chatlog

Chatlog is a recorded record of a text-based conversation produced by chat systems, messaging applications, or conversational agents. A chatlog typically preserves the sequence of messages along with metadata such as timestamps, sender identifiers, channel or chat room information, and, in some cases, status indicators like edited or deleted flags or delivery receipts.

Chatlogs can be stored in various formats, including plain text files, CSV, JSON, or XML, and may be kept in local devices, on servers, or in cloud storage. They are often archived in databases or log management systems and may be protected by encryption in transit and at rest.

Contents commonly include user messages, bot or assistant responses, system prompts, and sometimes attachments or links. Use cases include reference and problem diagnosis, compliance auditing, quality assurance, customer support analytics, and providing training data for AI models under appropriate privacy safeguards.

Privacy and governance considerations govern the collection and retention of chatlogs. Organizations implement retention schedules, access controls, user consent where required, redaction or anonymization of sensitive information, and secure deletion. Legal and regulatory requirements may mandate preservation for discovery or reporting, and platform-specific policies influence what is recorded and how long it is kept.

Chatlogs vary across platforms in formatting, metadata, and retention practices, reflecting the technical design and privacy rules of each service.