Privacy Policy

Effective Date: January 24, 2026

BabelBot ("we," "us," "our," or "Service") provides real-time message translation for Discord servers. This Privacy Policy explains what information we collect, how we use it, and your rights regarding that information. BabelBot is currently operated by Bram Suurd. We are in the process of registering Suurd Digital with the Dutch Chamber of Commerce, with BabelBot as a trade name. After that registration is complete, BabelBot will be operated by Suurd Digital, trading as BabelBot. This policy explains how we process personal data when you install, use, or visit BabelBot.

1. Data Controller & Legal Basis

Data Controller: Bram Suurd, operating BabelBot. We are in the process of registering Suurd Digital with the Dutch Chamber of Commerce. Once registration is complete, the data controller will be Suurd Digital, trading as BabelBot. We will update this policy with the final Chamber of Commerce details after registration.

Lawful Basis for Processing: We process server configuration and usage data on the basis of:

  • Contract: Server settings, billing information, and usage quotas are necessary to provide the translation service you have authorized.
  • Legitimate Interests: Security, fraud prevention, abuse prevention, support, debugging, service improvement, and privacy-friendly website analytics. We balance these interests against user privacy and do not process data beyond what is necessary.
  • Legal Obligation: Billing, accounting, tax, compliance, and legally required recordkeeping.

Server administrators decide whether to install and configure BabelBot in their Discord servers. BabelBot processes Discord server content and configuration only as needed to provide the Service, while we remain responsible for our own account, billing, security, analytics, and operational processing.

2. Information We Collect

2.1 Message Content (Not Stored)

BabelBot does not permanently store message text.

When you send a message in a channel where BabelBot is active, we:

  • Receive the message text in real-time from Discord.
  • Send it to third-party translation and language-detection APIs.
  • Display the translated result in Discord.
  • Discard the original text immediately after processing.

We do not retain message IDs, timestamps, author names (beyond identifying opt-out status), or any message metadata permanently.

2.2 Server Configuration

We store per-guild settings that you configure via bot commands:

  • Guild (server) ID
  • Enabled/disabled status
  • Target translation languages
  • Disabled channel IDs (channels where translation is not active)
  • Opt-out user IDs (users who have used /ignore-me to exclude their messages)
  • Reply mode (reply vs. thread)
  • Translation thread retention settings
  • Bridge and webhook configuration
  • Image translation preference

This data persists as long as BabelBot remains in your server and is necessary for the service to function.

2.3 Usage & Quotas

We track translation counts to manage fair usage and billing:

  • Monthly counters: Total translations per guild per calendar month (UTC). Used for free-tier quota enforcement and billing.
  • Free-trial pool: Count of translations used from the initial free-tier starter allocation per guild (does not reset monthly; carries across months).
  • Daily aggregates: Per-guild daily translation totals by category (normal translations, flag-triggered, bridge relay). No message content attached.

We do not track which specific messages were translated, who sent them, or what languages were involved—only aggregated counts.

2.4 Billing & Payment

For premium plan processing:

  • Guild subscription tier (Free, Pro, Ultra, Lifetime)
  • Polar customer ID and subscription ID (from our payment processor)
  • Lifetime access transfer history (for founder/legacy plans)
  • Updated-at timestamps

We do not store full payment card details. Payment processing is handled entirely by Polar.sh; refer to their privacy policy for payment data handling.

2.5 Dashboard Accounts & Authentication

If you sign in to the BabelBot dashboard with Discord, we store account and session data needed to authenticate you and verify which Discord servers you can manage:

  • Dashboard user ID
  • Discord account ID
  • Name, email address, and profile image provided by Discord
  • Session records, session expiry, and sign-in metadata
  • Discord OAuth access and refresh tokens, used to fetch your manageable servers and verify dashboard access

These records are used only for authentication, authorization, dashboard access, account administration, and payment/customer portal workflows.

2.6 Diagnostics & Traces

We maintain a limited trace log (approximately 200 recent entries) of translation decisions for each guild. These logs include:

  • Decision outcomes (translated, skipped, rejected)
  • Reason codes (quota exceeded, bot disabled, user opted out, etc.)
  • Timestamps

Trace logs do not include message content or user personal data. They are used for debugging and service improvement.

2.7 Attachments & Media Translation

If image or media translation is enabled for a server, BabelBot may process Discord attachment URLs, filenames, content types, and the media content needed to extract or translate text from those attachments. Attachment content can include screenshots, images, or other media shared in Discord.

Attachment data is sent to translation or AI providers only when required to provide the requested translation feature. We do not permanently store attachment files.

2.8 Website Analytics

Our marketing website uses Rybbit, a cookieless analytics platform that does not use browser cookies. We use Rybbit on the basis of our legitimate interest in understanding aggregate website usage and improving the website without tracking visitors across unrelated sites. We collect:

  • Page views and interactions
  • Referrer information
  • Browser/device type (anonymized)

Rybbit is used for privacy-friendly, cookieless analytics. See Rybbit's privacy policy for details.

3. Third-Party Processors & Data Sharing

We rely on the following external services to operate BabelBot. These processors are used only where needed to provide, secure, bill, analyze, or support the Service.

3.1 Translation & Language Detection

  • OpenRouter: Provides access to AI translation models. Message text and, when image translation is enabled, relevant attachment data may be sent in real-time for translation and language detection and not permanently stored by us.

Refer to OpenRouter's privacy policy for how it handles this data. Model providers and APIs may process requests according to their own terms, privacy policies, and data processing settings.

