Privacy Policy

1. Information We Collect

1.1 Account Information

When you create an account, we collect your email address, name, and optional profile details such as your website URL, social media links, bio, and profile photo. Brands that register also provide organization name, logo, and billing contact information.

1.2 Usage Data

We automatically collect information about how you interact with the Service, including pages viewed, searches performed, programs bookmarked, reviews submitted, and the dates and times of your visits. This data is collected through server-side logging on Cloudflare Workers.

1.3 Click-Through Data

When you click through from TheAffiliateIndex to an external affiliate program page, we record the click event, including the program clicked, the timestamp, your user ID (if logged in), and the referring page. This data is used for attribution and analytics.

1.4 Payment Information

If you subscribe to a paid plan, payment processing is handled entirely by Stripe. We do not store your full credit card number, CVV, or bank account details. We receive and store only a tokenized reference, your billing address, and transaction history from Stripe.

1.5 Saved Content

We store your saved searches, bookmarked programs, and review content so you can access them across sessions and devices.

2. How We Use Your Information

We use the information we collect to:

• Provide, maintain, and improve the Service
• Authenticate your identity and manage your account
• Process payments and manage brand subscriptions through Stripe
• Track click-throughs for attribution analytics, helping brands understand how partners discover their programs
• Send transactional emails (e.g., account verification, password resets) and notification emails you have opted into
• Display your public profile, reviews, and activity to other users where applicable
• Personalize your experience, including search results and program recommendations
• Detect, prevent, and address fraud, abuse, and technical issues
• Comply with legal obligations

3. Information Sharing

We do not sell, rent, or trade your personal information. We share data only in the following limited circumstances:

• Stripe — to process payments for brand subscriptions. Stripe's use of your data is governed by Stripe's Privacy Policy.
• Cloudflare — our Service runs on Cloudflare Workers. Cloudflare processes requests on our behalf as a data processor. Cloudflare's practices are described in their Privacy Policy.
• Resend — to deliver transactional and notification emails on our behalf as a data processor.
• Legal requirements — we may disclose information if required by law, regulation, legal process, or governmental request.

4. Click-Through Tracking & Attribution

Transparency matters to us. Here is exactly what happens when you click through to an external affiliate program from TheAffiliateIndex:

• We record that a click occurred, along with the program, the timestamp, and your user ID (if you are logged in).
• Free brand accounts see only aggregate click counts (e.g., "42 clicks this month").
• Pro brand accounts can see per-partner attribution, which includes your public partner name (or username) and the click timestamp. They do not receive your email, IP address, or any other personal information.
• You can view your own click history from your dashboard and request deletion at any time.

We do not use third-party tracking pixels or share click data with advertising networks.

5. Cookies & Local Storage

We use a minimal set of cookies and browser storage:

• Authentication cookie — a secure, HTTP-only session cookie that keeps you signed in. It is strictly necessary for the Service to function and cannot be disabled.
• Theme preference — we store your light/dark mode preference in localStorage so it persists across visits.

We do not use advertising cookies, analytics cookies from third-party services, or cross-site tracking technologies.

6. Data Retention

We retain your account information and associated data for as long as your account is active. If you delete your account, we will remove your personal data within 30 days, except where we are required to retain it for legal, accounting, or fraud prevention purposes.

Aggregated, anonymized data (e.g., total click counts per program) may be retained indefinitely as it cannot be used to identify you.

7. Your Rights

Depending on your location, you may have the following rights regarding your personal data:

• Access — request a copy of the personal data we hold about you.
• Correction — update or correct inaccurate data via your account settings or by contacting us.
• Deletion — request that we delete your account and personal data. You can initiate this from your dashboard settings or by emailing us.
• Export — request a machine-readable export of your data, including your profile, saved searches, bookmarks, reviews, and click history.
• Withdraw consent — where processing is based on consent (e.g., notification emails), you can withdraw consent at any time via your notification settings or email unsubscribe links.

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

8. Security

We take reasonable technical and organizational measures to protect your personal data, including encrypted data transmission (TLS), secure HTTP-only authentication cookies, hashed passwords, and access controls on internal systems. Our infrastructure runs on Cloudflare's global network, which provides DDoS protection and edge-level security. However, no method of transmission over the internet or electronic storage is 100% secure, and we cannot guarantee absolute security.

9. Children's Privacy

The Service is not directed to individuals under the age of 16. We do not knowingly collect personal information from children under 16. If we become aware that we have collected personal data from a child under 16, we will take steps to delete that information promptly. If you believe a child under 16 has provided us with personal data, please contact us at privacy@theaffiliateindex.com.

10. Changes to This Policy

We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time. When we make material changes, we will notify you by posting the updated policy on this page with a new "Last updated" date and, where appropriate, by sending you an email notification. Your continued use of the Service after the changes take effect constitutes your acceptance of the revised policy.

11. Contact Us

If you have any questions, concerns, or requests regarding this Privacy Policy or our data practices, please contact us at:

privacy@theaffiliateindex.com