Privacy Policy
Last updated: 20 February 2026
GIMZWARE.ai ("we," "our," or "us") is committed to protecting your privacy. This Privacy Policy explains how we collect, use, disclose, and safeguard your information when you visit our website, purchase our products, or use our software. This policy applies to this website and to the GIMZWARE audio software.
SMELT Studio is covered separately. Our hosted AI platform processes account, workflow and billing data through a different set of providers, and is governed by its own Privacy Policy.
1. Data Controller
The data controller responsible for your personal data is:
GIMZWARE.ai
Email: [email protected]
We are a sole-proprietor business registered in England. As a small organisation, we are not required to appoint a Data Protection Officer (DPO). For any data protection queries, please contact us at the email address above.
2. Information We Collect
Information You Provide Directly
We collect the following information when you interact with us:
- Email address - when you contact us, submit a support request, sign up for product notifications, or purchase a product
- Message content - when you contact us via our support form (name, email, subject, and message body)
- Basic system information - when you submit a support request from our website, your browser type, operating system, screen resolution, and language preference may be included to help us diagnose technical issues
Information Collected by Our Payment Processor
When you make a purchase, our payment processor FastSpring (Bright Market, LLC) collects and processes the following on our behalf as the Merchant of Record:
- Full name
- Email address
- Billing address
- Payment card details
- Country/region (for tax calculation and compliance)
GIMZWARE does not directly collect, process, or store your payment card information, billing address, or full name. This data is handled entirely by FastSpring under their own privacy policy. FastSpring shares your email address and order details with us solely for the purpose of licence delivery and customer support. See FastSpring's Privacy Policy for details on how they handle your data.
Licensing Information
Our software collects limited technical data for licence activation and validation:
- Licence key
- Hardware identifier (a hash used to bind your licence to your machine)
- Machine name
- Plugin version number
Audio Data
We do not collect, transmit, or store any of your audio data. All audio processing in the GIMZWARE audio plugins happens 100% locally on your machine. Your audio never leaves your computer.
AI and Model Training
We do not use your data to train our AI models. Our neural network models are trained on proprietary datasets before release. No user data, audio content, usage patterns, or any other personal information is used for model training, fine-tuning, or improvement of our AI systems.
Website Data
This website does not use analytics, tracking cookies, or fingerprinting technologies. We do not track your browsing behaviour. The only client-side storage used is browser localStorage to remember your cookie notice dismissal preference, which never leaves your device.
3. Legal Basis for Processing
Under the UK General Data Protection Regulation (UK GDPR) and the EU General Data Protection Regulation (EU GDPR), we process your personal data on the following legal bases:
- Performance of a Contract (Article 6(1)(b)): Processing your email address and licensing data is necessary to deliver your purchased software, provide licence keys, and fulfil our contractual obligations to you.
- Legitimate Interest (Article 6(1)(f)): Processing hardware identifiers for licence validation to prevent unauthorised use of our software. We have balanced this against your rights and consider it proportionate given the minimal data collected and the legitimate need to protect our software.
- Consent (Article 6(1)(a)): Where you have opted in to receive product launch notifications, we process your email address based on your consent. You may withdraw consent at any time by contacting us.
- Legal Obligation (Article 6(1)(c)): Where we are required to retain certain records for tax or regulatory compliance.
4. How We Use Your Information
We use the information we collect for the following specific purposes:
- Deliver product licence keys and download access after purchase
- Validate and activate software licences
- Respond to your support requests and enquiries
- Send product launch notifications (only if you opted in)
- Process refunds when requested
- Comply with legal and tax obligations
We do not use your data for profiling, targeted advertising, or any purpose other than those listed above.
5. Information Sharing
We do not sell, trade, or rent your personal information. We share information only with the following third parties, and only as necessary:
- FastSpring (Bright Market, LLC): Our payment processor and Merchant of Record. FastSpring processes your payment and collects billing information on our behalf. They share your email address and order details with us for licence fulfilment. FastSpring is based in the United States and operates under the FastSpring Privacy Policy.
