Privacy Policy

Last updated: 28 October 2026

This policy explains what personal data Slow Chapters collects, why, who we share it with, and the rights you have. We keep it short on purpose: we collect very little.

1. Who we are

Slow Chapters ("we", "us") runs this website. We are Slow Chapters, and we are responsible for the personal data described in this policy. To contact us, use the Contact form in the menu at the top of any page.

2. What we collect and why

Chat questions

When you use the BookPal chat, we receive the text of your question. If you use the microphone button, your browser turns your speech into text and we receive only the text. We use it to create an answer. Please do not include personal information in your questions. We do not store your chat messages on our own servers.

To create the answer, your question is sent to an AI service provider (currently Anthropic), which processes it for us. Such providers may keep technical logs for a limited time under their own terms.

Usage limits

To stop abuse and control costs, we limit how many questions each visitor can ask per day. We process your IP address and keep only a one-way scrambled version (a hash) with a daily counter. These counters are deleted automatically after about 35 days.

Your email address

If you join the weekly letter, we collect your email address, the date, where you signed up and a record that you agreed. We use it to send what you asked for. You can unsubscribe at any time using the link in our emails or by writing to us.

Messages to us

If you write to us through the Contact form, we collect your name, your email address, the topic you chose, the page you were on and your message. We use them only to read and answer your message. The form sends them to our private storage and to an email inbox that only we can read. You can ask us to delete your message at any time.

Information stored on your device

Our site saves one small item in your browser's local storage: your cookie choice. If you are a member of our team and log in to the private corporate area, a session cookie keeps you logged in until you log out. These are explained in our Cookie Policy.

Book covers

Where we show a book cover, your browser loads it directly from Open Library (openlibrary.org). Open Library will see your IP address, as any website would when you load an image from it.

Technical logs

Our hosting provider (Hostinger) may record technical information such as your IP address, the time of your visit and pages requested, for security and to keep the site running.

What we do not do

• We do not sell or share your personal data for advertising.
• We do not use advertising trackers or build profiles of you.
• At the time of writing we do not use website analytics. If that changes, we will update this policy and ask for consent where the law requires it.

3. Legal grounds (where laws such as the GDPR apply)

• Consent for emails and the weekly letter. You can withdraw it at any time.
• Legitimate interests for usage limits, security and keeping the site running, and for answering messages you send through the Contact form.
• Legal obligations where the law requires us to keep records.

4. Who we share data with

Only service providers who help us run the site: the AI provider named above, our hosting provider, and an email service (Google Mail) that delivers contact messages and sign-up notices to our inbox, and the letter if we send it. They may only use data to provide their service to us. If they are located outside your country, your data may be transferred, and we rely on appropriate safeguards where the law requires them.

5. How long we keep data

• Daily usage counters: about 35 days.
• Email address: until you unsubscribe, then only as long as needed to honor your request.
• Messages you send us: as long as needed to reply and resolve the matter.
• Your cookie choice: until you clear your browser data.

6. Your rights

Depending on where you live, you may have the right to access, correct, delete or export your personal data, to object to or limit certain uses, and to withdraw consent. Residents of California and other US states with privacy laws may also ask us what personal information we collect and use, and to delete it. We do not sell personal information and we do not share it for cross-context behavioral advertising, and we will not treat you differently for using your rights.

Use the Contact option in the menu at the top of any page and choose "Privacy or data request". We may need to confirm your identity. You also have the right to complain to the data protection authority in your country. We aim to respect the privacy rights the law gives you wherever you live, including under laws such as the EU and UK GDPR, Brazil's LGPD, Canada's PIPEDA, Australia's Privacy Act, and the privacy laws of US states.

7. Children

Slow Chapters is a general-audience reading site and is not directed to children under 13. We do not knowingly collect personal data from children under 13. If you believe a child has given us personal data, please contact us and we will delete it.

8. Security

We use reasonable technical and organizational measures to protect your data. No method of transmission or storage is perfectly secure, so we cannot guarantee absolute security.

9. Changes

We may update this policy. We will change the date at the top and, for important changes, tell you on the site or by email.