The Short Version
We collect only what Shelvd needs to provide the service. We do not sell your data, we do not sell your reading habits, and we do not train AI models on your collection data.
Who We Are
Shelvd is operated by Simplinity, the sole proprietorship of Bruno van Branden, based in Belgium.
Data controller: Bruno van Branden / Simplinity
Location: Belgium, European Union
Privacy inquiries: privacy@shelvd.app
This is a one-person operation. Privacy questions are read by Bruno, not by a support maze.
What We Collect
We record only what is needed to run Shelvd and manage your account and collection.
Information you give us
Account details
Email address, password hash, and authentication information.
Profile information
Name, billing details, and preferences you choose to provide.
Your book data
Titles, authors, publishers, conditions, bindings, provenance, valuations, notes, images, tags, and related collection metadata.
Documents you upload
Receipts, invoices, certificates, appraisals and other files you choose to keep with your books. They are private to your account and never shared.
Feedback and correspondence
Messages you send through support forms, email, or feedback channels.
Information collected automatically
Usage data
Pages visited, features used, and similar product signals that help us improve Shelvd.
Device information
Browser, operating system, screen size, and technical logs used for security and debugging.
Cookies
Small functional cookies needed for login, sessions, preferences, and dismissed notices.
Support email signals
When we reply to a support request, the email contains a small tracking image that tells us whether it was opened, and its answer buttons record your choice. We use this only to see whether our reply reached you; mail apps that block images prevent the open signal.
Information we do not collect
Your browsing history outside Shelvd
Precise location data
Biometric data
Payment card details handled by payment processors
What We Do With Your Data
We use your data for the following purposes:
Running your account. Authentication, account management, and security.
Storing your collection. Saving, organizing, searching, importing, exporting, and displaying your books.
Improving Shelvd. Understanding which features work, fixing bugs, and improving performance.
Communicating with you. Sending account, security, password reset, billing, and critical service messages.
Legal obligations. Complying with Belgian and EU legal obligations.
What we will never do
Sell your personal data or collection data.
Use your book collection to target advertising.
Share your data with third parties for their marketing.
Train AI models on your private collection data.
Third-Party Services
Shelvd relies on a small number of service providers to operate the app.
| Service | Purpose | Data shared |
|---|---|---|
| Supabase | Database and authentication | Account data, book data |
| Vercel | Hosting and file storage | IP address, technical logs, uploaded images and documents |
| Mollie | Payments | Payment and billing data |
| Library APIs | Book lookups | Search queries only |
| Resend | Email delivery | Email address, content of the emails we send you |
These providers receive only the information needed for their role. Library lookup services receive search queries, not your full collection.
Information You Choose to Publish
On the Dealer plan you can create a public profile in the dealer directory. It is off by default, and nothing on it is taken from your collection: every line is text you typed and chose to publish.
Never shown
Your email address. A collector writes through a form; we send the message to you with their address as reply-to, and your answer goes to them directly.
Only if you ask for it
Your street and postal code. Without that tick the page shows your city and country and nothing more.
Not from your books
The directory shows no titles, no stock, no valuations. It says who you are and what you deal in.
You can take the profile offline yourself at any moment, and the page is gone. We may take a profile offline ourselves if it breaks the rules, and you then see the reason on your own profile screen.
When a collector writes to you we record that a message was sent, to which profile and when, plus a one-way hash of the sender's IP address. That is how we stop one person flooding your inbox. We do not store the text of the message.
Cookies
Shelvd uses functional cookies to make the website and app work.
Essential cookies only. We use cookies for:
Keeping you logged in
Remembering dismissed announcements
Basic session and preference management
We do not use:
Tracking cookies
Advertising cookies
Cross-site analytics cookies
You can disable cookies in your browser settings, but login and account features may stop working.
Data Security
Your collection data is stored in Supabase infrastructure in the European Union. Data is encrypted in transit, and row-level security limits access to your own records.
If a personal data breach occurs and notification is required, we will inform affected users without undue delay.
Your Rights (GDPR)
Because Shelvd is operated in Belgium and serves EU users, the GDPR gives you clear rights over your personal data.
Access
You can request a copy of the personal data we hold about you.
Rectification
You can correct inaccurate or incomplete personal data.
Erasure
You can delete your account and request deletion of associated personal data.
Portability
You can export your collection data in common formats such as CSV, Excel, or JSON.
Objection
You can object to certain processing where the GDPR gives you that right.
Restriction
You can ask us to restrict processing while a concern is being reviewed.
Complaint
You may lodge a complaint with the Belgian Data Protection Authority.
To exercise these rights, email privacy@shelvd.app. Bruno will read it personally.
Data Retention
Active accounts
We keep your data for as long as your account is active.
Deleted accounts
Collection and account data is permanently deleted within 30 days of account deletion, unless a legal obligation requires a longer period.
Server logs
Technical logs are normally deleted after 90 days.
Uploaded documents
Kept until you delete them or your account; you can download all of them as one archive at any time. Keeping your own invoices for your accounts remains your responsibility.
Dealer contact log
The record that a message was sent through a public profile is kept for 30 days and then deleted. It never contained the message itself.
We do not keep personal data just in case.
Children
Shelvd is not directed at anyone under 16 years old. If you are under 16, please use Shelvd only with a parent or guardian.
Changes to This Policy
If this privacy policy changes, we will:
Update the last-updated date at the top of the page
Notify active users by email for material changes
Keep the current version available at this URL
We do not hide important privacy changes in footnotes.
Contact
Questions about privacy or data protection? Contact us directly.
Email: privacy@shelvd.app
Human: Bruno van Branden
Location: Belgium, EU
Response time: Usually within 48 hours
This privacy policy is written for people first: clear enough to read, precise enough to matter.