Privacy Notice
Version 1.1 · Last updated: October 23, 2026
RealBooks Inc. ("we") operates Realbooks. This notice explains how we handle personal information in Realbooks and on this website. We follow Canada's Personal Information Protection and Electronic Documents Act (PIPEDA) and applicable provincial privacy laws.
Information we collect
| Type | Examples | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Account information | Name, email, phone, role, login activity | You or your organization |
| Business financial data | Bank and card transactions, balances, invoices, receipts, payroll records | Plaid bank connections, your uploads, our team |
| Personal information in financial records | Names of customers, suppliers, employees and shareholders; amounts paid to them | Contained in your records |
| Questions and messages | Questions you ask Realbooks, replies to our queries | You |
| Technical data | IP address, browser, device, error logs | Automatically, for security and support |
Why we use it
- To provide bookkeeping and reporting services, and CPA review where you authorize it.
- To run Realbooks, including AI that proposes bookkeeping entries and answers your questions.
- To keep Realbooks secure, fix problems, and check and improve its accuracy.
- To meet our legal and professional obligations, including CRA record-keeping requirements.
We do not sell personal information or use it for advertising.
Who processes it for us
We use service providers who are bound by contract to protect your information and use it only to serve us.
| Provider | Purpose | Where data is stored or processed |
|---|---|---|
| DigitalOcean | Hosting the Realbooks application and database | Canada |
| Amazon Web Services | Encrypted backups; account and notification emails | Canada |
| Plaid Inc. | Bank connections | United States |
| OpenAI | AI that proposes bookkeeping entries, reads documents you upload and answers your questions | United States |
| Cloudflare | Delivering and protecting this website | Global network |
| Real File CPA | Ask the Auditor answers, CPA review and professional services, for clients who authorize it | Canada |
Where your data is kept. Your Realbooks records, including backups, are stored in Canada. Some providers above process information outside Canada while performing their service. While it is there, it may be accessible to the courts, law enforcement and national security authorities of that country.
Bank connections through Plaid. When you connect a bank account, we use Plaid Inc. to collect your account and transaction information from your bank. By connecting, you acknowledge that Plaid will collect and process that information under the Plaid End User Privacy Policy. We receive read-only access and cannot move money. You can disconnect at any time. When you do, we revoke our access through Plaid right away, delete the stored connection credentials within 30 days, and delete bank data that was never brought into your books within 90 days. Transactions already in your books are kept as accounting records.
AI in Realbooks. We use OpenAI to suggest bookkeeping entries, read documents you upload, and answer your questions from your own books. We send only the information needed for the task. OpenAI processes it under terms that do not allow it to use your information to train its models, and keeps it only as long as its service terms allow for security and abuse monitoring. AI suggestions are reviewed before they are posted to your books, and you can ask for a human review at any time.
Ask the Auditor. Ask the Auditor is provided by Real File CPA, a separate firm related to RealBooks Inc. Reviewers are former CRA auditors; Real File CPA is independent of the Canada Revenue Agency. Nothing is shared with Real File CPA until you send a question and confirm what will be shared. Only the question, the records and the files you choose are shared, and the answer is kept with your records.
Quebec residents. Your information may be communicated outside Quebec to the providers above.
This website
This website does not use cookies, advertising trackers or third-party analytics. Our host, Cloudflare, processes visitors' IP addresses to deliver and protect the site.
How we protect it
Encryption in transit, encrypted backups, multi-factor authentication, role-based access, audit logs of changes, and staff confidentiality obligations. No system is perfectly secure. If a breach creates a real risk of significant harm, we will notify you and the Privacy Commissioner of Canada as the law requires.
How long we keep it
Financial records are kept for at least six years after the end of the last tax year they relate to, as the CRA requires, and longer if our professional obligations require it. Other information is kept only as long as needed for the purposes above, then securely deleted.
Your rights
You can ask to access or correct your personal information, withdraw consent (subject to legal and contractual limits), or complain about how we handle it. Contact our Privacy Officer:
David Puotinen, Privacy Officer
RealBooks Inc. · 80 Tiverton Court, Suite 802, Markham, Ontario L3R 0G4
[email protected]
If you're not satisfied with our response, you can contact the Office of the Privacy Commissioner of Canada.
Changes
We will post changes here and tell active clients about material changes before they take effect.