How We Process Your Data

A transparent look at what happens to your documents, what we store, and what we don't.

Written By Valentin from Filently

Last updated 8 days ago

Your Documents Stay in Your Google Drive

When you upload a document to Filently, it goes directly to your Google Drive – not to Filently's servers. We never store your original files. Your Google Drive is the single source of truth for all your documents, and you always retain full ownership.

How Document Processing Works

Here is what happens step by step when Filently processes a document:

  1. Text extraction – Filently temporarily downloads your document from Google Drive to extract the text content. This happens using OCR (optical character recognition) and document parsing. The download is temporary and the file is not retained.

  2. AI analysis – The extracted text is sent to our AI service to determine the best filename and folder for your document. The AI sees the text content, your folder structure, and your filing preferences – nothing more.

Both text extraction and AI analysis are processed primarily in Switzerland, with a fallback option in the EU. No data leaves European or Swiss infrastructure.

  1. Filing – Based on the AI's analysis, the document is renamed and moved to the suggested folder in your Google Drive.

  2. Cleanup – After a document is successfully filed, the extracted text is deleted from our systems. We do not retain your document content long-term.

What We Store

Here is a clear breakdown of what Filently keeps and what it does not:

We store:

  • Your account information (name, email)

  • Document metadata – filenames, folder paths, processing status, and AI suggestions

  • Your filing preferences and custom instructions

We do NOT store:

  • Your original documents (these live in your Google Drive)

  • The full text content of filed documents (deleted after processing)

  • Personal information extracted from your documents

All stored data is encrypted at rest using AES-256-GCM.

AI and Your Data

  • The AI processes your document content solely to make filing decisions. It does not learn from or retain your personal data after the request is complete.

  • Your custom filing instructions are encrypted and only decrypted during processing.

  • Filently staff cannot see your document content, custom instructions, or any personally identifiable information – these fields are encrypted at rest.

Third-Party Services

Filently uses a small number of trusted services to process your documents:

Service

What it's used for

How your data is handled

Microsoft Azure (Switzerland / EU)

Document text extraction (OCR) and AI analysis

Data is processed in transit and not stored by Azure beyond the processing request

Google Drive API

Managing files in your Drive

Governed by Google's privacy policy

MongoDB

Database for encrypted metadata

All sensitive fields are encrypted before storage

Data Residency

All document processing – including OCR and AI analysis – happens in Switzerland (primary) or the EU (fallback). Your data never leaves European or Swiss infrastructure for processing.

GDPR Compliance

All data processing happens in compliance with GDPR. You have the right to:

  • Access your data at any time through the Filently app

  • Delete individual documents or your entire account

  • Request a full data export or deletion by contacting us

When you delete your account, all associated data is permanently removed from our systems.

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