Privacy Policy

1. Who we are

STARTeir operates the STARTeir website and is the controller of the personal data described in this policy. You can contact us at:

2. Personal data we collect

• Account and profile data: name, email address, password in hashed form, account role, country, biography, profile image, website and social links.
• Campaign data: campaign details, stories, images, rewards, delivery estimates, updates, refund policies and other content submitted to STARTeir.
• Support and transaction data: contribution amount, selected reward, payment status, Stripe references, shipping details where required, refund or dispute status and campaign following activity.
• Identity and payout status: Stripe account identifiers and the connection, charge and payout status needed to operate creator payments. Stripe collects identity and bank details directly.
• Communications: messages and information you send when contacting STARTeir or responding to service emails.
• Technical and security data: IP address, browser and device information, session data, timestamps, security events and diagnostic logs.
• Third-party sign-in data: identifiers and basic profile information received when you choose Google sign-in.

STARTeir does not store your full payment-card or bank-account details. Those details are handled directly by Stripe under Stripe's own privacy terms.

3. How and why we use personal data

• To create and secure accounts, provide campaign tools, process support and administer transactions because this is necessary to perform our contract with you.
• To review campaigns, prevent fraud and abuse, protect users, troubleshoot problems and improve platform reliability based on our legitimate interests in operating a safe service.
• To maintain financial, tax, dispute and compliance records where required by law.
• To send campaign-following updates or optional communications where you request them or give consent. You can unsubscribe from optional messages.
• To establish, exercise or defend legal claims and respond to lawful requests.

4. Public campaign information

Approved campaign pages are public. The creator name, profile, campaign story, images, social links, rewards, updates and other information chosen for publication may be visible to anyone and may be indexed by search engines. Do not publish personal information that you do not want made public.

5. Who receives personal data

We share personal data only where needed with:

• Campaign creators, where fulfilment information is required to provide a reward, manage delivery or respond to a supporter issue.
• Stripe, for creator onboarding, payment processing, payouts, fraud checks, refunds and disputes.
• Google, if you choose Google sign-in.
• Hosting, security, storage and email providers, including the services used to host STARTeir, store images, protect forms and deliver transactional messages.
• Professional advisers and authorities, when reasonably necessary for legal, accounting, security or regulatory purposes.

We do not sell personal data.

6. International transfers

Some service providers may process data outside Ireland or the European Economic Area. Where required, we rely on an adequacy decision, approved contractual safeguards or another lawful transfer mechanism and apply appropriate security measures.

7. Cookies and similar technologies

STARTeir uses essential session, authentication, security and preference technologies needed for the site to work, including fraud-prevention tools. We do not currently use non-essential advertising cookies. If that changes, we will update this policy and request consent where required.

8. How long we keep data

We keep account and campaign data while an account or campaign is active and for a reasonable period afterwards. Transaction, dispute, fraud-prevention and legal records may be kept longer where required by law or necessary to resolve claims. Retention depends on the type of record, legal requirements, security needs and whether the data can be safely deleted or anonymised.

9. Your rights

Depending on the circumstances, you may ask for access to your personal data, correction, deletion, restriction, portability, or object to certain uses. Where processing is based on consent, you may withdraw it at any time without affecting earlier lawful processing.

Email support@starteir.com to exercise a right. We may need to verify your identity. You may also complain to Ireland's Data Protection Commission at dataprotection.ie.

10. Security

We use proportionate technical and organisational safeguards, including access controls, encrypted connections, password hashing and security monitoring. No online system is completely risk-free, so users should use a unique password and contact us promptly if they suspect unauthorised access.

11. Age requirements

STARTeir accounts and support activity are for people aged 16 or over. Campaign creators must be at least 18 and able to enter a binding agreement and complete Stripe onboarding. We do not knowingly provide accounts to children under 16. Contact us if you believe a child under 16 has provided personal data to STARTeir.

12. Changes and questions

We may update this policy as the service or legal requirements change. The effective date above shows the latest version. Material changes will be highlighted through the site or an appropriate message. Questions can be sent to support@starteir.com.