Privacy Policy

MADNESS (FZE) ("MADNESS," "we," "us," or "our") provides the Downword application, the Downword website, documentation, and related support services (collectively, "Downword").

This Privacy Policy explains how we handle personal information in connection with Downword.

1. Who We Are

The controller responsible for personal information covered by this Privacy Policy is:

MADNESS (FZE)
Block B - B26-062
Sharjah Research Technology and Innovation Park
Sharjah, United Arab Emirates

Email: [email protected]

2. Summary

What MADNESS Does NOT Collect:

• MADNESS does not receive or store your documents, prompts, attachments, AI chats, or API keys through the Downword app. Downword processes document content locally on your Mac.
• We do not include analytics, telemetry, tracking, or behavior monitoring in the Downword app.
• We do not operate servers that process your content.

What the Downword App Does (Locally on Your Mac):

• Downword edits Markdown documents at the locations you choose and stores app-managed chat history, attachment records, AI history, version history, and preferences locally on your Mac, separate from those documents.
• API keys are stored in your macOS Keychain.
• AI requests are sent directly to your selected provider or endpoint, not through MADNESS. Website hosting, support email, and App Store interactions are described below.

What Happens When You Use Optional Features:

• AI Assistant: When you submit a request, the app sends your content directly to the AI provider or endpoint you configure. MADNESS does not see or process this content.
• Remote Images: If you allow remote images to load in a document, the image host may receive your IP address and connection information.

What Our Website and Email Infrastructure May Process:

• Website Hosting: Our website is hosted by DreamHost in the Netherlands. DreamHost may process server and security logs, including IP addresses and request information from website visitors.
• Website Analytics: If you opt in, Google Analytics processes website visit and browser/device information. This is limited to the website and is not linked to Downword app use or App Store purchases.
• Support Email: If you email us, your message is processed through Zoho Mail, which operates data centers in the United States and the European Union. We access these emails to respond to your inquiries.

3. Scope of This Policy

This Privacy Policy applies to:

• Visitors to the Downword website;
• Users of the Downword macOS application;
• People who contact us by email or otherwise request support;
• Purchasers who acquire Downword through the Apple App Store, to the extent we receive information from Apple; and
• Information processed through optional third-party AI integrations and remote-image loading features, as described below.

This Policy does not govern Apple, third-party AI providers, remote image hosts, internet service providers, or other third parties that process information under their own policies.

4. Information We Process

A. Information Processed Locally in the Downword App

Downword is designed to store the following information locally on your Mac, rather than sending it to MADNESS:

• Markdown documents and editing state;
• Document version history;
• AI chat messages, prompts, responses, and conversation history;
• AI edit history;
• Selected document context used for AI requests;
• Attachment metadata and extracted attachment text;
• Normalized image copies used for AI requests;
• Provider profiles, selected models, endpoints, and preferences;
• App and document preferences, including AI Assistant and remote-image settings.

API keys for supported AI providers are stored in the macOS Keychain. Downword does not write API keys into your documents.

We do not operate a Downword account system and do not require you to create an account to use the app.

B. Information Sent to AI Providers at Your Direction

Downword includes an optional AI Assistant. When you choose to submit an AI request, Downword may send information directly from your Mac to the AI provider or endpoint you selected.

Depending on your request and the content you choose to include, this may include:

• Your instruction or prompt;
• Relevant document context;
• Selected text or document content;
• AI chat history needed to support the conversation;
• Attachments you select for the request; and
• Your API key for the applicable provider.

For example, text files may be sent as decoded text; Markdown files may be sent as Markdown source; PDF and DOCX files may have text extracted and sent; and supported images may be normalized and sent as PNG or JPEG files.

Downword does not send this content to MADNESS. It is sent to the provider or endpoint selected by you.

The AI providers available through Downword may include OpenAI, Anthropic, Google Gemini, OpenRouter, Ollama, and other endpoints you configure where supported. An Ollama installation may run locally on your own device or network.

Each AI provider is independently responsible for its processing, retention, security, geographic storage, training practices, and deletion practices. Before sending personal, confidential, proprietary, or sensitive information to an AI provider, you should review that provider's terms and privacy documentation and ensure you have authority to disclose the information.

