carries it.

Plans #

Boosted limits #

Limits that were raised for your account beyond what the plan normally includes.

Plan #

What your account may use: storage, transfers and secure mails per month, active requests, file size, retention and feature access. See Plans and limits.

Seats #

The number of members an organisation's plan allows.