What We Collect
When you use PlateWalk, we collect:
- Account information — email address, username, display name, and password (hashed)
- Profile data — bio, profile photo, city preferences
- Activity data — check-ins, trail completions, reviews, photos you upload
- Location data — approximate location at check-in time (only when you initiate a check-in)
- Device data — browser type, IP address, and general usage patterns
How We Use Your Data
- To operate the PlateWalk platform and provide our services
- To personalize your trail and restaurant recommendations
- To calculate and award PlatePoints and badges
- To send transactional emails (check-in confirmations, badge awards, weekly digests)
- To improve the platform through aggregate, anonymized analytics
- To detect and prevent fraud or abuse
What We Don't Do
- We do not sell your personal data to third parties
- We do not share your individual data with restaurants without your consent
- We do not track your location outside of an active check-in
- We do not send unsolicited marketing emails (you can control email preferences in settings)
Data Sharing
We share data only in these limited circumstances:
- Service providers — we use AWS S3 for photo storage, SendGrid for email, and Stripe for payments. These providers process data only as directed by us.
- Public profile data — your username, display name, trail completions, and badges are visible to other PlateWalk users by default.
- Legal requirements — we may disclose data if required by law or to protect the safety of our users.
Data Retention
We retain your account data for as long as your account is active. If you delete your account, we delete your personal data within 30 days, except where required to retain it for legal or accounting purposes (typically 7 years for billing records).
Cookies
We use a single authentication token stored in your browser's local storage to keep you logged in. We do not use third-party advertising cookies. We use privacy-respecting analytics that do not share data with ad networks.
Your Rights
You have the right to:
- Access — request a copy of the data we hold about you
- Correction — update your data via account settings at any time
- Deletion — delete your account and associated data
- Portability — request an export of your activity data
- Opt-out — unsubscribe from marketing emails at any time
To exercise these rights, contact us or use the options in your account settings.
Children's Privacy
PlateWalk is not directed at children under 13. We do not knowingly collect personal information from children under 13. If you believe a child has provided us with personal information, please contact us and we will delete it promptly.
Security
We use industry-standard security measures including HTTPS encryption, bcrypt password hashing, and JWT-based authentication with short-lived tokens. No method of transmission over the internet is 100% secure, and we cannot guarantee absolute security.
Changes to This Policy
We will notify you of material changes to this policy via email or in-app notice at least 14 days before the changes take effect.
Contact
Privacy questions or data requests: contact us.