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Privacy Policy

Last updated October 2, 2026

This Privacy Policy for CeardTech LLC ("Company," "we," "us," or "our") describes how and why we might collect, store, use, and/or share ("process") your information when you use our services ("Services"), such as when you:

  • Download and use our desktop application (FrankenCoder), or any other application of ours that links to this Privacy Policy
  • Visit our website at frankencoder.com
  • Engage with us in other related ways, including any sales, marketing, or events

Questions or concerns? Reading this Privacy Policy will help you understand your privacy rights and choices. If you do not agree with our policies and practices, please do not use our Services. If you still have any questions or concerns, please contact us at [email protected].

Table of Contents

  1. Our Commitment to Privacy
  2. What Information Do We Collect?
  3. What Information Do We NOT Collect?
  4. How Do We Process Your Information?
  5. Third-Party AI Services
  6. Connected Email and Agent Permissions
  7. How Long Do We Keep Your Information?
  8. How Do We Keep Your Information Safe?
  9. Do We Collect Information from Minors?
  10. What Are Your Privacy Rights?
  11. Do We Make Updates to This Policy?
  12. How Can You Contact Us About This Policy?

1. Our Commitment to Privacy

FrankenCoder is built on a local-first philosophy. We believe your code, your data, and your AI interactions are yours alone. Unlike cloud-based development tools, FrankenCoder is designed to keep your information on YOUR computer, not ours.

Key Privacy Principles:

• Your source code is not sent to CeardTech servers by the local development workflow; selected content is sent to providers when you use connected services

• Your AI conversations are stored locally on your device

• Your project files are never uploaded to our servers

• We do not have access to your codebase

• We do not monitor your usage or activity within the application

• We do not sell or rent your personal information; necessary service-provider disclosures and user-directed transfers are described below

2. What Information Do We Collect?

Information You Provide Directly to Us

We only collect information that you voluntarily provide to us when you:

Purchase Information: When you purchase FrankenCoder, our payment processor Stripe, Inc. collects the payment information you provide at checkout, including your name, email address, billing details, and payment card information.

Stripe as Merchant of Record (separate data controller): Stripe is the Merchant of Record for FrankenCoder purchases via Stripe Managed Payments. This means Stripe — not CeardTech LLC — is the legal seller for each transaction and is responsible for processing your payment, collecting and remitting any applicable sales tax or VAT in your jurisdiction, and handling payment-processor-level disputes including chargebacks. Under the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) and analogous laws, Stripe is a separate, independent data controller with respect to the payment information you provide at checkout. Stripe's collection, retention, and use of that information is governed by Stripe's own Privacy Policy, not by this Privacy Policy. Purchases made before July 20, 2026 were processed by Paddle (Paddle.com Market Limited) as Merchant of Record; Paddle remains a separate, independent data controller for those historical transactions, and its handling of that information is governed by Paddle's own Privacy Policy.

What CeardTech LLC actually receives: CeardTech LLC receives only the limited subset of data from Stripe necessary to deliver and support your license: your name, your email address, your license key, the payment processor's transaction identifier, the purchase date, and the country in which sales tax or VAT was assessed. We do NOT receive or store your payment card number, card security code, full billing address, bank account details, or any other financial information.

Support Requests: If you contact us for support at [email protected], we collect the information you provide in your communication, such as your name, email address, and the content of your message.

Account Information: If you create an account on our website, we collect your email address and any profile information you choose to provide.

Information Collected Automatically

License Validation: FrankenCoder verifies your license key with our licensing provider periodically and in connection with update checks. Verification occurs at activation, on application startup, when checking for or installing updates, and at periodic intervals during normal use. Verification transmits only your license key and a device identifier — no source code, project data, or usage information is transmitted.

About the device identifier: The device identifier is a one-way hash derived from non-changing hardware characteristics of your device, generated locally on your device before any data is transmitted. We retain only the resulting hash, not the underlying hardware identifiers used to generate it, and the hash cannot be reversed to recover them. We do not directly collect or store hardware serial numbers, MAC addresses, IP addresses, geographic location, or other directly identifying hardware information.

Automatic Update Checks: By default, FrankenCoder checks for available updates by connecting to our servers or authorized update services. You may disable automatic update checks in the application settings. When the application does perform an update check, it transmits only the current version number, your license key, and the same device identifier hash described above. No source code, project data, AI conversations, or usage information is transmitted during update checks.

