1. Introduction
Welcome to TellATell ("we," "our," or "us"). We are committed to protecting your privacy and handling your personal information responsibly. This Privacy Policy explains how we collect, use, disclose, and safeguard your information when you use our anonymous question and answer platform.
2. Information We Collect
2.1 Information You Provide
- Account Information: When you register, we collect your email address, username, display name, and password.
- Profile Information: Optional information like your bio and avatar.
- Content: Messages ("tells") you send or receive, and any replies you make.
2.2 Automatically Collected Information
- Device Information: Browser type, operating system, and device type.
- Log Data: IP address (stored as a hash for abuse prevention), access times, and pages viewed.
- Location Data: We may collect approximate location data (based on IP address) or precise location data (with your explicit permission via browser settings) to provide location-based features, such as "Tells Nearby". You can revoke this permission at any time through your device or browser settings.
- Cookies: We use cookies for authentication, preferences, and analytics (with your consent).
3. How We Use Your Information
We use your information to:
- Provide, maintain, and improve our services
- Process your account registration and manage your account
- Enable you to send and receive anonymous messages
- Provide location-based features if you have opted in
- Prevent abuse, spam, and enforce our Terms of Service
- Respond to your inquiries and support requests
- Send important notifications about your account
- Analyze usage patterns to improve user experience (with consent)
4. Anonymity & Data Retention
4.1 How Anonymous Are Tells?
When you send a tell with the anonymous option enabled, the recipient cannot see your identity. However:
- We store a hashed version of your IP address for abuse prevention and rate limiting
- If you are logged in when sending a tell, we record your account association internally for safety and moderation purposes, regardless of your anonymity setting
- Our administrators can view sender information when investigating reports of harassment, abuse, or Terms of Service violations
- If you choose to reveal your identity (send non-anonymously), the recipient will see your username
4.2 Data Retention
We retain your data for as long as your account is active. Deleted tells are removed from our active database but may persist in backups for up to 30 days. You can request deletion of your account and associated data by contacting us.
5. Information Sharing
We do not sell your personal information. We may share your information in these circumstances:
- With Your Consent: When you explicitly agree to sharing
- Service Providers: With trusted partners who help us operate our service
- Legal Requirements: When required by law or to protect our rights
- Safety: To prevent fraud, abuse, or threats to safety
6. Cookies & Analytics
We use cookies for:
- Essential Cookies: Required for authentication and basic functionality
- Analytics Cookies: To understand how you use our service (only with consent)
You can manage your cookie preferences through our cookie consent banner or in your account settings.
7. Your Rights
Depending on your location, you may have the right to:
- Access the personal information we hold about you
- Correct inaccurate personal information
- Request deletion of your personal information
- Object to processing of your personal information
- Data portability (receive your data in a structured format)
- Withdraw consent for optional data processing
To exercise these rights, please contact us.
8. Security
We implement appropriate technical and organizational measures to protect your personal information, including encryption of data in transit and at rest, secure password hashing, and regular security audits. However, no method of transmission over the Internet is 100% secure, and we cannot guarantee absolute security.
9. Children's Privacy
TellATell is not intended for users under 13 years of age. We do not knowingly collect personal information from children under 13. If you believe we have collected information from a child under 13, please contact us immediately.
10. Changes to This Policy
We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time. We will notify you of any changes by posting the new Privacy Policy on this page and updating the "Last updated" date. We encourage you to review this Privacy Policy periodically.
11. Contact Us
If you have questions about this Privacy Policy or our privacy practices, please contact us.
For privacy-specific inquiries including GDPR requests, please select "Privacy & Data" as the category when submitting your request.