Privacy Policy

This policy explains what info Middleman collects, why, and what you can do about it. It covers the Middleman website, the web app, and every link page. Middleman is for people 18 and older in the US. We do not knowingly collect info from anyone under 18.

What we collect

• Account info. Your email and the display name you pick. You log in with a 6 number code we email you. We store a scrambled copy (a hash) of each code, never the code itself, and each code stops working after 10 minutes.
• Your alias. Every account gets one random alias, like Quiet Otter 41. We store it with your account so your ratings and rank stay with you when you post anonymously.
• What you post. Your teasers, your secrets, and the codes or links you sell.
• Payment info. Stripe collects card and bank details. We never see your full card or bank number. We get basic info from Stripe, like the amount, the date, whether a payment worked, and a card ID that lets us tell buyers apart without knowing the card number.
• Buyer email. You can buy without an account. If you do, we ask for your email to send your receipt, handle reports, and let you save the unlock to an account later.
• Unlock activity. When a buyer first opens what they paid for, we log the time, IP address, and browser. We use this only to answer payment disputes.
• Ratings. The stars buyers give sellers. Seller scores are shown to everyone.
• Reports. What you tell us in a report, and your email if you give it.
• Waitlist. If you join the waitlist, your email and where you came from. If you pay to be a founder, we also keep your founder number and payment status.
• Basic tech info. Things like your device type, browser, and IP address, which our hosting providers log to keep the service working and safe.

Cookies and browser storage

We use your browser's storage to keep you logged in and to remember unlocks you bought without an account. On our public pages, like the home page and waitlist, we use Google Analytics cookies to count visits and see how people find us. Google Analytics does not run on link pages or inside the app. We do not use ad cookies. You can block analytics cookies in your browser settings, or with Google's opt out add on.

How we use it

• To run Middleman: log you in, show posts to people with the link, and process payments and payouts.
• To check new posts against our rules before they go live. This check is done by a computer, not a person.
• To keep people safe: look into reports and payment disputes, and stop fraud and fake ratings.
• To follow the law, like keeping tax and payment records.
• To answer you when you contact us, and to email you about your account or the launch if you joined the waitlist.

We do not sell your info. We do not use your words for ads.

Who we share it with

• Buyers. They see your teaser, and the secret or code if they pay. They see your display name, or only your alias if you post anonymously. The weekly board shows aliases only.
• Stripe, our payment processor, to take payments, send payouts, check identity for sellers, and answer payment disputes. When a buyer disputes a charge, we send Stripe the unlock activity above as proof.
• Anthropic, our AI provider, to check posts against our rules. They process the text for us and do not use it to train their models under our agreement.
• Resend, which sends our log in code emails.
• Google Firebase and Vercel, which host our database, log in, and website.
• Google Analytics, which tells us how many people visit our public pages and where they came from. It gets your browser, device, rough location, and the pages you view. It does not get what you post or buy.
• The law. If a valid legal request requires it, or to protect someone from harm.

Link pages

Anyone who has a link can see the teaser. After someone pays, the page link includes a private key that shows the secret or code. Anyone with that full link can see it, so do not share it.

If you post anonymously, the link page shows only your alias. We still know which account made the post, and we may share that if the law requires it or to protect someone from harm.

How long we keep it

• Your posts stay until you delete them or delete your account.
• Payment records are kept for at least 7 years because tax and finance laws require it.
• Reports and dispute records are kept as long as we need them to keep the service safe.
• Waitlist emails are kept until you ask us to remove them.

Your choices

• Delete a post at any time from its page in the app.
• Delete your account by emailing support@themiddleman.app from your account email. This takes down your posts, wipes your words, and removes your profile and alias. We keep the payment records the law requires, with your name taken off.
• Ask for a copy of your data, or ask us to fix or delete it, by emailing support@themiddleman.app.
• If you live in a state with its own privacy law, like California, you have those rights too. We will not treat you differently for using them.

Security

We use encryption in transit, keep our database locked down, and limit who can see your data. No system is perfect, so we cannot promise your info will never be exposed. If there is a breach that affects you, we will tell you.

Changes

If we make a big change to this policy, we will tell you on the site or by email first.

Contact

Questions or requests? Email support@themiddleman.app.