CMSDirectus and the GDPR: agreement, role and data location.
Directus is a cms tool. Most customers use it as a processor, it publishes its data processing agreement, and the data location depends on your account. Below: what to check and how to declare it.
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In short
- Category
- CMS
- Usual role
- Usually a processor
- Data location
- Set per account or project
- Agreement
- Published by the vendor
What does Directus do with personal data?
Create, store and publish website or app content in a content management system. That is how Privacyboard describes a typical use of Directus, as a starting point you can edit.
The data usually involved: editor names, work email addresses, published content and any personal data included in entries.
Is Directus a processor or a controller?
Most customers use Directus as a processor: it handles personal data on their instructions, for the purposes they set. That is the common reading for cms tools and it is what Privacyboard suggests.
As a processor, it needs a written agreement with you under Article 28, and you should know which subprocessors it uses. Confirm the role against your own agreement, because the way you use a tool can change it.
Where does Directus store personal data?
Directus does not have one fixed location for every customer. The location depends on the plan, the account and the services you enable.
How to find yours: Check the project or space settings: the region is often chosen when it is created.
Even when the main location is in the EU, ask whether subprocessors or support access involve a transfer outside the EEA, and record it if so.
Which legal basis usually applies to Directus?
For the usual use of Directus, companies most often rely on legitimate interests (GDPR Article 6(1)). Running a website is a normal activity of the company.
The interest you would state: “Publishing and managing our website and its content.” The GDPR asks you to say which interest you pursue (Article 13(1)(d)).
The balancing test is yours to do: the interest must be real, the processing necessary for it, and people’s rights must not outweigh it.
This is a starting point, not legal advice: the basis belongs to your activity, and you confirm it in your register.
Sources: GDPR Article 6, lawfulness of processing, EDPB Guidelines 1/2024 on legitimate interest
Does Directus have a data processing agreement?
Checked on 5 November 2026. Vendors change their pages, so check the date.
Yes. Directus publishes the text of its data processing agreement on its own website. Article 28 of the GDPR requires a written contract with every processor, so this is the document to read and keep.
What we noted when we opened the page: Directus Data Processing Agreement for customers, last updated 10 Jul 2026, effective on last signature. Contracting entity Monospace, Inc. dba Directus (Delaware). No hosting regions named; EU SCCs Modules 2 and 3 (Irish law) and UK Addendum.
A page that exists does not mean you are covered. Whether the agreement applies to you depends on your plan and on what you accepted, so record the decision yourself in your vendor list.
Read the Directus agreementHow to declare Directus
- 1
In your privacy policy
Name Directus as a recipient, say what it is used for (create, store and publish website or app content in a content management system) and mention any transfer outside the EEA. Articles 13 and 14 ask you to tell people who receives their data.
- 2
In your vendor list
Add Directus with its purpose, the data involved, its role, its region and a link to the agreement. Privacyboard prefills all of this, you confirm or correct it.
- 3
In your processing register
Link Directus to the activities that use it, so each record shows its recipients. Article 30 asks the register to list the categories of recipients.
What to check before relying on Directus
- Keep personal data out of content entries unless you need it.
- Check the region chosen for each project or space.
- Review editor accounts and remove people who have left.
- Record any integration that sends content or visitor data elsewhere.
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Questions, answered.
Is Directus GDPR compliant?
Privacyboard does not certify vendors. Compliance depends on how Directus is configured and used, on the agreement you have with it and on your own practices. What can be checked is documented here: it publishes a data processing agreement, the usual role and the data location. Read the agreement itself before relying on it.
Does Directus have a DPA?
Yes. Directus publishes the text of its data processing agreement on its own website. Article 28 of the GDPR requires a written contract with every processor, so this is the document to read and keep. You can read it at https://directus.com/dpa.
Is Directus a data processor?
Usually, yes. Most customers use Directus as a processor that acts on their instructions. Check your own agreement and how you use the tool, because the role can differ.
Which legal basis applies when I use Directus?
For the usual use of Directus, companies most often rely on legitimate interests (GDPR Article 6(1)). Running a website is a normal activity of the company. The interest you would state: “Publishing and managing our website and its content.” The GDPR asks you to say which interest you pursue (Article 13(1)(d)).
Where does Directus store data?
Directus does not have one fixed location for every customer. The location depends on the plan, the account and the services you enable. How to find yours: Check the project or space settings: the region is often chosen when it is created.
Do I need to mention Directus in my privacy policy?
Yes, if Directus handles personal data for you. The GDPR asks you to tell people who receives their data (Articles 13 and 14). Name the vendor or its category, say what it is used for and mention any transfer outside the EEA.
How do I add Directus to my vendor list?
In Privacyboard, pick Directus from the catalog. The purpose, the data, the suggested role and a link to its agreement are prefilled, and you confirm each one. Creating a workspace is free.
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Privacyboard is not affiliated with Directus. Names and logos belong to their owners and are used only to identify the tool. This page summarises public documents as checked on 1 November 2026; it is guidance, not legal advice, and it does not certify any vendor.