Privacy Policy

1. Who We Are

RedactVault is a browser-based document redaction platform designed to allow users to detect, review, and permanently redact sensitive information from documents.

RedactVault is operated from Ireland.

Data protection contact: privacy@redactvault.com

For the purposes of applicable data protection laws, we act as a Data Controller for account and service data described in this policy.

2. Our Core Privacy Principle

RedactVault is built on a simple principle:

Your documents remain under your control.

By default:

• Documents are processed locally in your browser.
• Files are not uploaded to our servers for analysis or redaction.
• We do not read, store, or access the contents of your documents.

If this changes in future features (e.g. optional cloud services), this policy will be updated accordingly with appropriate notice.

3. Information We Collect

We collect different types of information depending on how you use RedactVault.

3.1 Information You Provide

If you create an account, we may collect:

• Name
• Email address
• Company name (if applicable)
• Billing details (handled securely by our payment processor; see Section 9)
• Support communications

We do not collect the contents of your documents.

3.2 Usage & Technical Data

For every recorded visit, anonymous or signed in, our server also estimates the country from the request's network address using a local country database. Only the country code is saved with usage statistics; the address is not saved or sent to a geolocation service. This is an approximate network location, not your precise location. VPNs can show a different country; older visits and addresses that cannot be located are shown as unknown.

We may collect limited technical information such as:

• Browser type and version
• Device type
• Operating system
• IP address (for security and fraud prevention)
• Log data (errors, performance metrics)
• Feature usage analytics (e.g. which detection engines are enabled, document format types used)
• Document processing records (signed-in users only; see below)
• Usage statistics, from everyone, signed in or not (see below)

This data is used strictly to maintain security, improve product performance, fix bugs, and understand feature usage trends. We do not use analytics data to inspect or infer document contents.

Document processing records. When you are signed in, each document you process creates a record in your account: file size and type, how many items of each kind were detected (for example “phone numbers: 14”), how many were redacted, how the text was read (directly or by OCR), processing time, and whether the export succeeded. The record never contains the document's contents or the text that was detected. It powers the Processed Files list and your workspace analytics, and is visible to members of your workspace.

File names are your choice. In Settings → Profile you choose whether file names are saved with these records. When the setting is off, file names are never sent to us: your browser shows them in Processed Files on that device until you sign out, and elsewhere a record shows only its type, size and date. When it is on, the original file name is saved with the record, so it appears on your other devices and to members of your workspace; file names can themselves be sensitive, so choose accordingly. New accounts start with the setting off. Turning it off lets you remove the file names already saved. You can delete a record from Processed Files at any time, and all records are deleted with your account. When you are not signed in, no record is created (Section 3.4).

Usage statistics. To understand how RedactVault is used and where it goes wrong, your browser sends us short usage statistics, whether or not you are signed in: which pages are opened (the page only, never the rest of the web address), the kind of device, browser and operating system and a window-size range (never the full browser identification string), where a visit came from as a category (for example “search engine”), the type, size range and page range of a file you open, how long processing and export took, how many items of each kind were found and how many you kept, how carefully findings were reviewed (for example how many you opened, and the time spent), which features you used, the outcome of the removal checks, and error codes. They never include a document's contents, its name, anything detected in it, or the text of an error message. Our server accepts only these fixed kinds of values and discards anything else. A random visit number, kept only in your browser's memory and gone when you reload or close the page, groups one visit's statistics; nothing is stored on your device for them, and we do not store your IP address or a cookie or device identifier with these statistics. When you are signed in they are stored with your account identifier; when you are not, they are anonymous. Only RedactVault's administrator can see them, and only as totals.

