Is Lerk AI safe? Privacy, payments and content rules

The short answer

Our answer, as the people who run it, is yes for the questions most people have. Here is what that rests on, in one place:

• Private to your account

  Chats, characters and media are never published. Lerk AI doesn't sell conversations or use them to target ads, and you can delete them anytime.

• Discreet, processor-handled payments

  Card details go to a secure payment processor, never to Lerk AI. Statements show “Lerk Studios”, not what you bought.

• Adults only, same rules for everyone

  Lerk AI is 18+. Messages, prompts and media are checked automatically, with the same rules in every chat mode and on every plan.

• AI characters, clearly labelled

  Every companion is fictional and every image is AI-generated. Lerk AI accepts no uploads and no companion is based on anyone who exists.

The rest of this page goes through each point, and the places where “safe” needs a qualifier: automated checks aren't perfect, the age gate is a self-declaration, and AI providers process your messages to answer them.

Who runs Lerk AI?

Lerk AI is made and operated by Lerk Studios, Inc., the company that also publishes this site. Its privacy policy describes the company like this:

You can reach the company at support@lerk.ai. Its policies are public and dated, grouped on Lerk AI's Help and Legal page into core policies (terms, privacy, refunds, cookies), content and safety policies, and legal and compliance statements. Reading the ones that matter to you before you pay is a habit worth having with any app, and our checklist for choosing an AI companion app lists what to look for.

Your chats, characters and media

Everything you make on Lerk AI is tied to your account alone: your conversations, the companions you create and the photos and videos in your gallery. None of it is published or shown to other users, and saving something or adding a companion to your Favorites doesn't publish it either. The companions on Explore and the bundles in the store are Lerk AI's own catalog, kept separate from anything you make.

You stay in control of what's kept:

• Delete a chat to remove it, or restart it to begin again with a companion who remembers nothing of the old conversation.
• Delete characters and media whenever you like. Deleting a chat doesn't automatically delete photos you saved from it, so remove those from your gallery too if you want them gone.
• Delete the whole account by emailing support@lerk.ai with the subject “Privacy Request”. Cancelling a subscription doesn't delete your account on its own.

The Privacy Policy is frank that a few records outlive a deletion: payment and refund records, for example, are kept for as long as financial and legal rules require, and backups take time to expire.

On sign-in: you log in with email, Google or Apple, and your conversations follow you across devices. In the policy's own words, “We do not store plaintext passwords.”

Does anyone read your chats?

Not as a matter of routine. Messages, prompts and media pass through automated safety checks, and people get involved only in specific cases:

Two other things are worth knowing. First, a companion's replies and images are produced with the help of outside AI and moderation providers, so the parts of a conversation needed to answer you are sent to them; the Privacy Policy describes the limits Lerk AI sets on how those providers use the data. Second, Lerk AI's product analytics are set up so that nothing you write is captured: message and prompt text, typed names and form fields are masked or left out.

And the part people ask about most: Lerk AI doesn't sell your conversations, and doesn't use them to target ads.

Payments and your bank statement

Card payments are handled by a secure payment processor, which means the card details you type at checkout go to the processor rather than to Lerk AI:

On your statement the charge appears as “Lerk Studios”, never as a description of what you bought, and receipts mention only stars and your plan. If you'd rather not use a card at all, star packs and the yearly VIP and Lerker plans can be paid with crypto.

If you see a charge you don't recognise, email support@lerk.ai with the date and amount, and don't include your full card number. Renewals, cancelling and refunds are covered in Lerk AI pricing, explained.

Adults only: the age rules

Lerk AI is for adults 18 and over, or older where local law sets a higher age. Lerk.ai shows an age gate on the first visit, where you confirm you meet that age. It's a self-declaration: you aren't asked to upload an ID or a selfie. The rule itself is strict:

The same applies to the characters. Every companion in the catalog is an adult, a companion you create must be 18 or older, and content involving minors is never allowed, whatever the chat mode or plan. If you share a device, keep your account signed out when you're not using it.

