Privacy Policy

1. Who we are

Sealward (“we,” “us,” or “our”) provides US apostille authentication services at www.sealward.com. Questions about this policy can be sent to contact@sealward.com.

2. Information we collect

When you submit an apostille request, we collect:

• Full name
• Email address
• Phone number (optional)
• Shipping address (US addresses only)
• Document type and destination country
• Copies of your documents for apostille processing
• Payment information (processed by third-party providers — we do not store card numbers)
• Order notes and correspondence with our team

We also collect standard server logs (IP address, browser type, pages visited) for security and performance monitoring.

3. How we use your information

We use your personal information to:

• Process and fulfill your apostille request
• Communicate order status, quotes, and delivery updates
• Submit your documents to the US Department of State or the appropriate Secretary of State
• Ship your authenticated documents back to you
• Respond to support inquiries
• Comply with applicable legal obligations

We do not sell, rent, or trade your personal information to third parties for marketing purposes.

4. Third-party processors

To fulfill your order, we share data with the following third-party service providers:

• Stripe— payment processing. Your card details are entered directly into Stripe’s secure environment. Sealward never sees or stores full card numbers. Stripe’s privacy policy is at stripe.com/privacy.
• PayPal— alternative payment processing. PayPal’s privacy policy is at paypal.com/privacy.
• Adyen— card and local payment method processing. Adyen’s privacy policy is at adyen.com/policies-and-disclaimer/privacy-policy.
• Courier and shipping providers — your name and shipping address are shared with our courier partners to deliver your apostilled documents.
• US Department of State / Secretaries of State — your documents and identifying information are submitted to the relevant government authority as required for the apostille process.

5. Data retention

We retain order records — including your contact details, document metadata, and correspondence — for 12 months after order completion. This period may be extended if required by applicable law or ongoing dispute resolution.

Copies of your documents are retained only as long as necessary to complete your order and are deleted promptly thereafter.

6. Cookies and tracking

We use only essential cookies required for site functionality and secure sessions. We do not use advertising or behavioral tracking cookies.

7. Your rights

You have the right to request access to, correction of, or deletion of the personal data we hold about you. To exercise these rights, email contact@sealward.com with your request. We will respond within 30 days.

8. Security

All data is transmitted over HTTPS. Document uploads use encrypted storage. We apply industry-standard access controls and review our security practices regularly.

9. Changes to this policy

We may update this policy from time to time. Material changes will be posted on this page with a revised “Last updated” date. Continued use of our services after changes are posted constitutes acceptance of the updated policy.

10. Contact

For any privacy-related questions, contact us at contact@sealward.com.