Privado.ai is a privacy engineering platform designed to help companies identify and manage personal data in their codebases. It enables developers and privacy teams to work together by automatically detecting data flows and privacy risks—directly from source code. Unlike traditional data privacy tools that operate at the infrastructure or app layer, Privado scans code to provide early, accurate, and contextual insights into how personal data is being used, stored, or shared.
With data privacy regulations like GDPR, CCPA, and HIPAA evolving rapidly, engineering teams need a way to bake privacy into the software development lifecycle. Privado fills that gap by bringing visibility and automation to privacy practices in modern DevOps environments. It’s lightweight, language-agnostic, and integrates with tools developers already use, making it easier to shift privacy left.
Features
Code Scanning for Personal Data
Privado scans your entire codebase to detect where personal data like names, emails, IP addresses, or health records are collected, processed, or transferred.
Data Flow Mapping
The platform automatically maps how personal data flows across services, APIs, and third-party tools, helping teams understand exposure points.
Privacy Impact Analysis
Highlights potential privacy risks such as data leakage, over-collection, or insecure storage by analyzing code paths and data handling logic.
Automated Data Inventory
Builds and maintains an always-up-to-date inventory of personal data, categorized by data types, processing purposes, and associated systems.
Compliance Mapping
Supports alignment with GDPR, CCPA, and other privacy laws by identifying non-compliant data uses and surfacing them early in the development cycle.
CI/CD Integration
Integrates with CI/CD pipelines (like GitHub Actions, GitLab, Jenkins) to surface privacy issues during development, not after deployment.
Developer-Focused Dashboard
Offers an easy-to-use interface built for developers, allowing them to view, fix, or tag data usage directly within their workflow.
Privacy Risk Alerts
Notifies security and privacy teams of high-risk data behaviors or policy violations in real time, allowing for faster remediation.
Multi-Language Support
Supports multiple programming languages such as Java, Python, JavaScript, and TypeScript, with ongoing support for more environments.
How It Works
Privado connects to your Git repositories and performs a deep scan of the codebase to identify where personal data is collected, processed, or shared. It doesn’t require data samples or runtime access—it works entirely at the code level.
As it scans, Privado builds a visual data flow map showing how personal data moves through different components of the application. This includes interactions with APIs, databases, third-party tools, and internal services. It flags potential risks such as insecure data transmission, over-retention, or unauthorized sharing.
The tool integrates into development pipelines so that any new code changes that introduce privacy risks are flagged automatically before deployment. Developers can take action directly within their workflow, while privacy teams can view dashboards, generate reports, and maintain regulatory documentation without chasing engineers for details.
Use Cases
Privacy by Design in Development
Engineering teams use Privado to integrate privacy checks into the software development lifecycle, identifying issues early before they reach production.
Automated Data Mapping for Audits
Privacy and compliance teams rely on Privado to generate real-time, code-based data maps for GDPR or CCPA audits, reducing manual work.
Cross-Functional Collaboration
Enables legal, security, and development teams to work from a shared view of how data is used, making privacy a team effort rather than a siloed task.
Third-Party Risk Assessment
Privado flags sensitive data being sent to third-party APIs or services, helping organizations review and limit data exposure to vendors.
Shift-Left Privacy Testing
By integrating with CI/CD pipelines, development teams catch and resolve privacy issues before code is merged, saving time and reducing risks.
Incident Readiness and Response
In the event of a data breach, Privado’s data flow maps provide a clear view of what data was affected and where it lives in the codebase, speeding up investigations.
Pricing
Privado offers flexible pricing plans based on company size, usage, and the number of repositories or developers. While detailed pricing is not listed publicly, typical tiers include:
Free Plan
Ideal for small teams or startups, offering limited code scans, basic reporting, and Git integration.
Growth Plan
Includes unlimited codebase scanning, advanced data flow visualization, and CI/CD pipeline integration.
Enterprise Plan
Custom pricing with added support for custom rules, dedicated onboarding, compliance reporting, and integrations with internal tools like Jira or ServiceNow.
Interested organizations can request a demo or get started with a free trial through the Privado website.
Strengths
Code-Level Precision
Unlike infrastructure-based tools, Privado provides a clear, early look into how personal data is handled in the code itself, giving a higher degree of control.
Developer Friendly
Built with engineers in mind, it integrates with existing development workflows, CI/CD tools, and Git repositories.
Automated, Always-Updated Inventory
Maintains a real-time data map of personal data usage without needing manual tagging or surveys.
Fast Time-to-Value
Deploys quickly and starts showing actionable insights in minutes—no agents, SDKs, or complex setup required.
Bridges Privacy and Engineering
Supports collaboration between compliance and engineering teams, enabling shared ownership of data protection.
Drawbacks
Focused on Code-Level Data
Privado is ideal for identifying privacy risks in code, but it may not offer full visibility into data at rest or in live production environments.
Not a Full DLP or Cloud Security Tool
It complements but does not replace infrastructure-level security or DLP solutions focused on broader network or storage risks.
Still Emerging Market Awareness
As a newer platform, it may not yet have the same brand recognition or integrations as some older privacy tools.
Comparison with Other Tools
Compared to traditional data discovery or data mapping tools like BigID, OneTrust, or Collibra, Privado is purpose-built for engineering teams and offers code-based visibility instead of relying on data-at-rest scans.
BigID and OneTrust focus more on privacy program management and infrastructure-level discovery, while Privado is stronger at showing how and where personal data is used within the application code itself. It offers a shift-left approach that complements broader data governance platforms rather than competing directly.
For organizations focused on integrating privacy into their SDLC and CI/CD, Privado offers a faster, more agile, and engineering-friendly solution.
Customer Reviews and Testimonials
Users across industries—from fintech and SaaS to healthcare—praise Privado for helping teams bring clarity to complex data privacy workflows. Engineering leads mention that it saves time during audits, catches risky code early, and makes privacy a shared responsibility.
Privacy professionals report better visibility into how their teams are handling data, without relying on outdated surveys or endless documentation requests. The developer experience is frequently highlighted as intuitive, with alerts and integrations that blend into normal workflows.
Some customers mention wanting expanded language support and deeper integrations with enterprise tools, which are areas Privado continues to grow.
Conclusion
Privado.ai brings a fresh and practical approach to data privacy by helping companies embed privacy into the way they build software. Its code-first model makes it possible to discover, classify, and protect personal data at the source—where the data logic actually lives.
For privacy teams, it offers automated, real-time data inventories and audit readiness. For developers, it delivers fast feedback and seamless integration into their tools. Together, Privado helps organizations shift left on privacy, reduce regulatory risk, and build trust with users—without slowing down development.
