Privacy Policy

This policy describes how Newton handles information through newton.garden, the Newton Mac app, Appleseed, and related account and connection services. Newton is an independent software project operated by Shelby Klein (“we,” “us,” or “our”). This is an initial draft for review, based on the current service.

The short version

• Your branch files, bot settings, and saved work primarily live on your Mac. Using an AI provider, connected tool, remote phone connection, or support channel can send information outside that Mac.
• The website stores account, invitation, license, and access-request records needed to provide access.
• The public website uses self-hosted Umami analytics. Sign-in and account features use necessary cookies and related storage.
• Payments, AI processing, and remote connectivity involve service providers with their own privacy practices.

Information you provide

When you request access, we receive your email address and any name and intended-use description you provide. We retain request status and review records so we can handle the request, send an invitation, and avoid duplicate processing. Creating or using an account adds your profile, authentication records, and relevant account activity. Passwords are handled by WordPress authentication rather than stored as readable account passwords.

We also receive information you choose to send in support correspondence, feedback, or attachments. Only include what is necessary. If you submit an issue report, its text, screenshots, and attachments are visible to people with access to the relevant repository and may become public if published.

Accounts, payments, and devices

We keep invitation and license records, account identifiers, access entitlements, and device-approval information. Device records can include a generated installation identifier, device name, approval or revocation status, and timestamps. Authentication proofs and connection credentials are used to control access; do not include them in support messages.

Where you purchase paid access, Stripe processes payment details. Newton receives the customer, purchase, subscription, and payment-status information needed for billing and access. Our checkout integration does not store your full payment-card number or security code in the Newton website database. Stripe’s own handling of payment and fraud-prevention data is described in its Privacy Policy.

Work on your Mac and connected AI services

Newton stores project files, settings, conversations, task records, and related working data locally as needed for its features. The website account system is not a cloud backup of your branches. Uninstalling the app, closing a website account, and deleting local files are different actions; local files and backups may remain until you remove them.

When you ask a bot to work, its provider may receive prompts, instructions, conversation context, selected files, tool results, and other information the requested operation requires. Connected tools can transmit information to or retrieve it from the services you enable. A local workspace does not mean all processing is offline.

Each provider’s account settings and policies govern its retention, use for model improvement, and other processing. Newton does not override those controls. Review the providers you choose before sharing personal, confidential, or regulated information.

Appleseed and remote connections

Pairing and managed remote access use installation, account, authorization, and connection records to connect your phone with your Mac. Requests, responses, conversation content, and referenced files can travel through the configured connection infrastructure. The current managed connection uses Cloudflare services; HTTPS transport through that provider should not be described as end-to-end encryption that excludes the provider.

Your Mac must be available for the work it hosts. Revoking a connection changes remote access; it does not automatically erase existing copies on your devices or data already held by another service. Cloudflare’s handling of network and service data is described in its Privacy Policy.

Website analytics, cookies, and logs

The public site loads a self-hosted Umami script from analytics.shelbyklein.com to understand site use. Basic measurements can include page addresses, referring sites, visit times, browser and device characteristics, language, screen size, and approximate location derived from a network request. The currently installed site script is not configured to record sessions or identify visitors by their Newton account.

Umami’s standard tracker does not use analytics cookies. Network infrastructure still receives an IP address when a browser makes a request; cookie-free does not mean no data is processed. Hosting, security, and diagnostic logs may contain IP addresses, requested URLs, timestamps, and error details. See Umami’s documentation for its standard tracker behavior.

WordPress uses necessary cookies for login, security, and account preferences. Browser or app storage may also hold interface preferences, authentication state, and unsent drafts. Blocking or clearing storage may sign you out or remove locally saved preferences and drafts.

You can use browser settings or content blockers to limit optional analytics requests. Do Not Track and Global Privacy Control signals do not necessarily stop all technical processing, such as requests needed for sign-in and security. This policy does not establish an exemption from any consent or opt-out requirements that apply where you live.

Why information is used and shared

• To review access requests, provide accounts and licenses, authenticate devices, deliver downloads, and operate requested features.
• To process purchases, manage subscriptions, send service correspondence, answer support requests, and maintain records.
• To understand website use, diagnose failures, prevent misuse, secure services, and meet legal obligations.
• With hosting, infrastructure, payment, email-delivery, and other service providers where needed for those purposes; with integrations you choose; or when required by law or reasonably necessary to protect rights and security.

We do not sell personal information or share it for cross-context behavioral advertising. If the service is transferred to another operator, relevant records may be transferred with it, subject to applicable protections and any notice required by law. Public posts and material you deliberately publish can be accessed by others.

Retention and security

Account, licensing, billing, access-request, and support records are retained according to their purpose, the account relationship, security needs, and legal obligations. Some records may remain after closure to document transactions or prevent a revoked credential from being reused. This draft does not promise a fixed automatic deletion schedule; backups may persist until their normal replacement or deletion.

We use access controls, authentication, and encrypted transport where supported. No service can guarantee absolute security. Local files and credentials also depend on your Mac’s user permissions, device security, and disk-encryption settings; not every local file is separately encrypted by Newton. Protect your devices and keep backups.

Your choices and rights

You can review available account information, manage billing, disconnect paired devices, change provider permissions, and remove local work you control. You can also contact us to request access to, correction of, or deletion of personal information we hold. We may need to verify your identity and may retain information where required or permitted by law.

Depending on where you live and which laws apply, you may also have rights to portability, restriction, objection, withdrawal of consent, or a complaint to a privacy regulator. We will assess requests under the law that applies to them. A request to Newton does not automatically delete information held independently by an AI provider, payment provider, GitHub, or another service; use their request channels as well.

International processing and legal bases

Newton and its service providers may process information in countries other than where you live. Where data-protection law requires a legal basis, processing may be necessary to provide requested services or a contract, meet legal obligations, pursue legitimate interests such as security and service improvement, or rely on consent where required. Applicable transfer and data-protection requirements still apply.

Children

Newton is intended for adults and is not directed to children under 18. We do not knowingly seek children’s personal information. If you believe a child has provided information to us, contact us so we can review and address it.

Changes and contact

We may revise this policy as the service changes. The updated date will appear above, and we will provide additional notice or obtain consent where applicable law requires it. For a privacy request, include enough information to identify your account and explain your request, but do not send passwords, authentication tokens, or payment-card details.

For account, billing, or privacy questions, contact Shelby Klein through your existing Newton invitation or support conversation. A dedicated public contact address will be added after review. Do not post private account details or privacy-request documents in issue reports.