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Privacy Policy

Our Privacy Policy was last updated on 19/02/25.

At Mentafy (Gottfried-Hagen-Straße 60-62, 50115 Cologne, Germany), we prioritize the privacy and protection of your data when using our services for student writing support, authorship validation and integrity reporting. This document explains how we process your data and outlines your rights under applicable laws.

1. Processing of Personal Data

1.1 Account Data

When you register with Mentafy, we create a personal account containing:

  • Username (email address)
  • Securely encrypted password

This data is essential to provide our services and ensure accessibility to your results. Optionally, you may add your name, form of address and preferred language to your profile. Account data is private and used internally for identification and service delivery.

1.1.1 Single-Sign-On (SSO)

If you log in using third-party services (e.g., Google or Microsoft), Mentafy imports relevant account data from those providers and stores your username and single-sign-on key.

1.3 Document Data

When providing a document for authorship validation, the text and writing patterns are analyzed. Metadata is extracted for integrity reporting. Data from the document is not submitted to 3rd parties. Integrity reporting is provided to the client directly.

The anonymized metadata is being used to train proprietary artificial neural networks. No personal data or actual content of the documents is retrievable from said system. The neural network is not shared with other parties.

1.4 Chat Data

We offer chat bot conversations on our websites, e.g. to help students find a good topic for their paper. For that purpose, we employ external generative AI services (currently ChatGPT 4o, from OpenAI LLC). The content of the chat is always independent of any account or document data and therefore per se anonymous. Users are informed about this circumstance, when using chat bots.

1.5 IP Address and Browser Settings

We collect your IP address, browser settings, and approximate location (city-level) to enhance service functionality, trace misuse, and comply with regional regulations.

1.6 Communication Preferences

When you subscribe to our newsletters or updates, we collect your name, email, and preferences. You can unsubscribe anytime using the link provided in our emails.

1.7 Purpose of Data Use

We use your data to:

  • Deliver student writing support, authorship validation and integrity reports.
  • Identify you as a registered user.
  • Improve our services and respond to your inquiries.
  • Ensure compliance with laws and protect against misuse.
  • Send optional newsletters (if opted-in).
1.8 On what legal basis do we process your personal data?

We process your personal data based on the following legal grounds:

  • Contractual Obligations: To fulfill our contractual commitments to you (as per Article 6.1(b) of the GDPR).
  • Legal Compliance: To meet our statutory responsibilities (as per Article 6.1(c) of the GDPR).
  • Service Operation: To provide and manage our SaaS education services.
  • Legitimate Interests: To support our legitimate business needs related to running our website and delivering services, provided these do not override your fundamental rights and interests (as per Article 6.1(f) of the GDPR).
  • Third-Party Interests: To pursue the legitimate interests of third parties where compatible with your rights and interests (as per Article 6.1(f) of the GDPR).
  • Legal Claims: To establish, exercise, or defend legal claims, where necessary (as per Article 9.2(f) of the GDPR).

These legal grounds may sometimes overlap, meaning multiple justifications may apply to the processing of your data. In cases where you have explicitly provided consent for specific uses (e.g., subscribing to newsletters, as per Article 6.1(a) of the GDPR), you can withdraw your consent at any time. However, please note that we may still process your data based on other applicable legal grounds.

2. Disclosure of Personal Information

2.1 General Disclosures

Mentafy does not share your personal data publicly without explicit consent.

2.2 Collaboration Tools and Archives

If you opt to share documents within an organization or with collaborators, access is limited and controlled by you. If you accept an invitation for an assignment, the person that sent you the link will see your name and final submission of your writing document along with our integrity report.

2.3 External Services

We may use third-party vendors (e.g., for hosting or analytics) under strict agreements to ensure data security and compliance with relevant laws.

2.4 Version History Analysis

A very Mentafy specific methodology is, that we can employ the version history of a text file as well as the global file history of a dedicated folder, in order to analyze the amount of personal contribution and where content was copied. If the file has been created and edited on a cloud service, like GoogleDrive or OneDrive the version history of that file is being analyzed, in order to create an integrity report from the derived metadata. In detail the scope and  purpose of this data analysis is:

  • Monitoring and recording changes of stored documents in a special, named folder to reflect a users work process.
  • Importing the version history for changes of a user-selected document.

Neither the files itself, nor other information beyond the said folder and dedicated file is being processed in any way. The version history itself also is not being stored, but deleted after the metadata extraction.

3. Data Controller

3.1 Information We Control

Mentafy acts as the data controller for the information you provide to create and manage your profile, including your email address, password, and registered IP address. We also control data shared with external services (as detailed in Section 2.3). The collection and processing of this data are governed by German data protection laws.

3.2 Information You Control

You are the data controller for any content you submit for authorship validation and for any personal information shared via third-party single sign-on services.

4. Security Measures

4.1 General

Mentafy implements advanced technical and organizational safeguards to protect your data. However, as online communication carries inherent risks, we advise against sharing confidential information via unencrypted emails.

4.2 Links to Websites

Our website, including the authorship validation and integrity reports, may contain links to third-party websites. These links are provided for convenience and do not signify our endorsement of those websites. We do not control their content or practices and cannot accept responsibility for their policies or actions.

We recommend reviewing the privacy policies of any third-party websites you visit, as their methods for collecting, handling, and processing personal data may differ from ours.

5. Cookies and Tracking

We use cookies and similar technologies to:

  • Monitor website performance.
  • Enhance user experience (e.g., remembering login preferences).
  • Gather anonymized analytics.

You can disable cookies in your browser settings, but this may impact functionality.

6. Accessing, Correcting, or Deleting Your Data

You can review and manage your data via your Mentafy account. If you want to know, what data this is, don’t hesitate to contact us via info@mentafy.com. If you wish to delete your account, all associated data will be erased, except for a limited log retained for legal purposes.

7. Your Rights

You have the right to:

  • Access your data.
  • Correct inaccuracies.
  • Restrict or object to data processing.
  • Withdraw consent for specific uses (e.g., newsletters).
  • Request data portability where applicable.

8. Children's Information

Our website is not designed for use by children. If you become aware that a child under the age of 13 has shared their personal information with us, please notify us immediately so we can take appropriate action.

9. Contact

Mentafy is the data controller for account and service-related information. For questions, concerns, or to exercise your rights, contact our Data Protection Officer at:

If you have any questions about these Privacy Policies, You can contact us:

10. Changes to this Policy

We may update this policy periodically. The latest version will be published on our website. Significant changes will be communicated to you. Continued use of our services implies acceptance of the revised policy.

For further inquiries, feel free to contact us. If unresolved, you may lodge complaints with the German Data Protection Agency.