Last updated: October 23, 2026
Lector ("the App") is a free Markdown reader developed by Sid Bentifraouine. There is no account: no email, no password, no profile. This policy explains what leaves your device, what our server can and cannot see, and how to delete it.
Lector reads and renders your files on your device. Nothing is sent anywhere unless you turn on sync (section 2) or use a feature that calls a provider with your own API key (section 3).
Sync is optional. When you create a sync chain, your device generates twelve words. From them it derives, on the device, a chain identifier, a proof of ownership and the encryption keys. We never receive the twelve words or the keys, and we cannot recover them for you.
Only Markdown files are synced. Each file, and its path, is encrypted on your device (AES-256-GCM) before it is uploaded. Other devices join the chain with the same twelve words (some browsers can also scan them as a QR code).
What the server sees:
What the server does not see: the content of your documents, their titles, their file names or folder paths, your twelve words and your keys.
A random identifier generated by each installation travels with sync requests so that a device can ignore its own changes in the live update stream. It is not stored on the server.
Each chain has a storage quota. When you delete a document, an encrypted deletion marker is kept for 30 days so that your other devices remove it too. A chain that receives no request for 12 months is deleted automatically, with all its blocks.
Backups: the server is backed up automatically. Backups contain the encrypted blocks and the metadata listed above, never your twelve words or your keys. They are kept for up to 30 days on the server, and as monthly archives for up to 6 months in separate backup storage. A deleted document or an erased chain can therefore remain in these backups, still encrypted, until they expire.
Summaries, mind maps, flashcards, chat and text to speech are optional and use your own API keys (Anthropic for text, ElevenLabs for voice). Your keys stay on your device: on desktop, encrypted with the operating system's secure storage when it is available (otherwise in a file only your user account can read, and the App says so); on the web and on mobile, encrypted with a non-exportable key in the browser storage. Requests go directly from your device to the provider and never pass through our servers. The provider's privacy policy applies to the text you send: Anthropic, ElevenLabs.
On the web, a key stored in the browser can be read by any script running on the page: only add it on a device you trust. On desktop, if Anthropic's Claude command line tool is installed, Lector can use it instead; it then follows that tool's own settings and terms.
On Apple devices, if you open files stored in iCloud Drive, they are managed by Apple and subject to Apple's Privacy Policy. We have no access to your iCloud data.
Some content is loaded from a third party only when a document needs it, and that third party then sees your IP address:
paulrosen.github.io (ABC scores) and surikov.github.io (guitar scores), both hosted by GitHub Pages.Desktop and iOS apps check lector.dockerbop.fr for updates; these requests carry no identifier.
This website uses no analytics, no cookies and no tracking, and loads nothing from other websites: its fonts are those of your system. The language you choose is remembered in your browser's local storage. Like any web server, ours keeps access logs (IP address, page requested, browser) for security and troubleshooting, for 7 days at most.
The App stores your preferences, reading progress, sync state and API keys on your device. On desktop, the sync secret and the API keys are encrypted with the operating system's secure storage when it is available. On the web and on mobile, the twelve words are never kept: only non-exportable encryption keys are stored in the browser.
Lector is not directed at children under 13. We do not knowingly collect personal information from children.
In the App, open the sync screen and choose Erase everything: the chain and every encrypted block are deleted from the server immediately, for all your devices. Encrypted copies remain in the server backups until they expire: up to 30 days, and up to 6 months for monthly archives (section 2). In a browser or the mobile app, the server may hold the only copy of your documents: erasing it loses them unless a computer of the chain keeps them in its vault folder. Because there is no account, we cannot find your data from your name or email address: erasing must be done from a device linked to the chain. To remove local data, uninstall the App or clear its storage.
We may update this policy. The "Last updated" date at the top reflects the latest revision.
For any question about this policy: contact@sidali.dev
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