3.3 Cookies & Similar Technologies

RedactVault uses cookies and local storage for:

• Strictly necessary cookies: Authentication sessions, security protections (e.g. CSRF tokens), and essential application functionality. These do not require consent under GDPR as they are essential to provide the Service.
• Preference cookies: Remembering your settings and preferences (e.g. theme, detection engine choices).
• Local working storage: Documents you are working on, and your review progress, are stored in your browser's local storage (IndexedDB) on your device so that work survives a page reload. If you choose not to save file names to your account, the names of the documents you processed are kept here too, so Processed Files can show them. This data never leaves your device. It is erased when an account signs out or a different person signs in. If you use Prepare for AI, the mapping between its placeholders and the real values is kept here too, for up to 24 hours after you last used it (Section 4.3).
• Optional analytics cookies: If you opt in, Google Analytics is used for core page measurement so we can improve the Service. We disable automatic pageview collection, do not enable advertising personalization signals, sanitize tracked page paths, and do not include URL query strings or hash fragments in analytics page URLs.

We do not use third-party advertising cookies. Optional analytics cookies are activated only if you accept them, and you can later change that choice using the Cookie preferences control in the product. We do not use cookies or analytics tools to track or access document contents, and we do not send document names, workspace names, email addresses, or raw URL tokens and session identifiers to Google Analytics. You may disable cookies in your browser settings, but some features may not function properly.

3.4 Using RedactVault Without an Account

You can redact a document without creating an account. When you do:

• Your document is processed entirely in your browser. It is not sent to our servers, and neither is its name, its contents or anything detected in it.
• We do not create a record of your document. Your browser sends the anonymous usage statistics described in Section 3.2 (for example the file's type and size range, how long processing took, how many items of each kind were found, and which features you used). They never include your document's contents, its name or anything detected in it, and nothing that identifies you is stored with them.
• Your work in progress is saved only in your browser's local storage on your device, so that you can continue after reloading the page. It is deleted when anyone signs in to an account in that browser, and you can delete it at any time by clearing your browser's site data.
• Like any website, our servers receive the technical information your browser sends when it loads our pages (such as your IP address and browser type). We use it to deliver the site, protect it from abuse and derive approximate country totals (see Section 3.2).
• Without an account, detection uses our built-in detectors and text recognition (OCR) only, so no AI model is downloaded. AI-assisted detection is available with a free account (Section 4.1).

Optional analytics cookies (Section 3.3) apply only if you accept them.

4. Document Processing

RedactVault is designed so that:

• Document processing occurs locally in your browser.
• Detection engines (including AI-powered models) operate client-side where technically feasible.
• Redactions are applied within the browser before export.

4.1 AI Model Downloads

Certain detection features (such as face detection and AI-assisted entity detection) require your browser to download AI models from RedactVault's content delivery network, hosted by DigitalOcean. No document data is sent with these downloads. The models run entirely within your browser after download and are kept in your browser's cache.

4.2 What We Do Not Do

We do not:

• Store your documents on our servers (unless explicitly stated for future optional features).
• Access, read, or inspect document contents.
• Use document data for AI/ML model training.
• Share document data with third parties.
• Use document metadata for profiling or advertising.

You are solely responsible for ensuring that your use of RedactVault complies with applicable data protection regulations in your jurisdiction.

4.3 Prepare for AI

Prepare for AI replaces the findings you keep with placeholders such as [PERSON_1], so that you can paste the text into an AI assistant of your choice, and then put the real values back into the assistant's reply (“Restore”). RedactVault does not send the text to any AI service and does not call one for you. You choose where to paste it, and that service's own terms and privacy policy apply to what you paste.

• The mapping between each placeholder and its real value is created and kept only in your browser, on your device (in memory, and in your browser's local storage, IndexedDB). It is never sent to our servers, and it is not included in usage statistics, telemetry, audit logs or redaction certificates.
• The mapping is deleted automatically 24 hours after it was last used, when you choose “Forget this mapping”, when an account signs out or a different person signs in to that browser, or when you clear your browser's site data. It is not encrypted: anyone who can use your browser profile could read it while it exists.
• If you choose “Save mapping file”, a file containing the real values is saved to your device. It stays under your control; we cannot see it or delete it.
• Restore works only on text you paste into it. RedactVault never reads your clipboard.
• Text prepared this way is pseudonymised, not anonymised: anyone who holds the mapping can reverse it, so data protection law may still treat it as personal data. Detection can miss things, so check the text before you share it.

