Privacy Policy

This policy explains what information OpenStand collects, why, and what choices you have. We wrote it in plain English on purpose. OpenStand is run by OpenStand, Inc., a Delaware company. When we say "we," "us," or "OpenStand," we mean that company. When we say "the service," we mean the website at openstand.co and everything you do there.

If you have a question about anything here, email us at support@openstand.co.

The short version

• We collect only what we need to run a reading platform: your account, what you unlock, and your payments.
• We never sell your personal information.
• Payments are handled by Stripe. We don't store your full card number.
• You can ask to see, correct, export, or delete your data at any time.

The rest of this page is the detail behind those points.

Information we collect

Information you give us

• Account information. When you sign up, we collect your email address. If you sign in with Google, we also receive your name and profile picture from Google. That's it — we don't ask for more than that to create an account.
• Writer content. If you publish on OpenStand, we collect and store the writing, images, and details (like title, pricing, and tags) you submit.
• Payment information. When you add funds to your balance or a writer receives a payout, our payment provider (Stripe) processes the transaction. Stripe handles your card details directly — we never see or store your full card number. We do keep a record of the transaction: the amount, date, and a reference from Stripe.
• Messages you send us. If you email support, we keep that message so we can help you and follow up.

Information we collect automatically

• Your library and activity. We record which pieces you unlock, so your library works and stays permanent. We also record general activity on the service — for example, that an unlock happened, or which pages you visited — so we can keep the service running and understand how it's used.
• Device and technical data. Like most websites, we automatically receive things like your IP address, browser type, and device information when you use the service.
• Cookies. We use a small number of cookies that are needed to keep you signed in and keep the service secure. We don't use advertising cookies.

How we use your information

We use your information to:

• create and run your account, and keep your library available to you;
• process your payments and, for writers, calculate and send payouts;
• send you service messages — receipts for adding funds, sign-in codes, and account notices — using our email provider;
• keep the service secure and detect fraud or abuse;
• understand how the service is used so we can improve it; and
• meet our legal and accounting obligations (for example, keeping records of transactions).

If you're in a region with data-protection laws like the EU or UK, we rely on these legal bases: performing our contract with you (running your account and payments), our legitimate interests (keeping the service secure and improving it), your consent where we ask for it, and complying with the law.

How we share your information

We do not sell your personal information. We share it only in these situations:

• Service providers. We use trusted companies to run parts of the service. Each one only gets the information it needs to do its job. They are:

  Provider	What it does for us
  Stripe	Processes payments and payouts
  Supabase	Sign-in and our database
  Vercel	Hosts and serves the website
  Cloudflare	Stores images and files, serves content, and routes our email
  Resend	Sends our transactional emails
  Anthropic	Powers editorial features (see below)
  Google	Sign-in, if you choose "Sign in with Google"

• Editorial features (AI). To help with editorial quality, writing submitted to OpenStand may be sent to our AI provider (Anthropic) to be evaluated and processed, and the results returned to us. This is used to run editorial features on the platform, not for advertising. We send your writing to our AI provider only to run these features and return the results to us. The provider does not use your writing to train its own models.

• Legal reasons. We may share information if the law requires it, or to protect the rights, safety, and property of OpenStand, our users, or the public.

• Business transfers. If OpenStand is involved in a merger, acquisition, or sale of assets, your information may be transferred as part of that deal. We'll let you know if that happens.

Payments

Adding funds to your balance and receiving payouts are handled by Stripe. When you pay, you're doing so through Stripe's systems, and Stripe's own privacy policy applies to how it handles your card details. We receive a confirmation and a record of the transaction, but not your full payment-card number.

Cookies and tracking

We use cookies only where they're needed — mainly to keep you signed in and to keep the service secure. We don't use third-party advertising or cross-site tracking cookies. Most browsers let you block or delete cookies; blocking the essential ones may stop you from signing in.

How long we keep your information

We keep your information for as long as your account is active. If you close your account, we delete or anonymize your personal information, except where we need to keep certain records — for example, transaction and payout records we're required to keep for tax and accounting.

Your rights and choices

Wherever you live, you can ask us to:

• see the personal information we hold about you;
• correct it if it's wrong;
• export a copy of it;
• delete your account and personal information; and
• object to or limit certain uses of it.

To make any of these requests, email support@openstand.co. We'll respond within the time your local law requires. We won't discriminate against you for exercising these rights.

If you're in California, the CCPA gives you these rights and confirms that we do not sell or share your personal information for advertising. If you're in the EU or UK, the GDPR gives you these rights, and you may also complain to your local data-protection authority.

Children

OpenStand isn't meant for children. You must be at least 13 years old to use the service (or older, if your country sets a higher age for online consent). We don't knowingly collect information from children under those ages. If you believe a child has given us information, email us and we'll delete it.

Where your information is stored

OpenStand is based in the United States, and your information is processed and stored in the United States and other countries where our service providers operate. If you use OpenStand from outside the U.S., you understand your information will be transferred and processed there.

Security

We take reasonable steps to protect your information, and we rely on established providers (like Stripe for payments) to handle sensitive data. No online service can promise perfect security, but we work to keep your information safe and to fix problems quickly if they arise.

Changes to this policy

We may update this policy as the service changes. When we do, we'll update the "Last updated" date above, and for significant changes we'll give you notice — for example, by email or a notice on the site.

Contact us

Questions about this policy or your information? Reach us at:

OpenStand, Inc.
Email: support@openstand.co
Mailing address: 131 Continental Drive, Suite 305, Newark, DE 19713, United States