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FocusFlow Privacy Policy

Last updated: May 19, 2026

This Privacy Policy describes how FocusFlow ("we," "us," or "our") handles your information when you use our website (focusflowreader.app), web application (app.focusflowreader.app), and Chrome browser extension (collectively, the "Service").

Short version: We collect the minimum information needed to run your account and process your subscription. We do not sell your data. We do not run third-party analytics, advertising, or tracking. The text you read with FocusFlow is processed in your browser and never stored on our servers.

1. What we collect

When you create an account or use the Service, the following information is collected:

Account information

  • Email address (provided during sign-up)
  • Authentication credentials (password, OAuth tokens, or social-login identifiers)
  • Sign-in events (timestamps, device, IP address — used for security)

Account information is handled by Clerk, our authentication provider. Passwords are hashed by Clerk and are never stored or seen by FocusFlow.

Subscription information

  • Stripe customer ID (links your account to your subscription)
  • Subscription status (active, canceled, etc.)
  • Last 4 digits of card, billing zip, name on card (handled by Stripe — we do not store card numbers)

Subscription information is handled by Stripe, our payment processor. We never see or store your full payment-card information.

Product preferences and usage

  • Reading preferences (speed, theme, text size) — stored in your browser's localStorage
  • Reading position (where you stopped in a document) — stored in your browser's localStorage
  • Reading stats (total words read, minutes focused, daily streak) — stored in your browser's localStorage
  • Free-trial usage (count of free reads used) — stored on your Clerk account record

Preference and stats data lives on your device. We do not have a copy.

2. What we do NOT collect

  • The text content you read with FocusFlow (pasted text, uploaded files, fetched URLs, or browser-extension reads). This is processed entirely in your browser and never transmitted to our servers.
  • Analytics or tracking data. We do not use Google Analytics, Facebook Pixel, Mixpanel, Segment, or any third-party analytics platform.
  • Advertising identifiers of any kind. We do not show advertisements.
  • Browsing history. The Chrome extension only reads page content you explicitly invoke it on.

3. Sub-processors (third parties we use)

| Service | Purpose | Data shared | |---|---|---| | Clerk (clerk.com) | User authentication, account management | Email, password hash, sign-in events | | Stripe (stripe.com) | Subscription billing, payments | Email, payment-card details (handled by Stripe directly), subscription status | | Vercel (vercel.com) | Hosting our website and web application | Standard web-server access logs (IP, timestamp, user agent) | | AllOrigins (allorigins.win) | Fallback URL-fetching proxy for the "From URL" reader feature | URL you submit (fetched server-side and returned to your browser) |

Each of these providers has its own privacy policy and data-protection practices. We choose providers committed to data protection.

4. The URL proxy (specific note)

When you use the "From URL" feature, the URL you submit is sent to one of two services:

  • First attempt: our own serverless function (/api/fetch), which fetches the URL on your behalf and returns the HTML for processing in your browser
  • Fallback: AllOrigins (a public CORS proxy), used only if our own function is unavailable

In both cases, the URL is fetched server-side, the returned HTML is sent back to your browser, and the actual article content is processed locally. We do not log or store the URLs you fetch beyond standard server access logs.

5. Cookies

We use the minimum cookies necessary to operate the Service:

  • Authentication cookies set by Clerk (so you stay signed in)
  • Subscription cookies set by Stripe on its hosted Checkout pages (off-domain)

We do not set cookies for analytics, advertising, or tracking. We do not use third-party cookies on focusflowreader.app or app.focusflowreader.app.

6. How we use information

We use the information described above to:

  • Authenticate your account
  • Process your subscription and payments
  • Provide the reading service (e.g., counting free-trial reads, applying preferences)
  • Communicate with you about service issues, billing, and important updates
  • Comply with legal obligations

We do not use your information to build advertising profiles, sell it to third parties, or train AI models.

7. Data retention

  • Account data: kept until you delete your account. To delete your account, email us at the address below.
  • Subscription data: kept as required by tax and payment-processor regulations (typically 7 years for financial records).
  • Server access logs: retained for up to 30 days for security and abuse prevention.
  • Local storage on your device: stays in your browser until you clear it.

8. Your rights

Depending on your location, you may have legal rights to:

  • Access the data we hold about you
  • Correct inaccurate data
  • Delete your data
  • Export your data
  • Object to or restrict certain processing
  • Withdraw consent where consent is the legal basis

To exercise any of these rights, email us at support@focusflowreader.app. We respond within 30 days.

9. Children

The Service is not intended for users under 13. We do not knowingly collect information from children under 13. If you believe a child has provided us with information, please contact us and we will delete it.

10. International users

FocusFlow operates from the United States. By using the Service, you understand that your information will be transferred to and processed in the United States, which may have different data-protection laws than your country of residence.

11. Changes to this policy

We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time. The "Last updated" date at the top reflects the most recent revision. Material changes will be communicated via email to active subscribers.

12. Contact us

Questions about this Privacy Policy or your data:

Email: support@focusflowreader.app Service operator: FocusFlow Website: https://focusflowreader.app