C. Public Model Metadata

Downword may retrieve public model information from supported AI providers, such as model names, context limits, and input capabilities.

Refreshing the bundled public model metadata does not send your documents, prompts, attachments, or API keys. Some providers' model catalogs are requested directly from the configured provider; OpenRouter's catalog uses locally stored public metadata. A connection test sends a short test prompt to the configured provider. These provider requests may expose ordinary network and device information to that provider.

D. Remote Images

If a document contains a remotely hosted image, Downword does not load that image unless you permit it for the current session or enable the applicable document setting.

If you allow a remote image to load, the remote image host may receive information such as:

• Your IP address;
• Browser or application connection information;
• The time of the request; and
• The requested image URL.

The remote image host's processing is governed by its own privacy practices.

E. Website Analytics and Visitor Information

Our website uses Google Analytics 4 (GA4), provided by Google LLC, to measure website traffic. The Google Analytics tag is not loaded and no analytics data is sent to Google unless you choose Allow analytics in the consent notice. If you reject analytics or make no choice, GA4 is not loaded. You can change your choice using Privacy choices in the footer.

If enabled, GA4 may process pages viewed, referring pages, browser and device information, interactions with this website, approximate location, and pseudonymous identifiers stored in first-party analytics cookies. Google states that GA4 does not log or store IP addresses, though an IP address may be used to derive approximate location before it is discarded. See Google's Privacy Policy.

We configure GA4 without Google Signals, advertising personalization, User-ID, or purchase/conversion events. Analytics is used only for this website; we do not send app activity or App Store purchase information to GA4, and do not link its website metrics to app usage or purchases. Because GA4 may use cookie-based online identifiers and technical information, its data is pseudonymous and should not be described as fully anonymous.

Your analytics choice is stored in your browser's local storage so it can be remembered. That preference is not sent to Google. The website also remembers your selected preview theme in session storage for the current browser tab; this preference is not sent to Google. We do not use advertising pixels, behavioral profiling tools, newsletter forms, or account-registration systems on the website.

The website is hosted by DreamHost in the Netherlands. When you visit our website, DreamHost may automatically process ordinary technical information in server, security, and access logs. This may include:

• IP address;
• Requested pages or files;
• Date and time of access;
• Browser, device, and operating-system information;
• Referring URL;
• Error and security information; and
• Information necessary to prevent abuse, maintain security, and operate the website.

MADNESS does not directly receive or analyze these website logs under normal operations. DreamHost processes this information as part of providing hosting services.

Optional analytics cookies are used only after consent. We do not use cookies for advertising or cross-site behavioral tracking. Essential technical cookies may be set by hosting, security, or infrastructure services if required for the site to function or remain secure.

F. Support and Email Communications

If you contact us by email, MADNESS receives and processes the information you provide in order to respond to your inquiry, which may include:

• Your name and email address;
• The contents of your email;
• Support questions;
• Information you voluntarily provide about your device, issue, or purchase; and
• Our correspondence with you.

Our email is hosted through Zoho Mail, which operates data centers in the United States and the European Union. Zoho processes email infrastructure, delivery, storage, and security.

Please do not send API keys, passwords, unredacted financial information, or unnecessary sensitive information to us by email.

G. App Store Purchases

Downword is sold through the Apple App Store. Apple processes payment and purchase transactions under Apple's own terms and privacy policy.

MADNESS does not directly process your payment-card information. We may receive limited purchase, transaction, or entitlement information from Apple where necessary to provide support, confirm access, comply with legal obligations, or prevent fraud. The information we receive, if any, depends on Apple's App Store systems and your interaction with them.

5. How MADNESS Uses Information

MADNESS processes personal information only in the following limited circumstances:

• Operate, secure, and maintain the website;
• Measure website traffic with Google Analytics, only after you consent;
• Respond to support requests and communications;
• Investigate security incidents, abuse, technical problems, or suspected violations of our Terms of Use;
• Comply with legal obligations and enforce our legal rights;
• Improve support materials and product documentation based on feedback you provide; and

MADNESS does not sell personal information. We do not use personal information for targeted advertising or behavioral profiling. We do not use the contents of your documents, AI prompts, attachments, or chats to train models or for any other purpose, because MADNESS does not receive that content from the Downword app.

