Privacy Policy

Last updated: March 26, 2026

Japanese Car Trading LLC (“we”, “us”, or “our”) operates the cross-border used vehicle export service JAPACAR (the “Service”). This Privacy Policy explains how we collect, use, disclose, and otherwise process personal information in connection with the Service, in accordance with applicable laws including the Act on the Protection of Personal Information of Japan (the “APPI”) where relevant.

By using the Service, you acknowledge that you have read this Privacy Policy. If you do not agree, please do not use the Service.

1. Information we collect

1.1 Information you provide

1. Account data: email address, password (stored hashed).
2. Seller (manager) profile: company name (Japanese/English), representative name (kanji/kana/Roman), corporate or tax ID, phone, address (postal code, prefecture, city, street), date of birth.
3. Buyer profile: name, email, address, phone.
4. Consignee (shipping) details: name, email, country, address, phone.
5. Bank account data: used for Stripe Connect registration; not stored on our servers in plain form as account credentials for payouts.
6. Identity documents: images such as secondhand dealer permit, driver’s license (front/back), or other government ID as required.
7. Vehicle-related documents: images such as vehicle inspection certificate (shaken-sho), export-related documents, and other registration paperwork.
8. Vehicle listing data: VIN/frame number, model codes, year, mileage, condition, repair history, photos, etc.
9. Transaction data: quote requests, prices, payment proofs, and related correspondence.
10. Public bulletin comments: comments posted on vehicle pages (Japanese/English).
11. Optional staff notification email (sellers): an additional email address store staff may register to receive operational or deal-related notifications.

1.2 Social login (Google, LINE)

If you sign in with Google or LINE, we receive from that provider, for example:

1. Email address
2. Display name
3. Provider user ID

1.3 Automatically collected information

1. Login environment: IP address, OS, and browser type recorded on login.
2. Vehicle view logs: vehicle ID viewed, date, counts, browser language; IP address and user agent are stored only as SHA-256 hashes (we do not retain the raw values for those fields in this log).
3. Share logs: shared vehicle ID, date, method; IP hashed where applicable.
4. Favorites: vehicle IDs you save.
5. Cookies: session cookie (japacar_session, up to 7 days), CSRF token cookie.
6. Web Push subscription data: push endpoint URL and encryption keys generated by your browser, stored per device.

2. How we collect information

1. Forms and uploads on the Service
2. Social login (Google, LINE)
3. Automatic collection when you browse or use the Service (cookies, server logs)
4. Email, phone, or chat inquiries
5. Payment provider (Stripe) onboarding and transactions
6. AI-assisted parsing of documents you upload (Section 8)
7. AI-assisted market estimates for sellers (Section 8)
8. Email delivery through our email infrastructure providers (Section 5)

3. Purposes of use

We use personal information for:

1. Providing and operating the Service (registration, listings, deals)
2. Identity verification and fraud prevention
3. Payments: subscription charges (including Stripe-issued invoices) and buyer tips processed via Stripe. Vehicle sale proceeds are remitted to the seller's registered bank account in Japanese Yen (JPY) by bank transfer and do not pass through Stripe.
4. Shipping and customs processes, including sharing necessary data with forwarders
5. Analytics on listing performance (views, quotes, favorites, shares)
6. Web Push notifications (deal updates, comments, etc.) for sellers and buyers who opt in
7. Notifying optional staff email addresses registered by sellers
8. Customer support (chat, email)
9. Improving the Service and developing features
10. Recording agreement to our Terms and this Policy (timestamp, IP where applicable)
11. Legal compliance and responding to lawful requests from public authorities

4. How we protect information

We implement appropriate safeguards, including:

1. Passwords stored hashed, not in plain text
2. Hashed IP/user agent in vehicle view and share logs as described above
3. Photos and documents stored in encrypted cloud object storage (Amazon S3)
4. Card and bank details processed by Stripe, not stored by us as payment card data

5. Third parties, subprocessors, and disclosures

We disclose or entrust personal information to the categories below where necessary. Some processing occurs outside Japan (see Section 6). Entrustment (processing on our behalf) is listed here for transparency alongside disclosures to independent third parties.

Provider	Examples of data	Purpose
Stripe, Inc. (USA)	Seller name, address, DOB, bank/KYC documents; buyer card data (used for subscription and tip payments)	Subscription billing (card and invoice-based), Connect onboarding, KYC, tip payouts to sellers. Vehicle sale proceeds are not processed through Stripe; they are remitted to the seller's registered bank account in Japanese Yen (JPY) by bank transfer.
Forwarders	VIN, vehicle data, consignee, export documents	Transport and customs
Anthropic PBC (USA)	Images/PDFs of vehicle documents and identity documents. Entire files are sent to the API. Any name, address, or permit number visible on the document is included as image data.	Assisted data entry and structured reading of permitted fields
OpenAI, LLC (USA)	Text describing vehicle attributes (make, model, year, mileage, etc.); optional aggregated statistics from our own closed deals	Reference export price range estimation for sellers
Amazon Web Services, Inc. (USA)	Uploaded files and related backups	Encrypted storage and delivery (S3) — processing on our behalf
Email delivery providers	Recipient addresses, subject, body, delivery metadata. We may use SMTP hosting, Amazon SES, SendGrid, Postmark, or similar, depending on configuration.	Transactional and operational email — processing on our behalf
Google LLC (USA)	Cookies, pages viewed, device/environment data	Google Analytics (GA4), Google Tag Manager
Channel Corp. (Korea)	Hashed user ID, display name, email (when the chat widget is loaded while logged in)	Customer chat support (Channel Talk)

5.1 Other disclosures

We may also disclose information when required by law or legal process, to protect vital interests, in connection with a merger or asset transfer, or with your consent.

