Privacy Policy

Effective July 1, 2026LAWYER REVIEW

The short version

We collect only what we need. No data sales, no ads. Delete your account and data whenever you want.

0
data sales
30 days
to deletion
1. Who We Are

Gather ("we", "us", "our") is a social platform that connects people in small groups around shared interests. We are operated by [COMPANY NAME], based in [STATE/COUNTRY]. [LAWYER REVIEW — insert legal entity]

2. Information We Collect

Information you provide directly:

Account credentials (email address, password — password is hashed, never stored in plaintext)
Profile information: username, display name, date of birth, country, city, languages
Optional profile fields: gender identity, pronouns, bio
Interests you select during onboarding
Content you post: posts, comments, and replies

Information collected automatically:

Usage events: which pages you visit, actions you take (upvotes, community joins, posts created) — stored anonymously for platform analytics
IP address (used for bot protection via Cloudflare Turnstile at sign-up only)
Browser type and device type (standard web server logs)
3. How We Use Your Information
To create and manage your account
To match you with small groups based on shared interests and location
To send transactional emails (account verification, password reset)
To enforce our Terms of Service and Community Guidelines
To improve the Platform through aggregate, anonymized analytics
To detect and warn about potential personal information in user content (our PII detection system)

We do not sell your personal data to third parties. We do not use your data for advertising targeting.

4. Third-Party Service Providers

We use the following trusted third parties to operate the Platform:

Supabase
Database, authentication, and file storage. Your data is stored in Supabase's infrastructure. See Supabase Privacy Policy.
Vercel
Web hosting and edge delivery. See Vercel Privacy Policy.
Cloudflare Turnstile
Bot protection during sign-up. IP address is sent to Cloudflare for verification only. See Cloudflare Privacy Policy.

We select providers that maintain industry-standard security practices and do not permit them to use your data for their own purposes beyond providing services to us.

5. Data Retention

We retain your data for as long as your account is active. If you delete your account, we will delete your personal profile data within 30 days. Some data may be retained for longer in anonymized form for analytics, or as required by applicable law. [LAWYER REVIEW — retention period and exceptions]

6. Your RightsLAWYER REVIEW

Depending on your location, you may have the right to:

Access
Request a copy of the personal data we hold about you
Rectification
Correct inaccurate data via your profile settings
Deletion
Request deletion of your account and personal data
Portability
Request an export of your data in a machine-readable format
Objection
Object to certain processing of your data

To exercise any of these rights, email us at privacy@gathersocial.com. We will respond within 30 days. [LAWYER REVIEW — GDPR requires 30 days, CCPA requires 45]

7. European Users (GDPR)LAWYER REVIEW

If you are located in the European Economic Area (EEA), our lawful basis for processing your personal data is:

Contract performance — to provide you with the services you signed up for
Consent — for optional data you choose to provide (e.g., gender identity, pronouns)
Legitimate interests — for platform security, fraud prevention, and aggregated analytics

You have the right to lodge a complaint with your local data protection authority. [LAWYER REVIEW — if EU users are expected, a Data Processing Agreement with Supabase may be required]

8. California Users (CCPA)LAWYER REVIEW

California residents have additional rights under the California Consumer Privacy Act (CCPA), including the right to know what personal information we collect, the right to delete it, and the right to opt out of its sale. We do not sell personal information.

9. Security

We implement reasonable technical and organizational measures to protect your data, including encrypted connections (HTTPS), hashed passwords, and row-level security policies on our database. No system is 100% secure, and we cannot guarantee absolute security of your data.

10. Children's Privacy

Gather is not intended for users under the age of 18. We do not knowingly collect personal information from anyone under 18. If we become aware that a user is under 18, we will terminate their account and delete their data promptly.

11. Changes to This Policy

We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time. We will notify you of material changes by posting the updated policy with a new effective date. Your continued use of the Platform after changes constitutes acceptance of the updated policy.

12. Contact

For privacy-related questions or to exercise your rights, contact us at privacy@gathersocial.com. [LAWYER REVIEW — update with legal entity address for GDPR compliance]