Privacy Policy

1. Operator

EarthIt (“EarthIt”, “we”) operates the EarthIt globe city-bidding site (the “Service”). This Privacy Policy explains what we collect, why, how long we keep it, and your choices.

Contact EarthIt through the site. We do not list a postal address, company registration number, or a separate legal-entity name on this page.

We do not sell your personal data.

2. What we collect

Bid listing fields you submit:

• title (we also derive a public handle from the title)
• optional image
• optional link
• optional context
• optional email
• the city you bid on, and the USD bid amount

If you include an email on a listing, that email is public on the listing.

Location:

• if you allow it, the browser may share GPS coordinates so we can suggest the nearest city
• we may use your IP address and network geolocation (including Cloudflare headers such as estimated city, country, and coordinates, and similar geo lookup) to suggest a nearest city when GPS is unavailable

Payments (Polar):

• Polar processes card details; EarthIt does not receive your full card number
• we may receive payment metadata such as payment status, session identifiers, amount, currency, city and bid metadata, and the email you give Polar

Technical data may include IP address, request headers, approximate location derived from IP, device and browser information, pages viewed, and timestamps used to operate, secure, and debug the Service.

3. Why we collect it

• to run bidding, display listings, and show the highest bid on each continent as a pin on the globe
• to store and serve listing images from our servers
• to take payment through Polar and to match a payment to a city bid
• to suggest a nearest city
• to keep the Service secure, prevent fraud and abuse, and enforce the Terms of Use
• to understand basic use of the Service and fix problems
• to respond if you contact us through the site

Where a privacy law such as the GDPR applies, we rely on performance of a contract (providing the Service you asked for), legitimate interests (security, operating a public globe of listings, fraud prevention), consent where it is required (for example optional GPS), and legal obligation.

4. Public listings

EarthIt is a public globe. Listing title, handle, image, link, context, city, continent, bid amount, and optional email are intended to be public. Do not put secrets in a listing. Removing or replacing a listing may not un-index copies that other people made.

5. Cookies and local storage

We use:

• local storage and similar browser storage to remember the city you selected and any handle or similar client preference stored on your device
• cookies that hosting and CDN providers, including Cloudflare, may set for security, load balancing, and site function

We do not use this storage to build a separate advertising profile about you, and we do not currently use advertising cookies. You can clear cookies and local storage in your browser. If you do, the globe may forget your last city until you search or allow location again.

6. How we share information

We share information with:

• hosting and CDN providers, including Cloudflare and the infrastructure that serves EarthIt
• Polar, for checkout and payment metadata
• geo lookup providers used to turn an IP address into an approximate city when needed
• authorities if we believe the law requires it, or to report child sexual abuse material or other serious illegal activity

We do not sell personal data and we do not share it for cross-context advertising.

7. International processing

EarthIt, Cloudflare, Polar, and other processors may process information in the United States and other countries. Those countries may have different data protection laws than where you live. If you use the Service, your information may be transferred internationally to operate the globe and, when enabled, to process payment.

8. Retention

• public listings and bid history are kept while they are needed to operate the globe, including showing who holds a city and the bid pool
• when a city is outbid, the new listing replaces the previous city listing; bid events may be retained as operational history
• images are kept with the listing they belong to
• payment metadata from Polar is kept as needed for accounting, dispute handling, and fraud prevention, and as Polar retains it under its own policies
• server logs and IP/geo used for nearest-city suggestion are kept only as long as needed for security and operation, then deleted or aggregated
• browser local storage remains on your device until you clear it

We may keep information longer if we must — for example legal claims, security investigations, or law.

9. Your choices

• do not include an email if you do not want it public
• decline GPS in the browser; we may still suggest a city from IP or network geo
• clear cookies and local storage
• do not upload an image or link you want to keep private

Contact EarthIt through the site to ask for a listing to be removed or to make a privacy request (access, correction, deletion, restriction, or objection, where those rights apply). We may need enough information to find the listing. We may refuse a request we cannot verify, or that would break a public bid record we are required or entitled to keep.

10. Children

EarthIt is not directed at children under 16, or the higher age required in your country. Do not bid or submit a listing if you are under that age. We do not knowingly collect personal information from children. Sexual content involving minors is prohibited.

11. Security

We use reasonable technical and organisational measures, including HTTPS and infrastructure security provided by our hosts. No online service is completely secure. Public listings are public.

12. Changes

We may update this Privacy Policy. The “Last updated” date will change. Continued use after an update means you accept the revised policy.

13. Contact

Privacy questions and requests: contact EarthIt through the site. See also the Terms of Use.