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Overleaf Privacy & Terms Overview

Last Modified: 16th August 2023

Thank you for using Overleaf!

Below you will find the full Terms of Service, Privacy Notice, Cookie Policy, Security Overview and Acceptable Use Policy for the Overleaf services. If you have any questions, please get in touch.

Overleaf Terms of Service

Last Modified: 16th August 2023

These terms of service (the “Terms”) govern your access to and use of the website at www.overleaf.com or www.sharelatex.com (the “Site”) and services (the “Services”) provided by Digital Science UK Limited (“we” or “our” or “Overleaf”), so please carefully read them before using the Services.

By using the Services, you agree to be bound by these Terms. If you are using the Services on behalf of an organization, you are agreeing to these Terms for that organization and promising that you have the authority to bind that organization to these terms. In that case, “you” and “your” will refer to that organization.

By accessing or otherwise using any part of the Services, including to register an account, you acknowledge your agreement to these Terms, in consideration for the mutual promises and obligations contained herein and to the exclusion (to the maximum extent permitted by applicable law) of all other terms and/or conditions which you may purport to apply, including under any purchase order or similar document, even if they do not explicitly contradict.

You may use the Services only in compliance with these Terms. You may use the Services only if you have the power to form a contract with us and are not barred under any applicable laws from doing so, including if you are too young to enter into a binding contract. The Services may continue to change over time as we refine and add more features. We may stop, suspend, or modify the Services at any time without prior notice to you (but recognising your work is important to you, please read the note below on access to your files in these circumstances). We may also remove any content from our Services at our discretion.

Your Stuff & Your Privacy

By using our Services, you may create or provide us with information, files, and folders via our products, services and otherwise (together, “your stuff”). We don’t claim any ownership of your stuff. These Terms only grant us rights to use your stuff to fulfill a request you've made and otherwise provide the Services, and as explained below.

These include rights to store and reformat and to analyze for aggregate reporting and analysis purposes, and will involve us making choices in the way we technically administer our Services, for example, how we redundantly backup data to keep it safe. These rights extend to allow us to use our affiliates and trusted third parties to provide the Services, for example Google Cloud Platform, which provides our main storage space.

To be clear, aside from the rare exceptions we identify in our Privacy Notice or as explained in the ‘Managed Accounts’ section, we won’t share your stuff with others for any purpose unless you direct or have authorized us to, including by choosing to connect your Overleaf account to a third party app. YOU EXPRESSLY ACKNOWLEDGE THAT IF YOU HAVE A MANAGED ACCOUNT, THE MANAGER ORGANIZATION WILL HAVE CERTAIN ADMIN RIGHTS OVER SUCH AN ACCOUNT AND ACCESS TO / CONTROL OVER YOUR STUFF.

You are solely responsible for your conduct, the content of your stuff, and your communications with others while using the Services. For example, it’s your responsibility to ensure that you have the rights or permission needed to comply with these Terms.

We may choose to review public content for compliance with our community guidelines, but you acknowledge that we have no obligation to review or monitor any information on the Services. We are not responsible for the accuracy, completeness, appropriateness, or legality of your stuff, user posts, or any other information you provide or may be able to access using the Services.

Although we reserve the right to stop, suspend, or modify the Services at any time without prior notice to you, we recognise that your stuff is important to you, and that you may wish to retrieve your stuff from Overleaf in this event. In the case of individual accounts, we will make reasonable effort to contact you in such circumstances, and aim to keep your stuff available for retrieval from Overleaf in read-only form for up to 3 months beyond the time of suspension (or otherwise) of the Services. However, for other types of account such as managed accounts (see ‘Managed Accounts’ section), your stuff may not be directly retrievable by you.

Sharing Your Stuff

The Services provide features that allow you to share your stuff with others (including third party apps that you use to access your Overleaf account or that you connect your account with) or to make it public. There are many things that may happen with your stuff once it’s been shared or made public (for example, people may copy it, modify it, re-share it). Please therefore consider carefully what you choose to share or make public and that you have all necessary rights and permissions to do so. We will not have any responsibility arising from the sharing of your stuff.

Registering with us

When registering to use a Service you must choose a username and password, unless you use a single sign-on (SSO) option where supported. You are responsible for all actions taken under your chosen username and password, which you will keep private and not allow anyone else to use.

You must ensure that the information you provide is accurate and truthful, and to tell us promptly if it changes.

You should immediately notify us of any unauthorized use of your account. You acknowledge that if you wish to protect your transmission of data or files to Overleaf, it is your responsibility to use a secure encrypted connection to communicate with the Services.

Managed Accounts

If your account is a managed account, you are part of a managed Overleaf subscription that is controlled by the owner of that subscription (the “Manager Organization”), who typically pays for it. We have entered into a separate contract to set up the managed subscription, which contains our commitment to provide the Services and look after your stuff (which we will owe to the Manager Organization), so that you and others could join. Importantly, the Manager Organization will have admin rights over your account and control over your stuff. For example, the Manager Organization will be able to close your account (managed users cannot do this themselves) and access, delete and/or share your stuff, including by re-assigning projects; and by joining a managed Overleaf subscription or using a managed account, you give us all permissions as may be required for us to act in accordance with their directions and requests in respect of your Overleaf account and stuff. These permissions, which cannot be revoked, give the Manager Organization ultimate control of your account and stuff, which will be subject to any ownership or other terms that you have agreed with the Owning Subscription. You should review these terms and the Manager Organization’s policies before joining a managed Overleaf subscription or using a managed account, as, for example, they may explain who owns content you create using a managed account, and how the Manager Organization will use it.

