Privacy policy

Last modified: May 24th, 2022



LanguageTool is a software for text verification. For this purpose, your texts are transmitted from the browser to our servers via an encrypted connection. On this page we describe what data we process and how we do it.

Summary

Your texts sent for review will not be saved, with the following exceptions:

  • If you use our online editor on https://languagetool.org/editor or the editor functionality of our desktop apps, your texts are stored on our server. The texts are deleted when you move them to the recycle bin and then delete them there.
  • If you explicitly ignore correction suggestions, we store the internal ID of this rule and the text fragment marked as incorrect (i.e. the small part of the sentence that was underlined as an error) and 15 characters to the right and left of it. This allows us to detect and avoid false positives.
  • In the very rare case of an internal software error, we anonymously store the sentence that triggered the error so that we can find the cause and correct the error. These records are stored for up to 14 days.
  • For the "Paraphrases" feature, see below.

You can find our contact information here.

1. Preamble

LanguageTooler GmbH (hereinafter: "LanguageTool") takes the protection of its customers' personal data very seriously. It is important to us that you can trust the company to protect your personal data at all times and that you know how the company uses your data while ensuring data protection. With this privacy policy, we inform you about the processing of personal data (hereinafter: data) by the company when you use our offers on one of our websites or add-ons.

2. Responsible person and contact details

Daniel Naber, [email protected]

3. Processing of personal data

The use of your data is governed by the applicable legal provisions, in particular the General Data Protection Regulation (hereinafter: GDPR).

4.1 Orders on our website

Why and on what legal basis is data processed?

When you place an order in our online store at languagetool.org, the data required to establish a contract and process your order, i.e. first and last name, billing address and your e-mail address, are collected. The data will be processed for the purpose of assigning your order to your person, delivery, invoicing, payment processing and clarification of possible legal claims.

The legal basis is Art. 6 para. 1 b) GDPR. If you wish, you can create a customer account (registration). Registration additionally requires the definition of a password (access data) so that only you can log into your customer account. We may process the data provided by you during registration in accordance with Art. 6 para. 1 b) GDPR, provided that this is necessary for the establishment or fulfillment of a contract.

Will data be shared?

For the following purposes, we also transfer the data, at least in part, to the following processors and other recipients:

Billing and customer management

Invoicing and fulfillment of tax law retention obligations for digital subscriptions on our behalf

Payment service providers such as credit card companies (e.g. Recurly)

Your name and payment details will be passed on for payment processing in the case of subscription orders, provided you have selected the payment method "credit card" or direct debit.

Technical service providers

Data is passed on to processors for the purposes of hosting and maintaining our website, quality assurance or in the context of any mailing services.

for further recipients see below

Recurly

We use Recurly (Recurly, Inc., 400 Alabama St, Suite 202, San Francisco, California 94110, USA) to manage subscriptions. Recurly is a platform for managing subscriptions and creating invoices. For this purpose, Recurly - if you use our premium offer - processes, among other things, your name, address and the payment information provided.

EU standard data protection clauses have been agreed on with Recurly, which ensure a transfer of data under appropriate safeguards in accordance with Art. 46 GDPR. More information about data protection at Recurly can be found at https://recurly.com/legal/privacy/.

Fastspring

We use Fastspring (Bright Market, LLC d/b/a FastSpring. 801 Garden St., Santa Barbara, CA 93101, USA) to sell API and team subscriptions. Your data provided at the time of purchase will be kept by FastSpring even after a subscription cancellation for tax reasons. Your credit card information - if you use a credit card to purchase the product - is transferred to FastSpring and is not known to LanguageTool.

EU standard data protection clauses have been agreed on with Fastspring, which ensure a transfer of data under appropriate safeguards in accordance with Art. 46 GDPR. More information about data protection at Recurly can be found at https://fastspring.com/privacy/.

PayPal

We offer the option to process the payment transaction via the payment service provider PayPal (PayPal (Europe) S.à.r.l. et Cie, S.C.A., 22-24 Boulevard Royal, L-2449 Luxembourg). This is in line with our legitimate interest in offering an efficient and secure payment method (Art. 6 para. 1 lit. f GDPR). In this context, we pass on the following data to PayPal, insofar as it is necessary for the fulfillment of the contract (Art. 6 para. 1 lit. b. GDPR): First name, last name, address, email address.

