Privacy Policy

Last updated 18 August 2026 · Applies to the Shama Writer Android app and the Shama Writer web app.

Who we are

Shama Writer is made by Shama Research, an independent research studio. This policy covers the Shama Writer Android application and the Shama Writer web application. You can reach us at hello@shamaresearch.com.

What we collect

Nothing. Shama Research does not collect, store, or receive any personal data through Shama Writer. There is no sign-up, no login, and no server that your documents are sent to. Everything you create (papers, citations, images, checkpoints and preferences) is written to your device's own private storage and stays there.

Where your work is stored

• Your documents and their history are saved in the app's private storage on your device.
• Automatic device cloud-backup is switched off for this app, so your papers are not copied to a Google account backup.
• Because there is no server, nothing syncs between your devices. To move or protect your work, use the app's own Back up feature, which writes a file you control and can store wherever you choose.

Network use

Shama Writer works offline. It contacts the network only when you ask it to, and only to read public reference material, never to send your document anywhere. The requests it can make are:

• Literature search: to api.openalex.org, when you search for sources. Your search terms are sent to OpenAlex to return results.
• Qur'an, translations and tafsīr: to api.quran.com, when you insert a verse or commentary.
• Hadith: to cdn.jsdelivr.net, when you insert a hadith, to fetch it from a public open-source hadith archive.
• Reference details: to doi.org, api.crossref.org, eutils.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov (PubMed), api.semanticscholar.org and wikipedia.org, when you add a source by pasting a DOI or a link, to read that work's public citation metadata.
• Retraction checks: to api.crossref.org, only when you press "Check retractions", to ask whether the DOIs already in your library have had a retraction or correction published. Only those DOIs are sent.
• Document fonts: to this site, to download a font file the first time a paper uses that family.

These are third-party services with their own privacy practices. Each request carries only what is needed to return the reference you asked for (for example, a search query or a verse reference). The content of your paper is never included. All requests use HTTPS.

Microphone and dictation

Shama Writer does not record audio and does not ask for microphone permission. Dictation is not built into the app: the microphone button explains that and points at a separate dictation tool, or at the one your operating system already provides. Anything you dictate is handled entirely by that other software under its own privacy policy, and reaches Shama Writer only as typed text.

Permissions the app requests

• Internet: only for the reference lookups listed above.

The app does not request access to your contacts, location, photos library, files outside those you explicitly pick, or any other personal data.

Children

Shama Writer is a general-audience writing tool and is not directed at children. It collects no personal data from anyone, including children.

Analytics, advertising and tracking

There are none. Shama Writer contains no advertising SDKs, no analytics SDKs, and no third-party trackers. We do not build a profile of you and have no data to sell or share, because we receive no data.

Data deletion

Because your data lives only on your device, you delete it by deleting a paper in the app, or by uninstalling the app, which removes all of its stored data. There is no server-side copy for us to delete, and no account to close.

Changes to this policy

If this policy changes, the updated version will be posted on this page with a new date above. Material changes will be reflected in the app listing.

Contact

Questions about privacy: hello@shamaresearch.com.