Privacy Policy

Information We Collect

Data Type	What We Collect	Why
Account	Name, email, encrypted password	Authentication & account management
Usage	Feature usage frequency, upload counts	Enforce free plan limits
Payments	Transaction reference (not card details)	Subscription management
Documents	Uploaded PDFs (in memory only)	AI processing during your session

How We Use Your Information

• To provide, maintain, and improve the ResearchMate service
• To authenticate your identity and manage your account securely
• To enforce usage limits on free plans
• To process payments and manage your subscription via Paystack
• To send transactional emails such as account confirmation and password reset
• To diagnose technical issues and improve service reliability

Document Privacy — Critical Information

Your uploaded research papers are processed in memory and are never stored permanently on our servers. Documents are purged from memory immediately after your session ends. We do not use your documents to train any AI models, sell them, or share them with any third parties beyond the processors listed below (solely for the purpose of generating your requested outputs).

This means if you close your browser or end your session, your document is gone from our systems. You will need to re-upload if you start a new session.

Data Sharing

We do not sell your personal information. We share data only with trusted service providers, strictly limited to what is necessary to operate the Service:

• Supabase — Authentication, session management, and account database (EU-hosted)
• Paystack — Secure payment processing. We never see or store your card details
• Groq — AI processing of document content. Only document text is sent — never personally identifiable information

All third-party processors are bound by data processing agreements and are prohibited from using your data for their own purposes.

Data Security

We implement industry-standard security measures including encryption in transit (HTTPS/TLS), secure authentication via Supabase with row-level security, no permanent storage of document content, and regular security reviews. While no system is perfectly secure, we take reasonable and appropriate steps to protect your information.

Cookies

We use only essential cookies required for authentication and session management. We do not use advertising cookies, tracking pixels, or third-party analytics that monitor you across other websites. Our theme preference (light/dark mode) is stored in your browser's localStorage only.

Your Rights

• Access — Request a copy of the personal data we hold about you
• Correction — Request correction of inaccurate data
• Deletion — Request deletion of your account and all associated data
• Cancellation — Cancel your subscription at any time from the Account page
• Portability — Request your data in a portable format

To exercise any of these rights, email us at support@researchmateai.net, or use the Account page to delete your account directly. We will respond within 30 days.

Children's Privacy

ResearchMate is not directed at individuals under the age of 13. We do not knowingly collect personal information from children. If you believe a child has provided us with personal information, please contact us immediately.

Changes to This Policy

We may update this policy periodically to reflect changes in our practices or applicable laws. We will notify you of significant changes via email sent to your registered address. Continued use of the Service after notification constitutes acceptance of the updated policy.

Contact

Questions or concerns about this policy? Email us at support@researchmateai.net. We take privacy concerns seriously and aim to respond within 48 hours.