The processing of the data provided under this section is not required by law or contract. Without the transfer of your personal data, we can not carry out a payment via PayPal. It is possible for you to choose another payment method.

PayPal conducts a credit check for various services such as payment by direct debit in order to ensure your willingness and ability to pay. This corresponds to the legitimate interest of PayPal (according to Art. 6 para. 1 lit. f GDPR) and serves the execution of the contract (according to Art. 6 para. 1 lit. b GDPR). For this purpose, your data (name, address and date of birth, bank account details) will be passed on to credit agencies. We have no influence on this process and only receive the result, namely whether the payment was made or rejected or a verification is pending.

You can find more information about objection and removal options vis-à-vis PayPal at: https://www.paypal.com/webapps/mpp/ua/privacy-full

Your data will be stored until the completion of the payment processing. This also includes the period required for the processing of refunds, claims management and fraud prevention.

Stripe

We offer the option to process the payment transaction via the payment service provider Stripe, ℅ Legal Process, 510 Townsend St., San Francisco, CA 94103 (Stripe). This is in line with our legitimate interest in offering an efficient and secure payment method (Art. 6 para. 1 lit. f GDPR). In this context, we share the following data with Stripe to the extent necessary for the performance of the contract (Art. 6 para. 1 lit. b. GDPR): name of the cardholder, email address, credit card data, validity period of the credit card, credit card verification number (CVC), transaction amount, name of the provider, city.

The processing of the data provided under this section is not required by law or contract. Without the transfer of your personal data, we cannot make a payment via Stripe. It is possible for you to choose another payment method.

Stripe has a dual role in data processing activities as a controller and processor. As a controller, Stripe uses your submitted data to fulfill regulatory obligations. This corresponds to Stripe's legitimate interest (pursuant to Art. 6 (1) lit. f GDPR) and serves the performance of the contract (pursuant to Art. 6 (1) lit. b GDPR). We have no influence on this process.

Stripe acts as an order processor in order to be able to complete transactions within the payment networks. Within the scope of the order processing relationship, Stripe acts exclusively according to our instructions and has been contractually obligated within the meaning of Art. 28 GDPR to comply with the provisions of data protection law.

Stripe has implemented compliance measures for international data transfers. These apply to all global activities where Stripe processes personal data of individuals in the EU. These measures are based on the EU Standard Contractual Clauses (SCCs).

For more information about opt-out and removal options with respect to Stripe, please visit: https://stripe.com/privacy-center/legal

Your data will be stored by us until the completion of the payment processing. This also includes the period required for the processing of refunds, claims management and fraud prevention.

Do I have to provide my data?

The provision of your data is neither legally nor contractually required. However, for a contract to be concluded with us, at least the provision of your name, the country in which your place of residence is located and your e-mail address is required. Otherwise we would not be able to send you an order confirmation by e-mail. For all payment methods, the provision of payment data is required, otherwise we would not be able to charge your account or credit card with the agreed price.

When will my data be deleted at the latest?

We may store data until the final settlement of the respective contract. In the case of purchase contracts, we may store data until receipt of payment and beyond that for up to two years after delivery. If the storage is necessary for the fulfillment of our legal obligations according to Art. 6 para. 1 c) GDPR in connection with the German Commercial Code or the German Fiscal Code, we are entitled to store data until the expiry of the retention periods mentioned there. This may result in a storage period of up to 7 years. The data provided as part of a registration will be deleted either at your request or at the latest after 4 years after the last order, unless we are entitled to longer storage for the reasons stated above.

4.2 Advertising

In some cases, we also use your data to send e-mail advertising for our products, provided that you are our customer, you have given us your e-mail address and you have not objected to the advertising (for your right to object, see 5.4). The processing of the data is based on Art. 6 para. 1 f) GDPR. We have a legitimate economic interest in sending our existing customers advertising by e-mail.

4.3 Contacting

We process data that you have entered in our contact form or transmitted to us by e-mail or otherwise so that we can process and respond to your inquiry.

