Privacy Policy

Introduction

Essence Scholar ("we," "our," or "us") is committed to protecting your privacy. This Privacy Policy explains how we collect, use, and safeguard your information when you use our browser extension, website, and the essencescholar-mcp connector for Claude.

Claude / MCP Connector (essencescholar-mcp)

The essencescholar-mcp connector lets Claude search economics literature, run deep research sessions, manage your Essence Scholar paper library, and run or author Agent Studio workflows on your behalf. It operates on the same account, library, and backend as the web app — the practices described throughout this policy apply to it too. This section covers what's specific to the connector.

• Authentication: You supply your personal Essence Scholar API key when you connect the tool in Claude. Claude stores it locally (as a sensitive/masked value) and sends it as a bearer token with each request; we never see or store it anywhere the key wasn't already used for API access via the web app.
• What is sent: Only the arguments of the specific action you or Claude invoke — e.g. a search query, a paper's local file path (for reading), extracted text or PDF bytes, a research topic/description, or a workflow you're authoring. Nothing is sent unless a tool is explicitly called.
• No background access: The connector cannot read Claude's conversation history, memory, or any files beyond what a tool call explicitly names (e.g. a PDF path you point it to). It only acts when a tool is invoked, and only on the parameters passed to that call.
• Storage: Papers, research sessions, and workflows created through the connector are stored in your Essence Scholar library exactly like content added via the web app — same retention and deletion rights described in "Data Retention" and "Your Rights and Choices" below.
• Shared workflows: If you explicitly mark a workflow as shared to the Agent Studio marketplace, its steps and prompts (not your paper content) become visible to other users, same as sharing via the web app.

What We Collect

Information We Collect

• Academic Paper Content: PDF bytes and metadata (title, authors, DOI) sent to our backend for ingestion, OCR, and AI analysis, and stored in your personal library
• API Key: Your Essence Scholar API key is stored locally in chrome.storage to authenticate requests to our backend
• User Preferences: Extension settings and configuration choices stored locally on your device

Information We Do NOT Collect

• Personal identifying information beyond your API key (name, address, etc.)
• Browsing history outside of pages where you explicitly trigger an import
• Health, financial, or payment information
• Location data or general web history
• User activity tracking or analytics

How We Use Your Information

Core Functionality

• Paper Analysis: Process academic content to generate AI-powered summaries
• User Experience: Remember your preferences and settings
• Performance: Cache frequently accessed data for faster analysis

Data Processing

• Backend Ingestion: PDF content is transmitted to our backend (essencescholar.com API) for OCR and AI analysis
• Library Storage: Processed papers are stored in your personal Essence Scholar library on our servers, associated with your account
• Secure Transmission: All data transmitted using HTTPS encryption

Data Storage and Security

Storage Practices

• Local Storage: Your API key and extension preferences are stored locally on your device via chrome.storage
• Server Storage: Imported papers (content, metadata, AI analysis results) are stored in your personal library on our backend servers
• User Control: You can delete papers from your library at any time through the Essence Scholar web app

Security Measures

• HTTPS Encryption: All data transmission is encrypted
• Local Processing: Sensitive data processed locally when possible
• No Tracking: We do not track your browsing behavior
• Open Source: Code is transparent and auditable

Third-Party Services

AI Backend Service

• Purpose: Provides AI analysis capabilities
• Data Shared: Only paper content for analysis
• Security: Secure HTTPS transmission
• Retention: No permanent storage of your data

No Third-Party Tracking

• We do not use advertising networks
• We do not include tracking pixels
• We do not sell or share data with advertisers

Your Rights and Choices

Data Control

• Access: View your stored preferences and settings
• Delete: Clear all stored data at any time
• Opt-out: Disable the extension to stop data collection
• Export: Request a copy of your stored data

Browser Permissions

The extension requires the following permissions:

• activeTab: To read the current tab's URL and detect PDFs
• scripting: To inject a content script that extracts PDF bytes from the page
• tabs: To get active tab information for triggering imports
• storage: To save your API key and extension preferences locally
• webRequest: To detect PDFs at the network level by inspecting Content-Type headers
• webNavigation: To re-check PDF status when you navigate to a new URL
• host_permissions (<all_urls>): Academic PDFs are hosted on any domain — publishers, preprint servers, institutional repositories — so universal access is required

Data Retention

Retention Period

• Analysis Data: Deleted immediately after processing
• User Preferences: Stored locally until you clear them
• Cached Data: Automatically cleared when no longer needed

Deletion

• Automatic: Temporary data deleted after use
• Manual: You can clear all stored data anytime
• Extension Removal: All data deleted when extension is uninstalled

Children's Privacy

Our extension is designed for academic research and is not intended for children under 13. We do not knowingly collect personal information from children under 13.

International Users

If you are using our extension from outside the United States, please note that your information may be transferred to, stored, and processed in the United States where our servers are located.

Changes to This Policy

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

• Posting the new Privacy Policy on our website
• Updating the "Last updated" date
• Notifying users through the extension if significant changes occur

Legal Basis

This Privacy Policy is provided in compliance with:

• Chrome Web Store Developer Program Policies
• General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR)
• California Consumer Privacy Act (CCPA)
• Other applicable privacy laws

Data Protection Officer

For privacy-related inquiries, please contact: