Privacy Policy

1. Information We Collect

Account Information

When you create an account through Firebase Authentication, we collect your email address, display name, and authentication provider details (e.g., Google account information). We do not store your password — authentication is handled entirely by Firebase.

Uploaded Documents

When you use our transcription service, you upload images or PDF files of handwritten documents. These files are stored on our servers to provide the transcription service and allow you to access your results.

Usage Data

We automatically collect certain information when you visit our Service, including your IP address, browser type, operating system, referring URLs, pages viewed, and the dates and times of your visits.

Cookies and Local Storage

We use essential cookies and local storage to maintain your session, remember your preferences (such as dark/light mode), and store your cookie consent choice. Analytics cookies are only set with your consent.

2. How We Use Your Information

We use the information we collect to:

• Provide, operate, and maintain our transcription services
• Process your transactions and manage your credit balance
• Send you transactional emails (e.g., purchase confirmations, expert transcription quotes)
• Improve, personalize, and expand our Service
• Understand and analyze how you use our Service
• Detect, prevent, and address technical issues and fraud
• Comply with legal obligations

3. Third-Party Services

We use the following third-party services to operate GermanLetters:

• Anthropic (Claude AI) — Your uploaded documents are sent to Anthropic's API for AI-powered transcription. Anthropic processes data solely to provide the transcription and does not retain your documents. See Anthropic's Privacy Policy.
• Google Gemini — Used as an alternative AI model for transcription processing. See Google's Privacy Policy.
• Stripe — Handles all payment processing for credit purchases. We do not store your credit card information. See Stripe's Privacy Policy.
• Firebase (Google) — Provides authentication services. See Firebase Privacy Information.
• Google Analytics — Used with your consent to understand how visitors interact with our Service. See Google's Privacy Policy.
• Resend — Used for sending transactional emails (e.g., expert transcription quotes). We do not send marketing or newsletter emails. See Resend's Privacy Policy.

4. Data Sharing

We do not sell your personal information. We share your information only with the third-party service providers listed above, and only to the extent necessary to provide our Service. We may also disclose your information if required to do so by law or in response to valid legal process.

5. Your Privacy Rights — California

If you are a California resident, you have specific rights under the California Consumer Privacy Act (CCPA) and the California Privacy Rights Act (CPRA):

• Right to Know: You may request information about the categories and specific pieces of personal information we have collected about you.
• Right to Delete: You may request that we delete the personal information we have collected from you, subject to certain exceptions.
• Right to Opt-Out of Sale: We do not sell personal information. However, you have the right to opt out if this changes.
• Right to Non-Discrimination: We will not discriminate against you for exercising any of your privacy rights.
• Right to Correct: You may request that we correct inaccurate personal information.
• Right to Limit Use of Sensitive Personal Information: You may request that we limit the use of your sensitive personal information.

To exercise these rights, please contact us at st@mes-beratung.de. We will respond to your request within 45 days.

6. Your Privacy Rights — Other States

Residents of Virginia, Colorado, Connecticut, Utah, and other states with comprehensive privacy laws may have similar rights, including the right to access, correct, delete, and obtain a copy of personal data, as well as the right to opt out of targeted advertising and profiling. To exercise these rights, please contact us at st@mes-beratung.de.

7. Do Not Track / Global Privacy Control

We honor Global Privacy Control (GPC) signals. When we detect a GPC signal from your browser, we treat it as a valid opt-out request and will not load non-essential tracking technologies.

8. Cookies

By default, we only use essential cookies required for the Service to function properly. These include:

• sidebar_state (cookie) — Remembers sidebar open/closed state. Expires after 7 days.
• cookie-consent (local storage) — Stores your cookie consent preference.
• germanletters-theme (local storage) — Stores your light/dark mode preference.

Analytics cookies (Google Analytics) are only loaded after you provide consent through our cookie banner.

9. Data Security

We implement appropriate technical and organizational measures to protect your personal information, including SSL/TLS encryption for all data transmitted between your browser and our servers. However, no method of transmission over the Internet or method of electronic storage is 100% secure, and we cannot guarantee absolute security.

10. Data Retention and Deletion

We retain your personal information only for as long as necessary to provide our Service and fulfill the purposes described in this policy. You can delete individual transcription jobs (including uploaded files) at any time through your account settings. You can also delete your entire account, which will permanently remove all your personal data, uploaded documents, and transcription results from our servers.

11. Children's Privacy

Our Service is not intended for children under 13 years of age, and we do not knowingly collect personal information from children under 13. If we learn that we have collected personal information from a child under 13, we will promptly delete that information. If you believe a child under 13 has provided us with personal information, please contact us at st@mes-beratung.de.

12. International Data Transfers

Our Service is operated from and data is processed in the United States. If you are accessing the Service from outside the United States, please be aware that your information may be transferred to, stored, and processed in the United States, where data protection laws may differ from those in your country of residence. By using our Service, you consent to the transfer of your information to the United States.

13. Changes to This Policy

We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time to reflect changes in our practices or applicable law. We will notify you of any material changes by posting the updated policy on this page and updating the "Effective Date" at the top. Your continued use of the Service after any changes constitutes your acceptance of the updated policy.

14. Contact Us

If you have any questions about this Privacy Policy or wish to exercise your privacy rights, please contact us:

ITEBV GmbH
Email: st@mes-beratung.de