Privacy Policy

Bookself is a book discovery and ranking platform. This policy explains what information we collect when you use Bookself, how we use it, and what choices you have.

What we collect

When you create an account, we collect your email address and a password, which is stored securely. You can also set a display name, username, and a short bio. These are optional beyond the email.

When you use Bookself, we store the things you create: your book ratings and scores, your shelves and the books on them, your stacks, your reading progress, and any notes or reviews you write. We also store who you follow and who follows you.

We collect basic usage data — which pages you visit, when you log in, and general device information such as browser type and operating system. We use a session cookie to keep you logged in.

How we use it

Your email is used to send account-related messages: password reset, email confirmation on signup, and (if you opt in) a weekly reading digest and award announcements.

Your ratings and rankings are used to power personalized features — recommendations, similar book suggestions, and taste-match scores between users. We may also use aggregated, anonymized data to improve the service and develop new features. This aggregate data does not identify you personally.

Your public profile, rankings, stacks, and shelves are visible to other Bookself users and, if your profile is set to public, to anyone on the internet. You control what's visible in your privacy settings.

Data sharing

We do not sell your personal data to third parties for their own marketing or advertising purposes. We do not share your individual reading history with publishers, retailers, or advertisers.

We may share data in limited circumstances: with the third-party services that operate Bookself's infrastructure (listed below); when required by law, court order, or valid legal process; in connection with a merger, acquisition, or sale of assets, subject to applicable law; or in aggregated, anonymized form that does not identify individual users.

Bookself does not currently run advertising. If this changes, we will update this policy.

Third-party services

Bookself uses third-party services to operate:

• Supabase — database and authentication. Your account data is stored in Supabase's infrastructure.
• Vercel — hosting. Web requests are routed through Vercel's network.
• OpenAI — used for generating author descriptions and computing book embeddings. We send author names and book titles for this purpose; we do not send your personal account data or individual reading history.
• OpenLibrary / New York Times — used to fetch book cover images and bestseller data. We do not send user data to these sources.

Each service has its own privacy policy. We may use additional service providers over time.

Your controls

You can update your profile at any time in Settings. You can export your rankings as a CSV from Settings → Data. You can delete your account from Settings → Account, which removes your personal information and content from our systems.

Depending on where you live, you may have legal rights regarding your personal data — including rights to access, correct, delete, or export it. To make a request, contact us at the email below.

Data retention

We keep your data for as long as your account is active. When you delete your account, your personal information and content are removed within a reasonable timeframe. Backup systems may retain copies for up to 30 days. Aggregated or anonymized data that does not identify you may be retained beyond that.

Security

We take reasonable measures to protect your data. No system is perfectly secure. If you believe your account has been compromised, contact us.

Children

Bookself is not directed at children under 13. We do not knowingly collect personal information from anyone under 13. If you believe a child has created an account, contact us and we will remove it.

Changes to this policy

We may update this policy as the service evolves. We'll update the date at the top when we do. For significant changes, we'll aim to notify users by email or by posting a notice on the site. Continued use of Bookself after the effective date means you accept the updated policy.

Contact

Questions about this policy or your data? privacy@thebookself.com