A note on IP addresses: CeardTech LLC does not collect, retain, or build any record associating IP addresses with license keys, device identifiers, or your activation history. Our license-server records do not include IP, country, region, or geographic location data. As an unavoidable part of routing any internet request, our infrastructure providers (including Cloudflare, which fronts our domain) transiently process source IP addresses for routing, TLS termination, and denial-of-service protection. CeardTech LLC does not export, query, or retain those routing-level records. Cloudflare's handling of routing data is governed by Cloudflare's privacy policy.

Website Analytics: CeardTech LLC does not operate any first-party analytics, behavioral tracking, or visitor profiling on frankencoder.com. We have not installed Google Analytics, Plausible, Cloudflare Web Analytics, or any comparable service. The website does not set tracking cookies, fingerprinting scripts, or any other technology designed to identify or profile individual visitors. Our website is hosted on Cloudflare Pages; as described in the IP-address note above, Cloudflare necessarily processes IP addresses, browser user-agent strings, and request paths transiently to route requests, serve cached content, and mitigate denial-of-service attacks. CeardTech LLC does not export, view, or retain any visitor-level data from those routing logs. This applies ONLY to your visits to frankencoder.com and does NOT apply to the FrankenCoder desktop application.

3. What Information Do We NOT Collect?

CeardTech LLC does not automatically receive the following content from your desktop workflows. The application itself accesses and processes content locally to provide the features you use, and may transmit selected content to services you authorize as described in Sections 5 and 5A:

  • Your source code or project files
  • Your AI conversations or chat history
  • Your indexed codebase or embeddings
  • Your system prompts or agent configurations
  • Your API keys for third-party services (stored locally, encrypted)
  • Your usage patterns within the application
  • Screenshots or recordings of your activity
  • File names, folder structures, or project metadata
  • IP addresses or geographic location data linked to your license activations or validations in our license database (see the IP-address note in Section 2 above)
  • Any telemetry or analytics from the desktop application beyond the limited license validation data described in Section 2

Local copies remain on your device. Content you submit to a connected provider, share with another person, or voluntarily include in a support request also reaches that recipient. This policy does not describe connected AI or email use as exclusively local.

4. How Do We Process Your Information?

We process the limited information we collect to:

  • Fulfill your purchase and deliver your license key
  • Provide customer support when you contact us
  • Send important updates about the software (security patches, major updates)
  • Comply with legal obligations
  • Protect against fraudulent transactions

Legal Basis for Processing (GDPR)

We process personal information under the following legal bases:

  • Performance of a contract: To deliver your license and provide support services you have requested
  • Legitimate interests: To prevent fraud, ensure service reliability, and protect our legal rights
  • Legal obligations: To comply with tax, accounting, and regulatory requirements

We do NOT use your information for:

  • Advertising or marketing to third parties
  • Training AI models
  • Selling to data brokers
  • Profiling or behavioral analysis
  • Any purpose other than providing, maintaining, and supporting our Services

5. Third-Party AI Services

FrankenCoder allows you to connect to third-party AI services (such as OpenAI, Anthropic, Google, and others) using your own provider credentials, such as API keys or supported account authorization. When you use these services:

  • Your API keys are stored locally on your device, encrypted
  • Communications with these services go directly from your computer to the AI provider
  • CeardTech LLC does not have access to your API keys
  • CeardTech LLC does not have access to your conversations with these services
  • Your use of these third-party services is subject to their respective privacy policies

We strongly recommend reviewing the privacy policies of any third-party AI services you choose to use, including OpenAI, Anthropic, Google, and others.

Inference performed by a model running on your own device stays on that device. This does not prevent separately authorized tools from contacting email or other services. A model endpoint hosted on another machine is a remote destination, even if described as a self-hosted or local-model provider.

5A. Connected Email and Agent Permissions

Scope and availability. This section applies to supported email connections, including Mail and Intelligence Center email workflows. Mail and its granular agent controls are under development; availability differs by version and integration. Describing a safeguard here is not a claim that every current integration implements it. Do not enable an email workflow if the installed version cannot provide the permission limits you require. A mailbox connection alone is not permission for unrelated AI analysis or additional uses.

Data accessed and purposes

When you connect an account, the application may access the account address and provider identity, folders and labels, message identifiers, sender and recipient addresses, headers, subjects, timestamps, read/flag status, message bodies, drafts, and attachment metadata. Attachment contents are accessed only for a feature you authorize. OAuth access/refresh tokens or provider-generated app passwords authorize provider access; they are credentials, not model input. Depending on the feature and your authorization, this data is used to display, synchronize, search and organize mail, compose or send messages, generate summaries or draft replies, identify important messages, and provide digests or reminders. Derived summaries, preferences and action records can also contain personal information.