Everything on Lerk AI is AI-generated

A companion on Lerk AI is a fictional character, and the photos and videos are made by AI. No actual people or performers are behind the chats, and Lerk AI doesn't accept photo uploads, so a companion is never based on anyone who exists. Two policy lines make this explicit:

AI image models can occasionally produce a face that looks like someone. If you think an image on Lerk AI resembles a person who exists, the Content Removal Policy explains how to ask for it to be taken down. What is an AI girlfriend? covers how AI companions work in general.

Content rules and automatic safety checks

Lerk AI has one rulebook for everyone. It applies in Texting and Roleplay alike, whether the mood is Flirty or Spicy, to realistic and anime companions, and on the free account as much as on VIP or Lerker. Paying doesn't buy an exception:

The checks run at several points: on what you type, on characters when they're created or used, and on the text, images and video that come back. A request that's blocked simply doesn't go through, and if it was a photo or video, its stars come back automatically. If you think a moderation decision about your account was wrong, you can appeal it to support@lerk.ai.

The detail lives in four documents:

• Safety Guidelines: the core rules in plain terms.
• Prohibited Content Policy: what is never allowed.
• Content Moderation Policy: how content is reviewed, enforced and appealed.
• Content Safety Controls Policy: the controls that keep generated content within the rules.

Wellbeing and the limits of an AI companion

A companion can be warm, attentive and good company, and it's still software. Lerk AI's wellbeing notice says so plainly:

Lerk AI isn't a crisis service, and its support address isn't for emergencies. If you or someone else is in immediate danger, contact the emergency services where you are. Lerk AI's safety page lists support resources by region, and its crisis response policy explains how the service responds when someone may be at risk.

For anything that isn't urgent, such as a companion that felt pushy, a confusing AI disclosure or pressure to buy, email support@lerk.ai with the subject “AI Companion or Wellbeing Concern”. And if you're wondering whether an AI companion is a good fit for you at all, our guide Is an AI girlfriend worth it? takes an honest look.

Cookies and tracking

After you confirm your age, Lerk.ai asks about cookies, with “accept all” and “necessary only” offered side by side and a panel to choose by category. Analytics stay off until you accept them, and you can change your mind later from Cookie settings in the More menu or under Preferences on your profile. If your browser sends a Global Privacy Control signal, analytics are recorded as off without a prompt.

One thing stays on regardless: referral attribution, which is how Lerk AI knows that a visit came from a link like the ones on this site. The Cookie and Tracking Technologies Policy lists each technology and what it's for, and our About page explains the tags on our own links.

What Lerk AI doesn't promise

A safety page that only lists strengths isn't much use, so here are the honest limits, all of them stated in Lerk AI's own policies:

• Security is never absolute. The Privacy Policy lists the safeguards in place and adds, “No service can guarantee absolute security.” A strong, unique password is your part of the deal.
• Automated checks can get it wrong, in both directions: something allowed may be refused, and a request isn't permitted just because a filter missed it. That's what reports and appeals are for.
• The age gate relies on honesty. It's a declaration, not an identity check, so keeping your account away from anyone under 18 is partly down to you.
• Companions can be wrong. An AI can misremember a detail or say something inaccurate, so don't treat what a companion says as fact or advice.
• Outside providers are involved. AI and moderation providers process the parts of a conversation needed to answer it, under the terms the Privacy Policy describes.

How to report something

To report a companion, a message, an image or anything else that seems to break the rules, email support@lerk.ai. Include the date and time, the companion or conversation, and a short description. Describe the problem rather than attaching anything harmful: the team can find the material from those details. You don't need to know which policy applies; the complaint is routed internally. From the terms page's contact section:

The Complaints and Takedown Policy explains what happens next, and our contact page lists every address and subject line in one place. For anything else, the Lerk AI FAQ has short answers.

Frequently asked questions