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Privacy Policy

Last updated: 17 July 2026

This Privacy Policy explains how the Human Continuity Institute (“HCI,” “we,” “us,” “our”) collects, uses, stores, and protects personal information when you use human-continuity.org (the “Site”) or interact with our programmes, including AI Ethical Labs, the Digital DNA Project, the Continuity Archive, and membership.

1. Who we are

Human Continuity Institute is an NGO registered in Estonia, founded in 2024, operating from human-continuity.org. For any privacy question, contact us at oleg@human-continuity.org.

2. What we collect

  • Join / membership form: name, email, country, area of interest, free-text answer — to process membership applications.
  • AI Ethical Labs form: name, organisation, email, document type/page count, description, and documents uploaded via a secure link — to scope and deliver paid ethical reviews.
  • Digital DNA form: name, email, country, materials available, free-text notes — to evaluate Digital DNA Project applications.
  • Continuity Archive submissions: message text and display name (or “anonymous”) — to publish in the public archive.
  • Donations: payment details are handled by PayPal directly; we do not store card numbers. We may retain donor name and amount for supporter recognition unless you request anonymity.
  • Site usage: standard analytics (pages visited, browser type, approximate location).
  • AI chat assistant: messages you send to the HCI Assistant chat widget, which may be logged for quality review.

3. How we use your information

  • To process applications (membership, Digital DNA, Ethical Labs) and respond to you
  • To deliver purchased services (ethical reviews)
  • To publish Archive contributions as part of our public repository — and, where you opt in, to use archived or Digital DNA material for ethical AI research and training
  • To send you updates you have asked for (membership communications, review status)
  • To maintain security and prevent abuse (we use CleanTalk for spam and bot protection)

4. Legal basis for processing

As an NGO registered in Estonia, HCI processes personal data in accordance with the EU General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR). Our legal bases are: your consent (forms require an explicit checkbox), performance of a contract (paid reviews), and legitimate interest (site security, basic analytics).

5. Digital DNA & Archive material — special handling

Because these programmes involve personal, sometimes deeply personal, material:

  • Nothing you submit to the Digital DNA Project is used for AI training, research, or the “Eternity” initiative unless you separately and explicitly consent to that specific use.
  • You may request a copy, correction, or deletion of your Digital DNA profile at any time by contacting oleg@human-continuity.org.
  • Archive messages are treated as intended for public, permanent publication — please do not submit anything you do not want public. You may request removal, but permanence is part of the Archive’s purpose, so removal requests are handled case by case.

6. Sharing your information

We do not sell personal information. We may share it with:

  • Service providers who help us run the Site (hosting, PayPal, CleanTalk anti-spam, email delivery)
  • The specific human expert(s) assigned to your Ethical Labs review, who are bound by confidentiality
  • Legal authorities where required by law

7. Data retention

We retain personal data only for as long as necessary for the purpose it was collected: membership data while your membership is active, Ethical Labs documents for the duration of the review plus a reasonable period for dispute handling, Digital DNA material for as long as you instruct, and Archive messages indefinitely, reflecting the permanent nature of the Archive, unless you request removal.

8. Your rights

Depending on where you live, you may have the right to access, correct, delete, or export your data, and to withdraw consent at any time. To exercise these rights, email oleg@human-continuity.org. If you are in the EU/EEA, you also have the right to lodge a complaint with the Estonian Data Protection Inspectorate (Andmekaitse Inspektsioon) or your local supervisory authority.

9. Cookies & analytics

We use basic analytics tools to understand site traffic and improve the Site.

10. Children’s privacy

This Site is not directed at children under 16, and we do not knowingly collect their data.

11. Changes to this policy

We may update this policy from time to time. Material changes will be noted on this page with a new “last updated” date.

12. Contact

Human Continuity Institute
oleg@human-continuity.org
human-continuity.org