You cannot change from a managed to an unmanaged account. Therefore, it is important that you consider whether a managed account is right for you before you register for one or agree to transfer an existing unmanaged account to a managed account.

Our Rights

The Service is owned by or licensed to Overleaf and/or its affiliates, and is protected by copyrights, trademarks, service marks, patents, trade secrets and/or other industrial and proprietary rights and laws, including international conventions and treaties (“Proprietary Rights”). In particular, you acknowledge that the Site and other parts of the Service are protected by copyright as collective works and/or compilations pursuant to U.S. copyright laws. Nothing in these Terms shall operate to transfer any Proprietary Rights in any part of the Service, to grant any rights to use the name “Overleaf” or our other trademarks or to give rise to any implied rights.

You agree not to remove, suppress or modify in any way the proprietary markings, including any trademark or copyright notice, used in relation to part of the Service.

Unless otherwise agreed in a Contract, the Service is provided for your own non-commercial, internal and personal use, at all times subject to these Terms. For paid subscriptions (excluding personal or student plans), you may also use the Service for your own internal business purposes (which, for the avoidance of doubt, would not include the right to re-sell or commercialize access). You shall not otherwise use any part of the Service without our prior and express written agreement.

If you are an organization, unless requested in writing otherwise, we may publicly refer to you as a customer, including on our website(s) and presentational material, provided such reference accurately reflects the nature of our relationship and that any use of your trade marks is in accordance with your reasonable guidelines given as to the form and manner of their use.

Your Responsibilities

You must comply with all laws and regulations applicable to you and the use of the Services.

Files and other content in the Services you receive or share may be protected by intellectual property rights of others. You agree to always respect the proprietary rights of others and must never copy, upload, download, or share files unless you have the rights and permissions to do so. You, not Overleaf, will be fully responsible and liable for what you copy, share, upload, download, receive or otherwise use while using the Services. If you require use of files (including font files) that are accessible within Overleaf’s compiler system, but owned by a third party, you must first ensure you have the permission of the owner.

You are responsible for maintaining and protecting all of your stuff, and should always make sure to keep a local copy. We will not be liable for any loss or corruption of your stuff, or for any costs or expenses associated with backing up or restoring it.

Your Feedback

While we appreciate it when users send us or post in our forums feedback, suggestions or other comments, please be aware that we may use, edit and disclose these without any obligation to you.

You are responsible for ensuring that any comments you make do not contain any material that could be considered offensive, false, defamatory or unlawful or violates any Proprietary Rights or other rights.

Acceptable Use Policy

You will not, and will not attempt to, misuse the Services, and will use the Services only in a manner consistent with the Overleaf Acceptable Use Policy.

The Services may contain links to third-party websites or resources. We do not endorse and are not responsible or liable for such resources in any way, including their availability, accuracy, nor for any related content, products, or services. You accept sole responsibility for your use of any such websites or resources. If you want to link to any part of the Service, you must ask our permission first, and only do so for non-commercial purposes and in a way that is fair and legal and does not damage our reputation or take advantage of it.

Order Process and Formation of a Contract

If you are paying for a Service, a contract to provide that Service will only arise upon receipt of payment in cleared funds and once we have made the Service available to you.

Whilst we try and ensure that all the information on the Site is accurate, errors may occur. In the unlikely event that such information, including any price and/or description of an item listed on the Site has been incorrectly advertised, we will not be under any obligation to sell or provide those Services to you. If we discover the error before a Contract is formed we will at our discretion, either reject your order and notify you of such rejection, or inform you as soon as possible and give you the option of canceling your order or reconfirming it at the correct price and/or description. If we give you the option of canceling your order or reconfirming it at the correct price and/or description but either cannot contact you or do not receive your response within 14 days of sending you notification (whether or not you receive it), we will reject your order.

Prices, Payments, Tax and Refunds

Prices included on the Site are illustrative only and are subject to change at any time. Amounts are stated exclusive of VAT, sales tax and other Taxes.

If you sign up for a free trial, we may require you to provide a valid credit card or other payment method. We will charge you automatically on the first day after the free trial is over, unless you cancel or downgrade to a charge-free Service before the end of the free-trial period.

If you pay using a credit card or any digital payment method supported by Overleaf, you authorize us to charge your account for the Services using that payment method on a recurring basis, unless otherwise specified. If you choose to pay via PayPal, we use “PayPal Reference Transactions” for this purpose. If your payment details cease to be valid or you notify us to stop using a previously designated payment method and fail to designate an alternative, we may immediately suspend use and access to the Services at the end of your paid subscription.

If you upgrade any Service, we will charge you the additional cost for that upgrade in respect of the remainder of your (then current) payment period and update your new payment period according to your new subscription.

For certain paid-for Services, we may allow for individual licenses to be purchased in bulk. If you make such a purchase, you'll be free to allocate these "premium" licenses as you see fit on a ‘named user basis’ (this will upgrade those end users' free accounts). The licenses will be valid for the 12 month period commencing on the date on which you make the purchase (the “Bulk License Period”). While you won't - unless the licenses are part of a managed subscription (see the ‘Managed Accounts’ section above) - have any privileged access rights in respect of other end user accounts, even though you've paid for them to have premium features, they're linked on our systems - this means you can withdraw the paid-for license rights you've allocated to one account (so you might want to warn the account holder!) and transfer them to another. You may also purchase additional licenses at any time; however these will be chargeable at the then-prevailing price (pro-rated if the purchase is made part way through the Bulk License Period), which may be in excess of the original price paid. All licenses will auto-renew for additional 12 month periods (each a “Renewal Period”) on an annual basis unless canceled by you in your accounts settings or in writing not less than thirty (30) days in advance of the date of renewal (or such shorter period as we may allow).

