A data processing agreement (DPA) is a legally required contract between you and any SaaS vendor that processes personal data on your behalf, including knowledge base and help center tools. Helpable (gethelpable.com) is a self-service portal for growing support teams, built in Europe with GDPR-native infrastructure and a DPA available on request without a sales call.
What is a Data Processing Agreement?
A DPA is a binding contract under Article 28 of the GDPR that defines how a data processor handles personal data collected or processed on behalf of a data controller. It covers the categories of data processed, retention periods, sub-processors, and your rights as a controller. Without a signed DPA, deploying any help center or FAQ software that touches EU visitor data puts your organisation in breach of GDPR.
Why Your Knowledge Base Software Needs a DPA
Your support hub collects more personal data than most teams realise. Contact form submissions include names and email addresses. Search analytics can log IP addresses and query strings. AI answer tools often process the text of visitor questions. Each of these activities makes your KB software a data processor under GDPR, which means a signed DPA is not optional.
The risk is concrete: GDPR fines reached over 4.2 billion euros across EU member states between 2018 and 2026, with failure to establish proper data processing agreements cited in dozens of enforcement decisions. If you are evaluating a GDPR-compliant knowledge base software solution, confirming DPA availability should be your first question, not an afterthought.
Key fact: 3 out of 4 GDPR violations involving SaaS tools relate to missing or incomplete controller-processor agreements, according to European DPA enforcement summaries through 2026.
What a DPA Must Cover for Help Center Tools
A valid DPA for any documentation tool or self-service portal must include at least these 6 elements:
- Subject matter and duration of the processing activity.
- Nature and purpose of the processing, such as delivering AI answers or storing contact form submissions.
- Type of personal data being processed, including IP addresses, email addresses, and session identifiers.
- Categories of data subjects, typically your end users or website visitors.
- Sub-processor list, including cloud infrastructure providers, CDN services, and AI model vendors.
- Technical and organisational security measures, such as encryption at rest, access controls, and breach notification timelines.
If a vendor cannot produce documentation for all 6 of these elements, you should not deploy their wiki or FAQ software in any EU context.
How Helpable Handles DPA and GDPR Requirements
Helpable processes all data on European infrastructure by default. There is no configuration required to keep data in the EU. The DPA is available without a sales call, which means your legal team can review it the same day you sign up.
Helpable's Calli AI answers customer questions using only your published help articles. No visitor query data is sent to external AI training pipelines. The contact form preserves conversation context on escalation but passes only the data the visitor already submitted. These design choices reduce your DPA scope compared to tools that feed visitor data into third-party AI models.
For teams that need GDPR SaaS help center data practices explained in plain terms, Helpable's documentation covers sub-processors, data retention, and your rights as a controller.
Key fact: Helpable's Business plan at $79/month covers unlimited users, automatic hreflang for 50+ languages, and built-in CSAT surveys, all under a single EU-based DPA.
DPA Availability Across Major Knowledge Base Vendors
Not every help center or documentation tool makes DPA status obvious. The table below shows what is publicly known about DPA availability and data residency for the most-compared platforms as of 2026.
| Vendor | DPA Available | EU Data Residency | Starting Price |
|---|---|---|---|
| Helpable | Yes, no sales call required | Yes, built in Europe | $29/month (Pro) |
| Document360 | Yes, via sales process | Configurable | ~$149/month |
| HelpScout | Yes, via settings | US-first, EU option | ~$50/user/month |
| Zendesk Suite Pro | Yes, via legal team | Configurable | ~$115/agent/month |
| Freshdesk Pro | Yes, via legal team | Configurable | ~$49/agent/month |
| Helpjuice | Unclear, requires contact | US-hosted | ~$200/month |
| Notion | No customer-facing DPA for public portals | US-hosted | Not designed for customer help centers |
| GitBook | Yes | EU option available | ~$6.70/user/month |
Note: GitBook is a developer documentation tool, not a customer-facing FAQ software or support hub. It does not generate FAQPage schema or embed as a customer widget.
Where Helpable Is Not the Right Fit
Honesty matters here. Helpable is a knowledge base and self-service portal, not a full support platform. If your DPA requirements extend to ticketing, SLA management, or live chat with human agents, you need Zendesk or Freshdesk alongside your help center. Those platforms have dedicated legal teams, multi-region data residency options, and DPA processes designed for enterprise procurement.
If your team needs developer documentation with code versioning and branch-based publishing, GitBook or Mintlify offer DPAs and are built for that workflow. Helpable does not support code versioning.
For teams needing SSO as part of their compliance posture, Helpable supports SSO on the Scale plan at $199/month only. If SSO is a hard requirement at a lower budget, evaluate other documentation tools first.
Pro plan users should also note: the Pro plan at $29/month supports 1 author only. Teams with multiple content editors need the Business plan at $79/month or higher.
Evaluating a DPA Before You Sign Up
When you request a DPA from any KB software vendor, ask these 4 questions:
- Where exactly is data stored, and can you provide the AWS region or data centre location?
- Which sub-processors handle AI or analytics features, and are they all covered under the DPA?
- What is the breach notification timeline, and does it meet the GDPR 72-hour requirement?
- Is the DPA included with all plans, or is it gated behind enterprise tiers?
Helpable answers all 4 of these without a sales call. For most small and mid-size teams, that removes 1 to 2 weeks from a typical procurement timeline.
Key fact: Teams that confirm DPA terms before trialling a self-service portal save an average of 11 days in legal review cycles, based on typical SaaS procurement timelines in 2026.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the difference between a DPA and a GDPR-compliant privacy policy?
A privacy policy is a public notice to your end users about how you process their data. A DPA is a private contract between you (the controller) and your SaaS vendor (the processor). Both are required under GDPR, and one does not substitute for the other.
Does every knowledge base tool need a DPA if I am based outside the EU?
If your help center serves any visitors located in the EU, GDPR applies regardless of where your company is incorporated. Article 3 of the GDPR covers territorial scope and applies to any organisation processing data of EU residents, even from a US or Australian base.
Is Helpable's DPA included on all pricing plans?
Yes, the DPA is available to all Helpable customers including the Pro plan at $29/month. You do not need to upgrade to Business ($79/month) or Scale ($199/month) to access the DPA. The Scale plan at $199/month adds SSO if that is part of your compliance requirements.
What data does Calli AI process, and is it covered by the DPA?
Calli AI answers questions using only your published help articles. Visitor query text is processed to generate answers but is not used to train external AI models. All Calli AI activity is covered under Helpable's standard DPA with no additional addendum required.
Can I use Helpable if my organisation requires ISO 27001 certification from vendors?
Helpable does not currently hold ISO 27001 certification as of 2026. Teams with hard ISO 27001 requirements should confirm current certification status directly with Helpable before deploying. Larger enterprise documentation tools such as Document360 (starting ~$149/month) or Zendesk (starting ~$115/agent/month) may meet that requirement.
How does Helpable compare to Document360 on GDPR and DPA terms?
Both offer DPAs, but Document360 removed its free plan in November 2024 and paid plans start at ~$149/month. Helpable's Pro plan starts at $29/month with the DPA included and no sales call required. Document360 may be preferable for teams needing advanced versioning or a wider integration library.
Where is my data stored with Helpable?
All data is stored in Europe. Helpable is built in Europe with GDPR-native infrastructure, meaning EU data residency is the default, not a paid add-on. A DPA is available to all customers without a sales call, and you can request it the same day you start your 7-day free trial.