Privacy, in plain English
Last updated: October 2026
No stranger DMs · Site logins stay on your device · Real moderators
This page has two parts. The first is the short version, written for you. The second is for parents and schools, with every detail.
The short version (for you)
What we don't do
Re:Vault keeps your history in this browser, not on our servers. Other people on Re:Vault can't see the sites you open, and Study Hall can't show them, even by accident. There are two small exceptions in our server logs, explained in Server logs below.
Your stuff stays on your device
Your settings, favorites, history and open tabs are saved in this browser. If you sign in and press Back up, a copy goes to your Re:Vault account so you can restore it later. Your open tabs, and logins and cookies for other sites, stay in this browser and are never part of that backup.
Where your saves live
Your study work and settings are saved in this browser, at the Re:Vault address you use. Each Re:Vault address keeps its own saves, so a different one starts empty. A browser may clear them when it runs low on space, some school Chromebooks clear them at sign-out, and guest and incognito windows always do. Once you have real study work, Re:Vault asks the browser to keep its saves, but that only helps when space runs low. To keep your work, download a save file or back up to your account. Settings, then Account and backup, then Where your saves live shows what is saved here and what each backup includes.
Carry codes
A carry code moves your study work without an account. Your browser locks the data with the code before it leaves your device. We keep only the locked copy, which we can't open, and delete it after 7 days or 5 opens, or sooner if you press Delete. If you add a PIN, we check it before handing the copy over, and 5 wrong PINs delete the copy. We don't save your IP address with it, and nothing we keep names you. The times we keep are rounded to the hour, though the server's own file records still show when the copy was last saved or opened. Anyone who has the code (and the PIN, if you added one) can open it, so keep it private.
Study Hall
Study Hall is our live study chat. Moderators can read everything posted there, and messages are deleted after 30 days. No one can message you privately, and there are no voice or video calls. We only keep an age range (like "13 to 17"), never your birthday. You must be 13 or older to use it. If you try to send sexual words in Study Hall, moderators can see that attempt for 30 days.
What others can see about you
In Study Hall: the name you pick, your messages and reactions, and a status like "Online", "In Math" or "Focusing" when someone opens your name on a message you posted in the last week. Never a site or a page. Your status is on unless you turn it off in the Study Hall menu with Show my status. With it off, you still count in a room's "focusing" number, but nothing shows it's you.
If something feels wrong
Report the message and a moderator will look at it. Once they have, Study Hall tells you so, without saying who or what was done. For anything urgent you can call or text 988, or text HOME to 741741 (US). If someone is in danger, call 911.
Supporter passes
A supporter pass is optional and paid once. Nothing renews. You pay in Cash App or Apple Pay, outside Re:Vault, and we never see your card, bank or payment app details. The order code in the payment note is the only thing that links a payment to your account. Everything you need to study stays free. The details.
Downloading and deleting things
Study Hall: select your name, then "Download my Study Hall data" for a copy of your Study Hall data (your names, messages, reactions, votes, blocks, the reports you made, your settings and any timeouts or bans), or "Delete my Study Hall data". The download is made when you ask and never stored. Moderators' notes and the safety checks below are not in it. Things saved in this browser: Settings, then Privacy and safety, then the clear and delete options. A backup saved to your account: Settings, then Account, then Delete account removes it. You can also email hello@ajhsvault.org.
For parents and schools: what Re:Vault collects
Re:Vault is a study browser and learning workspace. Below is what it stores, why, where and for how long.
