Lemmy
- The documents do not say whether your data trains AI.
- The documents do not say whether your data is used for ads.
- Data is shared only with the providers who run the service.
- The documents do not say who can read your content.
A volunteer Lemmy forum: account and logs kept while you stay, no sale of data, 18+, they can ban you.
Agent Trust Hub uses AI and may make mistakes. Review reports and confirm their contents before relying on them.
Collected
Email, username, password, plus IP, device info, logs, and location while you use the site.
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Privacy policy
“This information does not reveal your specific identity (like your name or contact information) but may include device and usage information, such as your IP address, browser and device characteristics, operating system, language preferences, referring URLs, device name, country, location”
Training
They use it to run your account, keep the site secure, and for internal analytics—not for selling.
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Privacy policy
“This information is primarily needed to maintain the security and operation of Lemmy.World, and for our internal analytics and reporting purposes.”
Sharing
They say they do not sell your data; they may share it with service providers or if the law requires it.
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Privacy policy
“We do not sell or disclose user data under any condition, unless required by relevant data protection authorities, any other law enforcement authorities, or if the account owner requests the data themselves.”
Kept
They keep it while you have an account, then delete or it; some copies can linger in backups.
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Privacy policy
“No purpose in this notice will require us keeping your personal information for longer than the period of time in which users have an account with us.”
Controls
You can update or close your account in settings or by emailing them; they do not honor Do-Not-Track.
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Privacy policy
“If you would at any time like to review or change the information in your account or terminate your account, you can:Log in to your account settings and update your user account.”
Fine print
You must be 18; they can ban you; you waive claims; rules can change when they post a new version.
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Terms of service
“No one under 18 years of age or under the regulated minimum age defined by your local law (whichever is higher), is allowed to use or access the website.”
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.
Update or close your account
Log in to your account settings, or email [email protected]
Ask to review, correct, or delete personal data
Email [email protected] as described in the privacy policy
Refuse some cookies in your browser
Browser cookie settings; see their Cookie Policy at https://legal.lemmy.world/cookie-policy/
If a switch is not where they say, the deletion request above still applies.
Line by line
The lines that matter most, worst first.
You agree not to sue them over actions they take, including investigations.
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Terms of service
“You waive Lemmy.World and its parent, subsidiaries, affiliates, and all their respective staff, representatives, service providers, contractors, licensors, licensees, and successors from any claims resulting from any action taken by Lemmy.World”
For example, if they ban you and you lose posts, this line says you waived claims against them.
They can permanently ban you if they think you disrupt the site or threaten security.
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Terms of service
“We reserve the right to permanently revoke access to any entities and/or individuals, that cause either service disruption or threaten the security of our site and/or users.”
For example, using a VPN in a way they dislike could get your account revoked.
Turning on Do-Not-Track in your browser does nothing here.
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Privacy policy
“As such, we do not currently respond to DNT browser signals or any other mechanism that automatically communicates your choice not to be tracked online.”
For example, Safari’s prevent-tracking setting will not stop their logs.
New privacy rules can apply as soon as they post them, not after a waiting period.
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Privacy policy
“The updated version will be indicated by an updated "Revised" date and the updated version will be effective as soon as it is accessible.”
For example, they could change how they use logs and it applies the moment the page updates.
Closing your account does not wipe every copy; they may keep some records.
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Privacy policy
“However, we may retain some information in our files to prevent fraud, troubleshoot problems, assist with any investigations, enforce our legal terms and/or comply with applicable legal requirements.”
For example, after you delete the account they might still keep IP logs for fraud checks.
They say they will not sell your data, except when the law or you require it.
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Privacy policy
“We do not sell or disclose user data under any condition, unless required by relevant data protection authorities, any other law enforcement authorities, or if the account owner requests the data themselves.”
For example, they would not sell your email to marketers, but they might give logs to police if required.
The site is meant for adults; they say they will delete under-18 accounts if they find them.
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Privacy policy
“We do not knowingly solicit data from children under 18 years of age.”
For example, a 16-year-old who signs up should have the account deactivated if staff learn their age.
They claim they take reasonable security steps but do not promise the site cannot be hacked.
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Privacy policy
“We have implemented appropriate and reasonable technical and organizational security measures designed to protect the security of any personal information we process.”
For example, they will not guarantee that a breach could never expose your email.
They say they have not sold or commercially shared personal information in the last year.
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Privacy policy
“We have not disclosed, sold, or shared any personal information to third parties for a business or commercial purpose in the preceding twelve (12) months.”
For example, they claim they did not send user lists to advertisers last year.
There is no paid subscription described; the site runs on donations.
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Terms of service
“Lemmy.world is a free service, funded by donations and run by volunteers for the benefit of its users.”
For example, you should not expect an in-app subscription charge from these terms.
Words to know
Legal words from the lines above, in plain English.
- 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.
- affiliates
- Other companies owned by or connected to the same parent company. For example, if you use one app, its sister apps under the same owner may also get your data.
- 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.
- 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.
- 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.
How we got here · grade C · score 47/100 · 15 of 15 policy answers backed by a verified quote · 5 not stated
What does the app collect beyond what it needs to work?
They collect account details you give them plus automatic logs: IP, device, browser, usage, country, and location.
Does it record your voice, face or body, and what happens to that?
They list biometric, audio, and similar data as not collected.
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?
Not stated in the documents.
Do they sell or share your data, and can you opt out?
They say they do not sell data, may share with service providers under contract, and disclose if the law requires it.
What rights do they take over what you type and what the AI makes?
Not stated in the documents.
How long do they keep your data after you delete it, and can you delete it in the app?
You can update or terminate in account settings or by contacting them; they keep data while you have an account and may keep some after.
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 describe reasonable technical and organizational security measures and ask people to report exploits, but give no audit details.
Is there a real age gate, and are teens protected?
You must be 18 (or older if local law says so) and you represent that by using the site; they delete under-18 data if they learn of it.
Will they tell you when the rules change, and is the policy specific?
Policies show a revised date and may notify material privacy changes, but new text is effective as soon as it is posted.
Can they close your account without warning, and can you get your data out first?
They can permanently ban accounts for rule or security issues; they do not promise notice or an export first.
If something goes wrong, who pays?
You are fully responsible for your use, and you waive claims against them for actions they take.
Do subscriptions renew on their own, and can you get a refund?
They describe a free, donation-funded volunteer service, not a paid subscription.
The privacy policy is 2,751 words at a professional or legal expert level (Flesch reading ease 17.2); the terms are 2,866 words at a professional or legal expert level.
