Privacy Policy

1. Overview

This Privacy Policy explains how Seth W. English, operating Popularity of the World (“we,” “us,” or “our”), collects, uses, discloses, and protects information when you use our website and services.

By using the Service, you acknowledge the practices described in this policy. Please also review our Terms of Service.

2. Information we collect

Information you provide

• Account information, including your email address, username, password credentials managed through our authentication provider, and date of birth.
• Profile information, including your display name, profile image, and creator information.
• Content and activity, including posts, videos, comments, likes, follows, reports, appeals, and other interactions.
• Support communications and information supplied when reporting a problem or requesting assistance.
• Creator verification, eligibility, and payout information required to provide monetization features.

Payment information

Stripe processes membership purchases, gifts, billing details, payment methods, refunds, disputes, creator onboarding, transfers, and payouts. We receive transaction identifiers, customer and subscription identifiers, payment status, amounts, limited billing details, and connected-account status. We do not directly store complete payment-card or bank-account numbers.

Information collected automatically

• Device, browser, operating-system, IP-address, and approximate location information.
• Request timestamps, pages visited, referring pages, errors, security events, and diagnostic logs.
• Authentication cookies and similar technologies needed to keep you signed in and protect the Service.
• Engagement information used for rankings and eligibility, including qualified likes, views, viewing duration, and anti-fraud signals.

3. How we use information

We use information to:

• Create and secure accounts.
• Display profiles, posts, videos, comments, rankings, and engagement.
• Process memberships, gifts, creator earnings, refunds, disputes, and payouts.
• Calculate legitimate views, likes, eligibility, balances, and Top 100 placement.
• Detect spam, fraud, manipulation, abuse, security threats, and violations of our policies.
• Moderate content, review reports and appeals, and enforce our Terms.
• Provide support and important account, billing, or policy communications.
• Maintain, troubleshoot, analyze, and improve the Service.
• Comply with law, lawful requests, and financial or recordkeeping obligations.

4. Public information

Usernames, profile images, membership labels, public posts, uploaded videos, comments, follower counts, like counts, and leaderboard placement may be visible publicly. Do not post information that you want to keep private.

Your email address, date of birth, payment identifiers, earnings, account status, administrator status, and other protected account information are not intended to be publicly displayed.

5. How we disclose information

We may disclose information:

• To service providers that help operate the Service, including Supabase, Vercel, Stripe, Cloudflare, and email or support providers.
• To other users and the public when you submit public profile information or content.
• To protect users, enforce our policies, investigate fraud, or maintain the security and integrity of the Service.
• When required by law, legal process, or a valid government request.
• In connection with a merger, financing, acquisition, reorganization, or sale of all or part of the Service, subject to applicable law.
• With your direction, authorization, or consent.

We do not sell personal information for money.

6. Cookies and similar technologies

We and our service providers use cookies and similar technologies for authentication, account security, fraud prevention, preferences, performance, and operation of the Service. Blocking necessary cookies may prevent login or other features from working.

Cloudflare Turnstile may process technical and device information to distinguish legitimate users from automated abuse. Payment and hosting providers may also use technologies governed by their own privacy policies.

7. Advertising

Free accounts may see advertising. Advertising providers may process limited device, browser, and interaction information according to their own policies and your available privacy choices. Paid Creator accounts may receive ad-free viewing as described in the Service.

If we introduce materially different advertising or tracking practices, we will update this policy and provide any choices required by law.

8. Data retention

We retain information for as long as reasonably necessary to provide the Service, secure accounts, resolve disputes, prevent fraud, enforce agreements, maintain financial and audit records, and meet legal obligations.

Retention periods vary by data type. Deleted content or accounts may remain temporarily in backups, security records, transaction records, or records that we must preserve for legitimate or legal purposes.

9. Your privacy choices and rights

Depending on where you live and applicable law, you may have rights to:

• Confirm whether we process your personal data.
• Access or obtain a copy of certain data.
• Correct inaccurate personal data.
• Request deletion of personal data.
• Opt out of certain targeted advertising, sale of personal data, or qualifying profiling.
• Appeal a decision concerning a privacy request.

Submit a request to support@popularityoftheworld.com. Describe the right you wish to exercise and provide enough information for us to locate and verify your account. We may request reasonable verification before acting on a request.

You may appeal a denied privacy request by replying to our decision with the subject “Privacy Appeal.” We will not discriminate against you for exercising an applicable privacy right.

10. Security

We use administrative, technical, and organizational measures designed to protect personal information, including access controls, authenticated requests, restricted database permissions, webhook signature verification, upload restrictions, and rate limiting.

No online service can guarantee absolute security. You are responsible for using a strong password and protecting access to your account and email.

11. Adults only

The Service is intended only for people who are at least 18 years old. We do not knowingly permit children to create accounts. If you believe a person under 18 has provided personal information, contact us so we can investigate and take appropriate action.

12. International users

The Service is operated from the United States. Information may be processed and stored in the United States or other locations where our service providers operate. Privacy protections may differ from those in your location.

13. Changes to this policy

We may update this Privacy Policy as our practices, technology, or legal obligations change. We will post the revised policy and update its effective date. Where required, we will provide additional notice.

14. Contact us

Privacy questions and requests may be sent to:

Seth W. English
Popularity of the World
Kentucky, United States
support@popularityoftheworld.com