Privacy · Data handling
Aliases separate the address you give to merchants from your real inbox, but forwarding still requires the service to process the mapping between them and incoming messages. This notice explains temporary email and long-term forwarding, along with the deletion and security steps you can take.
Temporary inboxes are accessed with a unique token, without logging in with your real email. Anyone with that token may be able to read or delete messages in the inbox, so protect it like a password.
See how temporary email worksLong-term forwarding requires you to verify your real email. The service stores the link between your alias and inbox. Aliases don’t hide this link from the service or make your communications anonymous.
See how your data is usedPausing or deleting an alias affects future incoming mail; it can’t recall messages already delivered to an external inbox. Copies in the forwarding archive, temporary inbox and external inbox need to be handled separately.
See retention and deletion details01 / What information we use
Temporary inboxes and long-term forwarding use different credentials and process different data. The table below explains why we process key information. “Merchants only see your alias” describes separation of receiving addresses; it doesn’t mean the service can’t access message content or that we make a zero-logs promise.
Messages pass from the sender through the service for you to read or have forwarded to your real inbox, so the service must process delivery information and message content. Don’t treat Tempowl as an end-to-end encrypted email service, an anonymity tool or a long-term store for the only copy of important files.
| Information | Why it’s processed | What you should know |
|---|---|---|
| Real login email | To send login verification codes, identify your account and receive messages forwarded from your aliases. | Use an inbox you can keep accessing. If the address is wrong or needs updating, contact support. Never share verification codes. |
| Login verification code | To verify that you can access the email address at the time of login and enable passwordless sign-in. With two-step verification enabled, an authenticator code is also required. | Enter it only during a login you started. Don’t share it in support emails, screenshots or public chats. |
| Account authentication token | To identify your signed-in account and authorize requests such as alias management, archive access and security settings. | This isn’t an ordinary URL parameter; if exposed, it could allow account access. Log out when you’re done on a shared device. |
| Temporary inbox token | To authorize access to temporary messages, view message details, extend the inbox, delete messages and destroy the inbox. | Stored and used separately from your account authentication token. Clearing browser data may make the temporary inbox impossible to recover. |
| Alias mapping and status | To forward incoming mail to your verified real email and determine whether to keep processing it based on whether the alias is active, paused or deleted. | Manage it in the alias dashboard; incoming messages received while it’s paused are discarded and can’t be recovered when you resume it. |
| Message content and attachments | To display temporary messages, forward mail and provide message details in the forwarding archive. | Messages may contain verification codes, order details or personal information. Open only what you expect, and save important information somewhere you control. |
| Delivery records and technical information | To process sender, receiving alias, time, delivery status and error details for troubleshooting, abuse prevention and service maintenance. Requests may also involve technical information such as IP addresses. | Don’t assume the service keeps no records. The 30-day forwarding archive doesn’t mean all technical, security or legally required records follow the same retention period. |
Senders, your real email provider and any external websites you choose to open process information under their own policies. This page covers only data handling within Tempowl and doesn’t replace third parties’ privacy notices.
02 / How addresses are used
The temporary inbox on the homepage and the forwarding archive in your account are separate inboxes. A temporary inbox token can’t sign in to the alias dashboard, and your account login credentials don’t automatically grant access to a temporary inbox.
Temporary inbox / No account login needed
After you get an address from the homepage inbox, your browser uses that inbox’s token to request the message list and content. It’s intended for short-term mail; once the address or inbox expires, don’t rely on it for account recovery emails.
Keeping the address text doesn’t mean you still have access. Don’t share the full token or copy inbox data from your browser to an untrusted device.
Long-term forwarding / Verify your real email first
After verifying your real email with passwordless login, you can create forwarding aliases. The service forwards messages based on the alias mapping and its status. Merchants generally receive only the alias you give them, not the real email linked to it.
If you enter your real email elsewhere, such as in a message, signature or merchant account profile, the recipient may still get it. Using a different alias for each merchant can help narrow down where unwanted mail came from, but a single message can’t prove that a merchant sold your data. See the data breach lookup table for details.
