The documents, written to be read.

The principle

Your usage data lives on your Mac. Whatever is synced between your devices is encrypted on your side, and we cannot read it.

Shale runs offline. The journal, the sessions, the calculations and the application’s preferences are written to a local file on your machine.

When you are signed in to your account, an encrypted copy of that data is transmitted to our servers in order to sync your devices. The encryption happens on your machine, using a key derived from your password, which we do not hold: we therefore store data we cannot read, not even when handling a support request. Syncing can be stopped on a given device from the application’s settings.

The other data we process concerns the contractual relationship: your account, your subscription and, on a strictly anonymous basis, site traffic.

Data controller

The data controller is [TO BE COMPLETED] — publishing entity, whose details appear in the legal notice. For any question about your data: privacy@shaleapp.com.

Data collected and purposes

Account, payment, anonymous analytics — and the encrypted copy we cannot read.

We apply a minimisation principle: no data is collected unless it is necessary for a specific purpose.

• Email address — account creation, licence issuance and validation, service emails (invoice, expiry, security incident). Legal basis: performance of the contract.
• Encrypted copy of your usage data — journal, sessions, calculations and preferences, encrypted on your machine before being sent. We store it without being able to read its contents: the key is derived from your password and is never transmitted to us. Purpose: syncing your devices. Legal basis: performance of the contract.
• Billing data — name, country, payment details processed directly by Stripe. We never have access to the card number, which does not pass through our systems. Legal basis: performance of the contract and statutory accounting obligations.
• Anonymous analytics — page views, referrer, device type, aggregated, with no cookie and no persistent identifier. No profiling, no cross-referencing with your account. Legal basis: legitimate interest in measuring site traffic.
• Support exchanges — the content of your messages when you write to us. Legal basis: legitimate interest in replying.
• Crash reports — only if you explicitly send them from the application. They contain technical state, never the content of your journal.

Processors and recipients

Our providers, named. Nothing is sold.

Your data is neither sold, nor rented, nor passed to data brokers or advertisers. It is accessible to a small number of providers strictly necessary to the service, governed by processing agreements compliant with Article 28 of the GDPR.

Accounts and encrypted syncing

Supabase — [TO BE COMPLETED — project region]

Payment and billing

Stripe — Ireland / United States

Analytics

Plausible Analytics — EU

Service emails

[TO BE COMPLETED]

Site hosting

[TO BE COMPLETED]

Transfers outside the European Union

Some payment data may pass through the United States, under contractual safeguards.

Shale is distributed internationally. Where a provider processes data outside the European Economic Area — Stripe in particular, for certain operations — the transfer is governed by the European Commission’s standard contractual clauses and, where applicable, by the Data Privacy Framework. A copy of those safeguards is available on request.

Retention periods

For the life of the contract, then the statutory periods.

Once those periods end, the data is deleted or irreversibly anonymised.

Account and licence

duration of the subscription + 12 months

Invoices

10 years (accounting obligation)

Support exchanges

24 months after the last message

Analytics

aggregated, 24 months

Encrypted synced copy

as long as the account exists; erased with it

The app’s local data

on your Mac, under your sole control

Your rights

Access, rectification, erasure, portability, objection. Answered within a month.

Under Articles 15 to 22 of the GDPR you have a right of access, rectification, erasure, restriction, portability and objection to the processing of your data, as well as the right to leave post-mortem instructions.

• Exercising your rights — an email to privacy@shaleapp.com is enough; we answer within one month. No identity document is required by default: we verify the email address associated with the account.
• Deleting your account — possible in one click from the Account area. The application’s local data stays on your Mac; only you can erase it.
• Complaint — you may lodge a complaint with the CNIL (cnil.fr) or with the supervisory authority of your country of residence.

Residents outside the European Union

United Kingdom, Switzerland, California: the same rights, under other names.

