Privacy Policy

1. Introduction

This Privacy Policy explains how grounds.vc ("we," "us," or "our") collects, uses, and protects your personal information when you use our service at www.grounds.vc (the "Service").

We are committed to collecting only the bare minimum personal data necessary to provide and improve our Service. By using our Service, you agree to the collection and use of information in accordance with this Privacy Policy.

2. Information We Collect

2.1 Information You Provide

When you create an account and use our Service, we collect:

- Email Address: Required for account creation, authentication, and essential service communications
- Password: Stored securely in encrypted form for account authentication
- User Preferences: Including saved deal filters, display settings, and notification preferences
- Account Information: Subscription status and related subscription metadata

2.2 Automatically Collected Information

- IP Address: Your IP address is automatically logged by our hosting infrastructure for security and system administration purposes
- Authentication Cookies: We use essential cookies to maintain your logged-in session and provide persistent authentication

2.3 Payment Information

Payment processing is handled by Paddle (our Merchant of Record payment provider). When you subscribe to our Service:

- Paddle collects and processes your payment information directly
- We receive limited subscription data from Paddle necessary to manage your account (such as subscription status, start date, and end date)
- We do NOT directly collect or store your credit card information or full payment details
- For Paddle's privacy practices, please refer to Paddle's Privacy Policy

3. How We Use Your Information

We use the collected information solely for the following purposes:

- Service Provision: To create and manage your account, authenticate you, and provide access to deal data
- Feature Functionality: To save and apply your custom filters, search preferences, and display settings
- Notifications: To deliver notifications about new deals matching your saved filters (only if you enable this feature)
- Subscription Management: To manage your subscription status and provide appropriate access to features
- Service Communications: To send essential emails about your account, subscription status, or critical service updates
- Security: To protect against unauthorized access and maintain the security of our Service
- Technical Operations: To monitor and maintain system performance, troubleshoot issues, and work on system improvements

4. Legal Basis for Processing (GDPR)

For users in the European Economic Area (EEA), our legal basis for processing your personal data is:

- Contract Performance: Processing necessary to provide the Service you've subscribed to
- Legitimate Interests: Maintaining security, preventing fraud, and improving our Service
- Consent: For optional features such as notifications (which you can enable or disable at any time)

5. Data Storage and Security

- All user data is stored in our database hosted on infrastructure in the European Union
- We implement industry-standard security measures to protect your data
- All data transmission occurs over encrypted HTTPS connections
- Access to user data is restricted to necessary system operations only

6. Data Sharing and Third Parties

We do NOT sell, rent, or share your personal information with third parties, except when required for performing the Service or when required by law, court order, or to protect our legal rights.

We do NOT use third-party analytics, advertising networks, or tracking services.

7. Cookies

We use only essential cookies necessary for the Service to function:

- Authentication Cookie: Maintains your logged-in session
- Duration: Session-based and persistent as needed for "remember me" functionality
- Purpose: To keep you logged in and provide seamless access to the Service

We are proud NOT to use third-party cookies, advertising cookies, or non-essential tracking cookies.

8. Data Retention

We retain your personal data only as long as necessary:

- Active Accounts: Data is retained while your account remains active
- Cancelled Subscriptions: Account data is retained to allow resubscription unless you request deletion
- Deleted Accounts: Upon account deletion, your personal data is permanently removed within 30 days

9. Your Rights

Under GDPR and applicable data protection laws, you have the following rights:

- Access: Request a copy of the personal data we hold about you
- Correction: Request correction of inaccurate or incomplete data
- Deletion: Request deletion of your account and associated personal data
- Portability: Request your data in a machine-readable format
- Restriction: Request restriction of processing in certain circumstances
- Objection: Object to processing based on legitimate interests
- Withdraw Consent: Withdraw consent for optional features like notifications

To exercise any of these rights, please contact us at the email address provided in Section 12.

10. Data Subject Requests

To request access to, correction, or deletion of your personal data:

1. Visit your account page to manage most settings
2. For data deletion or other requests, contact us directly (contact information in Section 12)
3. We will respond to verified requests within 30 days

11. Children's Privacy

Our Service is not intended for individuals under the age of 16. We do not knowingly collect personal information from children. If we become aware that we have collected data from a child under 16, we will take steps to delete such information promptly.

12. Contact Information

For privacy-related questions, concerns, or requests, please contact us at: admin@grounds.vc

13. Changes to This Privacy Policy

We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time. Changes will be posted on this page with an updated "Last Updated" date. Continued use of the Service after changes constitutes acceptance of the updated policy. For material changes, we will notify you via email.

---

Data Controller: grounds.vc

This Privacy Policy is designed to comply with the EU General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) and applicable data protection laws.