6. Legal Bases for Processing

Where data-protection law requires a legal basis, we process personal information on one or more of the following bases:

• Performance of a contract: to provide Downword, respond to service-related requests, and provide support you request;
• Legitimate interests: to operate and secure our website, prevent abuse, maintain records, respond to inquiries, and protect our rights;
• Consent: where you voluntarily contact us, allow remote images to load, or choose to send information to an AI provider through the app;
• Consent: to load Google Analytics and measure website visits, only when you opt in;
• Legal obligation: where processing is necessary to comply with applicable law, lawful requests, accounting obligations, or regulatory requirements; and
• Protection of rights and safety: where necessary to protect the rights, property, safety, and security of MADNESS, users, or others.

Your use of an AI provider may be governed by a separate legal basis determined by that provider. MADNESS does not control the provider's processing.

7. How Information Is Shared

MADNESS may share limited personal information (such as support emails or App Store-related information) with the following categories of recipients:

• Hosting providers, including DreamHost, to host and secure our website;
• Email and communications providers, including Zoho Mail, to receive and respond to email;
• Google LLC, to provide Google Analytics website measurement when you consent;
• Apple, where necessary in connection with App Store purchases, support, and entitlement verification;

Information may be shared directly by the Downword app (not by or through MADNESS) with:

• AI providers or custom endpoints selected by you, when you submit an AI request from the app; and
• Remote image hosts, when you allow remotely hosted images to load.

MADNESS may also share information with:

• Professional advisers, such as lawyers, accountants, insurers, or auditors, where necessary;
• Authorities and other parties, where required by law or reasonably necessary to protect rights, safety, security, or property; and
• Successors or counterparties in connection with a merger, acquisition, restructuring, financing, sale of assets, or similar transaction, subject to applicable law.

MADNESS does not sell or rent personal information.

8. International Data Transfers

MADNESS is located in the United Arab Emirates. Our website is hosted in the Netherlands. Support email may be processed in the United States and the European Union. Google and its affiliates may process opted-in analytics data in the United States and other countries where they operate. AI providers and remote image hosts may process data in other countries depending on the provider, endpoint, and configuration you choose.

These countries may have privacy laws that differ from the laws of your country of residence. Where required, we will use appropriate safeguards for transfers of personal information. However, processing by Google, third-party AI providers, Apple, remote image hosts, and other independent services is governed by their own international-transfer practices and legal commitments.

9. Retention

MADNESS retains the limited personal information we receive only for as long as reasonably necessary for the purposes described in this Policy, including legal, accounting, security, dispute-resolution, and recordkeeping requirements.

In general:

• Website logs: processed and retained by DreamHost according to its operational settings;
• Website analytics: retained in Google Analytics according to the retention setting configured for our GA4 property and Google's applicable policies;
• Support emails and correspondence: retained by MADNESS for as long as needed to respond, maintain support records, resolve disputes, and comply with legal obligations;
• App Store-related information: retained only as needed for support, accounting, fraud prevention, legal compliance, or recordkeeping;
• Local app content: stored on your Mac, not by MADNESS. Downword's automatic deletion setting is Never by default. You may choose 30, 60, 90, 120, or 365 days; after a saved document has not been opened for that period, Downword removes its chats, restore points, settings, and recovery draft, not the Markdown document itself. You can also clear data using the controls described below. macOS, backup, and file-sync settings may affect other copies;
• AI-provider content: retained according to the policies and settings of the AI provider or endpoint you selected, not by MADNESS.

Automatic cleanup also removes abandoned untitled AI sessions, older untitled recovery drafts that cannot be recovered, and leftover temporary image folders. Cleanup runs at most once a day when you open the app; you can also choose Clean Up Now. Deletion for documents confirmed missing is an optional setting and is off by default. Local deletion in Downword does not delete information previously sent to an AI provider; use the provider's controls or contact it about data it holds.