You will be responsible for payment of any Taxes in addition to our price. If we are required to collect or pay Taxes, the Taxes will be charged to you. This includes adding VAT or local sales taxes (where applicable) at the checkout / to our invoice(s) at the appropriate rate based on information you provide to us. Please note that we have no control over these charges and cannot predict their amount. Please contact your local customs office or taxation authority for further information before placing your order. Any assessment we make, including at the time of purchase, of the amount or applicability of sales or other Taxes will rely on the information you have provided and you agree to reimburse us on demand for any charges, and additional costs or expenses, we might incur if such information is not accurate and complete.

Where we refer to "Taxes", we mean any duties, customs fees, levies or taxes (other than income tax) associated with the purchase or use of the Services, including any related penalties or interest.

If you are an individual and are not happy with our Service, we will offer a full refund if you give us written notice that you wish to cancel within 30 days of payment. Otherwise, you will have no right to a refund.

If you are entitled to a refund, we will notify you about your refund via email within a reasonable period of time. We will usually process a refund as soon as possible and, in any case, within 30 days of the day we confirmed to you via email that you are entitled to a refund. Refunds will usually be made by crediting the payment card or electronic payment account you used to purchase the Services.

Termination

Though we’d much rather you stay, you can stop using our Services any time. If you wish to downgrade or cancel a Service, you must do this at least one full working day before the end of your payment period via your Account Settings, and the change will take effect at the end of that payment period. Your ability to downgrade or cancel a Service is limited for managed accounts - see the ‘Managed Accounts’ section above.

Unless otherwise agreed, we reserve the right to suspend or end the Services at any time, with or without cause, and with or without notice. For example, we may suspend or terminate your use if you are not complying with these Terms, or use the Services in any way that would cause us legal liability or disrupt others’ use of the Services. If we suspend or terminate your use without cause, we will try to let you (or in the case of a managed Overleaf subscription, the Manager Organization) know in advance and help with the retrieval of your stuff, though there may be some cases (for example, repeatedly or flagrantly violating these Terms, a court order, or danger to other users) where we may suspend immediately.

We reserve the right to suspend the provision of any part of the Services, or terminate our agreement to provide Services to you for non-payment or any deliberate or material breach, which will include any breach of the Overleaf Acceptable Use Policy, fraudulent or illegal activity or misuse of the Service, or if you fail to provide us upon request with sufficient information to enable us to determine the accuracy and validity of any information supplied by you, or your identity.

This clause does not affect your statutory rights as a consumer.

Use post-termination

If your subscription for a paid account expires (including where payment has been made by someone else (e.g. an institution or other organization that you belong to) and that payment ends), unless you had a managed account, we’ll try to make sure your stuff continues to be accessible via a “free” account, subject to compliance with the respective terms and conditions. If you’ve exceeded the limits of the free account, you will need to archive old content before being able to add more content.

If you don’t want to continue to have an account with us at all, unless you have a managed account, you may close your account via your Account Settings. We may retain and use your stuff as necessary to comply with our legal obligations, resolve disputes and enforce our agreements. Consistent with these requirements, we will try to delete your stuff quickly but there might be latency in deletions from our servers, and backed-up versions might persist. In addition, files that you have in common with other users may be retained.

For managed accounts, the Manager Organization can close your account at any time and access, delete and/or share your stuff, including by re-assigning projects - see “Managed Accounts” section).

Overleaf is provided “AS-IS”

THOUGH WE WANT TO PROVIDE A GREAT SERVICE, WE CAN’T PROMISE THAT ALL PARTS OF THE SERVICE WILL BE FREE FROM ERRORS AND BUGS OR SECURE AT ALL TIMES. AS SUCH, THE SERVICES ARE PROVIDED “AS IS” AND “AS AVAILABLE”, AT YOUR OWN RISK, WITHOUT ANY EXPRESS, IMPLIED, STATUTORY OR OTHER WARRANTY OR CONDITION OF ANY KIND. WITHOUT LIMITING THE FOREGOING, WE DISCLAIM ANY WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY, FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE, FREEDOM FROM ERRORS AND NON-INFRINGEMENT. (We are not shouting — it’s just that these disclaimers are really important, so we want to highlight them.) Neither Overleaf nor its affiliates will have any responsibility for any harm to your computer system, loss or corruption of data, or other harm that results from your access to or use of the Services. Some US states do not allow the types of disclaimers in this paragraph, so they may not apply to you.