We may process data that you enter in our contact form in accordance with Art. 6 (1) a) GDPR, provided that you have consented to this processing by clicking on the "Send message" button or similar. If you enter sensitive information containing special categories of data in the "Message" field (e.g. origin, political opinions, religion, health data), you also consent to the processing of this data. if you send us data by e-mail or otherwise, the legal basis is Art. 6 (1) f) and, if applicable, b) GDPR.

We transmit your contact request to the order processors named under 4.1 and 4.6.1 and, in addition, if necessary also to the recipients named below:

  • Our e-mail service provider mailbox.org, operated by Heinlein Hosting GmbH, Schwedter Straße 8/9A, 10119 Berlin, Germany.
  • Our support system provider freshdesk, operated by freshworks, 2950 S. Delaware Street, Suite 201, San Mateo CA 94403, USA. The transfer of data takes place within the framework of an order processing contract and the standard contractual clauses contained therein. Details can be found at https://freshdesk.com/gdpr.

If you send us feedback directly via the feedback function integrated in the browser add-on, we transfer the following information to better analyze the problem: Premium account (if set), add-on version, languages accepted by the browser and language of the browser interface, country of the user determined from the IP address, website currently visited, HTML code of the current text field without its text content, number of CPU cores, date of first add-on use, rating of the add-on (thumbs up/down), activation status of the synonym feature, duration of add-on use in days, address of the LanguageTool API server used (e.g. api.languagetool.org), status of the "Do not track" setting, speed of the Internet connection, IDs of the rules deactivated by the user.

4.4 Newsletter

If you have ordered a newsletter from the publisher, we process your e-mail address for the purpose of sending you our newsletter on a regular basis. After ordering the newsletter, you will receive an e-mail from us with a link to verify your e-mail address.

The legal basis for the dispatch is your consent, which you gave us when ordering the newsletter (Art. 6 para. 1 a) GDPR). The provision of your data is not mandatory. However, the provision of your e-mail address is required for receiving our newsletter. The provision of your name serves the purpose that we can address you personally. Your data, which you have provided in the context of ordering the newsletter, will be deleted as soon as you have unsubscribed from the newsletter. You can unsubscribe from the newsletter at any time, e.g. by clicking on the corresponding unsubscribe link at the end of a newsletter (to withdraw your consent, see 5.5). Unsubscribing from the newsletter also means that you will no longer receive promotional emails according to 4.2.

Mailjet and SendGrid are used as newsletter software. Your data will be transmitted to these service providers::

4.5 Visitors of the Websites

4.5.1 Creating log files

When you visit our website, the following information is stored in log file:

  • the shortened IP address of your computer or mobile device,
  • the date and time of your access
  • the names of the files you have accessed and the amount of data transferred,
  • the type of operating system and web browser used, including language settings, and
  • the website from which you reached our website (referrer URL),
  • the web pages that are called up by the user's system via our website

The storage of a large amount of this data is necessary for technical reasons to display the website on your device and to ensure system security. This data is also analyzed anonymously for statistical purposes and to improve our website. We do not link this data with your other personal data.

This data is partly transferred to service providers for the respective stated purposes, who process the data on our behalf within the meaning of Art. 28 GDPR.

4.5.2 Use of web fonts

We use external fonts, so-called Google Web Fonts, on the websites. Google Fonts is a service of Google Ireland Limited, Gordon House, 4 Barrow St, Dublin, D04 E5W5, Ireland ("Google"). The integration of these web fonts takes place through a server call, usually a Google server in the USA. This transmits to the server which of our Internet pages you have visited. The IP address of the browser of the end device of the visitor to these Internet pages is also stored by Google. You can find more information in Google's privacy policy, which you can access here:

www.google.com/fonts

www.google.com/policies/privacy

The integration is based on our legitimate interests (Art. 6 para. 1 f) GDPR) in a technically secure, maintenance-free and efficient use of fonts, their uniform display and taking into account possible licensing restrictions for their integration.

4.5.3 Use of cookies

a) General

In order to make visiting our websites more attractive and to enable the use of certain functions, we use so-called cookies on various pages. These are small text files that are stored on your device. Some of the cookies we use are deleted after the end of the browser session, i.e. after you close your browser (so-called session cookies). Other cookies remain on your device and enable us or our partner companies to recognize your browser on your next visit (so-called persistent cookies).

