Privacy Policy

Information We Collect

Information You Provide

• Email Address: Required for newsletter subscription and account management
• Research Preferences: Subject areas and research categories you're interested in
• Subscription Tier: Free, Pro, or Research tier selection
• Communication Preferences: Frequency and format preferences for email delivery

Information We Collect Automatically

• Usage Analytics: How you interact with our website and emails (opens, clicks, time spent)
• Technical Information: IP address, browser type, device information for service optimization
• Email Engagement: Open rates, click-through rates, and unsubscribe patterns

How We Use Your Information

Primary Service Delivery

• Newsletter Delivery: Sending daily research briefings to your email address
• Content Personalization: Filtering research papers based on your selected interests
• Account Management: Managing your subscription, preferences, and tier level
• Service Improvements: Analyzing usage patterns to enhance content quality and delivery

Communication

• Service Updates: Important announcements about features, policy changes, or service disruptions
• Support Responses: Responding to your questions, concerns, or technical issues
• Upgrade Notifications: Informing free tier users about premium features (with opt-out options)

Data Sharing and Disclosure

We do not sell, rent, or trade your personal information to third parties. We may share your information only in these limited circumstances:

• Service Providers: Trusted third-party services that help us operate (email delivery, analytics, payment processing)
• Legal Requirements: When required by law, regulation, or valid legal process
• Business Transfer: In the event of a merger, acquisition, or sale of assets (with notification)
• Safety and Security: To protect the rights, property, or safety of our users or others

Third-Party Services

The Helix Brief integrates with several third-party services to provide our functionality:

• Mailgun: Email delivery service for newsletter distribution
• Europe PMC: Research paper database for content discovery
• Anthropic Claude AI: AI processing for research paper summarization
• Analytics Services: Website and email performance tracking

These services have their own privacy policies, and we encourage you to review them. We ensure our partners maintain appropriate data protection standards.

Data Security

We implement industry-standard security measures to protect your personal information:

• Encryption: All data transmission is encrypted using HTTPS/TLS protocols
• Access Control: Limited access to personal data on a need-to-know basis
• Regular Audits: Periodic security reviews and vulnerability assessments
• Data Minimization: We collect only the information necessary to provide our services

Your Rights and Choices

Access and Control

• Account Access: View and update your preferences through your account dashboard
• Data Portability: Request a copy of your personal data in a standard format
• Correction: Update or correct inaccurate personal information
• Deletion: Request deletion of your account and associated data

Communication Preferences

• Unsubscribe: Stop receiving newsletters at any time via email links or account settings
• Frequency Control: Adjust how often you receive research briefings
• Category Selection: Modify which research areas you want to receive

Data Retention

We retain your personal information only as long as necessary to provide our services and comply with legal obligations:

• Active Accounts: Data retained while your subscription is active
• Inactive Accounts: Data may be retained for up to 2 years after last activity
• Legal Requirements: Some data may be retained longer to comply with legal obligations
• Analytics Data: Aggregated, anonymized data may be retained for service improvement

International Data Transfers

The Helix Brief operates from servers in the European Union. If you are accessing our service from outside the EU, your data may be transferred to and processed in EU countries. We ensure appropriate safeguards are in place for international data transfers.

Children's Privacy

The Helix Brief is designed for professional researchers and is not intended for individuals under 16 years of age. We do not knowingly collect personal information from children under 16. If we become aware that we have collected such information, we will delete it promptly.

Changes to This Policy

We may update this privacy policy periodically to reflect changes in our practices or legal requirements. We will notify users of significant changes via email or prominent website notices. Your continued use of the service after such notifications constitutes acceptance of the updated policy.

Regional Privacy Rights

European Union (GDPR)

If you are in the EU, you have additional rights under the General Data Protection Regulation, including the right to object to processing, data portability, and lodging complaints with supervisory authorities.

California (CCPA)

California residents have rights under the California Consumer Privacy Act, including the right to know what personal information is collected and the right to delete personal information.