Elm
- The documents do not say whether your data trains AI.
- Your data is used for personalized ads, including by third-party ad companies.
- Data is shared only with the providers who run the service.
- The documents do not say who can read your content.
A 2013 forum policy: name, email, IPs, CC-licensed posts, 5-year IPs, and you them.
Agent Trust Hub uses AI and may make mistakes. Review reports and confirm their contents before relying on them.
Collected
Name, email if you register, IP addresses on posts, server logs, and cookies.
Read the exact line
Privacy policy
“When registered and posting, we record the IP address that the post originated from. We also may retain server logs which include the IP address of every request to our server.”
Training
They use it to personalize the site, improve it, send emails, and may share non-personal data for ads.
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Privacy policy
“However, non-personally identifiable visitor information may be provided to other parties for marketing, advertising, or other uses.”
Sharing
They say they do not sell your personal info, but trusted helpers and legal requests can get it.
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Privacy policy
“We do not sell, trade, or otherwise transfer to outside parties your personally identifiable information. This does not include trusted third parties who assist us in operating our site”
Kept
They aim to keep request logs 90 days and IPs tied to posts up to 5 years.
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Privacy policy
“Retain the IP addresses associated with registered users and their posts no more than 5 years.”
Controls
You can visit without registering; the documents do not describe in-app deletion of your data.
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Privacy policy
“You may, however, visit our site without registering. Your e-mail address will be verified by an email containing a unique link.”
Fine print
They can ban you anytime, posts are CC-licensed, paid plans auto-renew with no refunds.
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Terms of service
“The Elm Software Foundation may terminate your access to all or any part of the Website at any time, with or without cause, with or without notice, effective immediately.”
Expand “Read the exact line” to see the source alongside the explanation.
What you can turn off
The controls and opt-outs their own documents describe, and where they say to find them.
Cancel paid extras before the period ends
Notify The Elm Software Foundation before the end of the subscription period (terms §4)
Stop using the site to end the agreement
Terms §13: you may simply discontinue using the Website
If a switch is not where they say, the deletion request above still applies.
Line by line
The lines that matter most, worst first.
If someone sues them because of something you posted or how you used the site, you may have to pay their legal bills.
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Terms of service
“You agree to and The Elm Software Foundation, its contractors, and its licensors, and their respective directors, officers, employees and agents from and against any and all claims and expenses, including attorneys’ fees, arising out of your use of the Website”
For example, if a post you made leads to a lawsuit, you could be on the hook for their lawyers.
They can shut your account instantly for any reason and do not have to warn you first.
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Terms of service
“The Elm Software Foundation may terminate your access to all or any part of the Website at any time, with or without cause, with or without notice, effective immediately.”
For example, you could lose access to your forum posts overnight with no email.
If you pay for optional extras, you do not get your money back.
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Terms of service
“These fees are not refundable.”
For example, if you cancel hosting after a week, they keep the full period’s fee.
What you post is licensed so others can copy and remix it for non-commercial use, with credit.
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Terms of service
“User contributions are licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported License.”
For example, someone could republish your forum answer on a blog if they credit you and do not sell it.
They keep the IP tied to your posts for up to five years.
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Privacy policy
“Retain the IP addresses associated with registered users and their posts no more than 5 years.”
For example, an IP from a 2019 post could still be on file in 2024.
traffic data can be given to others for ads.
Read the exact line
Privacy policy
“However, non-personally identifiable visitor information may be provided to other parties for marketing, advertising, or other uses.”
For example, how many people visit a topic could be shared with an advertiser.
If they change the rules and you keep using the site, they treat that as you agreeing.
Read the exact line
Terms of service
“Your continued use of or access to the Website following the posting of any changes to this Agreement constitutes acceptance of those changes.”
For example, they could add new terms and you would be bound just by visiting again.
They say they will not sell your name and email, except to helpers who must keep it confidential or when the law requires it.
Read the exact line
Privacy policy
“We do not sell, trade, or otherwise transfer to outside parties your personally identifiable information.”
For example, they would not sell your email list, but a hosting vendor might process it.
You must be 13 or older; they rely on you to follow that, not a strong age check.
Read the exact line
Privacy policy
“Our site, products and services are all directed to people who are at least 13 years old or older.”
For example, a 12-year-old could still register if they type that they are older.
Words to know
Legal words from the lines above, in plain English.
- retention
- How long a company keeps your data before deleting it. For example, a policy might keep your messages for 30 days after you delete them, or for as long as it likes.
- sell or share
- Under California law, selling means passing your data to others for money or other value; sharing means passing it on for targeted ads. For example, letting an ad network use your browsing history in return for ad space counts as a sale.
- personal data
- Any information that is about you or can be linked to you, from your name to your phone's ID. For example, your email, your IP address and the list of apps on your phone are all personal data.
- third parties
- Any company or person other than you and the app, such as advertisers, partners or analytics firms. For example, an analytics company that receives a record of every screen you tap is a third party.
- indemnify
- You promise to pay the company's legal costs and losses if your use of the service gets it sued. For example, if you post a song you do not own and the label sues the app, you owe the app's lawyer bills.
- service providers
- Outside companies that handle your data on the app's instructions, such as a cloud host or an email sender. For example, the company that stores the app's files in the cloud sees your data but only does what the app tells it.
How we got here · grade D · score 36/100 · 14 of 15 policy answers backed by a verified quote · 3 not stated
What does the app collect beyond what it needs to work?
They collect name and email on register, plus IPs on posts, server logs, and cookies.
Does it record your voice, face or body, and what happens to that?
The documents do not mention voice, face, or body data.
Are your chats and uploads used to train AI models, and is that off by default?
Not stated in the documents.
Can employees or contractors read your conversations, and when?
Not stated in the documents.
Are you profiled or tracked for advertising?
They may give non-personal visitor data to others for marketing and use third-party analytics cookies. They also reserve the right to show ads on your content.
Do they sell or share your data, and can you opt out?
They say they do not sell personally identifiable information, except to trusted parties who help run the site and must keep it confidential, or for law and safety.
What rights do they take over what you type and what the AI makes?
Your posts are licensed Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike, so they are reusable by others under that license.
How long do they keep your data after you delete it, and can you delete it in the app?
They aim to keep server logs 90 days and IPs on registered posts up to 5 years. They do not describe in-app deletion.
Does it build a lasting memory or profile of you, and can you see, edit or turn it off?
Not stated in the documents.
Do they commit to basic security, and have they leaked data?
They say they use a variety of security measures when you enter or access personal information, without naming audits.
Is there a real age gate, and are teens protected?
The site is for people 13 or older and tells under-13s in the USA not to use it; there is no described age check.
Will they tell you when the rules change, and is the policy specific?
The documents are dated May 31, 2013. Privacy changes are posted on the page; terms say continued use means you accept.
Can they close your account without warning, and can you get your data out first?
They may end your access at any time, with or without cause or notice. You can stop using the site to leave.
If something goes wrong, who pays?
The site is “as is,” liability is capped at fees paid in the prior 12 months, and you must indemnify them for claims from your use.
Do subscriptions renew on their own, and can you get a refund?
Optional paid services auto-renew unless you cancel before the period ends, and fees are not refundable.
The privacy policy is 719 words at a fairly hard level (Flesch reading ease 53); the terms are 2,607 words at a college graduate level.