We apply the GDPR standard to all our users, whatever their country. Residents of the United Kingdom exercise their rights under the UK GDPR and the Data Protection Act 2018; Swiss residents under the Federal Act on Data Protection.

California residents have, under the CCPA as amended by the CPRA, the right to know which categories of data are collected, to request their deletion, and not to be discriminated against for exercising those rights. We neither sell nor share personal data for targeted advertising, as those terms are defined by that legislation; no opt-out mechanism is therefore required.

Whatever your country of residence, a request sent to privacy@shaleapp.com is handled within one month.

Security

Encryption in transit, restricted access, no database of your content.

Exchanges with the site and the licence API are encrypted with TLS. Access to our systems is restricted, logged and protected by two-factor authentication. The risk surface is deliberately small: we store no journal content, no market data and no card number. In the event of a data breach likely to result in a high risk, we inform you as soon as possible and notify the competent authority within 72 hours.

Minors

The service is not intended for people under 18. We do not knowingly collect data relating to minors; where that happens, it is deleted as soon as we become aware of it.

Changes

This policy may be updated to reflect a change in the service or in the applicable regulations. Any substantial change is notified by email to account holders at least fifteen days before it takes effect.

Purpose and acceptance

These rules apply the moment you use Shale.

These terms govern access to the shaleapp.com website and use of the Shale application. Together with the terms of sale and the privacy policy, they form the entire agreement between you and the publisher. Installing the application or creating an account constitutes unreserved acceptance.

User account

One account, one person. Your credentials are your responsibility.

Creating an account requires a valid email address. You undertake to provide accurate information and to keep it up to date. The account is personal: you are responsible for keeping your credentials confidential and for all activity carried out from your account. Any fraudulent use must be reported to us without delay.

Licence to use

You are renting a personal right of use; you are not buying the software.

Subject to payment of the subscription, the publisher grants you a personal, non-exclusive, non-transferable and revocable licence to use the application on machines of which you are the primary user, up to three devices. This licence is granted for the duration of the subscription and transfers no ownership right.

Prohibited uses

No resale, no reverse engineering, no licence circumvention.

• Redistributing the application, reselling it, renting it, sub-licensing it or making it available to a third party.
• Decompiling it or carrying out any form of reverse engineering, save within the mandatory limits allowed by law.
• Circumventing the licence, trial or subscription-verification mechanisms.
• Automating access to the service in ways liable to compromise its stability or security.
• Using the service for unlawful purposes, or to provide a financial advisory service to third parties.

Service availability

The app works offline. The site and the licence service may be temporarily unavailable.

The application works without a connection and remains usable if our online services are interrupted, subject to the periodic subscription check. The website, the Account area and the licence service are provided with no guarantee of continuous availability; interruptions for maintenance, updates or incidents may occur.

Your content

What you write stays with you and belongs to you.

The content you create in the application remains your exclusive property. It is stored locally: we do not access it, do not host it and acquire no licence over it. You alone are responsible for backing it up. We strongly recommend including the Shale data file in your usual backup routine.

Liability

A decision-support tool, supplied with no guarantee of results.

The application is provided as is. The publisher does not warrant that it is free of errors or that it meets any particular performance objective. In particular, position-size and risk calculations depend on the values entered by the user, which it is for the user to check.

The publisher cannot be held liable for financial losses, loss of unbacked-up data, or indirect damage arising from use of, or inability to use, the service. Nothing here limits the publisher’s liability in the event of gross negligence, wilful misconduct or personal injury, nor the mandatory statutory warranties available to consumers.

Suspension and termination

You may stop using the service at any time and delete your account from the Account area. The publisher may suspend or terminate access in the event of a serious breach of these terms, after a formal notice that has remained without effect for fifteen days, except where urgency relating to security or manifestly unlawful use requires otherwise.

Changes to these terms

These terms may be amended. Users holding an account are informed by email at least fifteen days before the new terms take effect. Continuing to use the service after that date constitutes acceptance.

Governing law and disputes

French law; your local consumer rights are preserved.

