Is it safe to upload my kid's photo to an AI?
Short answer: yes, if the service meets four concrete conditions — no training on your data, deletion by architecture, data inside the EU, upstream moderation. This page covers how cuentoconlaIA meets each one, with no marketing.
1. No training on your data
There are two ways to use OpenAI's models: consumer ChatGPT (where, unless you opt out explicitly, your conversations can train the model) and the API (where the base contract prohibits training). cuentoconlaIA uses the API. The distinction matters: the API has a DPA — Data Processing Agreement — that is contractual and verifiable, not a toggle in a menu. Amazon Rekognition doesn't train on inference data either. If OpenAI ever changes the policy, we'd have to re-negotiate the DPA and notify you before any change applies.
2. Deletion after 30 days by architecture
The S3 bucket that stores photos has a lifecycle rule that deletes any object after 30 days. It's not a policy — it's IaC code (Terraform) anyone can read in infra/core/s3.tf. Bypassing it would require changing the code, running terraform apply, and the CloudTrail audit would record the change. In practice nobody does it and nobody should.
3. Data doesn't leave the EU
AWS region eu-west-1 (Ireland). The entire pipeline runs inside that region: S3 bucket, Lambdas, Step Functions, Rekognition. Calls to OpenAI cross to us-east-1 (Virginia) — that's an international transfer covered by Standard Contractual Clauses (SCCs), declared in our privacy policy. The payload is base64-encoded photos and prompts; OpenAI receives them, processes them, discards them after the model run.
4. Upstream image moderation
Before the pipeline even reads the photo content, Amazon Rekognition runs it through child-safety and violence filters. Anything inappropriate is rejected, the transaction is reversed, and we notify you. Every generated illustration also passes moderation before being accepted into the final book — defence in depth, not a single point of failure.
The DPIA (Data Protection Impact Assessment)
GDPR requires this document for services processing sensitive data at scale. Ours is public in docs/dpia-children-biometric-ai.md in the repo. It identifies the risks (re-identification, bucket leak, model drift, operational misuse), describes the mitigations (deletion by architecture, dual moderation, IAM role segregation, contractual no-training), and sets a review schedule. If your school or PTA asks for a privacy analysis before gifting an AI book to a child, that DPIA is the answer.
A concrete note for parents of very young kids
If your kid is under 3, the photo you upload is necessarily a baby photo — more sensitive than a school photo at 7. The pipeline works the same at that age and the same contracts apply. Worth knowing: the photo doesn't need to be perfect. A frontal face shot with good light, no sunglasses, is enough. If in doubt, upload the most anodyne version you have — it always works.
Frequently asked questions
Does my photo train the model?
No. cuentoconlaIA uses OpenAI via API (not consumer ChatGPT). OpenAI's contractual DPA for API calls prohibits training on inference data. Amazon Rekognition doesn't train on inference data either. If OpenAI ever changed this policy, we'd have to renegotiate the DPA and notify you beforehand — but the current contract has been in force since day one.
How long do you keep the photo?
30 days, then it's gone automatically. Not our policy — an S3 lifecycle rule painted on the bucket. Even an internal operator with permissions can't extend it; AWS deletes objects when the window expires. Intermediate renders (pages generated before PDF composition) follow the same rule.
Who can see the photo during those 30 days?
Two systems only: the book generation pipeline (Step Functions + Lambdas calling OpenAI/Rekognition; live ~5 minutes per photo) and the laIA-content-mod operator when a moderation call is borderline. No employee has default bucket access — human access requires assuming an ephemeral IAM role that lands in CloudTrail. Support (hola@) has NO photo access; only order metadata.
Can I delete the photo before 30 days?
Email privacy@cuentoconlaIA.com with the order email and we delete it in under 72 hours. GDPR Art. 17 — right to erasure. The composed PDF book itself we keep for the 30-day download link; after that everything is gone automatically.
Are the generated images safe to show?
Yes, with the honesty that AI can be wrong. Every illustration passes Rekognition moderation before being accepted, but the system isn't perfect — if you receive the book and a page doesn't fit your values, write to us and we re-generate that page for free. The 'laIA can be wrong · approximate results' disclaimer is everywhere for a reason.
What if I'm stricter than average — what guarantees do I get?
For privacy-sensitive parents: (a) data doesn't leave the EU (AWS region eu-west-1, Ireland); (b) we have a public DPIA (Data Protection Impact Assessment) you can read in full at docs/dpia-children-biometric-ai.md in the repo; (c) the pipeline code is proprietary but the boundary points (upload, moderation, generation, deletion) are audited independently; (d) if that's not enough, email privacy@ and I'll reply personally — David, founder.
Read also
If you're comfortable after reading this, the wizard is waiting. For any question not covered above, email privacy@cuentoconlaIA.com — David, founder, replies personally.
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