| What | Why | Where it's kept | How long | Who can see it |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Settings, favorites, history, open tabs, notes and study progress | So Re:Vault works the way the student set it up | In the student's browser only | Until the student clears it, or until the browser does (some school Chromebooks clear at sign-out; guest and incognito windows always do) | Only the student, on that device |
| Logins and cookies for other sites | So a student stays signed in to the sites they use | In the student's browser only, never in an account backup | Until the student clears browsing data | Only the student, on that device |
| Carry code (optional) | To move study work to another device or Re:Vault address without an account | A locked copy on our server, which we can't read | 7 days or 5 opens, whichever comes first, or until the student deletes it | Anyone with the code (and the PIN, if one was added) |
| Account backup (optional) | To restore settings, favorites, history, looks and study work on another device | On our server, tied to the account | Until it is replaced or the student asks us to delete it | Only the signed-in student |
| Sign-in | Signing in is optional. It enables backups, reviews and Study Hall. Students can sign in with Google, Discord, an email link, a passkey or an account key, as each one is turned on | Our sign-in service keeps one id for each way a student signs in: the account number Google gives us, the Discord user id, or a passkey's public key. For an account key it keeps only a scrambled check of the key and PIN, never the key or PIN itself. For an email link it keeps a one-way scrambled code made from the address (it can't be turned back into the address) and a hint like j•••@gmail.com. It also keeps a list of recent sign-ins (when, and which way) that the student can see in Settings. It does not keep email addresses, Discord names, profile pictures or IP addresses. Sign-in emails are sent through Resend, our email provider. Our server keeps the public name the student picks, their reviews and their backup | Each way to sign in: until the student removes it or deletes the account. Recent sign-ins: 30 days. Unused sign-in links and codes: about an hour | The public name and review counts are public; the rest only the student |
| Study Hall messages, reactions and poll votes | So other students can read and answer them | On our server | Messages 30 days. Reported or moderated messages are kept as evidence while reviewed and up to 180 days after (365 days if escalated). Poll results are counts only, shown once 3 people have voted. Your vote is recorded only so you can't vote twice, and nothing in Re:Vault shows anyone, staff included, who voted for what | Other Study Hall members and moderators |
| Study Hall profile | To run the chat safely | On our server | Chosen name changes 90 days; the rest goes after a year without using Study Hall | Moderators see the chosen name and age range, never the email address |
| Age range (under 13, 13 to 17, 18 and over) | Study Hall is for ages 13 and up | On our server, worked out from a birth month and year entered once; the date itself is never stored | As long as the Study Hall profile | Moderators |
| Messages with sexual words that our filter stopped | So moderators can spot someone pushing sexual talk in a chat for students | On our server: the account, its Study Hall name, the room, the time and the text. Never an IP address. Study Hall checks a message in your browser before sending it; when that check stops one with sexual words, the browser sends it to our server for this list (only those, never other stopped messages). Swearing and slurs are blocked without keeping anything | 30 days, or until the review ends if the account is under review (a ban, a timeout or an escalated report) | Moderators |
| Other messages our filters stopped | So moderators can spot harassment or someone asking for personal details | On our server. Blocked phone numbers, emails and addresses are never kept | 14 days | Moderators |
| Reports | So a moderator can act on them | On our server, with the messages around the reported one. A short excerpt (up to 300 characters, plus up to 3 earlier messages) is posted to a private moderator channel on Discord | Up to 180 days after they are resolved (365 if escalated). Discord keeps its copy until a moderator deletes it | Moderators |
| Visit counts | So we know how many people use Re:Vault and which features help | Totals per day on our server (see Analytics below). Your browser keeps one small note of when it was last counted, except in incognito or with history off | Daily totals 400 days | The owner, as totals only |
| Online count | To show "about 150 students on Re:Vault" and "about 20 people are studying right now" | A random id, not tied to a person, and a yes or no for whether a focus timer is running, in our server's memory | 150 seconds after the last check-in | Nobody sees the ids. The status page shows the online total; the start page rounds it and hides it when it is small. The studying number is always rounded and hidden under 10 |
| Commons garden (optional) | To grow one shared garden from everyone's focus minutes each week | When a focus session finishes, the next check-in above also carries how many minutes it was, as a number. Our server adds it to one weekly total, and that total is all it saves. So one browser can't grow it alone, the server's memory also notes how many minutes each random id added today and when its visit started, and for each network (an address, or an IPv6 block) how many minutes it added today and this week and how many new ids it brought today; none of that is saved, and the server forgets it once it is two garden weeks old. Turn it off in Settings with Commons garden | The weekly total until the week after; the memory notes up to two weeks | Everyone sees the garden's stage and the hours rounded to 5, hidden under 10 hours. Never who added them |
| Focusing count | To show "about 15 people focusing" and run the shared focus timer | Which Study Hall accounts joined a focus block, in our server's memory only, never saved | Until the end of that focus block and its break | Study Hall members see how many are focusing in each room. The start page rounds the total and hides it under 5 |
| Forum posts, book votes and reviews | To share study resources and ratings | On our server. Book votes are counts only | Forum posts and reviews until removed | Everyone (they are public) |
| Supporter pass orders (optional) | To give the pass the student paid for, send a receipt and handle refunds | On our server: the order code, the pass, the price, the dates, the status, which staff member confirmed it and the pass dates. Never a name, payment handle, phone, email, card or bank detail, and no screenshots | 3 years, for bookkeeping. Unlinked from the account if the account is deleted | The student, and Re:Vault staff (who see the Study Hall name only) |
| Error and health reports | To notice when part of Re:Vault breaks | A random id and a short reason or setting, in our server's memory | 5 minutes | The Re:Vault team, as totals on the status page |
How long we keep things and how to delete them
Every kind of data in one place. "Email us" means hello@ajhsvault.org.