Cookies cannot be used to access other files on your computer or to determine your e-mail address.

b) Use of cookies

Like most websites you visit, our website uses cookies to improve the user experience on both one-time and repeat visits to the website. This allows you, for example, to switch between pages quickly and easily, save your configurations, and use third-party tools (such as YouTube videos) on the website.

Cookies are set either by our website (first party cookies) or by other websites whose content appears on our website (third-party cookies). These third-party providers may set cookies when you are logged into their sites and visit our website. We have no control over the cookie settings of these websites. Please visit the websites of the third-party providers for more information about their use of cookies.

c) Legitimation of the storage of cookies

The storage of the following cookies is based on our respective legitimate interests (Art. 6 para. 1 f) GDPR):

Absolutely necessary cookies

These cookies are necessary for the website to function and cannot be disabled in your systems. Usually, these cookies are set only in response to actions you take that correspond to a service request, such as setting your privacy preferences, logging in, or filling out forms. You can set your browser to block these cookies or to notify you about these cookies. However, some areas of the website will not work then. These cookies do not store any personal data.

Statistical cookies

These cookies collect information about how a website is used - for example, which pages a visitor visits most often and whether error messages are received from a page. We collect this information out of our legitimate interest in maintaining an optimally usable and marketable website at all times. These cookies do not store any information that allows identification of the user. The information collected is aggregated and thus evaluated anonymously. These cookies are used to record usage in order to improve the performance of a website and thus the user experience.

Performance cookies

These cookies allow us to count visits and traffic sources so that we can measure and improve the performance of our website. They help us answer questions about which pages are the most popular, which are the least used, and how visitors move around the site. All information collected by these cookies is aggregated and therefore anonymous. If you do not allow these cookies, we will not be able to know when you visited our website.

Functional cookies

With these cookies, the website is able to provide advanced functionality and personalization. They may be set by us or by third parties whose services we use on our sites. If you do not allow these cookies, some or all of these services may not work properly.

The storage of the following additional cookies is based on the user's consent (Art. 6 para. 1 a) GDPR). In part, the corresponding data is processed by the respective listed partners in the USA, in which no appropriate level of data protection can be assumed as a so-called third country. By agreeing to the use of cookies for marketing purposes, you consent to the processing of your data in the USA (Art 49 para.1 lit. a GDPR). However, these cookies are only set if the user consents to their storage by giving consent as part of the cookie notice on the website:

Cookies for marketing purposes

These cookies may be set through our website by our advertising partners. They can be used by these companies to profile your interests and show you relevant advertising on other websites. They do not store any direct personal information, but are based on the unique identification of your browser and internet device.

d) Disabling and deleting cookies

Most browsers are set to accept cookies automatically. If the default settings for cookies are saved in your browser, all processes run in the background, unnoticed by you. However, these settings can be changed by you.

You can set your browser so that you are informed about the setting of cookies and decide individually about their acceptance or exclude the acceptance of cookies for certain cases or in general.

The storage of cookies can be prevented in the browser settings. Please note that then not all functions of this online offer can be used.

Here you can change your cookie settings for our homepage:
https://languagetool.org/legal/cookie-settings?return=/

4.5.5 Web analytics through Google Analytics (cookie-based)

We use Google Analytics on our website. This is an analysis service provided by Google Ireland Limited, Gordon House, 4 Barrow St, Dublin, D04 E5W5, Ireland (Google).

Google uses cookies (see above). The information generated by the cookie about your use of our website is usually transmitted to Google in the USA and processed there. The same applies to your anonymized IP address. In addition, Google Analytics processes the data contained in the log files, the Internet address of the website that you had accessed before visiting our website (referrer URL) and the search term with which you found our website via a search engine.

Google will process this data on our behalf for the purpose of evaluating the use of our website and compiling reports on website activity. Google uses the data contained in the log files, for example, to create statistics about the frequency of access to our website. In doing so, pseudonymous usage profiles of visitors to this website can be created from the processed data.

We only use Google Analytics with IP anonymization enabled. This means that your IP address is shortened by Google within member states of the European Union or the European Economic Area. Only in exceptional cases will the full IP address be transmitted to Google in the USA and only shortened there.

You can prevent cookies from being stored by changing the settings of your browser: http://tools.google.com/dlpage/gaoptout?hl=en. This will set an opt-out cookie in the browser you are currently using, with effect for our website. If you delete your cookies in this browser, you must click this link again. If you use multiple devices or browsers, you must click this link for each individual device in each individual browser.