Limitation of Liability

TO THE FULLEST EXTENT PERMITTED BY LAW, IN NO EVENT WILL OVERLEAF, ITS AFFILIATES, OFFICERS, EMPLOYEES, AGENTS, SUPPLIERS OR LICENSORS BE LIABLE FOR (A) ANY INDIRECT, SPECIAL, INCIDENTAL, PUNITIVE, EXEMPLARY OR CONSEQUENTIAL DAMAGES, REGARDLESS OF LEGAL THEORY, WHETHER OR NOT OVERLEAF HAS BEEN WARNED OF THE POSSIBILITY OF SUCH DAMAGES, AND EVEN IF A REMEDY FAILS OF ITS ESSENTIAL PURPOSE; (B) ANY LOSS OF PROFITS, REVENUE, BUSINESS OR SAVINGS, DEPLETION OF GOODWILL AND/OR SIMILAR LOSSES, OR LOSS OR CORRUPTION OF DATA; OR (C) IN RESPECT OF ANY CLAIMS RELATING TO THE SERVICES, AN AMOUNT IN AGGREGATE THAT IS MORE THAN THE GREATER OF £0.01 OR THE AMOUNTS PAID BY YOU TO OVERLEAF FOR THE PAST THREE MONTHS OF THE SERVICES IN QUESTION. SOME US STATES DO NOT ALLOW THE TYPES OF LIMITATIONS IN THIS PARAGRAPH, SO THEY MAY NOT APPLY TO YOU.

US Electronic Communications Privacy Act Notice (18 U.S.C. §§ 2701-2711): COMPANY MAKES NO GUARANTY OF CONFIDENTIALITY OR PRIVACY OF ANY COMMUNICATION OR INFORMATION TRANSMITTED ON THE SITE OR ANY WEBSITE LINKED TO THE SITE. Company will not be liable for the privacy of email addresses, registration and identification information, disk space, communications, confidential or trade-secret information, or any other Content stored on Company’s equipment, transmitted over networks accessed by the Site, or otherwise connected with your use of the Service.

Notwithstanding any other provision in these Terms, nothing will affect or limit your statutory rights; or will exclude or limit our liability to the extent not permitted by applicable laws or regulations.

You agree to fully indemnify, defend and hold Overleaf, and its affiliates, officers, employees, agents, suppliers and licensors, harmless on demand, from and against all claims, including losses (including loss of profit, revenue, goodwill or reputation), costs and expenses, including reasonable administrative and legal costs, arising out of any breach of these Terms by you.

Separate Contract and Additional Terms

If you are accessing and/or otherwise using the Service pursuant to a separate agreement between the organization that you belong to or are acting for (“Contract”), your use will also be subject to the Contract, provided to the extent there is any conflict, the terms of the Contract shall prevail. For the avoidance of doubt, nothing in these Terms shall impose additional obligations on that organization.

Usage restrictions and other additional terms and conditions (“Additional Terms”) may apply to certain parts of the Service and shall form part of these Terms. If we provide you with any software under an open source license, these may include the terms of those licenses. You shall comply with all Additional Terms referenced on any part of the Service you use, posted to the Site or otherwise that you are given notice of, and to the extent there is any conflict between the Additional Terms and other parts of these Terms, the Additional Terms shall prevail in respect of the relevant part of the Service.

Change to these Terms

We may revise these Terms from time to time and the most current version will always be posted on our website. If a revision, in our sole discretion, is material we will notify you (for example via email to the email address associated with your account). Other changes may be posted to our news or terms page, so please check those pages regularly. By continuing to access or use the Services after revisions become effective, you agree to be bound by the revised Terms. If you do not agree to the new terms, please stop using the Services.

US Government Users

The Service is deemed to be “commercial computer software” / “commercial computer software documentation” and other commercial items including “technical data of a “commercial item”. If any U.S. Government user requires rights beyond those expressly granted in these Terms, or has other requirements not met by these Terms / the Service, it should immediately discontinue use of the Service.

These Terms, and any dispute, claim or proceedings of whatever nature arising out of, or in any way relating to, these Terms will be governed by and construed in accordance with English law, without regard to its conflict of law principles, except if you are resident (as determined by the most recent information about yourself provided to Overleaf prior to the cause of action) in the United States, in which case the laws of the State of New York, shall apply. Both parties submit to the exclusive jurisdiction of the English courts, except if you are a resident in the United States in which case action may be brought in any federal or state court located in the County of New York, State of New York. Notwithstanding the foregoing, Overleaf shall have the right to bring an action in any court of proper jurisdiction for injunctive or other equitable relief.

These Terms constitute the entire and exclusive agreement between you and Overleaf with respect to the Services, and supersede and replace any other agreements, terms and conditions applicable to the Services. These Terms create no third party beneficiary rights. Overleaf's failure to enforce a provision is not a waiver of its right to do so later. If a provision is found unenforceable the remaining provisions of the Agreement will remain in full effect and an enforceable term will be substituted reflecting our intent as closely as possible. Any reference to “includes” and “including” shall mean including without limitation and general words shall not be given a restrictive meaning by reason of the fact that they are followed by particular examples intended to be embraced by the general words. You may not assign any of your rights in these Terms, and any such attempt is void, but Overleaf may assign its rights to any of its affiliates or subsidiaries, or to any successor in interest of any business associated with the Services. Overleaf and you are not legal partners or agents; instead, our relationship is that of independent contractors.

Force Majeure

We shall have no liability for delays or failures in delivery or performance of our obligations to you resulting from any act, events, omissions, failures or accidents that are outside of our control including: late, defective performance or non-performance by suppliers and private or public telecommunication, computer network failures or breakdown of equipment. If a delay is caused, we will be entitled to a reasonable extension of time for performing its obligations. If the period of delay or non-performance continues for 15 days, either party may terminate by written notice.