03 / How long data is kept and how to delete it
Temporary inboxes last 3 hours by default. Each extension adds 3 hours, up to 24 hours total. After expiry, the address and messages are cleared and can’t be recovered. Long-term forwarding includes a 30-day message archive for recent mail, not a permanent backup.
Different deletion actions affect different data. Deleting an alias won’t recall messages already forwarded, and clearing local browser data doesn’t submit a deletion request to the service.
| Data or action | What it affects | What it doesn’t do automatically |
|---|---|---|
| Temporary inbox expiry | 3 hours by default; each extension adds 3 hours, up to 24 hours. The address and messages can’t be recovered after expiry. | It won’t keep a long-term account recovery channel for shopping accounts. |
| Delete one message from a temporary inbox | Removes that message from the inbox. Other messages and the address remain available until their usual expiry. | It won’t delete copies held by the sender or ones you’ve downloaded. |
| Destroy a temporary inbox or change its address | Destroying an inbox makes it unusable. Changing the address creates a new inbox and destroys the old one. Save anything you need from the old inbox first. | It won’t update the email address linked to your merchant accounts. |
| Forwarding email archive | Keeps a record of recent messages for 30 days. You can delete individual archived messages or clear the archive in the dashboard. | It won’t delete messages already delivered to your real inbox. |
| Pause an alias | New incoming messages are discarded while it’s paused and aren’t forwarded. Resuming it only applies to future messages. | It won’t recover messages discarded while paused or clear existing archived messages. |
| Delete an alias | Stops future email from arriving through that alias. Before deleting it, check whether you still need it for orders, customer support or account recovery. | It won’t automatically delete messages in your external inbox, merchant account details or all existing delivery records. |
| Delete an external inbox copy | You must do this separately with your real email provider, following its rules for trash and backups. | Tempowl can’t recall or delete copies in an external inbox. |
Return, refund, shipping and password-reset messages may arrive after a sign-up code. Update the address on your merchant account and verify it before pausing or deleting the old alias. To request deletion of account information or technical records, contact support as described below.
04 / Device and content security
Local browser storage helps restore access to a temporary inbox and saves your account sign-in state and current login email. Account login uses the local storage keys tempowl.auth.token and tempowl.auth.email; these data help restore page state but don’t mean your messages are stored only on your device.
Anyone who can access your browser profile, device or related storage may be able to access your session. Private browsing, automatic cleanup and manually clearing site data may also remove credentials and prevent you from recovering a temporary inbox.
Email HTML is shown in an isolated reading environment and handled for safety, but that can’t guarantee every message, external link or attachment is trustworthy. Brand names, sender names and requests for verification codes can be spoofed. Don’t trust a message just because it displays correctly in the reader.
Opening an external link or viewing an attachment in another app takes you into that service’s or app’s security environment. If a message urges you to pay, asks for a verification code or tells you to sign in again, go directly to the official website you already know to check. Don’t rely on links in the email. See the Terms of Service for usage limits.
05 / Requests and contact
To ask about information related to you, correct account details, request data deletion or report a privacy concern, email support@tempowl.com. State the type of request, the alias or account email involved and any relevant date range. Share only what’s needed to locate the issue.
To avoid disclosing data to the wrong person, we may need to verify that you control the relevant account before processing a request. Whether we can provide, change or delete information depends on identity verification, whether the data has expired, necessary security measures and applicable legal requirements. If we can’t fulfill part of a request, we’ll explain by email.
Don’t include login verification codes, full tokens, authenticator keys or QR codes. If message content or attachments include order, identity or payment information, obscure anything irrelevant first. Don’t forward an entire sensitive email just to help us troubleshoot.
Contact privacy supportWe update the date at the top of this page when it changes. Before continuing to use the service, contact support if you need to clarify how specific data is handled or what can be deleted. For practical guidance, see our blog; for details on the services covered, see the Terms of Service.
