Penlu
Last updated: 8 October 2026
Penlu is a small, independently run project, and we'd rather keep this simple than bury it in legal language. Here's what we collect, why, and how you stay in control of it.
You can write and send your very first letter as a guest, no sign-in needed. After that, signing in with Google lets you keep writing, and keeps your drafts and sent letters saved to your account so they're there whenever you come back.
If you sign in, we receive the basic profile details Google shares — your name, email, and profile photo — to identify your account.
If you're writing as a guest, we assign your browser an anonymous, random ID, and also note a securely hashed version of your IP address, so we can enforce the one-free-letter guest limit and prevent abuse. We don't use this to identify you personally, and it isn't linked to anything beyond that limit check.
Everything you put into a letter — the text, drawings, stickers, and any photos or audio links — is stored securely so you can come back, keep editing a draft, or revisit something you've already sent.
We use a small amount of local and session storage in your browser to remember your sign-in state and any letter you're mid-way through writing.
Penlu uses Google AdSense to display ads. Google and its partners may use cookies to serve ads based on your prior visits to this or other websites, and to measure how ads perform. You can learn more about how Google uses this data, and manage your ad personalization preferences, at adssettings.google.com. You can also manage or disable cookies at any time through your browser's settings.
We rely on trusted infrastructure providers to host, store, and secure Penlu, and on Google for sign-in and advertising. If you use the background-removal tool on an uploaded photo, that image is briefly sent to a third-party service for processing and isn't retained afterward. We don't sell your data, and we never will.
A password or hint you add to a letter is stored only so we can verify it when your recipient opens it — nothing more. Letters set to self-destruct or expire are permanently deleted once that condition is met, and can't be recovered afterward.
You're always in control. Delete individual letters anytime from your Sent or Drafts pages. If you'd like your entire account, or a guest session's data, removed completely, reach out via the contact page and we'll take care of it promptly.
Penlu isn't directed at children, and we don't knowingly collect information from anyone under the minimum age required to use Google sign-in in their region.
As Penlu grows, this policy may be updated. Any meaningful change will be reflected with a new "last updated" date at the top of this page.
Happy to answer anything this page doesn't cover — reach out via the contact page anytime.