Privacy Policy

Last updated: 28 September 2026

1. Who we are

SmartHandouts (“SmartHandouts”, “we”, “us”) is an online tool that helps teachers make worksheets and lesson handouts with help from AI, print them and use them on a classroom screen. This policy explains what information we collect when you use smarthandouts.com (the “Service”), why we collect it and what choices you have. We are the data controller for the personal information described here.

2. Information we collect

Account information from Google

You sign in to SmartHandouts with your Google account. When you do, Google shares your name and email address with us. We don't ask Google for access to your contacts, files, calendar or anything else in your Google account, and we never see your Google password.

Content you create

To run the Service we store the things you make and add to it: lessons and worksheets, the instructions you give the AI, and YouTube links you ask us to use as source material. We also store settings you choose, such as your username, printer margins, share PINs and email preferences.

Documents and images you upload

• Documents, such as textbook pages or your own materials, are sent to an AI model for processing and are not stored on our servers. The text and notes extracted from them are saved with your lesson so you can reuse them.
• Images you add to the editor are stored with Amazon Web Services in Frankfurt, Germany, so they can appear in your worksheets.

Usage information

We record how the Service is used within SmartHandouts itself, for example which features are used, how much AI generation an account has used (so we can apply usage limits) and errors that occur. This is linked to your account and is used only to run, fix and improve SmartHandouts.

Website analytics

We use Umami, an open-source analytics tool that we host on our own server. It does not use cookies, does not follow you across other websites and does not store your IP address. It records things like pages visited, the referring website, browser and device type, and the approximate country you are visiting from (worked out from your IP address at the time of the visit, which is then discarded). We use this to understand where our teachers are and how people find us. None of this data is shared with anyone else.

3. What we don't do

• We don't use third-party tracking, advertising networks or social media pixels.
• We don't show ads.
• We don't sell, rent or trade your personal information.
• We don't build advertising profiles about you.

4. How we use your information

• To create and secure your account and let you sign in.
• To store, generate, display, print and share your lessons.
• To apply fair-use limits on AI generation and saved lessons, including the invite-a-teacher allowance.
• To send you service emails and, if you have chosen to receive them, product updates. You can unsubscribe at any time using the link in any email or in your profile.
• To fix bugs, prevent abuse and keep the Service secure.
• To understand, in aggregate, how the Service is used so we can improve it.

5. Legal bases for processing

If you are in the European Economic Area or the United Kingdom, we rely on the following legal bases:

• Contract: to provide the Service you signed up for, including your account and lessons.
• Legitimate interests: to keep the Service secure, prevent abuse, fix problems and understand usage through privacy-friendly analytics.
• Consent: to send optional product update emails. You can withdraw consent at any time.
• Legal obligation: where we must keep or disclose information by law.

6. Service providers we share information with

We don't share your information with third parties for their own purposes. We do use a small number of service providers who process information on our behalf, only to run the Service:

• Google: for Google sign-in.
• Hosting, database and file storage providers : to store your account and lessons, and Amazon Web Services (Frankfurt, Germany) to store images you add to the editor.
• AI model providers: the instructions, source material and lesson content needed to generate an activity are sent to an AI model to produce the result. We don't include your name or email address in these requests.
• A YouTube transcript service: when you add a YouTube link, the video address is sent to this service to fetch its transcript.

Because AI models process what you send them, only enter educational content and lesson ideas into SmartHandouts. Don't include personal information about yourself, your students or anyone else (such as names, grades or special educational needs details) in prompts or uploaded material.

We may also disclose information if required by law, to protect the rights and safety of our users or the public, or as part of a merger or sale of the Service, in which case this policy will continue to apply to your information.

7. Students and shared lessons

SmartHandouts accounts are for teachers. Students do not need an account and we don't ask students for any personal information. When you share a lesson with a link or a PIN, anyone with that link and PIN can view it, so treat share links like any other classroom material.

8. Cookies

We only use cookies that are strictly necessary for the Service to work, such as keeping you signed in and remembering that you've entered a share PIN. We don't use advertising or analytics cookies, so we don't show a cookie banner.

9. How long we keep information

We keep your account information and lessons for as long as your account is active. If you ask us to delete your account, we will delete your account information and lessons within 30 days, except where we need to keep something for legal reasons. Backups are overwritten on a rolling basis. Analytics data does not identify you and may be kept in aggregate.

10. Your rights

Depending on where you live, you may have the right to:

• access the personal information we hold about you;
• correct information that is inaccurate;
• have your account and information deleted;
• receive a copy of your information in a portable format;
• object to or restrict certain processing; and
• withdraw consent where we rely on it.

To use any of these rights, email us at support@smarthandouts.com. We will reply within one month. If you are in the EEA or UK, you also have the right to complain to your local data protection authority. California residents have similar rights under the CCPA; we do not sell or share personal information as those terms are defined there.

11. Where your information is stored

Our servers are currently located in Germany, and your account information and lessons are stored there. Images you add to the editor are stored with Amazon Web Services in Frankfurt, Germany. Both are within the European Union.

Some of our service providers, such as the AI model providers, may process information in countries outside the EU, including the United States. Where we transfer personal information out of the EEA or UK, we rely on appropriate safeguards such as the European Commission's Standard Contractual Clauses.

12. Children

SmartHandouts is intended for teachers and other adults. We don't knowingly allow anyone under 18 to create an account. If you believe a child has created an account, contact us and we will delete it.

13. Security

We use industry-standard measures to protect your information, including encrypted connections (HTTPS) and access controls on our database. No online service can be completely secure, but we work to protect your information and will notify you and the relevant authorities of a data breach where the law requires it.

14. Changes to this policy

If we make significant changes to this policy, we will update the date at the top of this page and, where appropriate, let you know by email or in the Service before the changes take effect.

15. Contact us

If you have questions about this policy or your information, email us at support@smarthandouts.com.