Notices

Any notice required to be given under these Terms must be in writing and may be delivered by hand or sent by registered mail or email to the other party at the contact address provided (subject in the case of any notice to be sent to Overleaf in respect of any legal proceedings, to a copy also being sent by hand or registered mail and marked for the attention of the Legal Department to its registered address) and shall be deemed to have been duly given or made, if delivered by hand, upon delivery, if sent by registered mail, on the recorded date of receipt, or if sent by e-mail when actually received by the intended recipient in readable form.

Digital Science UK Limited Company Details

Digital Science UK Limited (doing business as Overleaf) is a limited company registered in England and Wales under company number: 8343637 having its registered office at 4 Crinan Street, London, United Kingdom, N1 9XW.

Digital Science UK Limited was formerly known as Writelatex Limited.

Overleaf Privacy Notice

Last Modified: 29th August 2023

This Notice applies to the websites at www.overleaf.com or www.sharelatex.com and related services (“Overleaf”).

Overleaf is operated by Digital Science UK Ltd (formerly Writelatex Ltd), with registered offices at 4 Crinan Street, London, United Kingdom, N1 9XW (“Digital Science” or “we”). We respect your concerns about privacy and value our relationship with you. This Notice explains what personal data we collect, how we may use and manage it and the rights you may have in relation to such personal data. When we refer to “personal data” in this Notice, we mean information relating to an identified or identifiable individual that we collect and use in connection with Overleaf; not aggregate or other anonymised data or information we process on behalf of our customers.

How do we collect and use personal data?

We collect personal data in the following ways:

  • information you provide to us directly online. For example, when you register to use Overleaf, complete one of our web forms, subscribe to updates or make a support request, we collect the personal data you provide, like your name, email address and other basic contact details / professional information. We will use this information to enable you to access and use Overleaf or fulfil the request you've made and to track and improve the quality of the services we provide, which may involve asking you about your experience with Overleaf. You may also provide us with additional information to access and use particular features within Overleaf, such as to populate your profile, which you may update within your account settings. More occasional examples could include where you respond to a survey, complete a support request or enter into a competition.
  • information we collect from your use of Overleaf. When you use Overleaf, we may collect information about that usage and other technical information, such as your IP address, browser type and any referring website addresses. We may combine this automatically collected log information with other information we collect about you and use it to keep a record of our interaction and to enable us to support, personalize and improve Overleaf. We may also collect this type of information using cookies and other similar technologies — please see our cookie policy for further details.
  • information you provide to us in person. For example, when you visit one of our exhibition booths or attend one of our events, you may provide us with your contact details. We will use this information to answer your enquiries or provide other information requested by you.
  • information we collect from our other interactions / business dealings. For example, if you attend a webinar, contact us via social media or otherwise interact with our business, including as a representative of a current / prospective customer, supplier or business partner, we may track and make a record of those interactions, which may contain personal data. If you visit one of our offices, this may be captured on CCTV and used for security reasons; and photographs / videos may be taken at our events and used for promotional purposes, details of which will be available on request at the relevant site.
  • information provided to us by other Overleaf users. We may receive personal data (for example, your email address) from other Overleaf users or customers, for example if they have tried to share something with you or tried to refer Overleaf to you.
  • information we collect from third parties or publicly available sources. We may collect information you post online (e.g. social media) about us, our products/services and/or our industry (including our competitors), for market research and product improvement purposes.

In all the above cases, where we have a relationship with you, we may also use the personal data we collect to manage and keep a record of that relationship and other business administration purposes you’d reasonably expect and, subject always to your preferences, to provide information we think may be of interest to you.

In many of the above cases, we may also use the information collected to create aggregate or other non-personal data to enable us to benchmark and improve Overleaf and for other analytical / research purposes.

Unless we specifically request it, you should not provide us with any sensitive personal information. If you provide personal data to us about someone else (such as one of your colleagues), please ensure that you have their permission to do so and that they’re aware of the contents of this Notice.

In order to comply with European data privacy laws, we are required to set out the legal bases for our use of your personal data, which are as follows:

  • where you have given us your explicit consent, which you can withdraw at any time. For example, we rely on your consent to fulfill specific requests you’ve made, such as to receive our blog emails, or provide information you’ve opted-in to receive;
  • where the processing is necessary for the performance of our contract with you, or to enter into such a contract. For example, if you register to use Overleaf, we will need to use your details to set-up and administer your account;
  • where the processing is necessary to comply with our legal obligations; or
  • the processing is in our legitimate interests, provided these are not overridden by your individual rights. For example, we rely on our legitimate interests:
    • to retain personal data that’s associated with content you’ve made public, so that personal information, associated with that content can be preserved.
    • to contact you when you’ve not previously given us your consent to do so, such as to tell you about things that we think might be of interest to you, or to ask for your feedback or opinion on us or our products/services.
    • to collect publicly available information, such as posts on social media, for market research and product improvement purposes.
    • to use CCTV on our premises for security reasons.
    • to create aggregated or other non-personal data from your personal data.

Who we share your personal data with

We may share your personal data within our corporate group on a confidential basis for our internal administrative, billing and other business purposes, and to fulfill a request that you might have made. We do not generally disclose or share personal data with third parties, except where it’s necessary for legitimate business reasons, such as:

  • to the agents, advisers and service providers that assist us in running / we use to administer our business;
  • to the subcontractors and service providers* we use to provide and support Overleaf, including, for example, providers of hosting, security and infrastructure and customer support platforms;
  • if you express interest in an initiative we’re involved in, to other participants in such initiative;
  • if required to enable the integration or use of third party resources accessed / used on Overleaf;
  • if part of our business is sold to or integrated with another business, to our advisers and any prospective purchasers (and their advisers);
  • in such circumstances for which you have given your consent;
  • if necessary for the performance of the contract we have with you or in order to enforce any claims we are entitled to;
  • if required by law or ordered by a court;
  • if you register for a webinar or other event, to other attendees and co-organisers of that event;
  • in the case of your Overleaf profile, subject to your preferences (which you can change at any time, subject to limits on managed accounts), or details associated with content you’ve chosen to make public, to other users of Overleaf;
  • if someone else is paying for your account (for example, the university to which you belong) or you join a group on Overleaf, either by accepting an invitation to that group or by confirming your affiliation to that group (for example, by confirming your university email address), to administrators of that grouping (for example university staff), who may have access to information such as: your email address, profile information, and aggregate statistics on usage;
  • in the case of personal data you share in any Overleaf community services you participate in (for example blogs, forums, and wikis), to the public.

** We include appropriate confidentiality and security obligations in our contracts with our service providers and only permit them to process your personal data for specified purposes and in accordance with our instructions (not for their own purposes). Such service providers include: Netsuite, Inc. for billing (USA), Salesforce.com, LLC for customer relationship management (USA), Qualtrics LLC (USA) for product feedback, and may also include the third parties listed here.*

Note, where you are using Overleaf pursuant to an organization’s subscription, that organization may have certain admin rights over your account, including the ability to track your usage and, in the case of managed accounts, the ability to close your account and access, delete and/or share your stuff, including by re-assigning projects; and we will act in accordance with any instructions they may give in respect of such information (if any) they may provide to us about you or which we may collect on their behalf (whose policies - not this policy - will govern how the personal data we process on their behalf is used).

Security

We take appropriate technical and organizational security measures to protect personal data from accidental or unlawful destruction, accidental loss and unauthorized access, destruction, misuse, modification or disclosure, including generally accepted standards designed to protect personal data provided to us, both during transmission and once it is received. Please see our security overview for details.

Retention of your personal data

We only keep your personal data for as long as it is necessary for the purposes for which it was collected or as otherwise permitted by law, after which it will be destroyed, erased or anonymised. For example, if you are an Overleaf user, we will delete your account profile if you close your account, but may however retain certain limited personal data about you to record your association with content you’ve made public, and as required to comply with applicable law.

International transfers

While we are based in the UK, parts of our operations and much of our product infrastructure is based elsewhere, including the United States. This means that in order to run our business and operate Overleaf, personal data may be transferred to the USA, as well as to other locations where our affiliates and service providers are based. Whenever we make such transfers, we will ensure an appropriate level of protection is afforded to your personal data, which in the case of personal data originating from the UK or the European Economic Area (“EEA”) shall involve implementing at least one of the following safeguards:

  • making sure the destination country has been deemed to provide an adequate level of protection for personal data;
  • by using model form contracts that have been officially declared to afford your personal data an appropriate protection;
  • relying on an alternative recognised compliance standard for the lawful transfer of personal data.

Please email us at privacy@overleaf.com if you would like more information about these safeguards.

EU-US Data Privacy Framework Notice

In some cases, your organization may choose to purchase a subscription to use Overleaf via our US affiliate, Digital Science & Research Solutions Inc. (“Digital Science US”), which participates in the EU-US Data Privacy Framework and the UK Extension to the EU-US Data Privacy Framework. This Notice applies to personal data transferred to Digital Science US, in the United States, from the European Economic Area and the United Kingdom, where transferred in reliance on the EU-US Data Privacy Framework and the UK Extension to the EU-US Data Privacy Framework (which is referred to in this Notice as EU Personal Data).

To the extent there is any conflict between the EU-U.S. Data Privacy Framework Principles (“DPF Principles”) and this Notice, the DPF Principles will prevail in respect of EU Personal Data.

Commitment to the EU-US Data Privacy Framework Principles

Digital Science US participates in the EU-US Data Privacy Framework and the UK Extension to the EU-US Data Privacy Framework and has certified to the U.S. Department of Commerce its compliance with the DPF Principles regarding the processing of EU Personal Data. Digital Science US is responsible for the processing of EU Personal Data, and remains liable for its onward transfer to third parties acting as agents on our behalf, in accordance with the DPF Principles.

For purposes of enforcing compliance with the EU-US Data Privacy Framework and the UK Extension to the EU-US Data Privacy Framework, Digital Science US is subject to the investigatory and enforcement powers of the U.S. Federal Trade Commission.

To learn more about the EU-US Data Privacy Framework and the UK Extension to the EU-US Data Privacy Framework, and to view Digital Science US’s certification, please visit https://www.dataprivacyframework.gov/.

Disclosure for national security or law enforcement

Digital Science US may be required to share your personal data with public authorities and law enforcement agencies in response to lawful requests, including requests to meet national security and law enforcement requirements.

Resolution of EU-US Data Privacy Framework queries and complaint mechanism

If you have an EU-U.S. Data Privacy Framework and the UK Extension to the EU-US Data Privacy Framework-related (or general privacy-related) query or complaint, we encourage you to contact us (see contact details above) as a first step. Any unresolved complaints may be referred to our U.S.-based third party dispute resolution provider (free of charge) at https://feedback-form.truste.com/watchdog/request. You may also contact your local supervisory authority within the European Economic Area or the United Kingdom.

Under certain conditions, more fully described in Annex I of the DPF Principles, you may invoke binding arbitration by delivering notice to us and following the procedures and subject to conditions set out in Annex I of the DPF Principles.

Marketing

Depending on your preferences, we may contact you about things we think might be of interest to you. Some of these messages may be tailored to you, based on your interests (e.g. previous browsing activity), public profile and posts (e.g. on social media), use of our products/services and other information we may hold.

If you no longer wish to receive such communications, you can click the unsubscribe button. Note, even if you unsubscribe from marketing messages, we may still send you emails about the services you use, such as details of new functionality / changes to legal terms of use.

Cookies

Please see our cookie policy for information on how we collect personal data using cookies and similar technologies.

Your rights

Various data privacy laws give rights to individuals in respect of personal data that organisations hold about them. For example, under European data privacy laws, you may be entitled:

  • to request a copy of the personal data that we hold about you;
  • to object to the processing of your personal data; or
  • to request that your personal data is rectified or deleted, or its processing limited.

To make any requests regarding your personal data, please email us at privacy@overleaf.com. We will comply with any such requests as required in accordance with applicable law. Please be aware, however, that there are typically a number of limitations to these rights, and there may be circumstances where we’re not able to comply with your request.

Additional information for certain jurisdictions

For additional information relevant to certain jurisdictions about the personal data we collect, how we may use and manage it and the rights you may have in relation to such personal data, please visit this page.

Third party sites

If any part of Overleaf is made available on or through third party websites or other resources, includes links to such resources, or other resources contain links to any part of Overleaf, this is done for convenience only. We recommend that you check the privacy and security policies of such resources as they are not subject to this Notice.

Contact details

If you would like any further information, or have any questions or concerns, regarding your personal data, as a first step, please email us at privacy@overleaf.com or write to us at Digital Science UK Limited, 4 Crinan Street, London, United Kingdom, N1 9XW, United Kingdom.

If you are located within the EEA, you may also contact our EU representative: DS Digital Science GmbH, Lochnerstraße 17, Köln, 50674, Germany (marked “FAO Overleaf GDPR Representative”).

You have the right to make a complaint at any time to your local supervisory authority for data protection issues. We would, however, appreciate the chance to deal with your concerns in the first instance.

Changes to this Notice

We reserve the right to modify or replace this Notice at any time by posting the revised Notice on our website. You are responsible for reviewing and becoming familiar with any such change each time you access any part of Overleaf.

Last Modified: 16th August 2023

This policy applies to the websites at overleaf.com, sharelatex.com and related services (“Overleaf”).

Overleaf is operated by Digital Science UK Ltd (formerly Writelatex Ltd), with registered offices at The Campus, 4 Crinan Street, London N1 9XW, United Kingdom (“DS UK” or “we”). DS UK is part of the Digital Science group of companies “Digital Science”.

We and our partners use cookies to collect and store information when you use Overleaf. This policy, which supplements our privacy notice, sets out what cookies we use, what information is collected and the purposes of collection. Where we refer to “cookies” in this policy, we mean cookies and similar technologies.

A "cookie" is a text file that websites send to a visitor's computer or other Internet-connected device. Each cookie is unique and can be used to identify or store information, e.g. it can allow a website to identify a visitor, track a visitor’s actions and/or remember a visitor’s preferences.

Cookies are often referred to as session-based (which only last whilst your browser is open and are erased after you close your browser) or persistent (which remain on your device until you or your browser delete them or they expire after a pre-defined period of time).

Why do we use cookies on Overleaf?

We use cookies on Overleaf as follows:

  • Authentication: these cookies help us show you the right information, for example by automatically identifying your browser or device and remembering you’ve logged in.
  • Security: these cookies enable and support our security features, and also to help us detect malicious activity.
  • Preferences: these cookies remember choices that you have made to improve your user experience with Overleaf, including to provide you with features, insights and more relevant content.
  • Performance and analytics: these cookies collect information on how you interact and use Overleaf, enabling us to improve your user experience and the overall quality of Overleaf, including through the use of in-service messages.

Which cookies does Overleaf use and how do you opt-out?

The cookies we set and use (i.e. first party cookies) on Overleaf are described below. Some of these cookies are essential for Overleaf to work properly and so you can’t opt-out of them. You can opt out of non-essential cookies as described below, although this may affect your user experience. We only share information collected from these cookies with third parties to the extent required to provide Overleaf.

Name Type (if persistent cookie, retention period) Purpose of cookie Opt-out
overleaf_session2 5 days Authentication necessary
deviceHistory 90 days Security necessary
doc.*, editor.*, layout.*, pdf.* local storage Preferences (remember editor settings) necessary
oa 1 year Preferences (remember cookie banner choice) do not close cookie banner

We use various third party services in connection with Overleaf that also involve the use of cookies. You can opt-out of these cookies as described below, although this may affect your user experience.

Name Category (if persistent cookie, retention period) Purpose of cookie, relevant third-party and additional information Opt-out
_grecaptcha local storage Security (Google reCAPTCHA) necessary
GCLB session Performance (Google Cloud Load Balancer for websocket fallback) necessary
__recurly__.deviceId local storage Security (Recurly payment processing) necessary
algoliasearch-client-js local storage Preferences (Algolia documentation search) do not use documentation search
_ga* 13 months Analytics used to distinguish users (Google Analytics) choose 'essential cookies only' in our cookie banner
_gid 24 hours Analytics used to distinguish users (Google Analytics) choose 'essential cookies only' in our cookie banner
_gat 1 minute Analytics used to throttle request rate (Google Analytics) choose 'essential cookies only' in our cookie banner

Update on sharelatex

We do not currently use any cookies on sharelatex.com.

