Data Storage, Use, and Retention Policy

Overview

GLOW is built to minimize data retention risk. This page explains exactly what happens to your documents and data when you use the service.

Document Storage and Retention

Audit workflow

When you submit a document for audit, GLOW retains it briefly on the server to enable two optional follow-on actions available directly from the audit report: the direct Fix shortcut (which lets you proceed to fix without re-uploading) and Document Chat. The file is held in a short-lived server-side session and is automatically deleted within one hour of upload. If you close the browser or do not use either follow-on feature, the file is no longer actively referenced and will be removed at the next scheduled sweep.

A shareable report link is generated for every audit. This link contains only the rendered HTML report — your original document is never accessible through it. Shareable links and their cached HTML expire after one hour and are then permanently deleted. Nothing about the original document is retained in the link or its cache.

Fix workflow

The Fix workflow is multi-step. After you upload a document, GLOW holds it on the server while it produces the fixed copy and optionally presents a heading review screen for your input. Once you download the fixed document, the original and the fixed copy are both deleted immediately.

If you do not complete the fix workflow (for example, you close the browser before downloading), the document is automatically deleted after one hour from the time of upload. This limit applies even if the session is still technically active.

Convert and Export workflows

Converted and exported files follow the same pattern as the Fix workflow: the server holds your uploaded file only for the duration of processing. Once the result is delivered or the session ends, the file is deleted. Stale uploads are swept every hour.

BITS Whisperer audio workflow

For audio transcription, GLOW keeps the uploaded recording and generated transcript only for the time required to complete conversion and deliver the download. Active in-progress transcription jobs are kept alive so long recordings can finish reliably. After download, temporary files are deleted. If the flow is abandoned before download, stale files are removed by retention cleanup.

For eligible long recordings, users may opt into background processing. In that mode, GLOW can send lifecycle emails (queued, started, completed, and cleared) when email delivery is configured. Completed background jobs are retrieved via a single-use secure link plus a retrieval password set by the user at submission time.

If a completed background transcript is not retrieved within the secure retrieval window (default 4 hours), GLOW clears the content and can send a final notification confirming removal.

No permanent storage

GLOW does not store documents in any database, object store, archive, or backup system. Temporary files live only in a short-lived directory on the server and are removed as described above. The shareable-report cache holds only rendered HTML — no original document content — and is also cleared after one hour.

Artificial Intelligence

AI features are not enabled on this server. Core audit, fix, template, export, and many conversion workflows remain available and are rule-based; no requests are sent to external AI providers. Audio transcription via BITS Whisperer is not available when AI is disabled.

Data Rights and Use

BITS (Blind Information Technology Solutions) does not claim any rights to the content you upload. Your documents belong to you.

GLOW does not sell, share, license, or otherwise transfer document content to any third party for advertising or independent product training. When you use an AI-powered workflow, GLOW transmits only the content required to complete that request to the configured AI provider.

Operational analytics

GLOW collects a limited set of operational analytics to understand service health and adoption. This includes an aggregate visitor counter (unique browser sessions) and per-tool usage counts (Audit, Fix, Convert, Template Builder, BITS Whisperer, and Document Chat), with a last-used timestamp for each tool.

These analytics are stored in local SQLite files on the server (`instance/visitor_counter.db` and `instance/tool_usage.db`) and are used only for internal reporting, capacity planning, and product improvement. They do not include uploaded document contents, extracted text, prompts, transcript bodies, or fixed-file output.

Analytics are shown in aggregate in administrator reporting views and are not used for advertising, profiling, or sale to third parties.

Accounts and Identity

GLOW does not require an account, login, or registration for standard document workflows. No personally identifiable information is collected as a condition of using the core tool.

If you submit feedback through the Feedback page, your message is stored in an encrypted SQLite database on the server and is accessible only to BITS administrators. Feedback is retained to help improve the tool and is not shared externally.

If you choose to remember your preferences on the Settings page, GLOW stores those defaults in your browser's local storage on your device only. The saved data contains your chosen defaults, custom rule sets, and page-state preferences such as Rules Reference filters. It does not include document content and is not sent to the server.

Security

All traffic to glow.bits-acb.org is encrypted using HTTPS (TLS). Uploaded files are validated for format integrity before processing. The application runs under a non-root container user and enforces rate limits to protect against abuse.

Temporary upload directories are stored in an isolated path on the server filesystem. Path traversal protections prevent any request from accessing files outside the designated upload area.

Questions and Contact

If you have questions about this policy or how your data is handled, contact BITS through the Feedback page or visit bits-acb.org.

This policy was last updated on April 29, 2026.

Your agreement to these terms is stored only in a cookie named glow_consent_v1 on your own browser. This consent cookie is separate from the optional local storage used for saved workflow defaults. No record of your agreement is stored on the server.

To withdraw your agreement and clear the consent record, use your browser's cookie controls to delete the glow_consent_v1 cookie, or click the button below. You will be asked to agree again on your next visit.