Privacy Policy

1. Who We Are

ChowSpots ("we", "us", or "our") operates the website located at chowspots.com and related services (collectively, the "Platform"). We help diners discover restaurants and help restaurant owners reach new customers. This Privacy Policy explains how we collect, use, share, and protect information about you when you use our Platform.

If you have questions, contact us at privacy@chowspots.com.

2. Information We Collect

2.1 Information You Provide

• Account data — name, email address, and password (hashed) when you register.
• Google sign-in — if you authenticate via Google, we receive your Google account ID, email, and display name.
• Business listing data — restaurant name, address, phone, hours, description, photos, and category if you submit a listing.
• Reviews — star ratings, written reviews, and photos you post about businesses.
• Communications — messages you send via our contact form, support requests, or newsletter sign-up.
• Payment information — if you upgrade to a paid plan, payment is processed by Stripe. We do not store card numbers; we receive only a Stripe customer ID and subscription status.

2.2 Information Collected Automatically

• Log data — IP address, browser type, pages visited, time and date of visits, referring URLs.
• Cookies and similar technologies — session cookies (required for login), preference cookies, and optional analytics cookies (see Section 6).
• Usage data — search queries, listing views, and interaction events to improve the Platform.

3. How We Use Your Information

We use your information to:

• Provide, operate, and improve the Platform.
• Create and manage your account.
• Display your reviews, photos, and business listings to other users.
• Send transactional emails (email verification, password resets, booking confirmations).
• Send the newsletter if you subscribed (you may unsubscribe at any time).
• Detect, prevent, and respond to fraud, abuse, or security incidents.
• Comply with legal obligations.
• Analyse usage trends to understand how the Platform is used and improve it.

We do not sell your personal data to third parties.

4. Sharing of Information

We may share your information with:

• Service providers — hosting, email delivery (Resend), payment processing (Stripe), SMS (Twilio), and analytics services that process data on our behalf under confidentiality agreements.
• Other users — your public profile name, reviews, and photos are visible to all visitors. Business listings are publicly indexed.
• Law enforcement — when required by law, court order, or to protect the rights and safety of ChowSpots, our users, or the public.
• Business transfers — if ChowSpots is acquired or merges with another company, your information may be transferred as part of that transaction.

5. Data Retention

We retain your account data for as long as your account is active. If you delete your account, we will delete or anonymise your personal information within 90 days, except where we are required to retain it for legal or compliance purposes. Anonymised, aggregated data may be retained indefinitely.

6. Cookies

We use cookies and similar technologies for the following purposes:

You can control cookies through your browser settings. Disabling essential cookies will prevent login and form submissions from working correctly.

7. Your Rights

Depending on your location, you may have the right to:

• Access the personal data we hold about you.
• Correct inaccurate data through your profile settings.
• Delete your account and associated data by emailing privacy@chowspots.com.
• Object to or restrict processing of your data in certain circumstances.
• Data portability — request an export of your data.
• Withdraw consent at any time where processing is based on consent (e.g. newsletter).

To exercise any of these rights, please email us at privacy@chowspots.com. We will respond within 30 days.

8. Security

We implement industry-standard security measures including HTTPS encryption, hashed passwords (bcrypt), CSRF protection, rate limiting, and security HTTP headers. No method of transmission over the internet is 100% secure; we cannot guarantee absolute security.

9. Children's Privacy

The Platform is not directed to children under 13. We do not knowingly collect personal information from children. If you believe a child has provided us with personal information, please contact us immediately.

10. International Transfers

Your information may be transferred to and processed in countries other than your own. We take appropriate safeguards (such as standard contractual clauses) to ensure your data is protected in accordance with this policy.

11. Changes to This Policy

We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time. We will notify registered users by email and post the updated policy on this page with a new "Last updated" date. Continued use of the Platform after changes take effect constitutes acceptance of the revised policy.

12. Contact Us

For privacy-related inquiries, please contact: