This policy explains what Germanual reads, writes, stores and sends, and what rights you have. Germanual consists of the Chrome extension “Germanual – German Job Application Assistant”, the website germanual.online and the online service behind them.
1. Who is responsible
The controller of your data is BERLIN GMBH LLC, 212 N. 2nd St. STE 100, Richmond, KY 40475, United States. Email: [email protected]
2. In short
- The extension reads a page only after you click the Germanual icon, only in the tab you have open, and only when you press a button in the panel.
- It never reads passwords, values you have typed, uploaded files, cookies, your browsing history or other tabs.
- It writes into a form field only when you click to insert a suggestion. It never ticks consent boxes and never submits a form.
- Page contents are sent to prepare your answer and are not stored.
- We don't sell your data or use it for advertising. This website uses no cookies and no analytics.
3. When the extension reads a page
- Only after you click the Germanual icon in the Chrome toolbar, and only in the tab that is open at that moment. Chrome gives the extension access to that tab only (the “activeTab” permission).
- Only when you press a button in the panel: “Explain this page”, “Scan the form on this page” or “Write cover letter”.
- Nothing is read in the background, automatically or in other tabs. The extension has no scripts that run on websites by themselves.
- If you go to another website in that tab, the access ends, and the panel asks you to click the icon again.
4. What the extension reads
| Button | What is read |
|---|---|
| Explain this page, Write cover letter | The page address (URL), title and language; the page's short description and site name (meta tags); the visible text of the main content (up to 15,000 characters); headings with the bullet lists and short paragraphs under them; structured job information the page publishes (schema.org “JobPosting”: job title, employer, location, salary, type of employment, date, ad text); the number of form fields on the page and whether it has an email link (only a count and a yes/no). |
| Scan the form on this page | For each visible form field: its label and description text, the type of field, the autofill hint the page gives the browser (“autocomplete”), whether it is required or read-only, the options of drop-down lists and radio-button groups, and the heading of the section above it. Frames embedded in the page (iframes) are read only as far as the extension can access them; for large frames it cannot access, only their address is read, so the panel can suggest opening them in their own tab. |
Never read: values already entered in form fields, password fields, hidden fields, uploaded files, cookies, your browsing history and other tabs.
5. What the extension writes on a page
- Only when you press “Insert” next to a field, only into that field, and only the suggestion shown to you.
- It never ticks checkboxes (for example a privacy consent box), never uploads files, never presses buttons and never submits a form. Sending your application is always up to you.
- The “Show” button scrolls the page to a field and briefly outlines it. Nothing permanent is added to the page.
6. What is stored in your browser
| Where | What | How long |
|---|---|---|
| Extension storage on your device (chrome.storage.local) | Your language choice; the profile you enter (name, contact details, occupation, experience, education, language levels, recognition status of your qualifications, short CV text); after you sign in with Google, a sign-in token for your Germanual account | Until you delete it, sign out (token) or remove the extension |
| Temporary browser memory (chrome.storage.session) | The text of your letter, for the print / PDF page | Deleted when the print page opens; at the latest when you close the browser |
| The panel's memory | The page information that was read, the list of form fields, the letter draft | Gone when you close the panel |
Page contents are never stored permanently anywhere.
7. What is sent, and where
The free features (the job's fact sheet and the help with common form fields) work inside the extension: nothing is sent for them.
The assistant's answers need the Germanual server (germanual.online). Only when you press the button, over an encrypted connection (HTTPS): for a full page summary (“Explain this page”, when you are signed in) the information read from the page is sent, not your profile; for help with fields the free glossary doesn't cover (“Let the assistant explain them”) the labels and options of those fields and your profile are sent; for a cover letter (“Write cover letter”) the information read from the page and your profile are sent. The server forwards them to Anthropic PBC (USA), which provides the AI model (Claude) that generates the answer or letter. Once the answer has been returned to you, the page information is not kept on our server.
