Privacy & data handling

Overview

Ref-Check processes uploaded content solely for the purpose of providing reference checking and verification. We take a cautious, transparent approach to data handling, designed to support use in education, research, and professional contexts.

What information is processed

When a user uploads a document, Ref-Check processes the text to identify in-text citations, reference entries, and associated identifiers (such as DOIs and URLs).

What Ref-Check does not do

• Ref-Check does not retain uploaded documents as a reusable corpus
• Uploaded content is not used to train AI or machine-learning models
• Content is not disclosed to third parties
• Ref-Check does not perform plagiarism detection or content comparison

Data retention

Uploaded document content is processed for the purpose of the check and is not retained beyond what is necessary to deliver results to the user.

Use of AI and automated systems

Ref-Check does not employ generative AI or probabilistic machine-learning models. All checks are based on deterministic, rule-based processes designed to be predictable and explainable.

Logging and operational data

Limited technical logs may be generated to support system reliability, security, and performance monitoring. These logs are designed to avoid capturing document content and are handled in line with information-governance best practice.

Institutional use and governance

For institutions, Ref-Check can provide additional information to support GDPR and information-governance processes. This may include details of hosting region, log retention, and external metadata sources used for verification.

User responsibility

Users are responsible for ensuring they have the right to upload the content they submit to Ref-Check, in line with their organisation’s policies and applicable data protection requirements.

Contact and enquiries

If you have questions about privacy or data handling, please contact us.

Contact: info@ref-check.co.uk