3.2 Current Subprocessors

  • Discord: Platform, bot gateway, OAuth login, server membership checks, channel data, messages, reactions, attachments, and account information required to operate BabelBot.
  • Polar.sh: Checkout, subscriptions, customer portal, payment workflows, tax/payment records, and billing identifiers.
  • OpenRouter: AI model routing, real-time translation request processing, and language detection.
  • Rybbit: Cookieless website analytics for the marketing site.
  • Hosting, database, and cache providers: Application hosting, storage, cache, sessions, operational logs, and backups needed to run the Service. We will update this policy with final provider names where legally or contractually required.

See Polar's privacy policy for payment data handling. For other providers, refer to their current privacy and data processing terms.

3.3 Other Disclosures

We do not sell or rent your data. We may disclose information if required by law (e.g., subpoena, court order) or to protect the security and integrity of the service.

4. Data Retention & Deletion

4.1 Server Configuration

Persists as long as BabelBot remains in your server. When removed, configuration is retained for up to 90 days before deletion to support potential reinstalls, abuse prevention, operational recovery, or data requests. Bridge webhook tokens and other security-sensitive configuration are treated as confidential service credentials.

4.2 Usage Counters

  • Monthly counters: Retained for the current and previous 12 calendar months for analytics, audit, and billing purposes. Older months are automatically deleted.
  • Free-trial pool: Retained indefinitely until fully consumed or manually reset.
  • Daily aggregates: Retained for 24 months for historical analytics and then deleted.

4.3 Billing Records

Retained for 7 years in compliance with accounting and tax requirements. This includes Polar subscription records, tier changes, and payment history.

4.4 Dashboard Account Records

Dashboard account, OAuth account, and session records are retained while your dashboard account remains active or as needed for security, fraud prevention, account recovery, billing support, and legal compliance. Expired sessions may be deleted earlier as part of routine cleanup.

4.5 Trace Logs

Limited to the 200 most recent entries per guild. Older traces are automatically discarded.

4.6 Opt-Out Records

User opt-out preferences (ignoredUserIds) are retained as long as the configuration exists to honor your privacy choice.

4.7 Backups

Deleted data may remain in encrypted backups for up to 90 days until those backups rotate or are overwritten. Backup data is used only for disaster recovery, security, or legal compliance and is not restored for ordinary use unless needed for those purposes.

5. Your Privacy Rights & Opt-Out

5.1 Individual Opt-Out (User Level)

Stop having your messages translated

Use the /ignore-me enable command in any server where BabelBot is active. BabelBot will not process or send your messages to translation APIs. Use /ignore-me disable to opt back in or /ignore-me status to check your status.

5.2 Individual Privacy Rights (GDPR / CCPA)

If you are an individual Discord user, dashboard user, server administrator, or other data subject, you may have the right to:

  • Access: Request a copy of personal data we store about you or, if you are an authorized server administrator, about your server.
  • Deletion: Request deletion of personal data, dashboard account data, opt-out records, or server configuration where applicable, subject to retention requirements for billing, security, abuse prevention, and legal compliance.
  • Portability: Request your data in a structured, commonly-used format.
  • Rectification: Correct inaccurate account, server, or billing information.
  • Objection: Object to processing based on legitimate interests (analytics, service improvement).

To exercise these rights, contact privacy@babelbot.xyz. Include enough information for us to verify the request, such as your Discord user ID, dashboard account email, or server ID (Guild ID). We will respond to verified requests within 30 days.

5.3 California Residents (CCPA)

California residents have the right to know, delete, and opt-out of the sale or sharing of personal information. BabelBot does not sell personal information. To exercise California privacy rights, contact privacy@babelbot.xyz.

5.4 Removing BabelBot

Remove BabelBot from your server at any time via Discord server settings. No further data will be processed. Existing configuration and billing records may be retained for the periods described in Section 4.

6. Data Security

We implement industry-standard technical and organizational measures to protect data from unauthorized access, alteration, and loss. These include:

  • Encryption of data in transit and at rest
  • Restricted access to data systems
  • Regular security assessments and updates
  • Idempotency and transaction integrity controls

No system is 100% secure. While we use commercially reasonable measures, we cannot guarantee absolute security.

7. Breach Notification

If we discover a data breach that poses a risk to the privacy or security of personal information, we will:

  • Notify affected individuals without undue delay (and where legally required, within 72 hours to relevant supervisory authorities).
  • Provide details of the breach and mitigation steps.
  • Advise you of any actions you should take to protect yourself (e.g., password changes).

8. Children's Privacy

BabelBot is not intended for children under 13 (or the applicable age of digital consent in your jurisdiction). We do not knowingly collect personal information from children. If you are a parent or guardian and believe we have collected data from a child, contact us immediately at privacy@babelbot.xyz.

9. International Data Transfers

Data may be processed and stored in different jurisdictions (e.g., where our servers, payment processor, Discord, hosting providers, and translation APIs are located). By using BabelBot, you acknowledge that cross-border data transfer and processing may be required to provide the Service. Where required by law (e.g., for transfers outside the EEA), we rely on Standard Contractual Clauses, adequacy decisions, or other lawful transfer mechanisms.

10. Changes to This Privacy Policy

We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time. We will notify you of material changes by:

  • Posting the updated policy on this page with a new effective date.
  • Announcing major changes through our official Discord and support channels.

The updated policy will describe how we process data from its effective date. If you do not want your data processed under an updated policy, you should stop using BabelBot and may contact us about deletion or other privacy rights.

11. Contact & Data Protection Officer

For questions about this Privacy Policy, data requests, or to report a privacy concern:

We are committed to working with you to resolve any privacy concerns. If you are in the EU and feel your rights have been violated, you also have the right to lodge a complaint with your local data protection authority (e.g., your country's DPA).