- Microsoft Azure: Our licensing API and support form backend are hosted on Microsoft Azure infrastructure. Contact form submissions and licence activation requests are processed through Azure Functions.
- Law Enforcement: We may disclose information if required to do so by law, court order, or other legal process.
We do not share your data with any analytics providers, advertising networks, or data brokers.
6. International Data Transfers
Some of our service providers are based outside the United Kingdom and European Economic Area (EEA). When your data is transferred internationally, appropriate safeguards are in place:
- FastSpring (USA): Transfers are covered by Standard Contractual Clauses (SCCs) and the EU-US Data Privacy Framework where applicable.
- Microsoft Azure: Microsoft operates under approved Standard Contractual Clauses and the EU-US Data Privacy Framework. Data processing may occur in the UK, EU, or US depending on the service region.
You can request further details about the safeguards in place by contacting us.
7. Data Security
We implement appropriate technical and organisational measures to protect your personal information, including:
- SSL/TLS encryption for all data in transit
- Secure API authentication for all backend services
- Input validation and sanitisation on all server-side endpoints
- No storage of payment card data on our systems
While we take reasonable steps to protect your data, no method of transmission or storage is 100% secure. If you become aware of any security breach, please contact us immediately.
8. Data Retention
We retain your personal data only for as long as necessary to fulfil the purposes outlined in this policy:
- Email address and licence data: For the duration of your licence validity, and a reasonable period thereafter for support purposes
- Support correspondence: Up to 3 years from last contact
- Notification signups: Until you unsubscribe or withdraw consent
FastSpring retains purchase and transaction records in accordance with their own retention policy and applicable tax/legal requirements (typically 7 years for financial records).
9. Your Rights
Under the UK GDPR and EU GDPR, you have the following rights regarding your personal data:
- Right of Access: Request a copy of the personal data we hold about you
- Right to Rectification: Request correction of inaccurate or incomplete data
- Right to Erasure: Request deletion of your personal data where there is no compelling reason for continued processing
- Right to Restrict Processing: Request that we limit how we use your data
- Right to Data Portability: Receive your data in a structured, commonly used, machine-readable format
- Right to Object: Object to processing based on legitimate interests
- Right to Withdraw Consent: Where processing is based on consent, you may withdraw it at any time without affecting the lawfulness of prior processing
To exercise any of these rights, contact us at [email protected]. We will respond to your request within one month, as required by law. There is no fee for making a request unless it is manifestly unfounded or excessive.
Right to Complain: If you are unhappy with how we handle your data, you have the right to lodge a complaint with the UK Information Commissioner's Office (ICO):
Website: ico.org.uk
Telephone: 0303 123 1113
If you are located in the EU, you may also complain to your local data protection supervisory authority.
10. Cookies and Tracking
This website does not use analytics cookies, tracking cookies, or advertising cookies. We do not use any tracking or fingerprinting technologies.
- Local Storage: We use browser localStorage solely to remember your cookie notice dismissal preference. This data is stored on your device only and is never transmitted to our servers.
- Third-Party Cookies: Our payment processor (FastSpring) may set session cookies when you open the checkout popup. These are essential for processing your payment and are governed by FastSpring's cookie policy.
You can clear localStorage and manage cookies through your browser settings at any time.
11. Automated Decision-Making
We do not use automated decision-making or profiling that produces legal effects or similarly significant effects on you. Our licence validation system performs automated checks (verifying your licence key against your machine), but this is a straightforward contractual verification process, not profiling.
12. Children's Privacy
Our products and services are not directed at children under the age of 16. We do not knowingly collect personal data from children under 16. If you believe we have inadvertently collected data from a child, please contact us immediately and we will take steps to delete the information.
13. Changes to This Policy
We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time. We will notify you of any material changes by posting the updated policy on this page and updating the "Last updated" date. Where changes are significant, we will make reasonable efforts to notify affected users (for example, via email). We encourage you to review this policy periodically.
14. Contact Us
If you have questions about this Privacy Policy, wish to exercise your data rights, or have concerns about how your data is handled, please contact us:
Email: [email protected]
Website: https://gimzware.ai