Your manuscript stays on your machines.

Local-first by design

Auctor stores your chapters, characters, places, notes, settings, and everything else that makes up a project in an ordinary folder on your computer. The applications do not upload your manuscript to us, do not keep a copy of it, and cannot access it after you close them. Backing up, moving, or deleting your work is entirely in your hands.

What the applications send, and to whom

• Licence activation (Auctor desktop). When you activate a licence key, the application sends the key and a machine identifier to the Auctor licence server so the key can be bound to your computer. No manuscript text, file names, or usage details are included.
• Update checks (Auctor desktop). The application periodically asks the Auctor server and the Electron update service (update.electronjs.org, backed by GitHub releases) whether a newer version exists. These requests identify the platform (such as Windows or Linux) and current version — nothing about you or your writing.
• AI requests — only if you enable AI, and only to the provider you choose. When you ask for a critique or refinement, the relevant text and story context is sent directly from your computer to the AI connection you configured: your own account with a provider such as OpenAI, Google, Anthropic, xAI, or DeepSeek, or a local server on your own network. That traffic never passes through Auctor's servers. Text sent to a third-party provider is governed by that provider's terms and privacy policy. With a local model — including AuctorServ — your writing never leaves your home at all.
• AuctorNotes sync. Notes travel from your phone to your computer directly over your local Wi-Fi network during pairing. They are not routed through the internet and are not received by us.
• AuctorServ. AuctorServ serves an AI model from your own Android device to your own network. It sends nothing to us.

That is the complete list. If it isn't described above, the applications don't send it.

No selling, no advertising, no tracking

• We do not sell, rent, or trade your personal information — to anyone, for any purpose.
• We do not use your information for advertising, and the applications contain no advertising.
• The applications contain no analytics SDKs, tracking pixels, or behavioural profiling.
• We never use your manuscript, notes, or AI conversations to train AI models, and we never will without your explicit opt-in consent.

API keys and credentials

AI provider keys and your licence are stored on your computer in system-level settings and are used only to make the requests you initiate. They are never transmitted to Auctor's servers. The applications will never ask for your website password.

Retention and deletion

Because your projects are ordinary local files, deleting your work is as simple as deleting the folder — there is no server-side copy to chase. Licence activation records are kept on our server while your licence is valid and as needed for security and support. To remove them along with your account, use the account-deletion option in your website profile or email us.

Children

The applications are not directed at children under 13, and we do not knowingly collect personal information from them.

Changes to this policy

If this policy changes, the updated version will be published on this page with a new effective date. We will not weaken the commitments above — no selling, no advertising, no training on your writing — without asking for your consent first.