| What | Where it's kept | How long | How to delete |
|---|---|---|---|
| Settings, favorites, history, open tabs, notes, flashcards and study progress | In this browser | Until cleared, by you or by the browser (where your saves live) | Settings, Privacy and safety, the clear options; or Settings, Advanced, Delete all data |
| Your music, picture, GIF and video wallpapers, Linux machines and desktop mode files | In this browser | Until cleared | The item's own Remove or Delete button; Settings, Advanced, Delete my uploads and files; or Delete all data |
| Study Helper chat history | In this browser | 30 days, and never in incognito | Study Helper settings |
| Logins and cookies for other sites | In this browser | Until cleared | Settings, Privacy and safety, Clear site data |
| Account backup, public name and ratings | On our server | Until replaced or deleted | Settings, Account and backup, Delete account, or email us |
| Carry code: a locked copy of study work | On our server, locked so we can't read it | 7 days or 5 opens, whichever comes first | Delete on the carry code screen; 5 wrong PINs delete it too |
| Supporter restore points | On our server | 30 days | Deleted with the account |
| Sign-in: one id for each way to sign in, recent sign-ins, sign-out-everywhere times | Our sign-in service | Each way to sign in until removed; recent sign-ins 30 days; unused sign-in links and codes about an hour | Settings, Account and backup (Remove, or Delete account) |
| Study Hall messages, reactions and poll votes | On our server | 30 days. Reported or moderated messages up to 180 days after review (365 if escalated) | Study Hall menu, Delete my Study Hall data |
| Study Hall profile and age range | On our server | A year after last using Study Hall (name changes 90 days) | Study Hall menu, Delete my Study Hall data |
| Messages our filters stopped | On our server | With sexual words 30 days; others 14 days | Ones with sexual words go with Delete my Study Hall data; the rest expire on their own |
| Study Hall invites | On our server | A day after the invite ends | Nothing personal to delete |
| Reports | On our server, and an excerpt in a private moderator channel on Discord | On our server, up to 180 days after they are resolved (365 if escalated). The Discord copy stays until a moderator deletes it | Email us |
| Moderator action log | On our server | 12 months | Kept so moderators answer for what they do. It holds names and post ids, never contact details |
| Forum posts and reviews | On our server, public | Until removed | Remove it, or email us |
| Book votes and visit counts | On our server, totals only | Visit totals 400 days; book votes as counts | Nothing personal to delete |
| Ad counts and ad reports | On our server, with no identifiers | Counts 120 days; the last 1,000 reports | Nothing personal to delete |
| Study Helper usage counts | On our server, totals only | 14 days | Nothing personal to delete; turn them off in Study Helper settings |
| Commons garden: one weekly total of focus minutes | On our server, one number for everyone. The daily caps for each random id and network are in our server's memory only | The weekly total until the week after; the memory notes up to two weeks | Nothing personal to delete; turn it off in Settings with Commons garden |
| Online count, focusing count, error and health reports | In our server's memory only | 150 seconds; until the focus block ends; 5 minutes | Nothing is saved |
| Supporter Discord link: the Discord user id | On our server | Until unlinked or the account is deleted. After that, our bot's role list may keep the Discord id with the supporter role turned off, and a one-way scrambled code of it marks the free Semester Pass as used | Unlink Discord on the Supporter page, or delete the account |
| Supporter pass orders | On our server | 3 years, for bookkeeping | Unlinked from the account when it is deleted |
| Server request logs | On our server | 14 days | Not kept per person; they expire on their own |
| Security logs | On our server's system log | The system log has a fixed size limit, and its oldest entries are dropped as new ones come in | They expire on their own |
| Backup copies of our server's data | On our server | Study Hall copies 7 days; full data copies 30 days | Deleted data is gone from the copies within that time |
| Google Analytics, for now | Only until we finish moving to our own private counter. Data already sent stays with Google under its standard retention setting for our account | Google's opt-out add-on (linked below) |
How browsing works
Pages open inside Re:Vault tabs. Their traffic travels through our servers so they can open inside Re:Vault. For secure (https) sites, which is almost all of them, that connection is encrypted from the student's browser all the way to the site, so our servers can't read it. For a few sites that need it, Re:Vault uses a backup server connection, where our server fetches the page for the student. In both cases nothing about the pages is stored, except for what the server logs below record.
