Data use

Privacy notice

Purpose and access

Northmail is operated by its owner solely to read their own email. Gmail authorization requests only https://www.googleapis.com/auth/gmail.readonly. This permission is broader than the current Inbox view; the application limits its current retrieval to recent Inbox summaries and messages selected by the owner. The connection checks the Gmail account identity against the address entered during private setup.

Northmail uses Gmail account identity, message identifiers, senders, subjects, dates, labels and read status to display and filter the Inbox. When the owner opens a message or downloads an attachment, its contents are retrieved from the provider and processed for display or download. Provider authorization tokens and client configuration maintain the connection. Separate authentication/session data enables Northmail sign-in and optional trusted devices.

Storage and retention

Provider settings, tokens, cached message-summary records and sync state are encrypted at the record level in a database on the owner's server. The encryption key is stored separately from that database. This is not a claim that the entire server, all SQLite metadata or a running process is encrypted.

The cache holds at most 200 Inbox summaries per account from the 30 days before the last successful refresh. A successful refresh replaces that account's previous summary snapshot. Failed refreshes retain the previous cache, so 30 days is a retrieval window, not a guaranteed deletion deadline. Credentials remain until deliberately replaced or removed.

Message bodies and attachment bytes are processed on demand and are not deliberately persisted in the server's mailbox database. They are present transiently in server and browser memory. Files the owner downloads are retained by their device and must be managed there. Trusted-device sessions are held separately from mailbox recovery artifacts.

Owner-managed backups may retain earlier encrypted records, including account credentials, under their own retention rules. Actual Northmail offsite coverage and restore have not yet been verified. Revocation does not erase existing cache or backups. Removal of local records and retained copies requires an owner-operated maintenance procedure; no self-service deletion control is currently provided.

Use and disclosure

Email is used to provide the owner's email-reading interface. It is not sold, used for advertising, supplied to AI services or used to train models. There is no analytics integration. Google and Yahoo process requests to their own services. Tailscale supplies private connectivity and access identity under the owner's configuration.

External images are blocked by default. If the owner chooses to load images for a message, their browser requests those images from the remote hosts. This can reveal their network address and that the message was opened. Opening an external link likewise contacts the destination site. These third parties operate under their own policies.

The public information pages are hosted on Cloudflare Pages. Cloudflare processes web-request data to deliver and protect the site, under its privacy policy (Cloudflare privacy policy). These pages have no forms, client-side scripts or analytics integration. They receive no mailbox credentials or messages. The private email application is hosted separately. The operator does not promise that the hosting provider keeps no access or security logs.

Northmail's use and transfer of information received from Google APIs will adhere to the Google API Services User Data Policy, including its Limited Use requirements: Google API Services User Data Policy . This is an operating commitment, not a statement of Google approval or independent security certification.

Owner control

The owner can revoke Northmail's access through their Google Account's third-party connections controls. That stops future authorized access but does not delete mail from Gmail or automatically erase Northmail's local cache and backups. Yahoo app passwords can be revoked separately. Provider websites remain available independently.

Changes to data use or permissions must be disclosed before the new use begins. This tool is used only by its operator; no public support service is offered.

Updated 1 November 2026