unsplash
- 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.
You keep your photos, but they go public under a broad license, , and a $100 cap.
Agent Trust Hub uses AI and may make mistakes. Review reports and confirm their contents before relying on them.
Collected
Account info, photos, device details, cookies, IP location, and messages you send them.
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Privacy policy
“Account Profile – when you open an account, we may collect your first name, last name, email address, username and password.”
Training
They run the site, improve it, check security, and may send you marketing emails.
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Privacy policy
“optimize and enhance the Unsplash Services, including to develop new products, services, features, and functionality;”
Sharing
Service providers and analytics companies can get your data; your photos are public.
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Privacy policy
“By using the Unsplash Services, you acknowledge and agree that we may collect and/or transmit any data collected to our third-party service providers, such as analytics providers”
Kept
They keep data as long as they need it for those purposes or the law; no set time.
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Privacy policy
“We will use, disclose or retain your personal information only for as long as necessary to fulfill the purposes for which that personal information was collected and as permitted or required by law.”
Controls
You can unsubscribe from marketing, ask to access or delete data, or close your account.
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Privacy policy
“To exercise any of these rights, please contact us as set forth in the “Contact Us” section.”
Fine print
You them, $100 cap, they can close you anytime.
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Terms of service
“Additionally, we may terminate your account on the Service or suspend or terminate your access to the Service at any time (with or without notice) without to you.”
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.
Close your account
https://unsplash.com/account/close
Ask to access or delete your data
Email privacy@unsplash.com
Unsubscribe from marketing emails
Unsubscribe link at the bottom of their emails, or contact privacy@unsplash.com
Reset a compromised password
https://unsplash.com/users/password/new or support@unsplash.com
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 you live outside the UK and EU, you generally cannot sue them in court or join a group lawsuit.
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Terms of service
“YOU UNDERSTAND AND AGREE THAT, BY ENTERING INTO THESE TERMS, YOU AND UNSPLASH ARE EACH WAIVING THE RIGHT TO A TRIAL BY JURY OR TO PARTICIPATE IN A LAWSUIT.”
For example, if many users were harmed the same way.
If someone sues Unsplash because of something you uploaded or how you used the site, you may have to pay their legal bills.
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Terms of service
“You agree to defend and us, including our directors, officers, employees, consultants, affiliates, and agents, from and against any and all claims, liabilities, damages, losses, and expenses”
For example, if a photo you posted leads to a lawsuit, you could be on the hook for their lawyers.
If they mess up, they say they will not pay you more than $100 in most cases.
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Terms of service
“OUR MAXIMUM TO YOU FOR ANY AND ALL CLAIMS ARISING OUT OF OR RELATING TO YOUR ACCESS TO OR USE (OR INABILITY TO USE) THE SERVICE OR ANY CONTENT AVAILABLE THROUGH THE SERVICE, WHETHER BASED ON CONTRACT, TORT (INCLUDING NEGLIGENCE), STATUTE, OR OTHER LEGAL THEORY IS LIMITED TO US$100.”
For example, even if a bug caused a large loss, their written cap is one hundred dollars.
They can shut your account whenever they want and do not have to warn you first.
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Terms of service
“Additionally, we may terminate your account on the Service or suspend or terminate your access to the Service at any time (with or without notice) without to you.”
For example, you could lose access to your profile overnight with no email.
Photos you upload are public. Anyone can use them for free and does not have to credit you.
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Terms of service
“You understand that we will not pay you for any use of your Images and that your Images will be made available to the public for their use without providing you attribution or compensation.”
For example, a company could use your photo in an ad without paying or naming you.
You still own your files, but Unsplash can copy, change, and pass on rights to use them.
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Terms of service
“You grant us a worldwide, non-exclusive, license (with the right to ) to host, store, transfer, display, adapt, perform, reproduce, modify, translate, and distribute your User Content”
For example, they can put your photo on partner sites without extra permission from you.
If they change the privacy rules, keeping using the site counts as you agreeing.
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Privacy policy
“Visiting, accessing, or using the Unsplash Services following any change to this Privacy Policy is considered to be your acceptance of any such changes.”
For example, they could add new sharing and you would be treated as having accepted it by visiting again.
Cookies and similar tools track who you are as a visitor and how you use the site.
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Privacy policy
“The type of information we collect includes, but is not limited to, uniquely identifying visitor information and information related to your usage preferences.”
For example, analytics companies can see which pages you open even if you are just browsing.
They say they will not hand your info to others for marketing unless you agree in writing.
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Privacy policy
“We will not provide your information to third parties for direct marketing or other unrelated purposes without your written consent.”
For example, they should not sell your email to a random advertiser without your written OK.
Unsplash does not take ownership of the photos and text you post.
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Terms of service
“YOU OWN ALL OF YOUR USER CONTENT, INCLUDING ANY IMAGES THAT YOU UPLOAD TO THE SITE.”
For example, you can still sell prints of a photo you uploaded, subject to the license you gave them.
You can stop promo emails with the unsubscribe link.
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Privacy policy
“If you no longer want to receive marketing-related communications from us, you may opt-out of such communications by clicking the “unsubscribe” link at the bottom of emails you receive from us.”
For example, click unsubscribe at the bottom of a Unsplash marketing email.
Words to know
Legal words from the lines above, in plain English.
- 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.
- 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.
- 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.
- limitation of liability
- A cap on what the company will ever pay you if something goes wrong, often only what you paid in the last year. For example, if a leak of your data costs you thousands, the most you may get back is a month's subscription fee.
- class action waiver
- You agree not to join with other users in one lawsuit; each person must complain alone. For example, if a bug overcharges a million people, you cannot all sue together for a refund.
- 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.
- 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.
- worldwide license
- You let the company use your content anywhere on earth, usually for free and for as long as it likes. For example, a video you post can be shown in ads in any country without asking you again.
- royalty-free
- The company can use your content without ever paying you for it. For example, your photo can appear in the app's ads and you get nothing.
- sublicensable
- The company can pass its rights over your content on to other companies without asking you. For example, an app can let an advertiser or a partner reuse your video under the licence you gave.
- consent
- Your clear agreement to something, given by an action like ticking a box or tapping Accept. For example, a pop-up asking if the app may use your location is asking for consent.
How we got here · grade D · score 35/100 · 14 of 15 policy answers backed by a verified quote · 4 not stated
What does the app collect beyond what it needs to work?
They collect account details, photos, device and browser data, cookies, server logs, and location from IP, plus optional social links.
Does it record your voice, face or body, and what happens to that?
The documents do not describe recording voice, face scans, or body data as a product feature.
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 use cookies and send data to analytics providers, and they send their own marketing emails.
Do they sell or share your data, and can you opt out?
They share with service providers who work for them and say they will not give data to others for marketing without written consent.
What rights do they take over what you type and what the AI makes?
You own your uploads, but you give a broad sublicensable license and photos are public for anyone to use without credit.
How long do they keep your data after you delete it, and can you delete it in the app?
They keep data as long as needed for stated purposes. Deletion is by contacting them or closing the account.
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 SSL encryption, access limits, and reviews, but no independent audit or bug-bounty program.
Is there a real age gate, and are teens protected?
You must be at least 13. They say they do not knowingly collect from younger children, with a higher age in the EEA.
Will they tell you when the rules change, and is the policy specific?
The privacy policy is dated, but using the site after a change counts as acceptance. Terms promise about 7 days’ notice.
Can they close your account without warning, and can you get your data out first?
They may close or suspend your account at any time with or without notice. You can close it yourself at a URL they give.
If something goes wrong, who pays?
The service is as-is, liability is capped at $100, and you must indemnify them for claims tied to your use.
Do subscriptions renew on their own, and can you get a refund?
Not stated in the documents.
The privacy policy is 2,293 words at a college graduate level (Flesch reading ease 32.6); the terms are 5,398 words at a college level.