Most Re:Vault addresses use Cloudflare, which sees the same connection details any website host sees. A school network can see that a device is using Re:Vault.
Server logs
Like most websites, our web server keeps a standard log of requests to Re:Vault for 14 days: the IP address, the time, the Re:Vault address that was asked for and the browser type. We use it to keep the service running and to stop abuse. Two things in that log could show more than we would like, and we are changing both:
- Search suggestions: what you type in the search box is sent to our server to get suggestions from the search engine you picked, so it can appear in the log. You can turn suggestions off in Settings.
- The backup server connection: when a site uses it for a live connection, that site's address can appear in the log.
Our servers also keep short security logs of blocked connection attempts, such as attempts to reach private network addresses. Study Hall never stores IP addresses.
Study Hall, for parents and schools
How Study Hall is moderated
Study Hall is for ages 13 and up, and every member agrees to its rules first. Automatic filters stop slurs, sexual content, bullying and requests for personal details before they are posted, and they are built to stop anyone sharing a phone number, email, address or social account. Real people moderate it: any message can be reported, reports reach the moderators within a minute (including on a private Discord staff channel), and urgent reports, such as someone who might be in danger, are flagged first. Moderators can read everything posted, including edited and deleted messages. There are no private messages, no voice or video, and no public list of everyone online. Someone who opens a member's name on a recent message can see their status, such as "Online" or "Focusing", and members can turn that off with Show my status in the Study Hall menu.
A message with sexual words is never posted. Moderators can see that someone tried to send it, with the text, for 30 days, and three tries within a day flag the account for a moderator to look at. Nothing happens to the account automatically. Swearing and slurs are blocked the same way, but nothing about them is kept.
Some messages are quietly shown to moderators, such as someone asking what grade a student is in, asking them to keep a secret, or offering gifts. From an account that is new or still on probation, that kind of message waits for a moderator: nobody else sees it until a moderator approves it, and the sender sees "Sent to a moderator first". From anyone else it is posted, and the sender gets a private reminder to keep personal details out of Study Hall. These checks run on our own server; no outside company or AI reads students' messages.
Automatic filters catch a lot, but not everything, and now and then they stop a harmless message. That is why every message can be reported. In rare, serious cases, such as a threat to someone's safety, the Re:Vault team may share the messages involved with the authorities.
Study Hall also keeps a nightly backup copy of its data for 7 days, so it can be restored after a failure. A deleted message is gone from those copies within about a week.
Deleting Study Hall data clears the student's messages, reactions, poll votes, blocks, read history and any stopped messages with sexual words. Anything under review is removed when the review ends, and records of timeouts and bans are kept. If a name change was less than 7 days ago, we keep only the date the wait ends, until that date.
Supporter passes
Supporter passes are optional. They add looks, a Study Hall badge and a few extras. Everything a student needs to study stays free, and nothing that is free becomes paid.
- One-time payments. A pass is paid once and simply ends. Nothing renews, and there is no stored payment method to renew with.
- Payment happens outside Re:Vault. Students pay in Cash App or Apple Pay. Re:Vault never sees or stores card, bank or payment app details, or the payer's name. The order code in the payment note is the only link between the payment and the account.
- What we keep. The order code, the pass, the price, the dates, the status, which staff member confirmed it, and the pass dates. We keep these for 3 years for bookkeeping. If the account is deleted, they are unlinked from it.
- Discord (optional). Linking Discord stores the Discord user id, so our bot can give the supporter role and the free Semester Pass for current Discord supporters. Students can unlink at any time.
- Study Hall badge. The badge, name color and flair are off until the student turns them on.
- Restore points. For supporters, dated copies of the cloud backup are kept for 30 days and deleted with the account.
- Receipts. Each order has a private receipt link. Anyone the student sends it to can read it, and the student can replace the link at any time. Receipts show no name or email.
- Totals only. We count orders and passes as totals. There is no supporter tracking and no ad profiles, and supporters see no ad cards at all.