5. How We Use Your Information

We use the information we collect to:

• Provide, maintain, and improve the Service
• Process payments and manage subscriptions
• Communicate with you about your account, support requests, and service updates
• Detect and prevent fraud, abuse, and security incidents
• Comply with legal obligations
• Analyze usage trends to improve features and performance (in aggregate, not linked to document contents)

We do not sell your personal data. We do not use your data for advertising.

6. Legal Basis for Processing (GDPR)

If you are located in the European Economic Area (EEA), United Kingdom, or Switzerland, we process personal data under the following legal bases:

• Contractual necessity – to provide your account, process payments, and deliver the Service you requested.
• Legitimate interests – to improve, secure, and maintain the platform, analyze aggregate usage trends, and prevent fraud. We balance these interests against your rights and freedoms.
• Legal obligations – where required by applicable law (e.g. tax record retention).
• Consent – where explicitly requested (e.g. for optional marketing communications). You may withdraw consent at any time.

7. Data Retention and Account Deletion

7.1 How long we keep things

• Account information for as long as your account is open.
• Document processing records for as long as your account is open, unless you delete them sooner from Processed Files. File names are kept only if you chose to save them to your account, and are removed when you delete the record, remove saved names in Settings, or delete your account.
• Billing records. Our payment provider, Stripe, keeps the invoices it issues. We keep our own record of each invoice and payment (amount, date, currency, country, and Stripe's reference) for 7 years from the invoice date, as tax law requires. If your account is deleted, these records are anonymised: your name, email address and invoice links are removed, and the record is linked only to an anonymous reference. After 7 years we delete them.
• Workspace activity logs and our server security logs for up to 12 months.
• Feedback you send through the app for up to 24 months after it is resolved.
• Backups. Our database is backed up every 6 hours. Each backup is kept for 30 days and then deleted, so information we delete is gone from our backups within 30 days.

We do not retain document contents processed locally in your browser. If you use RedactVault without an account, we keep only the anonymous usage statistics described in Section 3.2, which contain nothing from your documents; the only copy of your work in progress is in your own browser.

7.2 Deleting your account

You can delete your account yourself in Settings → Profile → Delete my account. To confirm, you type your email address.

• It is switched off straight away. You are signed out on every device (any page already open elsewhere stops working within 15 minutes) and the account cannot be used.
• You have 30 days to change your mind. Sign in during that time and choose Restore my account; everything is as you left it.
• After 30 days it is permanently deleted. That removes your profile and sign-in details, your settings and email preferences, the workspaces that only you use (with their projects and document history), your document processing records and saved file names, your profile picture, the feedback you sent us and our record of the emails we sent you.
• Shared workspaces. If you own a workspace that other people use, you first transfer it to one of them, so their work is not deleted with your account. Projects you created in someone else's workspace stay with that workspace and pass to its owner. The workspace's activity log keeps what happened but not your name, email address or IP address.
• Subscriptions. When you ask to delete your account, your subscription is set to end at the end of the current billing period, so you are not charged again. If you restore your account within 30 days, it renews as before. When the account is permanently deleted, your payment details are deleted from Stripe. Paid time left at that point, or on a Day Pass when the account is switched off, is not refunded.
• Invoices. Before deleting, download any invoices you need: the deletion dialog and our confirmation email link to them. After deletion we can still find your invoices with Stripe if you write to us from the same email address.
• Your documents are not affected. RedactVault never stored them, and redaction certificates you downloaded still verify offline.

If you cannot sign in, email privacy@redactvault.com from the address on your account and we will delete it for you within one month.

7.3 Inactive free accounts

We delete free accounts that nobody has signed in to for 12 months. We email you 30 days and 7 days before, even if you have unsubscribed from our other emails. If you still do not sign in, the account is switched off and enters the same 30-day restore period as above, then is permanently deleted. Signing in at any point keeps your account. Accounts with a paid subscription or Day Pass, and members of a paid team workspace, are never deleted for inactivity. If our emails to you bounce or you reported them as spam, we cannot send these reminders, but the same timeline applies.

8. Data Security

We implement industry-standard technical and organizational safeguards, including:

• Encrypted HTTPS connections (TLS) for all data in transit
• Encryption at rest for stored personal data
• Secure authentication mechanisms
• Role-based access controls
• Infrastructure security best practices
• Monitoring and logging for abuse prevention

No system can guarantee absolute security, but we take data protection extremely seriously and continuously review our security practices.