These terms are governed by French law. If you are a consumer resident in another country, you keep the benefit of the mandatory protective provisions of your country of residence. Failing an amicable settlement, the dispute may be brought before the competent courts in accordance with the jurisdiction rules applicable to consumers.

Language of the contract

The French version prevails; the English one is a courtesy translation.

These terms are drafted in French, and an English translation is supplied for information. In the event of any discrepancy between the two versions, the French version prevails.

Purpose

These terms govern the sale of subscriptions to the Shale application, concluded at a distance between the publisher and the customer. They apply to the exclusion of any other terms, subject to the mandatory provisions protecting consumers.

Plans and prices

Monthly or annual subscription. Prices shown inclusive of tax for individuals.

Shale is offered as a monthly or annual subscription, renewable. The prices in force are those displayed on the Pricing page at the time of the order. Prices intended for consumers are shown inclusive of all taxes; the VAT applied is that of the customer’s country of residence. Any price change is without effect on subscriptions in progress and is notified at least thirty days before it applies at renewal.

VAT and tax by country

Tax-inclusive prices for EU individuals. Outside the EU, local taxes are yours.

Digital services are taxed where the customer resides. For a consumer resident in the European Union, the VAT of their own country is applied and declared through the One-Stop Shop (OSS scheme); the rate applied is shown before the order is confirmed.

A business customer established in another member state and holding a valid EU VAT number is invoiced excluding tax, the VAT being self-assessed by them under the reverse-charge mechanism (Article 44 of Directive 2006/112/EC). The number is checked against the VIES system; without a valid number, the order is processed at the rate applicable to consumers.

For a customer resident outside the European Union, no French VAT is charged. Any taxes, duties or withholdings due in their own country — in particular US sales tax, UK VAT or GST — remain their responsibility and give rise to no reduction in price.

EU consumer

VAT of the country of residence (OSS)

EU business with VAT number

excluding tax, reverse charge

Customer outside the EU

no French VAT; local taxes are theirs

Billing currency

EUR

Trial period

7 days, no card, no automatic conversion.

The free trial lasts seven days from the first time the application is opened. It requires no payment method and does not automatically turn into a paid subscription. When it ends, the application becomes read-only: your data stays accessible and exportable.

Order and payment

Card payment via Stripe. Invoice sent by email.

The order is deemed firm once the payment process is complete and the confirmation is displayed. Payment is made by bank card or any other means offered, through our provider Stripe Payments Europe, Ltd. An electronic invoice is sent by email and remains available in the Account area.

Payment provider

Stripe Payments Europe, Ltd.

Accepted methods

Bank card, Apple Pay, SEPA

Reference currency

EUR (converted according to country)

Billing

on subscription, then at each renewal date

Term and renewal

Renews automatically, cancellable at any time in one click.

The subscription is entered into for the period chosen and renews tacitly at expiry for an identical period, unless cancelled. Under Article L. 215-1 of the French Consumer Code, consumer customers resident in France are informed in writing, at the earliest three months and at the latest one month before the cancellation deadline, of their right not to renew.

Cancellation

One click in the Account area. Effective at the end of the paid period.

Cancellation is available at any time from the Account area, with no reason and no penalty. It takes effect at the end of the current period: the subscription stays active until that date and is not renewed. Your local data is unaffected by cancellation.

Right of withdrawal

14 days to change your mind — unless you ask for immediate access and expressly waive it.

The consumer customer has fourteen days from the conclusion of the contract to exercise their right of withdrawal, with no reason and at no cost, by simply writing to support@shaleapp.com or by using the model withdrawal form.

Under Article L. 221-28 of the French Consumer Code, this right can no longer be exercised for digital content supplied immediately, where the customer expressly requested performance before the end of the period and acknowledged losing their right of withdrawal. That waiver is collected explicitly at the time of the order; failing which, the right of withdrawal remains intact.