Local processing versus company servers

In the direct desktop email workflow, your device communicates with your email provider. CeardTech does not operate a mailbox relay or hosted mailbox store for this workflow and does not receive your mailbox contents or email credentials through that connection. The software nevertheless processes data on your device; local-first does not mean no processing occurs. Your email provider retains its own server copies. CeardTech separately processes purchase, licensing, website and support information as described elsewhere in this policy. If you voluntarily send us email excerpts or diagnostics for support, we receive that material; avoid sending mailbox credentials or unnecessary message content.

Optional AI processing and recipients

If you authorize an agent or email-analysis feature to use a cloud model, the selected email content and relevant prompt/context travel from your device to the AI provider you choose, not solely to your email provider. Content may include headers, bodies, quoted messages, and attachment text only when authorized for the task. Review the selected provider, model, account scope and information being sent before enabling that workflow. A mail report sent to a recipient also discloses its included content to that recipient. We do not sell mailbox data, use it for advertising or data-broker profiles, or use it to train generalized AI models. We do not authorize model providers to use connected mailbox data to train generalized models. Only provider configurations consistent with applicable email-provider restrictions may be used; user permission does not override those restrictions.

AI providers' processing locations, retention, abuse-monitoring and deletion practices depend on their applicable terms and account settings. We do not promise zero retention or that disconnecting FrankenCoder erases previously transmitted content. Use a genuinely on-device model without external tool transfers if you require local inference. Connecting an email account does not constitute blanket consent to send your entire mailbox to AI services.

Authorization and action controls

Provider permissions and agent permissions are different. A provider may grant a broad technical scope; that does not authorize an agent to exercise every available action. Our Mail control model separates reading/analysis from message changes and external actions, including controls to allow or prevent deletion and to allow or prevent replies/sending. Those granular controls are planned and must be implemented and tested before the corresponding Mail agent actions are enabled; they must not be assumed to exist in another integration. Email text and attachments are untrusted content, not instructions granting authority.

Authorize only accounts you own or are permitted to access and only the purposes you intend. Review recipients, generated replies and proposed changes. Archive, moving to Junk, moving to Trash and permanent deletion have different effects; provider retention rules can permanently remove Junk or Trash, and undo/recall is not guaranteed. Revoking access stops future authorized access but cannot recall an already accepted message, completed change or completed AI transfer.

Storage, retention, revocation and deletion

Email caches, downloaded messages, drafts, summaries, preferences and operation records may persist locally in the application's configured data location. Storage and protection differ between integrations; the new Mail store uses encrypted storage and OS-protected keys, but this is not a blanket encryption claim for every historical workflow, exported file, log or backup. Local data remains until removed through available application controls or by securely removing the relevant local data and backups. Uninstalling the application or disconnecting an account should not be assumed to erase these copies. Do not remove local stores without preserving unsent drafts and other data you need.

Stop or disable associated email-analysis topics, schedules and agents, use the installed integration's disconnect controls where available, and revoke the application's access in your email provider's account-security settings. For an app password, delete that app password at the provider. These steps are distinct from deleting local cached data and from deleting messages on the provider's servers. Future reconnection requires valid authorization. For cloud-model copies, use that provider's deletion controls or contact it; for information you sent to CeardTech support, contact [email protected]. We cannot remotely erase a mailbox or local cache we do not hold. Requests for data we do hold are handled under Sections 6 and 9.

Google API Services Limited Use

FrankenCoder's use and transfer to any other app of information received from Google APIs will adhere to the Google API Services User Data Policy, including the Limited Use requirements, and applicable Google Workspace user data and developer policy. This applies to Google API data and data derived from it. Access and transfers are limited to providing or improving appropriate, prominently disclosed user-facing features and other uses expressly permitted by those policies, not advertising, sale or generalized model training. Human access is limited to circumstances permitted by those policies, such as your affirmative agreement to view specific data for support, security investigations, or legal requirements. These are commitments governing any enabled Google integration, not a claim of Google approval or completed verification.

We request only permissions needed for available features. Material changes to mailbox-data purposes or recipients require updated disclosures and, where required, renewed consent before the new use. Your authorization does not waive CeardTech's applicable legal, security, transparency or provider-policy obligations.

6. How Long Do We Keep Your Information?

Purchase Records: We retain purchase records (name, email, license key, purchase date, and transaction metadata such as the payment processor's transaction/session identifier and the country in which sales tax or VAT was assessed) for seven (7) years from the date of purchase to comply with U.S. federal and state tax-retention requirements, generally accepted accounting standards, and applicable consumer-protection, warranty, and chargeback-dispute obligations.