9. Third-Party Services & Sub-Processors

We use trusted third-party service providers to operate the Service. These providers only receive the minimum data necessary to perform their function and are contractually bound to protect it.

9.1 Current Sub-Processors

We may update this list as our infrastructure evolves. Material changes to sub-processors will be reflected in updates to this Privacy Policy.

We do not sell personal data to any third party.

10. International Data Transfers

RedactVault is operated from Ireland (within the EU/EEA). Some of our third-party service providers are based outside the EEA.

Where data is transferred outside the European Economic Area, we ensure appropriate safeguards are in place, including:

• European Commission adequacy decisions
• Standard Contractual Clauses (SCCs)
• EU-US Data Privacy Framework certification (where applicable)
• Other equivalent lawful transfer mechanisms under GDPR Article 46

11. Your Rights (EU/EEA/UK)

Under GDPR and equivalent UK data protection law, you have the right to:

• Access – request a copy of the personal data we hold about you
• Rectification – correct inaccurate or incomplete data
• Erasure – delete your account yourself in Settings → Profile (Section 7.2), or ask us to delete your data (“right to be forgotten”)
• Restriction – restrict how we process your data in certain circumstances
• Objection – object to processing based on legitimate interests
• Data portability – receive your data in a structured, machine-readable format
• Withdraw consent – where processing is based on consent, withdraw it at any time
• Lodge a complaint – with a supervisory authority (see below)

To exercise your rights, contact: privacy@redactvault.com

We will respond to valid requests within one calendar month, as required by GDPR. In complex cases, this may be extended by up to two additional months, and we will notify you of any extension.

If you are located in Ireland, you may contact the Data Protection Commission (DPC) at www.dataprotection.ie.

12. Your Rights (United States)

If you are a resident of a US state with consumer privacy legislation (including California, Virginia, Colorado, Connecticut, and others), you may have additional rights, including:

• Right to know – what personal information we collect, use, and disclose
• Right to delete – delete your account yourself in Settings → Profile (Section 7.2), or ask us to delete your personal information
• Right to opt out of sale – we do not sell your personal information
• Right to non-discrimination – we will not discriminate against you for exercising your privacy rights

12.1 California Residents (CCPA/CPRA)

Under the California Consumer Privacy Act (as amended by the CPRA):

• We do not sell or share personal information for cross-context behavioral advertising.
• We do not use or disclose sensitive personal information for purposes beyond what is necessary to provide the Service.
• You may designate an authorized agent to make requests on your behalf.

To exercise your rights, contact: privacy@redactvault.com

13. Data Breach Notification

In the event of a personal data breach that poses a risk to your rights and freedoms:

• We will notify the relevant supervisory authority (the Irish Data Protection Commission) within 72 hours of becoming aware of the breach, as required by GDPR.
• If the breach is likely to result in a high risk to your rights and freedoms, we will notify affected users without undue delay via email or prominent notice within the Service.
• We maintain incident response procedures to detect, investigate, and remediate security incidents.

14. Children's Privacy

RedactVault is not intended for use by children under 16 years of age (or the applicable age of digital consent in your jurisdiction). We do not knowingly collect personal data from children. If we become aware that we have collected data from a child, we will take steps to delete it promptly.

15. Changes to This Policy

We may update this Privacy Policy periodically. If we make material changes, we will:

• Update the “Last Updated” date at the top of this page
• Provide at least 30 days' notice through the Service or via email before material changes take effect
• Where required by law, obtain your consent for material changes to how we process your data

Continued use of RedactVault after changes take effect constitutes acceptance of the updated policy. If you do not agree, you should stop using the Service before the changes take effect.

16. Contact Us

If you have questions about this Privacy Policy, wish to exercise your data protection rights, or have a complaint about how we handle your data, please contact:

Email: privacy@redactvault.com

We aim to resolve all queries and complaints promptly. If you are not satisfied with our response, you have the right to lodge a complaint with your local data protection authority.