The processing of the data is based on your consent (Art. 6 para. 1 a) GDPR).

For more information about Google Analytics, please visit the following Google website: https://support.google.com/analytics/answer/6004245?hl=en.

4.5.6 Web analytics through FullStory

We use "FullStory", a web analytics service provided by Fullstory Inc, 1745 Peachtree Rd NW Suite G, Atlanta, GA 30309, USA (hereinafter "FullStory"), on a few pages.

Among other things, FullStory uses cookies to enable an analysis of your use of our website. The information collected in this way is transmitted to FullStory on a server in the USA and stored there. The following information is collected through the tracking code: Device-dependent data collected by your terminal device and web browser:

  • IP address of your terminal device (collected and stored in an anonymized format)
  • E-mail address including your first and last name, insofar as you have provided it to us via our website
  • Screen size of your terminal
  • Device type and browser information
  • Geographical data (country only)
  • Language for displaying our website
  • User interactions
  • Mouse commands (movement, position and clicks)
  • Keystrokes (not for sensitive fields like your texts to be checked or credit card information)

Log data automatically used by our server when using FullStory:

  • Referring domain
  • Visited websites
  • Geographical data (country only)
  • Language used to display our website
  • Date and time of access

FullStory uses this information to evaluate your use of our website, to compile reports on usage and to provide other services in connection with the evaluation of our website. FullStory also uses third-party services (e.g. Google and Fastly) to provide services. These third parties may store or otherwise process information that your browser transmits when you visit our Website (which may include your IP address).

We use FullStory for the purpose of analyzing the use of our website and to be able to continuously improve individual functions and offers as well as the user experience. Through the statistical evaluation of user behavior, we can improve our offer and make it more interesting for you as a user. The processing of the data is based on your consent (Art. 6 para. 1 a) GDPR).

For more information, please see FullStory's Privacy Policy at https://www.fullstory.com/legal/privacy-policy/.

You can object to FullStory storing a user profile and information about your visit to our website and to FullStory setting tracking cookies on other websites by clicking this link Opt-out link.

4.5.7 Error analysis by Sentry.io

We use "Sentry" on some pages (e.g. the checkout page or the editor), a service provided by Functional Software, Inc., 45 Fremont Street, 8th Floor, San Francisco, CA 94105, USA.

Sentry allows us to log software errors. The information collected in this way is transmitted to Sentry on a server in the USA only in the event of an internal software error and stored there. The following information is collected:

  • Email address including your first and last name, zip code and VAT ID, if you have provided it to us through our website
  • Browser information
  • Language used to display our website
  • User interactions
  • Date and time of access

Sentry uses this information to evaluate your use of our website in the event of errors, to generate reports on usage, and to provide other services related to the evaluation of our website. Sentry also uses third party services (e.g. Amazon Web Services or Sendgrid) to provide its services. These third parties may store or otherwise process information that your browser transmits when you visit our website (which may include your IP address).

We use Sentry for the purpose of logging, analyzing and correcting software errors on our website. EU standard data protection clauses have been agreed on with Sentry, which ensure a transfer of data under appropriate safeguards in accordance with Art. 46 GDPR. For more information, please see Sentry's Privacy Policy at https://sentry.io/privacy/.

4.5.8 Use of YouTube videos

We embed videos from YouTube, a social media platform from Google, on our website.

When you visit a website that includes a video from YouTube, data is transferred to a Google server and stored there. If you have a user account with Google and are registered, Google can thereby assign the visit to your user account. Google stores this data as usage profiles and uses it for purposes of advertising, market research and/or needs-based design of its websites. Such an evaluation is carried out in particular (also for users who are not logged in) for the display of tailored advertising and to inform other users of the social network about your activities on our website. You have the right to object to the creation of these user profiles. Please contact Google directly for this purpose.

We integrate content from YouTube on the web pages of our Internet presence in order to make this content directly available to you without you having to call up the content separately on YouTube. This allows you to use functions of the YouTube social media platform already on our website. This allows us to improve our offer and the user experience for you and make it more interesting. This is also our legitimate interest in the processing of the above data by the third-party provider. The legal basis is our legitimate interest in the user-friendly design of our offers (Art. 6 para. 1 p. 1 lit. f) GDPR).