- Parents. Ask for a refund within 7 days for a full refund, no questions asked, using the contact on the receipt or below. If a parent disputes a payment, we refund it and the pass is removed. We don't argue with parents.
Study Helper
Study Helper is Re:Vault's AI study tool. In short: on-device mode keeps your conversations on this device. Cloud mode sends only the current conversation, without your name, account or address, to an AI provider that doesn't store it or train on it. Re:Vault never stores what you ask. History is saved only on this device, and you can clear it any time.
- On this device: after the one-time model download, nothing you type leaves your browser.
- Cloud: our server passes the conversation text to the AI provider and streams the answer back. It sends no account, cookies, IP address or device details with it, so the provider sees our server, not you. Our server keeps no logs of what you ask, only counts like "answers today".
- Personal info: Study Helper never asks for it, warns you before you send it, and removes obvious things like phone numbers and emails before a message leaves our server.
- History: kept only in this browser for 30 days, never in incognito, and only if you leave it on. Clear it from Study Helper settings.
- Usage counts: numbers only (for example "3 flashcard decks made"), never what you asked. You can turn them off in Study Helper settings.
Advertising & cookies
Ads help keep Re:Vault free. They appear only in a few labeled spots on Re:Vault's own pages (the start page and the Books and Worksheets lists), and never in games, books, the web pages you open, Study Hall, or the desktop's windows.
- Always labeled. Every ad carries an "Ad" label and a Report button. Reports go to the Re:Vault team with no personal details attached.
- Contextual only. Re:Vault gives ad partners no personal information: no account, no history, no favorites and no identifiers. Ads are requested as suitable for a teen audience.
- Your choice. Turn ads off any time in Settings, Privacy and safety, "Show ads". With it off, Re:Vault loads no ad code at all.
- Some ads come from Re:Vault itself (for example our Discord community). On a few approved Re:Vault sites, the start page may also show an ad from an ad partner. Partner ads run in a sealed frame that cannot see Re:Vault, your account or your other tabs, and it is loaded without your cookies. If you click a partner ad, the advertiser's own site and cookies apply. You may opt out of personalized advertising at Google Ads Settings or aboutads.info.
- Re:Vault counts, without any identifiers, how often an ad spot was shown, seen or reported, so we can catch broken or unwanted ads.
Analytics
Re:Vault counts visits with its own private counter, on our own server. It runs only on Re:Vault's own pages, never on the sites you open in Re:Vault. What it keeps is totals for each day, like "1,240 visitors, 300 opened Flashcards, 40 came from Discord". Daily totals are kept for 400 days.
- No cookies, and no ID for you or your device. Your IP address is used for a moment to count you once a day and look up your country (and US state), then thrown away. It is never saved.
- To count you once a day, your browser keeps one small note on your device: the day, week and month you were last counted, and the week of your first visit. It sends only yes or no ("first visit today?") and that week, which you share with everyone who started the same week. In incognito, or with history turned off, it keeps nothing.
- Also counted: which Re:Vault page or feature was used (for example a tool's name, a setting's name, a look's name, a Study Hall room), the website that sent you (just its domain, like google.com), your device type (system, browser, screen size range, touch or not), how fast pages load, how long a page stayed open (only as a range, like "2 to 5 minutes"), and how many page errors happened. Once a week: whether this browser agreed to keep Re:Vault's saves, and its storage size as a rough range (like "under 1 GB"). Never the sites you visit in Re:Vault, never anything you type or search.
We also use Google Analytics for now, while we finish moving to our own private counter. While it's on:
- Google Analytics (GA4) sets its own cookies (such as
_ga) in your browser to tell visits apart. We do not use this to identify you personally. - You can opt out for all sites with Google's Analytics Opt-out add-on, or block it with most content/ad blockers.
Country and state come from a free offline table: IP Geolocation by DB-IP.
Fonts: the fonts Re:Vault's looks use are free, open-licensed fonts that Re:Vault serves itself, so loading one never contacts Google or any other font service.
Children & schools
Study Hall is only for people 13 and older; anyone who enters a younger age can't join. The rest of Re:Vault is a general study tool. If you are using a managed or school device, follow your school's acceptable-use policy. Study Hall has no ads and no third-party analytics. Our own counter only adds one to a daily total for the room that was opened, never who opened it or what was said.
Contact
Questions, or want something deleted? Email hello@ajhsvault.org and a person will get back to you.