Privacy Policy

1. Scope and who is responsible

This Policy applies to Buckd's website, member accounts, public profile pages, paid messages, replies, credits, earnings, payouts, safety processes, and support interactions. “Buckd,” “we,” and “us” refer to the operator of the Buckd service. Stripe and other providers may separately control information they collect under their own policies.

2. Information Buckd collects

Information you provide

• Account information: email address, handle, display name, password-derived security data, profile biography, topics, reply guidance, and door status.
• Content: message subjects and bodies, replies, optional images recipients attach to replies, reports, blocks, and related timestamps and status. Buckd may validate and normalize uploaded images, including resizing and re-encoding them into a supported format.
• Transaction information: purchase, credit, stake, handling-fee, add-on-fee, earnings, hold, cash-out, refund, dispute, and payment-reference records. Buckd does not receive your full card number from Stripe.
• Support and safety information: the details and attachments you provide about an account, transaction, privacy request, or reported message.

Information collected automatically

• IP address, browser and device type, page or endpoint requested, timestamps, approximate location inferred from IP, and security or error logs.
• Essential cookies and similar storage used to maintain a signed-in session, finish checkout safely, prevent duplicate processing, and protect against abuse.

Information from others

• Payment, identity-verification, connected-account, refund, dispute, and payout status from Stripe.
• Reports, messages, or replies submitted by another Buckd user that concern you.
• Information from fraud-prevention, security, hosting, and legal-compliance providers.

3. How Buckd uses information

• create, authenticate, secure, and administer accounts and public doors;
• deliver messages and replies, including optional recipient reply images, operate the 72-hour reply window, and send optional new-question email notifications;
• validate, resize, re-encode, store, secure, and moderate message attachments;
• calculate credits, stakes, handling fees, add-on fees, Reply Earnings, holds, and payouts;
• process purchases, refunds, reversals, disputes, and cash-out requests with Stripe;
• detect spam, fraud, account takeovers, payment abuse, prohibited content, and technical failures;
• moderate reports, enforce policies, investigate harm, and comply with valid legal process;
• answer support and privacy requests and keep a record of resolutions;
• understand service reliability and improve Buckd; and
• send essential service, security, transaction, and policy notices.

Buckd does not use message content to run third-party behavioral advertising.

New-question notification emails do not include the private subject, message body, or sender identity. Members can turn these notifications on or off in profile settings.

4. What other people can see

Your handle, display name, profile text, topics, reply guidance, profile picture, public-door status, and information you intentionally place on your public profile can be seen by anyone. A message and its sender information are normally shown to the recipient. If the sender buys anonymous delivery, Buckd hides the sender's profile identity from the recipient while retaining the authenticated identity for safety, blocking, reports, fraud prevention, support, disputes, and legal compliance. A reply is shown to the sender. Users may save or intentionally share selected content, including by generating a Buckd share card, so do not treat Buckd messages as confidential communications.

After an answered paid message, its sender may leave one verified 1–5 star rating for the recipient. Public profiles show only an aggregate score and verified-sender count after enough distinct senders have rated; they do not show a rater's identity, message, reply, or public written review. Buckd retains the link between a rating and its transaction to prevent manipulation, investigate abuse, and maintain score integrity.

A message attachment is not displayed on a public profile and is available through Buckd only to the message sender and recipient. Buckd stores a normalized version rather than necessarily preserving the original uploaded file. Access controls reduce unintended access but cannot prevent the sender or recipient from downloading, copying, capturing, or sharing an attachment.

Buckd personnel or service providers may automatically process or review content, including attachments, when it is reported or when review is reasonably necessary for delivery, storage, image normalization, moderation, support, security, fraud prevention, policy enforcement, or legal compliance.

5. When Buckd discloses information

Buckd may disclose the minimum information reasonably necessary to:

• Service providers. Host and secure the site, operate databases, deliver transactional email, process payments and payouts, prevent fraud, and support communications and operations.
• Stripe. Create checkout sessions and connected payout accounts, verify identity, process and reconcile transactions, and manage refunds, reversals, disputes, and compliance. Review Stripe's Privacy Policy.
• Safety and law. Respond to valid legal process; protect users, Buckd, payment partners, or the public; investigate fraud or abuse; and enforce the Terms.
• Business changes. Evaluate or complete a financing, merger, acquisition, reorganization, or sale, subject to appropriate confidentiality and notice where required.
• Your direction. Complete a disclosure you specifically request or authorize.

Buckd does not sell personal information and does not share it for cross-context behavioral advertising as those terms are commonly defined in U.S. state privacy laws.

6. Payments, identity, and bank information

Card payments and cash-out onboarding are provided by Stripe. Stripe may collect payment-card, bank-account, government-ID, selfie, tax, and business information directly. Buckd generally receives limited status, identifiers, and risk or eligibility information rather than complete card or bank credentials. Stripe's handling of information is governed by its own agreements and privacy policy.

7. Cookies and browser signals

Buckd uses cookies or similar browser storage that are necessary for sign-in, checkout completion, security, and basic service operation. Blocking them may prevent Buckd from working. Buckd does not currently use cross-site behavioral advertising, so it does not change advertising behavior in response to browser “Do Not Track” signals. If Buckd introduces nonessential analytics or advertising technologies, this Policy and any required choices will be updated first.

8. Retention

Buckd keeps personal information only as long as reasonably needed for the purposes described here, including providing the service, maintaining transaction and ledger integrity, settling payouts, meeting tax or accounting obligations, resolving disputes, enforcing agreements, preserving safety records, and complying with law. Retention periods vary by record type. Buckd may de-identify information and retain it in a form that cannot reasonably be linked to you.

9. Security

Buckd uses technical and organizational safeguards intended to protect personal information, including access controls, password hashing, secure-session cookies, encrypted network connections, provider-managed payment pages, and transaction verification. No system is perfectly secure. Use a unique password, keep account access private, and report suspected unauthorized use promptly through the routes listed on Support.

10. Your choices and privacy requests

Depending on where you live, you may have rights to request access, correction, deletion, portability, or information about disclosure of personal information, and to appeal a denied request. Buckd will honor rights that apply and may extend similar choices voluntarily. You can edit available profile fields in your account. For another privacy request, follow the current instructions on Support and label it “Privacy request.”

Buckd may verify your identity and authority before acting, may retain information when legally permitted or required, and will not discriminate against you for exercising an applicable privacy right. An authorized agent may submit a request where law permits, but Buckd may require proof of authority and direct identity confirmation.

11. Age limit

Buckd is for adults 18 and older and is not directed to children. Buckd does not knowingly allow a person under 18 to create an account, buy or send paid messages, or receive payouts. If Buckd learns that an underage person provided personal information, it may close the account and delete or restrict the information, subject to legal, safety, and transaction-record obligations.

12. U.S. operation and international users

Buckd and its service providers may process information in the United States and other places where they operate. Privacy laws may differ from those in your location. Do not use Buckd where the service or its payment and payout features are prohibited.

13. Changes and contact

Buckd may update this Policy as the service, providers, or law changes. The effective date and version appear above. Material changes will receive reasonable in-service notice or renewed consent where required. Visit Support for the current privacy-request and support routes.