Privacy

Privacy Policy

Who am I?

My name is Catharine Cellier-Smart and I am a professional French into English translator. I am based in Reunion Island (an overseas department of France) and am therefore subject to the requirements of the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) which came into force on 25 May 2018. My business is registered under SIRET number 394 200 992 00029. You can contact me via the details provided elsewhere on this website.

I am committed to protecting your personal data and respecting your privacy. This privacy notice outlines how I collect and use your personal data, why I may disclose it to others and how I keep it secure.

Why do I process your personal data?

I collect, store and use your personal data for the following purposes:

– to issue quotes
– to provide a translation, reviewing or interpreting service as requested by you
– to request a translation or proof-reading service from you
– or to comply with legal an accounting requirements (e.g. invoicing)

Personal data collected may include your name, postal address, email address, telephone number, ID and/or VAT number, payment and delivery conditions, and financial or bank account details. Personal data may also include special categories, but only if you send me this data for the specific purpose of translating, interpreting, revising or proof-editing it (e.g. medical, legal, or other sensitive documents). This may also include personal information found in CVs, financial statements, or other documents sent for translation or editing. All data is processed on password-protected devices and is not accessible to unauthorised third parties.
If you subscribe to my blog, A Smart Translator’s Réunion, at https://asmarttranslatorsreunion.wordpress.com I use your email address only to send notifications of new posts and to reply to comments.
If you interact with my business via Google Business Profile, Instagram, Facebook, LinkedIn, YouTube or X/Twitter (for example, by leaving a review, sending a message, or commenting), that interaction is also governed by the respective platform’s own privacy policy, in addition to this notice.
I do not use your personal data for marketing purposes without your consent, nor do I sell or disclose it to unauthorised third parties.

Legal grounds for processing

The lawful basis for processing your data is:
– Performance of a contract: to perform the translation, interpreting or editing services you request or to take necessary steps prior to fulfilling that request. This may involve outsourcing part of your request to another translator/proof-reader
– Legal obligation: to comply with French accounting and tax law.
– Consent — for processing special categories of personal data, this is your explicit consent for me to translate, interpret, revise, review or proof-edit that information. You may withdraw this consent at any time.

Who else may have access to your personal data?

If I outsource a text containing personal data to a colleague for translation or editing, I will ensure that the colleague is also GDPR-compliant and instruct them to process the document accordingly.
For administrative purposes, the following categories of third party may have access to your personal data:
– Cloud backup and file storage provider: Dropbox
– Website hosting: OVH
– Blog hosting: WordPress.com (Automattic Inc.)
– Website analytics: Google Analytics
Where any of these providers are based outside the European Economic Area (particularly in the United States), the transfer of your data is safeguarded either by the provider’s certification under the EU-U.S. Data Privacy Framework (the successor to the former Privacy Shield, which was invalidated in 2020) or by Standard Contractual Clauses (SCCs) approved by the European Commission, depending on the provider.

AI & confidentiality

AI is a useful tool, but it is not a substitute for a professional translator. At Smart Translate, AI and other digital tools may be used selectively and thoughtfully to support certain aspects of the work, such as research, terminology checks, drafting or quality control. They are used as assistive tools, not as a replacement for human judgement, linguistic expertise or cultural understanding. Every translation delivered by Smart Translate is reviewed professionally by me, a human. The responsibility for the final wording, meaning, tone and accuracy remains with myself.

Your documents and information stay confidential, and are treated with the same care and discretion whether or not technology is involved. I do not upload confidential client material to public AI tools to obtain a translation. Where an external digital or AI tool may be appropriate, its use is considered carefully in relation to the nature and sensitivity of the information involved. For particularly sensitive, personal or confidential material, I take an even more cautious approach and choose not to use AI-assisted tools at all.

In short: AI can help with the process. It does not replace the person responsible for your translation — me. Your documents deserve more than a machine-generated answer. They deserve professional judgement, context and accountability.

How long do I keep your personal data?

I keep client and project-related personal data for 1 year after completion of service, unless you ask me to delete it sooner. Should you ask me to delete a translation before the 1-year period has expired, I cannot be held responsible for any subsequent queries or claims relating to that content, as I would no longer be able to verify it against the original.
Invoices and accounting records are kept for 10 years, in accordance with French commercial law (Code de commerce), regardless of any earlier deletion request relating to the underlying translation.
Data collected from blog subscribers is deleted only when the subscriber unsubscribes.

Your rights

In accordance with the European General Data Protection Regulation (EU) 2016/679 you have the right to:
– request a copy of the personal data I hold about you
– ask me to rectify inaccurate data
– ask me to erase your data
– restrict or object to the processing of your data
– request data portability, where applicable
I will respond to your requests and concerns as soon as possible and no later than one month after receiving them. My contact details are provided elsewhere on this website.

Your right to lodge a complaint

If you have concerns about how I process your personal data, please contact me directly first. You also have the right to lodge a complaint with the French supervisory authority:

CNIL (Commission Nationale de l’Informatique et des Libertés)
3 Place de Fontenoy, TSA 80715, 75334 Paris Cedex 07, France
https://www.cnil.fr

or with the supervisory authority of your own country of residence, if different.

Cookies

I use cookies on my website. These are managed through a consent tool that allows you to accept or refuse cookies by category:

– Functional — necessary for the website to operate correctly (always active)
– Preferences — remember choices you’ve made on the site
– Statistics — anonymised or aggregated analytics on website traffic

For cookies used on my blog, see the WordPress Cookie policy.

Links to other websites

This privacy notice does not cover links on this site linking to other websites. Please read the privacy notices of any external site you visit.

Social media features

This website may include social media buttons or embedded content from third-party platforms (LinkedIn, X/Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, YouTube). Where data is collected through these features, it is processed according to the relevant platform’s own privacy notice.

Contact

For any question about this privacy notice, or to exercise your rights:

Email: contact@smart-translate.info
Phone: +262 262 58 19 15
Address: 22 rue des Champacs, 97438 Sainte-Marie, Reunion Island, Indian Ocean

This notice was last reviewed in September 2026. I review and update it periodically to reflect changes in my business practices or the law.