If you want to prevent data transfer, you cannot use the YouTube functions. Regardless of this, we recommend that you regularly log out of your user account there after using a social network, but especially before activating embedded content, as this allows you to avoid an assignment to your profile with the respective provider.

Further information on data protection and data use by Google can be found on the following Google website: https://policies.google.com/privacy?hl=en.

4.5.9 Use of Cloudflare

We use a so-called Content Delivery Network ("CDN") of the technology service provider Cloudflare Inc., 101 Townsend St. San Francisco, CA 94107, USA (hereinafter Cloudflare) on our website.

A content delivery network is an online service that is used to deliver large media files in particular (such as graphics, page content or scripts) through a network of regionally distributed servers connected via the Internet. The use of Cloudflare's Content Delivery Network helps us optimize the loading speeds of our website.

The processing is carried out pursuant to Art. 6 para. 1 lit. f) GDPR on the basis of our legitimate interest in a secure and efficient provision, as well as improvement of the stability and functionality of our website.

For more information, please see Cloudflare's privacy policy at: https://www.cloudflare.com/privacypolicy/

4.5.10 a) Login with your Google account

If you are a member of Google Ireland Limited ("Google"), Gordon House, Barrow Street, Dublin 4, Ireland, you can log in to our website by clicking on the button "Log in with your Google account" (or similar). To log in, you will be redirected to Google, where you can log in with your Google usage data. When you log in this way, we receive the following data from Google from your Google profile: user name, last name, first name, profile picture. We use this data exclusively for the purpose of registration / login as a customer. For the purpose of the processing of the data by Google and your rights in this regard, please refer to Google's privacy policy: https://policies.google.com/privacy. We have no influence on the processing by Google. If you do not agree with such data transfer between Google and us, we ask you not to log in to us with your Google access.

Conversely, data may also be transferred from our website to Google. The legal basis for the transfer of or to Google is your consent (Art. 6 para. 1 a GDPR). Provision of this data is voluntary. A registration with Google is not required for a contract with us.

4.5.10 b) Logging in with your Facebook access

If you are a member of Facebook Inc., 4 Grand Canal Square, Dublin 2, Ireland, you can log in to our website by clicking the button "Log in with your Facebook account" (or similar). To log in, you will be redirected to Facebook, where you can log in with your Facebook usage data. When you log in this way, we receive the following data from your Facebook profile from Facebook Inc.: user name, last name, first name, profile picture. We use this data exclusively for the purpose of registration / login as a customer. For the purpose of the processing of the data by Facebook and your rights in this regard, please refer to Facebook's privacy policy: https://www.facebook.com/policy.php. We have no influence on the processing by Facebook. If you do not agree with such data transfer between Facebook and us, we ask you not to log in to us with your Facebook access.

Conversely, data may also be transferred from our website to Facebook Inc. The legal basis for the transfer of or to Facebook is your consent (Art. 6 para. 1 a GDPR). Provision of this data is voluntary. A registration with Facebook is not required for a contract with us.

4.5.10 c) Logging in with your Apple account

If you are a member of Apple Inc. ("Apple"), Infinite Loop, Cupertino, CA 95014, you can sign in to our website by clicking the "Sign in with your Apple account" button (or similar). To sign in, you will be redirected to Apple, where you can sign in using your Apple Usage Data. When you log in this way, we receive the following data from your Apple profile: user name, surname, first name, profile picture. We use this data exclusively for the purpose of registration / login as a customer. For the purpose of the processing of the data by Apple and your rights in this regard, please refer to Apple's privacy policy: https://www.apple.com/privacy/. We have no influence on the processing by Apple. If you do not agree with such data transfer between Apple and us, we ask you not to log in to us with your Apple access.

Conversely, data may also be transferred from our website to Apple. The legal basis for the transfer of or to Apple is your consent (Art. 6 para. 1 a GDPR). Provision of this data is voluntary. A registration with Apple is not required for a contract with us.