Support Communications: We retain support emails and communications for up to two (2) years to provide context for ongoing support and to improve our services.

Website Analytics: CeardTech LLC does not operate any first-party website analytics and therefore retains no analytics data. Transient routing logs handled by our infrastructure providers (such as Cloudflare) are subject to their own retention practices and are not accessible to CeardTech LLC in raw form.

You may request deletion of your personal information at any time by contacting [email protected].

7. How Do We Keep Your Information Safe?

We implement appropriate technical and organizational security measures designed to protect any personal information we process. However, no electronic transmission over the Internet or information storage technology can be guaranteed to be 100% secure.

Our security measures include:

  • Encrypted transmission of data (HTTPS/TLS)
  • Secure payment processing through established providers (Stripe)
  • Limited access to personal information by authorized personnel only
  • Regular security reviews of our systems

Your local data security is your responsibility:

  • FrankenCoder stores data locally on your device
  • We recommend using full-disk encryption on your device
  • Keep your operating system and FrankenCoder updated
  • Protect your API keys and do not share them

8. Do We Collect Information from Minors?

We do not knowingly collect data from or market to children under 18 years of age (or the age of majority in your jurisdiction, whichever is greater). By using FrankenCoder, you represent that you are at least 18 years old (or the age of majority in your jurisdiction, whichever is greater) or that you are the parent or guardian of a minor and consent to the minor's use of the application.

If we learn we have collected personal information from a user under that age, we will delete that information as quickly as possible. If you believe we might have any information from or about a child under that age, please contact us at [email protected].

9. What Are Your Privacy Rights?

Depending on your location, you may have certain rights regarding your personal information:

  • Access: You may request a copy of the personal information we hold about you.
  • Correction: You may request that we correct any inaccurate personal information.
  • Deletion: You may request that we delete your personal information, subject to the legal-retention exceptions described below.
  • Portability: You may request a copy of your data in a portable format.
  • Objection: You may object to certain processing of your personal information.

To exercise any of these rights, please contact us at [email protected]. We will respond to your request within thirty (30) days.

Limits on Deletion

We will honor deletion requests promptly except where retention is required by law or necessary to defend against legal claims. Specifically, we are required by U.S. federal and state tax law and generally accepted accounting standards to retain purchase records (name, email, license key, purchase date, and transaction metadata) for seven (7) years from the date of purchase; we cannot delete these records before that period expires. If you request deletion of records still within the legal-retention window, we will (a) honor the deletion of all data not subject to a legal-retention requirement, (b) restrict processing of the retained records to legal-compliance, tax, and dispute-defense purposes only, and (c) permanently delete the retained records at the end of the applicable retention period without further action required on your part.

California Residents: Under the California Consumer Privacy Act (CCPA), you have additional rights including the right to know what personal information is collected and the right to opt-out of the sale of personal information. We do not sell personal information.

European Residents: Under the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR), you have additional rights including the right to lodge a complaint with a supervisory authority.

Law Enforcement Requests

Because FrankenCoder stores user data locally and we do not collect source code, AI conversations, or project data, we generally cannot provide such data in response to law-enforcement requests. We can only provide information we actually possess, which is limited to purchase records (name, email, license key) and support communications.

Security Limitations

FrankenCoder is designed to minimize data collection and keep your information local, but no software can protect against all threats. We cannot protect against malware on your device, compromised operating systems, physical device access by unauthorized parties, or vulnerabilities in third-party services you choose to use. You are responsible for maintaining the security of your own device and accounts.

10. Do We Make Updates to This Policy?

We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time. The updated version will be indicated by an updated "Last updated" date at the top of this Privacy Policy. If we make material changes, we will notify you by email (if we have your email address) or by posting a notice on our website.

We encourage you to review this Privacy Policy periodically to stay informed about how we are protecting your information.

11. How Can You Contact Us About This Policy?

If you have questions or comments about this policy, you may contact us at:

CeardTech LLC
159 N Wolcott St Ste 133
Casper, WY 82601
United States
[email protected]

If you have a complaint about how we handle your personal information, please contact us first and we will try to resolve your concern. You also have the right to lodge a complaint with your local data protection authority.

Summary

FrankenCoder is designed with privacy as a core principle:

Your code is stored locally; connected features can transmit selected content
Your AI history is stored locally; cloud models receive the content you submit
Mailbox and project workflows are not a CeardTech-hosted content service
We don't monitor your usage
We don't collect telemetry
We don't sell your data
We only collect what's necessary to deliver and support your purchase

This is the local-first promise.

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