Privacy Policy — ilmWriter

Who is responsible

[Legal entity name, registered address] runs ilmWriter and is responsible for your personal data (the "controller"). Contact: [email protected].

Book pages for readers are published by individual authors. For readers who sign up on those pages, the Reader privacy notice (/legal/reader-privacy) applies.

What we collect

Account details: your name, email address, profile picture from Google (if you sign in with Google), time zone and preferences.

Your work: books, chapters, outlines, notes, research, sources, uploaded files and images, covers, coach conversations, comments, and Book Design briefs and proofs.

People you invite: the name and email of beta readers, endorsers or collaborators you invite, and their comments.

Billing: your plan, payment status and invoices. Card details go straight to Stripe; we never store them.

Connected social accounts: when you connect LinkedIn, X, Facebook or Instagram, we store an encrypted access token, your account or Page name and ID, and the posts you publish through ilmWriter with their results.

Google Drive: when you send a book to Google Docs, we ask Google for access to only the files ilmWriter creates in your Drive (the drive.file permission). We store the access token Google gives us and use it only to upload the documents you send. We can't see or change your other Drive files. ilmWriter's use of information received from Google APIs follows the Google API Services User Data Policy, including the Limited Use requirements.

Usage and technical data: sign-in sessions, IP address, browser type, feature usage and credit usage, and error logs, used to run, secure and improve the service.

How we use it

To provide ilmWriter: save your work, run coach features when you ask, build exports, send invitations and emails, publish posts you schedule, and provide Book Design orders (legal basis: our contract with you).

To bill you and keep records we must keep by law (contract; legal obligation).

To keep the service secure, prevent abuse and fix problems (legitimate interests).

To send product emails you need, such as sign-in links, receipts and important changes. Marketing emails are sent only if you agree, and you can unsubscribe at any time (consent).

We don't sell your personal data, we don't use it for third-party advertising, and we don't use your manuscript to train our own models.

Coach features and model providers

When you use a coach, the relevant parts of your book and notes are sent to a language model provider to generate the answer. Depending on the feature, that may be Google (Gemini), Anthropic (Claude), OpenAI or DeepSeek. We use their business APIs, under which providers say they don't use API data to train their models. DeepSeek processes data in China.

[Counsel to confirm: provider data-retention periods, DeepSeek transfer safeguards, and whether an option to exclude a provider is offered.]

Who we share it with

Service providers who process data for us: DigitalOcean (hosting), Neon (database), Cloudflare R2 (file storage), Inngest (background jobs), Brevo (email), Stripe (payments), Google, Anthropic, OpenAI and DeepSeek (coach models and images), and Pexels (photo search; only your search words are sent).

Services you connect: LinkedIn, X, Meta (Facebook and Instagram) receive the posts and images you choose to publish there.

Google Drive receives the book documents you choose to send to Google Docs. You can remove ilmWriter's access in your Google Account → Security → Third-party apps and services.

People you choose: beta readers and endorsers see the chapters you share with them. The ilmMind design team sees your manuscript and brief when you order Book Design or a Publishing partnership.

Authorities, if the law requires it, and a buyer of the business if ilmWriter is sold (your rights stay the same).

International transfers

Our providers may process data outside your country, including in the United States and, for DeepSeek, China. Where the law requires it, we rely on safeguards such as the EU Standard Contractual Clauses. [Counsel to confirm the transfer mechanisms per provider.]

How long we keep it

Your account and work are kept while your account is open. After you delete your account, we delete your data within 30 days, and copies in backups roll off within 90 days.

Billing records are kept for as long as tax law requires (usually 6–10 years). Security logs are kept for up to 12 months.

Social account tokens are deleted as soon as you disconnect the account.

Your rights

Depending on where you live, you can ask to access, correct, export or delete your personal data, object to or restrict some uses, and withdraw consent at any time. Email [email protected]; we'll reply within one month.

You can also complain to your data protection authority. In the UK that's the ICO; in the EU, your local supervisory authority.

To delete your account and data, see /legal/data-deletion.

Cookies

We use only the cookies needed to keep you signed in, secure sign-in with social networks, and remember settings. We don't use advertising cookies. If we add analytics cookies, we'll ask first where the law requires it.

Security

Data is sent over HTTPS, uploaded files are stored privately, social tokens are encrypted, and staff access is limited to what's needed to support you. No system is perfectly secure; if a breach affects you, we'll tell you as the law requires.

Children

ilmWriter is not for anyone under 18, and we don't knowingly collect their data.

Changes

We'll post updates here with a new version and date, and tell you by email or in the app about important changes.