Contact

If you have any questions about this policy, please contact us at privacy@overleaf.com.

Changes to this policy

We reserve the right to modify or replace this policy at any time by posting the revised policy on Overleaf. You are responsible for reviewing and becoming familiar with any such change each time you access any part of Overleaf.

Overleaf Security Overview

Last Modified: 27th September 2023

We provide this overview so that you can better understand the security measures we’ve put in place to protect the information that you store using Overleaf.

Security Certifications

Overleaf & Digital Science's Commitment to Information Security and Privacy

Overleaf, as part of Digital Science, is committed to preserving the confidentiality, integrity and availability of its information assets, including customer data in its control. As part of that commitment, Digital Science has established an Information Security and Privacy Management System that has been independently audited and certified to be in compliance with ISO/IEC 27001:2013 (Information Security Management System) and 27701:2019 (Privacy Information Management System) standards.

The scope and detail of these ISO certifications are summarized on the Digital Science website.

Secure Storage

Overleaf uses Google Cloud Platform for data storage. Google Cloud Platform uses Google data centers. Google data centers feature a layered security model, including safeguards like custom-designed electronic access cards, alarms, vehicle access barriers, perimeter fencing, metal detectors, and biometrics. The data center floor features laser beam intrusion detection.

You can find more information about Google Cloud Platforms's security at the Google Cloud Platform website.

Secure Transfers

Your files are sent to our servers over a secure channel (HTTPS) using 256-bit TLS (Transport Layer Security) encryption where supported, the standard for secure Internet network connections.

Your Data is Backed Up

Through Google Cloud Platform, Overleaf keeps redundant backups of all data over multiple locations to prevent the remote possibility of data loss. To cover the unlikely event that this redundancy were to fail, we recommend you keep local copies of your important files on your personal computer.

Privacy

A copy of our full privacy policy can be read by selecting the Privacy Notice tab above.

We guard your privacy to the best of our ability and work hard to protect your information from unauthorised access.

Third-party Apps

If you choose to access Overleaf using, or connect your account with, third-party applications (“apps”), be aware that those apps have their own security protocols, terms of use and privacy policies. By doing so, you might be enabling the apps to have access to your account and/or granting rights of use over your stuff, among other things. If you’re not comfortable with the terms of use, or privacy and security features, of those apps, you shouldn’t use them to access Overleaf or connect them with your account. For example, third-party apps might not employ encryption when transmitting data, might collect information that Overleaf does not, and might make use of your stuff in ways that are different than Overleaf.

Compliance with Laws and Law Enforcement

Where we believe we are required by law or compulsory legal request to do so, Overleaf may disclose the (decrypted) contents of your private Overleaf account and any associated information.

I think I've found a security exploit. Where do I report security concerns?

We take a number of measures to ensure that the data you store on Overleaf is safe and secure. While we're very confident in our technology, we recognize that no system can guarantee data security with 100% certainty. For that reason, we will continue to innovate to make sure that our security measures are state of the art, and we will investigate any and all reported security issues concerning Overleaf's services or software. For a direct line to our security experts, report security issues to security at (our domain).

Overleaf Acceptable Use Policy

Last Modified: 7th April 2021

Overleaf is used by millions of people, and we are proud of the trust placed in us. In exchange, we trust you to use the services we provide responsibly.

You agree not to misuse the Overleaf services. For example, you must not, and must not attempt to, do any of the following things using, or in respect of, any part of Overleaf:

  • probe, scan, or test the vulnerability of any system or network;
  • tamper with, breach or otherwise circumvent any security or authentication measure;
  • access or use any non-public area / content or shared area you have not been invited to;
  • interfere with or disrupt any user, host, or network, for example by overloading, flooding, spamming, or mail-bombing;
  • introduce, or otherwise use to facilitate the spread of, spyware or any other malware;
  • access or search by any means other than our publicly supported interfaces (for example, “scraping”);
  • send unsolicited communications or spam;
  • send altered, deceptive or false source-identifying information, including “spoofing” or “phishing”;
  • promote or advertise products or services;
  • impersonate or misrepresent your affiliation with any person or entity;
  • upload, publish or share anything that is unlawful, fraudulent, misleading, infringes or violates another's rights, pornographic, indecent, false, defamatory, derogatory, threatening, obscene, abusive, offensive, hateful, inflammatory or is likely to harass, upset, annoy, alarm, embarrass or invade the privacy of, any person, deceitful, promotes or advocates an unlawful act or activity, discriminatory, sexually explicit or violent;
  • upload, publish or share health or other sensitive personal information, classified, controlled unclassified or other regulated information, educational records (as that term is defined under FERPA), personal information of others, or anything which you are not authorised to upload, publish or share;
  • infringe any trademark, copyright (including design rights), database rights, or other intellectual property rights, or privacy or other rights, of any other person or breach any contractual or other legal duty;
  • violate or cause the violation of the law in any way;
  • sell, rent, lease, license, frame, commercialize or use for the benefit of any other person;
  • copy, modify, adapt or create derivative works, or decipher, decompile, disassemble, reverse engineer or attempt to derive any source code or underlying ideas or algorithms.