Privacy policy
Effective November 9, 2026
This policy explains how Soji, a Gmail add-on made by Bernard Lawes ("I", "me"), accesses, uses, stores and shares your Google user data. In short, Soji only uses your data to do what you ask it to in Gmail. It keeps everything inside Google, and nobody else gets it.
Limited Use. Soji's use and transfer of information received from Google APIs to any other app will adhere to the Google API Services User Data Policy, including the Limited Use requirements.
How Soji works
Soji runs entirely on Google's own systems: Google Apps Script and the Gmail API. It has no server of its own, and it doesn't send your data to any other service. I can't see your email, your labels, your filters or anything Soji stores for you.
What Soji accesses, and why
| Data | Why Soji uses it |
|---|---|
| The sender's address on the email you have open | To fill in who to filter. Soji reads only the From header, not the message text. |
| Your Gmail labels | To let you choose a label, and to create a new label when you ask for one. |
| Your Gmail filters | To find a matching filter it can add the sender to, and to create or replace filters when you select Apply. Soji only rewrites filters it can fully understand. |
| Messages that match your search | To count them for Preview, and to label, archive, mark as read or move them to Trash when you ask. Gmail's own search finds the messages, and Soji only handles their IDs. It doesn't read their content. |
Soji only acts when you select Preview or Apply, or when a background job you started continues. It never permanently deletes mail: Delete moves mail to Trash, where Gmail keeps it for about 30 days.
Google permissions Soji asks for
- Run as a Gmail add-on, and see the open email's details: to show Soji next to the email you're reading and find its sender.
- Read, label and change your email (
gmail.modify): to read the sender, search for matching mail, list and create labels, and label, archive, mark as read or move mail to Trash. This permission doesn't allow permanent deletion. - Manage your basic mail settings and filters (
gmail.settings.basic): to create filters and add senders to them. Soji doesn't change any other settings. - Run in the background (
script.scriptapp): to keep a large job going after the add-on panel closes.
What Soji stores
Soji keeps a small amount of data in your own Google account, in Apps Script's private storage for Soji. Only Soji, running as you, can read it.
- Your last choices for the Archive and Mark as read options, so the form starts the way you left it.
- Background jobs, while one is running: the search it uses (the sender address or domain, plus any subject text or phrase you entered), the label name, the actions, and progress counts. Each job is deleted after Soji shows you its result.
Your filters and labels are saved in Gmail itself, like any you create by hand. Soji keeps no other copy of your rules, and no logs or analytics of your data.
Sharing
I don't sell, rent or share your data. Soji doesn't use it for advertising, and doesn't send it to advertising platforms, data brokers or anyone else. Soji's data isn't used to train AI models, and no person reads it. The only exception would be if the law required it.
Your choices
- Clear your Soji data: open Soji in Gmail, open its menu (⋮) and select Clear my Soji data. This removes your saved choices, any jobs and any scheduled background run. Your filters and labels stay in Gmail.
- Remove access: uninstall Soji, then remove it at Google Account > Third-party apps & services. Soji then can't access anything.
- Undo changes: filters and labels can be edited or deleted in Gmail settings, and mail moved to Trash can be restored for about 30 days.
Security
Data stays within Google's infrastructure and is protected by your Google account's security. Soji requests only the permissions it needs for its features.
Children
Soji isn't directed at children under 13, and I don't knowingly collect their data.
Changes
If this policy changes, I'll update this page and its effective date. If Soji ever starts using data in a new way, I'll tell you in the add-on and ask for your consent first.
Contact
For questions about privacy, email soji@bernardlawes.com.