PickBeaconPickBeacon

Privacy

PickBeacon helps you discover what to watch. You can use the app as a guest or sign in to sync your activity. We collect and store only what's needed to provide the service, secure the platform, and improve your experience. Optional Release Alerts and an ad‑free supporter subscription are available; ads only load after you give consent.

Last updated: September 14, 2025

Privacy at a glance

  • We collect an email for passwordless sign-in; no passwords.
  • You control what to share socially (e.g., Collections, unwatched).
  • Guest preferences live in your browser (localStorage).
  • We don’t sell your personal information.
  • We use privacy-focused analytics (e.g., Vercel Analytics & Speed Insights) for aggregated usage metrics.
  • Ads load only after you grant consent; subscribers get an ad‑free experience.
  • Release Alerts are opt‑in per title; email alerts may require an active subscription.

How you can use PickBeacon

  • Guest: preferences may be stored locally in your browser (localStorage) for convenience.
  • Signed in: your selections and activity sync across devices using a secure session cookie and our database.
  • Subscriber: ad‑free experience and higher Release Alerts quotas (email alerts where available).

Data we collect

  • Account: your email address for magic-link sign in (no passwords).
  • Profile (optional): handle, bio, country/location, and your share settings (e.g., whether to share Collections or unwatched).
  • Activity: favorites, watched/unwatched, preferences, follows, reactions/votes, comments, notifications, and game/leaderboard participation.
  • Technical: request metadata such as IP address (used for security and rate limiting), user agent, and timestamps.

How we use your data

  • Provide core features (sync your Collections, watched, preferences).
  • Enable social functionality (follows, comments, reactions).
  • Personalize recommendations and in-app content.
  • Protect the service (abuse prevention, fraud and spam control).
  • Operate and improve performance and reliability.

Cookies & storage

  • Authentication uses cookies to keep you signed in. These are required for signed-in features.
  • Guest preferences may use localStorage in your browser. You can clear these in your browser settings.
  • We may process limited network information (e.g., IP address) to protect accounts and the service; diagnostic information is retained only briefly.
  • We set a lightweight 'ads_subscriber' cookie to cache whether you are an ad‑free subscriber; it's readable by the client and used only to control ad visibility.
  • You can manage cookie categories (including ads) via the cookie banner or preferences.

APIs & third parties

  • TMDB: we fetch movie and provider metadata. We don't share your personal data with TMDB.
  • Email: we send magic links via our email provider solely for authentication.
  • Hosting/CDN: infrastructure providers process traffic to deliver the app securely and quickly.
  • Analytics: Vercel Analytics and Speed Insights provide aggregated usage metrics to help improve performance and reliability.
  • Auth & database: Supabase stores account and activity data to operate PickBeacon (e.g., sign-in, Collections, social).
  • Payments: Stripe processes payment information for subscriptions or purchases where applicable. Card data is sent directly to Stripe.

Advertising

If ads are enabled, an ad partner script may load to display ad slots. Ads only load after you grant cookie consent, and subscribers receive an ad‑free experience. Ad partners may collect limited technical information (e.g., IP address, user agent) according to their own policies. We don't sell your personal information.

Data sharing

  • We do not sell your data. We share data with service providers only to operate PickBeacon (e.g., email, hosting/CDN, ads).
  • Some actions are social by design (e.g., follows, comments, reactions). Your visibility is controlled by your share settings where available.
  • We may disclose information if required by law or to prevent harm.

Your choices & controls

  • Use PickBeacon as a guest or sign in to sync across devices.
  • Manage sharing preferences in Settings (e.g., share Collections/unwatched).
  • Clear preferences or data from Settings where available.
  • Manage cookie preferences (including ads) via the cookie banner or Settings.
  • Manage or remove Release Alerts per title in the app; email alerts include opt‑out controls.
  • Request account deletion or additional data actions via the contact information below.

Your rights

  • Access: request a copy of your account data.
  • Correction: update profile information in Settings where available.
  • Deletion: request account deletion via the contact below.
  • Objection/Restriction: limit social sharing via Settings.

Security

  • We use industry-standard safeguards, including encryption in transit, access controls, logging, and periodic reviews.
  • Protections are continually improved to help prevent abuse and unauthorized access.
  • No system can be 100% secure; report issues via the contact below.

Data retention

We retain account and activity data for as long as you maintain an account or as needed to provide the service. Guest local data remains in your browser until you clear it. We may retain minimal server logs for a short period for security and diagnostics.

Children's privacy

PickBeacon is not directed to children under 13 (or the age of digital consent in your region). If you believe a child has provided personal data, contact us and we will take appropriate action.

International transfers

Our service providers may process data in other countries. Where required, appropriate safeguards are used to protect your information.

Changes to this policy

We may update this policy to reflect changes to our practices or for legal, regulatory, or operational reasons. The “Last updated” date will be revised accordingly.

Contact

For privacy questions or data requests, .