4.5.11 a) Special data protection information for the LanguageTool homepage and our add-ons

Your texts sent for review via our add-ons are not saved, with the following exceptions:

  • If you use our online editor on https://languagetool.org/editor or use our desktop apps: see next section
  • If you accept correction suggestions, we anonymously store the internal ID of this error rule (e.g. EN_A_VS_AN for the rule that finds a/an confusions).
  • If you explicitly ignore correction suggestions, we anonymously store the internal ID of this error rule and the text fragment underlined as incorrect and 15 characters to the right and left of it. This allows us to detect false alarms from our system and avoid them in the future.
  • In the very rare case of an internal software error (so-called "exception"), we anonymously store the sentence that triggered the error so that we can find the cause and correct the error. These sentences are stored anonymously for up to 14 days.
  • To improve the speed of our software, we store checked records and the errors found in them for up to 15 minutes on our servers in memory (not on a permanent storage medium). The storage is done without IP address or other information that would allow the records to be assigned to a person.

To improve the quality and availability of our system, we also store the following information:

  • Date and time, length of the text, language of the text (but not the checked text itself), duration of processing, number and type of errors detected (e.g. "capitalization at the beginning of a sentence", "confusion of 'a' and 'an'"),
  • The page from which the request was sent (e.g. languagetool.org),
  • Add-on version; date of installation; random ID of the text field whose text is checked. Password fields are ignored by the add-on and are not transmitted to our servers.
  • The following data is transmitted only in case of a browser add-on uninstallation: the number of times the add-on was used and the URL of the page where the add-on was last used. This allows us to determine which pages do not work correctly with our add-on.
  • Only if you have an account on languagetool.org and if you are logged into the add-on with that account: The add-on contacts our servers periodically (about once a day) to let us know that you are an active user. This includes your browser (e.g. Firefox) and your email address (which we already know because you already have an account on our system). This allows us to understand user activity and to improve our software.

4.5.11 b) Special privacy notices for the LanguageTool editor

For our editor at languagetool.org/editor/ and our desktop applications for Windows and Mac, the following applies in addition to the other notices in this privacy statement:

When you use our editor, the texts you edit there are saved so you can access them in the future. To protect you from accidentally deleting your documents, documents are first moved to the recycle bin when they are deleted. They are not permanently removed from our system until they are also deleted from the recycle bin.

The storage takes place on servers in Germany, hosted by Amazon Web Services EMEA SARL, branch Germany, Marcel-Breuer-Str. 12, 80807 Munich, Germany.

The legal basis is your consent (Art. 6 para. 1 a) GDPR). The data will be deleted as soon as you delete your user account.

A user account is required to use the editor so that your texts can be assigned to you.

4.5.11 b) Special privacy notices for the "Paraphrases" feature

For some languages, our synonym function offers the possibility to generate paraphrases of your sentence. Some of these suggestions are provided by OpenAI (OpenAI L.L.C., 3180 18th Street, San Francisco, CA 94110, USA). In order to generate the suggestions, we must send the particular set to OpenAI for processing. OpenAI reserves the right to store this data. Details can be found in OpenAI's Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. The legal basis is your consent (Art. 6 para. 1 a) GDPR). EU standard data protection clauses have been agreed on with OpenAI, which ensure a transfer of data under appropriate safeguards in accordance with Art. 46 GDPR. We also anonymously store the sentence for which you create variations and your selection of our variation. The legal basis is your consent (Art. 6 para. 1 a) GDPR).

4.6 Statistics and analysis tools

4.6.1 Web analysis through Matomo

We use Matomo on our website. This is an analysis service of the open source project Matomo (formerly Piwik), which is represented within the EU by ePrivacy Holding GmbH, Große Bleichen 21 in 20354 Hamburg.

Matomo uses cookies (see above). The protection of your data is important to us, which is why we have additionally configured Matomo so that your IP address is only recorded in abbreviated form. We therefore process your personal usage data anonymously. It is not possible for us to draw conclusions about your person. For more information about Matomo's terms of use and data protection regulations, please visit: https://matomo.org/privacy/. You can find information about the individual cookies under https://matomo.org/faq/general/faq_146/.