6. International transfers

Your information may be processed in countries other than your own, including:

• Stripe, Inc. — Privacy Policy
• Anthropic PBC — Privacy Policy
• OpenAI, LLC — Privacy Policy
• Google LLC — Privacy Policy
• Channel Corp. — Privacy Policy
• Amazon Web Services, Inc. — Privacy Policy

7. Cookies and similar technologies

7.1 Our cookies

Name	Purpose	Duration
japacar_session	Session / login state	Up to 7 days
XSRF-TOKEN	CSRF protection	Session
googtrans	Stores your selected page-translation language (set by Google Translate widget). Set only when you choose a non-English language.	Up to 1 year

7.2 Third-party analytics

• Google Analytics (GA4): measures how the Service is used. You may use Google’s opt-out tools (e.g. browser add-on) as described on Google’s sites.
• Google Tag Manager: used to manage analytics and related tags.

You can control cookies through your browser; disabling cookies may limit some features.

7.3 Page translation (Google Translate)

To make the Service accessible to international buyers, we provide an optional page-translation widget powered by Google LLC's Translate service. Translation is offered only on public, non-logged-in pages (e.g. vehicle search and detail pages). When you select a non-English language (either via the language selector at the top of the page or automatically based on your browser's preferred language on first visit):

• What is sent to Google: the visible text content of the page is transmitted to Google's servers so a translation can be generated and rendered back into the page. We do not intentionally include account credentials, payment details, or other sensitive information; however, any text that is visible on screen will be processed by Google.
• When it activates: only after you select a non-English language or your browser advertises a non-English preferred language and matches one of our supported options. English-language users are not subject to any translation traffic.
• Logged-in pages excluded: account, deal management, and other pages that may display your personal information are excluded from translation to minimise third-party transmission of personal data.
• Cookie: the googtrans cookie (see §7.1) stores your language preference so the page reloads in the same language on subsequent visits.
• Opt out: set the language back to "English" via the language selector at the top of the page, or clear the googtrans cookie. You may also disable the widget at the browser level via JavaScript / privacy extensions.
• Vendor terms: see Google's Privacy Policy.

8. AI-assisted processing

8.1 Document images (Anthropic)

We send full document images/PDFs to Anthropic’s API to extract structured fields to assist registration and compliance workflows. Any personal data printed on the document may be included in that image data. How Anthropic processes API data may change; see their current Privacy Policy.

8.2 Market estimate (OpenAI)

We may send text describing vehicle attributes (and optional aggregate deal statistics) to OpenAI’s API to generate a reference price range. See OpenAI’s Privacy Policy.

8.3 AI-assisted chat replies (Anthropic)

The chat widget at the bottom-right of our site uses AI (Claude, provided by Anthropic PBC in the USA) to handle initial responses. For complex inquiries, contractual matters, or any case the AI cannot adequately address, a human staff member will take over the conversation.

• What we send: the message you type, the recent conversation history needed for context, and (where relevant) the vehicle you are inquiring about, are sent to Anthropic’s API to generate a reply.
• Please do not send: passwords, full credit card numbers, government ID numbers, or other highly sensitive information. We display a notice in the widget reminding you of this.
• Retention: chat transcripts are retained on our servers for up to 2 years for dispute resolution and quality improvement.
• Vendor terms: see Anthropic’s Privacy Policy for details on how API data is handled.

9. Web Push notifications

Sellers and buyers may opt in to browser push notifications. Subscription data (endpoint, keys) is stored to deliver notifications to you. You can disable push in your browser or through the Service; subscriptions may be removed on logout or when expired.

10. Retention

• Account data: retained while your account exists; after closure, deleted or anonymized subject to legal retention (e.g. transaction records up to approximately 7 years where required).
• View/share logs: retained in hashed form for analytics.
• Transaction and tax records: up to approximately 7 years where required by law.
• Push subscriptions: deleted when you unsubscribe, when expired, or when removed after logout as applicable.
• KYC documents on Stripe: governed by Stripe’s retention policies; we cannot delete them on your behalf from Stripe’s systems.

11. Your rights and requests

You may access and update much of your profile in the Service. For APPI-based requests (disclosure, correction, cessation, etc.) that cannot be completed in the UI, contact us below. We may refuse where permitted by law (e.g. risk to rights of others, serious disruption, inability to verify identity).

12. Security

We use TLS for transmission, hashed passwords, hashed identifiers in certain logs, encrypted object storage, and access controls. No online service is completely secure.

13. Minors

The Service is intended for business users (B2B). If a minor uses the Service, verifiable guardian consent is required.

14. Changes

We may update this Privacy Policy. The “Last updated” date will change when we do. Material changes may be notified on the Service or by email where appropriate.

15. Contact

For privacy inquiries:

Japanese company name: 日本車貿易合同会社 (Japanese Car Trading LLC).