Privacy Policy
Last updated: March 4, 2026
1. Introduction
FTO Scout ("we," "us," or "our") respects your privacy. This Privacy Policy explains how we collect, use, store, and protect your information when you use our AI-powered patent intelligence platform ("the Service").
2. Information We Collect
Account Information. Email address, name (if provided), and authentication credentials managed through our authentication provider (Supabase Auth). Passwords are never stored in plain text.
Invention Data. Invention descriptions, claims, technical features, uploaded documents, and any other content you submit for patent analysis. This is your proprietary data.
Search and Analysis Data. Search queries, prior art results, claim comparison matrices, and generated reports created through your use of the Service.
Payment Information. Billing is processed by Stripe. We store your Stripe customer ID for subscription management but do not store credit card numbers, bank account details, or other payment credentials on our servers.
Usage Data. Log data such as IP address, browser type, pages visited, and timestamps. This is collected automatically to maintain and improve the Service.
3. How We Use Your Information
We use your information to: (a) provide and maintain the Service; (b) process your patent searches and generate analysis reports; (c) manage your subscription and billing; (d) send transactional emails (account verification, password resets, billing notifications); (e) improve the Service and fix bugs; and (f) comply with legal obligations. We do not sell your personal information to third parties.
4. AI Processing
Your invention data and search queries are processed by AI models (Anthropic Claude) to perform patent analysis. This processing occurs in real-time and is necessary to deliver the Service. AI-generated results are stored in your account for your reference. We do not use your invention data to train AI models.
5. Third-Party Services
We use the following third-party services to operate the platform:
Supabase. Database hosting, authentication, and row-level security. Your data is stored in Supabase-managed PostgreSQL databases with encryption at rest.
Stripe. Payment processing and subscription management. Stripe's privacy policy governs their handling of your payment data.
Anthropic (Claude AI). AI processing for patent search and analysis. Invention data is sent to Anthropic's API for processing. Anthropic does not use API inputs to train their models.
Vercel. Application hosting and content delivery.
Patent Databases. USPTO, Google Patents, WIPO, and other public patent databases are queried during searches. Only your search terms are sent to these services, not your full invention data.
6. Data Security
We implement reasonable security measures to protect your data, including: encryption in transit (TLS/HTTPS); encryption at rest for stored data; row-level security ensuring users can only access their own data; server-side API key storage (never exposed to the browser); and secure authentication with token-based sessions. No method of transmission or storage is 100% secure. We cannot guarantee absolute security.
7. Data Retention
Your account data and invention data are retained as long as your account is active. If you cancel your subscription, your data remains accessible in read-only mode. You may request deletion of your account and all associated data by contacting us. Upon deletion request, we will remove your data within 30 days, except where retention is required by law.
8. Your Rights
Depending on your jurisdiction, you may have the right to: access your personal data; correct inaccurate data; request deletion of your data; export your data in a portable format; object to or restrict certain processing; and withdraw consent where applicable. To exercise these rights, contact us at the email below.
9. Cookies
We use essential cookies for authentication and session management. We do not use third-party advertising or tracking cookies. Stripe may set cookies as part of payment processing.
10. Children
The Service is not intended for users under 18 years of age. We do not knowingly collect data from children. If we learn that we have collected data from a child under 18, we will delete that data promptly.
11. International Data
Your data may be processed and stored in the United States. By using the Service, you consent to the transfer of your data to the United States, which may have different data protection laws than your country of residence.
12. Changes to This Policy
We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time. Material changes will be communicated via email or in-app notification. The "Last updated" date at the top reflects the most recent revision.
13. Contact
Questions or concerns about this Privacy Policy? Contact us at ftoscout@gmail.com.