Effective date: September 15, 2026
This policy explains what personal data InSpoon collects, why, who receives it, how long we keep it, and the controls you have. It covers the InSpoon iOS app, the InSpoon website, and InSpoon inside ChatGPT (the “InSpoon plugin”). InSpoon is operated by InSpoon LLC (the “we” in this policy). Contact: [email protected].
1. Data we collect · 2. InSpoon inside ChatGPT · 3. Why we use it · 4. Who receives it · 5. How long we keep it · 6. Your controls · 7. Security · 8. Children · 9. Changes
1. Data we collect
Account data. When you create an account we collect your email address and, if you use Sign in with Apple, the identifier Apple assigns to you. To sign you in we send a one-time code to your email; the code is stored only until it is used or expires. We record the version of the Terms you accepted and when.
Preferences you set. Diets you follow (for example vegan), ingredient categories you want to avoid (for example allergens), and individual ingredients you choose to track. These are used to personalise warnings and are optional.
Product activity. The barcodes and product names you look up, the products you scan, the products you compare, and the resulting scan history shown in the app. Product lookups made through the InSpoon plugin are recorded in the same history.
Photos you choose to submit. If you photograph a product that is missing from our database, suggest a product photo, or use shelf scan, we receive the photo you take. We only receive photos you deliberately submit.
Subscription data. If you subscribe, Apple sends us transaction and subscription status information (transaction identifiers, product, expiry, renewal and refund status) so we can unlock features. We never receive your payment card or bank details; Apple handles payment entirely.
Technical data. Your IP address, a device identifier the app generates, the app version, request timestamps and error information. Our server logs record these for a short period for security, abuse prevention and debugging. We enforce rate limits per account and per IP address.
App analytics. The iOS app sends product-analytics events to Mixpanel (which screens were used, whether a scan succeeded, where in the subscription flow a user stopped). Events are linked to a pseudonymous identifier. We do not send your email address to Mixpanel.
Referral links. If you arrive through a referral link, we count the click against that referral code. We do not record who clicked.
What we do not collect. We do not collect your precise location, your contacts, your health records, or payment details. We do not sell personal data.
2. InSpoon inside ChatGPT
The InSpoon plugin lets you use InSpoon from a ChatGPT conversation. It only works after you connect your InSpoon account, which you do by signing in with your email and a one-time code and confirming that ChatGPT may use InSpoon on your behalf.
What ChatGPT sends to InSpoon. When ChatGPT decides to use InSpoon, it sends us only the inputs each tool needs:
| Tool | What we receive | What we return |
|---|---|---|
| Search products | A product or brand name | Matching products with their InSpoon score |
| Get product | A barcode or product name | The product’s score, nutrients, additives, ingredients, labels and warnings, personalised to your preferences |
| Compare products | Two to five barcodes or product names | The products ranked by score, with the differences between them |
| Explain ingredient / additive | An ingredient or additive name or E-number | What it is, its safety rating and known concerns |
ChatGPT also attaches an access token that identifies your InSpoon account, and pseudonymous identifiers for your ChatGPT user and conversation. We use those identifiers only to serve the request and to prevent abuse; they are not written to routine logs. We do not receive your ChatGPT conversation, your ChatGPT account details, or anything beyond the inputs listed above.
What we store from ChatGPT use. Product lookups made through ChatGPT are recorded in your scan history and count towards your plan’s free allowance, exactly as lookups in the app do. We record that your account is connected to ChatGPT and when it was first connected. We keep the tokens that let ChatGPT act for you until you disconnect or they expire (see Retention).
What OpenAI receives. Everything InSpoon returns to a tool is shown to you inside ChatGPT and is therefore processed by OpenAI under OpenAI’s privacy policy. The product information we return is not personal data about you, apart from warnings that reflect the preferences you set.
Disconnecting. You can disconnect InSpoon from ChatGPT at any time in ChatGPT’s settings, after which ChatGPT can no longer use your account. The tokens expire automatically (see Retention), and you can ask us to revoke them immediately by email. Your InSpoon account and history are unaffected.
3. Why we use it
- To provide the service: look up products, compute scores and warnings, keep your scan history, and sign you in.
- To personalise: apply the diets, avoided categories and tracked ingredients you set to the warnings you see.
- To manage your plan: apply free-tier limits and recognise an active subscription.
- To improve the product database: product data and photos you submit may be added to our database and contributed to Open Food Facts (see below).
- To keep the service safe: rate limiting, abuse and fraud prevention, debugging.
- To understand how the app is used: aggregate analytics on features and the subscription flow.
- To respond to you: when you contact support.
We do not use your data for advertising, and we do not sell it.
4. Who receives it
| Recipient | What they receive and why |
|---|---|
| Apple | Sign in with Apple identity; subscription purchases and status. Apple is the merchant of record for subscriptions. |
| OpenAI | As the operator of ChatGPT, the outputs of the InSpoon plugin (section 2). Separately, photos you submit through shelf scan or missing-product reporting are sent to OpenAI’s image-recognition API to identify the products in them. |
| Delivers our sign-in code and transactional emails to your address (Gmail). | |
| Open Food Facts | We retrieve product data from this open database. Product information and photos you submit for missing products may be contributed to it under its open licence; we do not send your account details. |
| Cloudflare | Fronts our website and API (sees your IP address and requests) and stores product photos. |
| DigitalOcean | Hosts our servers and databases. |
| Mixpanel | Receives app analytics events under a pseudonymous identifier. |
We may also disclose data where required by law. We do not share personal data with advertisers or data brokers.
5. How long we keep it
| Data | Retention |
|---|---|
| Account and preferences | Until you delete your account. After a deletion request the account is disabled immediately and permanently deleted after a 30-day grace period during which you can cancel. |
| Scan history | 13 months from each entry, or until account deletion. |
| Sign-in codes | Minutes; deleted once used or expired. |
| ChatGPT connection tokens | Access tokens 15 minutes; the connection itself up to 90 days without use, or until you disconnect. |
| Subscription records | For as long as needed to honour the subscription and meet accounting obligations. |
| Submitted photos | Until the product is reviewed and processed; approved product photos remain in the product database. |
| Server logs | Up to 30 days. |
| Analytics events | Held by Mixpanel under our account; deleted on request. |
6. Your controls
- Delete your account from within the app (Profile → Account → Delete account). This removes your account, preferences and scan history after the 30-day grace period.
- Change your preferences — diets, avoided categories and tracked ingredients — at any time in the app.
- Disconnect ChatGPT in ChatGPT’s settings, or email us to have the connection revoked immediately.
- Manage your subscription through your Apple ID subscription settings.
- Access, export, correct or delete your data, or object to a use of it, by emailing [email protected]. We respond within 30 days.
If you are in the EEA, UK or Switzerland you have rights under the GDPR, including the right to lodge a complaint with your supervisory authority. Our legal bases are performance of our contract with you (providing the service), your consent (optional preferences, submitted photos) and our legitimate interests (security, abuse prevention, improving the product).
7. Security
Data is encrypted in transit. Sign-in uses one-time codes rather than passwords. Access tokens are short-lived. Tokens that let ChatGPT act for you are limited to product lookups and cannot change or delete your account. We keep server logs free of sign-in codes and tokens.
8. Children
InSpoon is not directed at children under 13 and we do not knowingly collect their data. If you believe a child has created an account, contact us and we will delete it.
9. Changes to this policy
We will post any changes on this page and update the effective date. For significant changes we will notify you in the app.