10. Your Controls Over Local App Data

Open Preferences > Storage & Privacy to manage automatic cleanup and AI history across documents. Clear Chats removes local conversations and their attachments while keeping version history. Clear Chats + Version History removes both. For only the current document, use Clear All History in the Writing assistant's History panel.

Depending on the control you choose:

• Removing an attachment stops it from being included as an attachment in future requests; content already quoted or summarized in the conversation may remain in chat context;
• Clearing chats removes local conversations and locally stored attachments associated with those chats;
• Clearing history or everything removes applicable local chat, attachment, and version-history data for the document; and
• These actions do not delete your underlying document, provider configuration, or API keys unless you separately remove them.

Your device, backup configuration, macOS settings, and third-party services may affect whether deleted data remains available in backups, caches, synchronized folders, or other copies.

11. Your Privacy Rights

Depending on where you live, you may have rights to:

• Request access to personal information MADNESS holds about you;
• Request correction of inaccurate information;
• Request deletion of personal information;
• Request restriction of certain processing;
• Object to processing based on legitimate interests;
• Request data portability where applicable;
• Withdraw consent where processing is based on consent; and
• Lodge a complaint with a data-protection authority.

To exercise applicable rights, contact us at [email protected] with the subject line "Privacy Request."

You can withdraw website analytics consent at any time using Privacy choices in the footer. Withdrawal stops future analytics collection on this website; it does not remove information Google already processed.

We may need to verify your identity before responding. We may also ask for information necessary to locate the records relevant to your request. We will respond within the period required by applicable law.

Because MADNESS does not receive or retain your local documents, chats, attachments, or prompts from the app, we cannot access, correct, export, or delete those items for you. You can manage them locally within Downword on your Mac. For content sent to an AI provider, you must use the provider's controls or contact the provider directly.

12. California Privacy Notice

To the extent the California Consumer Privacy Act, as amended ("CCPA"), applies, MADNESS may collect limited identifiers and internet or network activity information through website hosting infrastructure, optional Google Analytics (only after consent), and information you provide when contacting us for support.

MADNESS uses this information for website operation, security, support, legal compliance, and related internal purposes.

MADNESS does not:

• Sell personal information;
• Share personal information for cross-context behavioral advertising;
• Use sensitive personal information for purposes other than those permitted by applicable law; or
• Knowingly sell or share personal information of users under 16.

California residents may submit applicable requests by emailing [email protected] with the subject line "California Privacy Request."

13. Children's Privacy

Downword is not directed to children. MADNESS does not knowingly collect personal information from children under 13, or under the minimum age required by applicable law without required parental consent.

If you believe a child has provided personal information to us, please contact us at [email protected]. If we learn that MADNESS has collected personal information from a child in violation of applicable law, we will take appropriate steps to delete it.

14. Security

MADNESS uses reasonable administrative, technical, and organizational measures intended to protect the limited information we receive.

The Downword app includes safeguards designed to support local-first use, including storage of API keys in the macOS Keychain, user initiation before AI transmissions, and user permission before remote images load. Its Connection settings allow you to explicitly enable unencrypted HTTP connections. Unencrypted HTTP does not protect traffic in transit; review an endpoint and your network before enabling it.

No method of transmission, storage, or security control is completely secure. You are responsible for securing your Mac, operating system, files, backups, API keys, passwords, and accounts with third-party providers.

15. Third-Party Services

Downword may link to or interact with third-party services, including Apple, Google Analytics, AI providers, remote image hosts, DreamHost, Zoho Mail, and websites linked from our website or documentation.

We are not responsible for the privacy, security, availability, or content practices of third parties. We encourage you to review their applicable policies before using their services.

16. Changes to This Privacy Policy

MADNESS may update this Privacy Policy from time to time. If we make changes, we will post the updated version on our website and update the effective date above.

If a change materially affects how we process personal information, we may provide additional notice where required by law.

17. Contact Us

For privacy questions, requests, or concerns, contact:

MADNESS (FZE)
Email: [email protected]
Address: Block B - B26-062, Sharjah Research Technology and Innovation Park, Sharjah, United Arab Emirates