Frequently Asked Questions

Upod is a personal online data store (POD). Upod lets you access multiple websites with a single account. You save your data in a personal online data store, a new technology designed to protect your privacy. Websites may only use your data with your permission. For example, they can tailor content or advertising based on the preferences you have saved. You can easily update your data and permissions at any time in Upod.

Upod is your secure place to store personal data. With Upod, you choose which websites can access which data. The website can use that data during your visit to personalise commercial and editorial content. After your visit, the website must delete the data it received immediately.

Yes, Upod is free for users. Websites pay for the service. They receive one login for their visitors, plus the ability (with your consent) to view selected user data so they can personalise content or advertising, without using the Google or Meta stack. This is valuable for organisations, and it keeps the service free for you, without selling your data.

When you visit websites without Upod, data about you is often collected in the background through cookies and tracking. What you click, read, or buy may be stored. Some websites also store information you enter, such as your email address, clothing size, age, or location. This data is used to personalise content and advertising.

With Upod, you decide what data is stored in your Upod and which websites may access which data. Your data is anonymized so that you can’t be profiled. Identity data, such as your email address, is never shared.

With Upod, you choose which data a website can view, and this is always anonymous data. Websites never receive information that identifies you, such as your email address. We use special technology that hides your identity and replaces it with a unique code that changes regularly.

In addition, Upod continuously monitors anonymity levels. If the combination of data you share would place you in a group that is too small, and could therefore make you identifiable, that data is automatically anonymized or withheld. This ensures you remain anonymous at all times.

Upod has three components: a login, personal online datastore, and a platform.

• Login (SSO / Single Sign-On): One account lets you log in to all participating websites. Those websites do not see your email address or name, only a unique code that changes regularly. This keeps you anonymous.
• Upod: Your personal online datastore holds information about you, such as your age range or interests. You can update this anytime.
• Platform: This is where you manage your data and set, per website, which data it may access to personalize content or advertising. You can withdraw consent at any moment.

Your Upod is securely stored on European servers (in our case managed by the Flemish government organization Athumi) and is based on the Solid standard. Solid was created by Sir Tim Berners-Lee (inventor of the World Wide Web) to give people control over their data. In the future, Upod can work with other logins and other Solid-based Upods.

Learn more about Solid: http://solidproject.org

Upod is designed to keep your data secure. We use proven, tested technology. We also keep the data in your Upod separate from the email address and password you use to log in. This means your Upod is always anonymous and cannot be traced back to you.

The data in your Upod is securely stored on servers of Scaleway in the Netherlands.

You can change your permissions at any time in Upod. As soon as you update or withdraw consent, websites no longer have access.

At the moment, Upod supports three types of data: gender, age range, and city.

To keep your age range accurate and to ensure age-appropriate content, we ask for your date of birth. Your exact date of birth is never shared. It is automatically converted into an anonymized age range.

If you live in a small city or town, your location data may also be anonymized to prevent you from being identifiable. Upod continuously ensures that the data you share cannot be traced back to you.

We only need your email address and a password so you can log in and so we can send you important updates. Your email address is not stored in your Upod and is never shared with websites. Any other personal data you store in your Upod is optional. You can choose to store it in your Upod and share it only when you want to.

Upod is still very new. To make Upod available, we work closely with websites, apps, and organizations to integrate the service into their platforms.

Upod offers significant benefits for businesses, such as privacy-friendly personalization and a simplified login experience, which is why we expect the number of participating websites to grow steadily.

We’ll keep you informed as new websites and apps are added, so you’ll always know where you can use Upod.

Want to learn more about how Upod works for organizations? Visit our business website at utonomy.eu.

Upod is designed to eliminate cookie banners: when a Upod is used, cookies and tracking are no longer necessary. Not all websites can switch all cookies off yet. On some websites, you may still need to set your cookie preferences separately.

Yes. Upod works independently from your existing accounts. At the moment, you can’t use two different accounts on the same website at the same time. We’re exploring whether integration will be possible in the future.

A password manager is like a keyring that stores login details for many websites. Those websites typically store personal details about you as well, including your email address. That increases the risk of data leaks and cybercrime.

Upod works differently: it provides one login across all participating websites without sharing your identity (such as your email address) with those websites. Websites only receive anonymous information such as your age range, location, or interests, and they are not allowed to store or forward it. Because only anonymous data is shared, your risk is significantly lower.

Most people have hundreds of accounts. Many of those services store your email address and personal data, and often share it with third parties. This increases the risk of data leaks and cybercrime. Stolen data can be used to hack accounts, track you, or trick you into giving away money or sensitive information.

With Upod, you only need one account, and your data is stored safely in your Upod. Instead of being spread across many places, your data is kept in one secure location. Your email address is not linked to your other data, which greatly reduces risk.

Yes, of course. If you choose to delete your account, we will permanently remove your personal online data store and all your data. You can do so by going to you Upod account and in the settings menu choose “delete account”. Follow the steps and you will be able to delete your account. If possible, we’d appreciate it if you could let us know why you’re deleting your account, your feedback helps us improve. You can also share your feedback via the feedback form.