4.6.2 Web analysis through Google Analytics (without cookies)

LanguageTool carries out evaluations of a purely statistical nature and completely anonymously at the request of the customer and also itself for the purpose of analyzing usage by customers. The data collected by the statistics is used exclusively to optimize the performance of the services. In this way, we can improve the way the service work. These statistics are partly performed using an implementation of Google Analytics that does not use cookies. We have also added the configuration parameter "anonymizeIp" to Google Analytics. Your IP address is recorded exclusively shortened by the code. We therefore process your personal usage data in Google Analytics anonymously. Otherwise, your data is processed exclusively pseudonymously. It is not possible for us to draw conclusions about your person. For more information on the terms of use of Google Analytics and the data protection regulations, please visit: https://policies.google.com/?hl=en&gl=en.

If you want to disable Google Analytics in your browser, please go to https://tools.google.com/dlpage/gaoptout?hl=en, download and install the appropriate add-on.

5. Rights of the persons concerned

If your data is processed by us, you are a data subject within the meaning of the GDPR and you are entitled to the following rights against the controller. You can assert all of these rights by sending an e-mail to [email protected]

5.1 Right to information and data portability

According to Art. 15 GDPR, you have the right to request information about this from us,

  • whether we have stored data about you, and if so, what data we have stored and for what purposes,
  • where this data comes from
  • and to which recipients or categories of recipients, if any, this data will be disclosed.

According to Art. 21 GDPR, you have the right to receive your data transmitted to us on the basis of consent or a contract, provided that the processing is automated. If you wish and if this is technically possible, we will transmit this data to a third party.

5.2 Right to rectification

You have a right to have your data corrected and/or, under certain circumstances, completed vis-à-vis the data controller if the data concerning you is incorrect or incomplete (Art. 16 GDPR).

5.3 Right of deletion or blocking

You have the right that we delete your data under the conditions of Art. 17 GDPR or block it according to Art. 18 GDPR. If you delete your customer account with us, we will delete your data unless we are entitled to store it for the fulfillment of contracts that have not yet been completed, for the assertion of legal claims or for the fulfillment of legal obligations.

5.4 Right of objection

Insofar as we process data to protect our interests exclusively on the basis of Art. 6 (1) f) GDPR, you have the right to object to the processing of your data on grounds relating to your particular situation. If you object, we will no longer process the data concerned unless we can demonstrate compelling legitimate grounds for the processing which override your interests, rights and freedoms, or the processing serves to enforce legal claims.

In addition, you can object to the processing of your data for advertising purposes at any time without incurring any costs other than the transmission costs according to the basic rates. You can object to the sending of advertising e-mails at any time free of charge, e.g. by clicking on the corresponding unsubscribe link at the end of an advertising e-mail. An objection will also result in you no longer receiving newsletters (4.4).

5.5 Right to revoke consent

If you have consented to the use of your data, you can revoke this consent at any time. The revocation can be declared in an e-mail to [email protected] The revocation does not affect the lawfulness of the processing until the revocation. We will then delete your data unless we are legally entitled or obliged to process it.

5.6 Right to complain to a supervisory authority

You have the right to file a complaint with a supervisory authority, in particular with the Landesbeauftragte für den Datenschutz und das Recht auf Akteneinsicht Brandenburg, Stahnsdorfer Damm 77, 14532 Kleinmachnow

6. Links

Insofar as we use links on our Internet pages to refer to Internet pages that are not operated by us, we are not responsible for compliance with data protection provisions on these Internet pages.

7. Data transfer to third countries

As part of our data processing operations described above, we may transfer your personal data to other countries (including countries outside the EEA), which may have different data protection standards than those applicable in your country of residence. Please note that data processed in third countries may be subject to local laws and may be accessible to foreign governments, courts, law enforcement and regulatory authorities.

However, when transferring your personal data to such countries, we will take reasonable steps to maintain an adequate level of data protection.

In case of transfer to a state outside the EEA, this transfer is either legitimized by your consent pursuant to Art. Art. 49 (1) a) GDPR or protected by the conclusion of the EU standard contractual clauses in accordance with Art. 46 GDPR. For specific information on the individual protection measures, you can also contact our data protection officer by e-mail at [email protected]

8. Safety

Personal data that is exchanged between you and us via our Internet pages is always transmitted via encrypted connections. In addition, we take technical and organizational security precautions to protect the data we have under our control against manipulation, loss, destruction or against access by unauthorized persons. Please note, however, that we cannot guarantee complete data security when communicating by e-mail, so we recommend that you send confidential information by post.