This statutory right of withdrawal is available to consumers resident in the European Union and the European Economic Area; consumers resident in the United Kingdom have an equivalent fourteen-day right under UK law. Customers resident elsewhere do not have this statutory right, but do benefit from the thirty-day commercial refund guarantee described below.

Business customers

No right of withdrawal, no consumer mediation.

Where the subscription is taken out for the purposes of a business activity, the customer is neither a consumer nor a non-professional within the meaning of French law. The right of withdrawal, the consumer mediation scheme and the mandatory provisions of the Consumer Code do not apply to them.

The other provisions of these terms — in particular the commercial refund guarantee, service availability and the limitation of liability — remain enforceable against them in the same terms.

Refunds

Valid withdrawal: refunded within 14 days. A goodwill refund remains possible beyond that.

Where withdrawal has been validly exercised, the refund is made within fourteen days using the same payment method as the one used for the order. Outside that framework, a pro-rata refund may be granted as a commercial gesture, in particular where the service has been unavailable for a prolonged period through the publisher’s fault.

Updates and product evolution

The subscription includes all corrective and functional updates released during its term. The publisher may change, replace or withdraw features; where a substantial feature is removed, the customer may cancel at no cost and obtain a pro-rata refund for the remaining period.

System requirements

macOS 14 or later. Check before subscribing.

Shale requires macOS 14 or later, on an Apple Silicon or Intel Mac. It is for the customer to make sure their hardware is compatible before subscribing; the free trial period exists for that check.

Complaints and mediation

We settle it between us first; failing that, a free mediator.

Any complaint must be addressed to support@shaleapp.com. Failing resolution, a consumer may refer the matter free of charge to a consumer mediator: [TO BE COMPLETED — mediator’s name and contact details]. The European online dispute resolution platform is also available to consumers in the Union.

Governing law

These terms are governed by French law, without prejudice to the more protective mandatory provisions of the consumer customer’s country of residence.

Language of the contract

The French version prevails; the English one is a courtesy translation.

These terms are drafted in French. An English translation is made available for your convenience. In the event of any divergence of interpretation between the two versions, only the French version prevails.

Why there is no banner

We only store technical items that are exempt from consent.

You are not asked for consent because we use no advertising cookie, no social-network cookie and no cross-site tracker. The only items stored on your device are strictly necessary to run the site, or reflect a preference you expressed — two categories exempt from consent under the ePrivacy Directive and the CNIL’s guidelines.

What is actually stored

Three items, all first-party.

The session cookie is only set if you sign in to an account. Stripe cookies are only set on payment pages, for fraud-prevention purposes.

shale-theme

localStorage · light/dark preference · permanent

shale-session

cookie · authenticated session · 30 days

__stripe_mid

Stripe cookie · payment fraud prevention · 12 months

Cookie-free analytics

Plausible: no cookie, no identifier, aggregate statistics only.

Site traffic is measured with Plausible Analytics, hosted in the European Union. The tool sets no cookie, uses no persistent identifier, retains no IP address, and allows neither cross-site tracking nor the re-identification of a visitor. The statistics are strictly aggregate: page views, entry pages, traffic source, country, device type.

Refusing or clearing

Everything is controlled from your browser.

• Clear — deleting site data in your browser immediately removes the theme preference and signs you out.
• Block — you can refuse all cookies in your browser settings; browsing still works, only account sign-in and payment will be prevented.
• GPC signal — the Global Privacy Control signal is honoured; since no analytics data identifies you, it has no further effect to produce.

The application

No cookies. It exchanges with our servers for your licence and for encrypted syncing.

The macOS application uses neither cookies nor tracking technology. It contacts our servers to check periodically that the subscription is valid, to look for updates and, when you are signed in, to sync your devices. Synced data is encrypted on your machine before being sent, and we cannot read it; see the privacy policy.

Updates to this policy

Any change to the list above is published on this page with a new update date. Were a tracker requiring consent ever introduced, a consent mechanism would be put in place beforehand.