When you are signed in, the profile you enter is also saved in your Germanual account, so it is available on your other devices.
Anthropic processes this data on our behalf to generate the answer. Under its commercial terms, Anthropic does not use data sent through its API to train its models. It may keep data for a limited time under its own policies, for example to monitor for abuse.
Nothing is sent before you press a button. Only the answer text comes back from the server; the extension does not download or run code from it.
8. What our server stores
| Data | Details |
|---|---|
| Account | Your email address, name and Google account ID, from Google sign-in |
| Profile | The profile details you enter (see section 6), used for your answers and letters |
| Subscription status | Whether you have an active subscription, received from Stripe, and the Stripe customer and subscription IDs that link it to your account |
| Usage count and usage log | How many analyses you have used, and for each use the time and type of action (not the page content). We keep the log to handle billing questions and refund requests. |
| Saved letters | Only the letters you choose to save |
We don't store the contents of the pages you open.
9. Payments
Payments are processed by Stripe. Where Stripe Managed Payments is used, Stripe acts as the reseller (merchant of record) for the order and handles applicable taxes. You enter your payment details directly with Stripe; Germanual never sees or stores your card number. Stripe processes payment data under its own privacy policy and tells us whether your subscription is active.
10. Google sign-in
You sign in with your Google account. Google gives us your email address, your name and your Google account ID. We use them only to create and recognise your account. We receive nothing else from your Google account, and never your Google password.
11. This website
- germanual.online sets no cookies and uses no analytics, advertising or tracking tools. It loads no fonts or scripts from other companies.
- Like most web servers, our server keeps technical access logs (IP address, time and the page requested) to keep the service secure and fix errors. These logs are kept for a short time and then deleted.
12. Why we use your data
- To provide the service you ask for (reading the page when you click, generating answers and letters, your account and subscription): performance of our contract with you.
- To keep the service secure, prevent abuse and handle billing questions (server logs, usage log): our legitimate interests.
- Where the law requires us to keep records (for example for tax purposes): legal obligation.
We don't use your data for advertising, and we don't sell it.
13. Service providers and transfers abroad
We share data only with the providers needed to run Germanual: Google (sign-in), Stripe (payments), Anthropic (generating answers and letters) and the provider that hosts our server. Google, Stripe and Anthropic are based in the United States, and BERLIN GMBH LLC is a US company, so your data is processed in the United States. Where data protection law requires it, these transfers are made with the safeguards that law provides for, such as standard contractual clauses.
14. How long we keep data
- Page contents: not stored; discarded once your answer has been returned.
- Account, profile and saved letters: as long as your account exists. When you ask us to delete your account, we delete them.
- Usage log: as long as needed to handle billing questions and refund requests.
- Server access logs: a short time.
- Records we must keep by law: for the period the law requires.
- Data in your browser: until you delete it or remove the extension (see section 6).
15. Your rights
You can ask us at any time for access to the data we hold about you, and for its correction or deletion. Write to [email protected] from the email address of your Germanual account. Data in your browser is under your control: you can delete your profile in the extension at any time or remove the extension.
If you are in the EU, the EEA or the UK, the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) also gives you the right to restrict processing, to receive your data in a portable format, to object to processing based on legitimate interests, to withdraw consent you have given, and to lodge a complaint with your local data protection authority.
If you are in Turkey, you also have rights under the Turkish Personal Data Protection Law (KVKK, Law No. 6698); the Turkish version of this policy includes the KVKK information notice.
16. Children
Germanual is not intended for children under 16, and we don't knowingly process their data. If you believe a child has given us data, please contact us and we will delete it.
17. Changes to this policy
If the way Germanual handles data changes, we update this policy first and change the date at the top. We will tell you about important changes in advance, for example in the extension or by email.
18. Contact
BERLIN GMBH LLC, 212 N. 2nd St. STE 100, Richmond, KY 40475, United States. Email: [email protected]