Brinlo

Privacy Policy

Effective October 11, 2026

Brinlo is developed by Acen Studio. This policy describes how the Brinlo macOS app and the brinlo.app website handle information.

Documents and local data

Brinlo reads documents you choose and does not modify their source files. Your library organization, file-access bookmarks, reading preferences, generated previews, translation cache, and usage statistics are stored locally on your Mac. Translation API keys are stored in the macOS Keychain.

Translation

Apple Translation processes document text on your device. macOS may contact Apple to download the language models needed for translation. You can instead configure an OpenAI-compatible service, including a local service. Before sending document text to that service, Brinlo asks you to approve the destination. Approval is remembered for that API address; changing it requires approval again.

Remote translation sends the selected text, block identifiers, language instructions, model settings, and your API key directly to the configured endpoint. Selected text can include links and code. The key is stored in Keychain and transmitted for authentication. Test Connection also sends your key to the endpoint to request its model list, without sending document text or requiring translation approval. Acen Studio does not receive these requests. The provider can associate requests with your account, and its terms, privacy policy, retention rules, and API fees apply. Brinlo uses the Responses or Chat Completions API selected in Settings. Responses requests include store: false; Chat Completions requests do not set that option. Neither setting guarantees that the provider keeps no logs or other records.

Remote images and links

Opening a document can load images directly from the HTTP or HTTPS addresses in it, without translation approval. The image host receives the requested address and standard connection information, including your IP address, and may keep its own records. An image address can itself contain identifying information. Links you choose to open in your browser are handled under that browser's and the destination site's privacy practices.

Diagnostics

Automatic crash-report sending is optional and off by default. You can enable “Send crash reports to Sentry” in Brinlo → Settings → About to help Acen Studio fix crashes. Crashes are recorded locally even with automatic sending off. After a crash, Brinlo asks on the next launch before uploading: you can review the filtered report, send it once, delete it, or enable automatic sending for future crashes. Until approval, no crash report is uploaded. Declining does not affect reading or translation. Reports contain the app version, macOS version, crash time, crash type, stack addresses, and binary image identifiers needed to diagnose crashes. Before sending, Brinlo removes document text, exception descriptions, local paths, API keys, breadcrumbs, and installation identifiers. Automatic sessions, performance measurements, and MetricKit reports are disabled.

Turning automatic sending off stops uploading, cancels pending requests, and deletes unsent reports. Your choice is saved across restarts; future crashes stay local until you approve sending. Local SDK crash records may contain technical details and binary paths; the reviewable report is filtered before upload. Reports already received by Sentry cannot be recalled by this switch. Sentry receives standard connection information and may derive approximate location, such as city and country, from your IP address; Brinlo does not request device location. The project does not currently prevent Sentry from storing IP addresses. Reports are not used for advertising or tracking. Sentry processes them on behalf of Acen Studio in the United States. Event data is currently retained for 30 days; this does not describe retention of other service records or debug symbols.

Remote sharing in the direct-download version

Remote is a feature under development in the direct-download version; the Mac App Store version does not include it. It starts disabled on new installations. If you enable it and pair a device, that device can read the library items and related resources permitted by your sharing rules, including document text, names, and folder hierarchy. Automatic sharing includes added files, collection members, and indexed documents in added folders; selected-folder mode limits access to the selected folders. Exclusions restrict either mode.

Content, names, and paths travel through the configured relay with end-to-end encryption between paired devices. The relay can see connection addresses, times, traffic volume, room identifiers, device roles, and public authentication keys. The paired device receives readable content and may cache it locally. Pairing secrets are stored in Keychain. Disabling Remote stops future access but keeps pairing records; removing a device revokes its future access on the Mac. Neither action retracts copies already received. Relay-room deletion can remain pending when offline, and relay records are subject to the relay operator's own retention practices.

Website

brinlo.app does not use analytics or advertising cookies. It stores only your language choice in local browser storage. The site loads the Newsreader font from Google Fonts, so your browser may send standard connection information, such as your IP address and user agent, to Google when loading the font.

Your choices

  • You can read local documents without configuring translation or Remote; remote images and opted-in crash reporting may still make network requests.
  • You can remove a saved translation API key in Settings.
  • You can clear generated local data from Settings.
  • Clear generated data does not remove library records, provider settings, consent, or Keychain credentials.
  • Deleting the app alone does not guarantee removal of app data or Keychain items. Remove saved keys and pairings before uninstalling, and delete remaining app data separately.

Contact and changes

Questions or privacy requests can be sent to brinlo@acenstudio.com. If this policy changes materially, Acen Studio will update this page and its effective date.