Last updated: July 2026 · Draft prepared for legal review before launch.
This Privacy Policy explains what personal data EtheReal collects, why we collect it, how we use, share, and protect it, how long we keep it, and the rights you have over it. It is written to align with the EU General Data Protection Regulation (Regulation (EU) 2016/679, "GDPR"). Please read it alongside our Terms of Service and Refund Policy.
1. Who we are (the data controller)
EtheReal is operated by EtheReal Innovations OÜ, a private limited company registered in Estonia under registry code 17549983, with its registered office at Sepapaja tn 6, 15551 Tallinn, Harju Maakond, Estonia ("EtheReal", "we", "us", "our"). We are the "data controller" responsible for your personal data as described in this policy.
For any privacy question, or to exercise any of your rights, contact us through our contact page or at the email address listed there. If we appoint a data protection contact, their details will be published here.
2. The data we collect
We only collect what we need for the specific features you choose to use. Depending on how you use EtheReal, this may include:
- Birth details — the date, time, and place of birth (and, where you enter it, coordinates) for yourself and, for a compatibility reading, a second person, together with any names you provide for each chart. This is the core input to our readings.
- Contact and account data — your email address; a display name or username you choose; and, if you create an account, login credentials. Passwords are stored only in hashed form and are never readable by us.
- Purchase and referral data — a record of what you have bought, and, if you take part in the referral program, records of referrals and rewards linked to your account. Where you consent to appear on a public referral leaderboard, the display name you choose and your referral count may be shown to other users.
- Consultation booking data — if you request a one-to-one consultation, the birth details and questions you choose to provide for that session.
- Natal card data — if you create a digital natal card, the display name or username you choose (not necessarily your legal name) and the eight chart placements shown on it, together with whether your card's compatibility-unlock feature is switched on. Your underlying birth details are never shown on the card or to anyone who scans it.
- Optional "connection" data (Dates That Matter and related features) — if you voluntarily come forward through these features, information you choose to submit, which may include a photograph, social media handles, personal preferences you enter in an optional questionnaire, and birth details. Providing this information is entirely optional and is described further in section 6.
- Payment data — when you pay for a product or reading, the transaction is handled by one of our third-party payment providers acting as merchant of record; the provider used depends on what you're purchasing. We receive confirmation of payment and limited billing details, but we do not receive or store your full card number; card data is handled directly by the payment provider under its own security standards. If you join as a Patreon member, your payment is instead made directly through Patreon; we receive only the limited information Patreon provides to deliver your membership benefits (such as your Patreon username and membership tier).
- Technical data — limited information needed to operate and secure the site, such as approximate location derived from your IP address, device and browser type, and basic usage and security logs.
3. Special-category and sensitive data
Some information you may choose to give us deserves extra care:
- A photograph you choose to upload may show your likeness. Where an image allows a person to be identified, it can constitute sensitive personal data. We ask for a photograph only where you voluntarily choose to provide one, we use it only for the purpose you provided it (see section 6), and you may withdraw it at any time.
- Birth details, personal preferences, and free-text messages may reveal information about you. We treat this information as confidential and process it only for the purposes set out here.
Where the law requires your explicit consent to process this kind of information, we will ask for it clearly and separately, and you may withdraw it at any time without affecting other services.
4. Why we use your data, and our legal basis
We process personal data only where we have a lawful basis under the GDPR. In practice:
- To generate and deliver the readings, charts, and products you request, and to operate your account and the referral program — on the basis of performance of a contract with you.
- To handle optional features you opt into, including the connection features and any use of a photograph or public leaderboard listing — on the basis of your consent, which you may withdraw at any time.
- To take payment, keep accounting records, and meet legal obligations — on the basis of compliance with a legal obligation and our contract with you.
- To secure the platform, prevent abuse and fraud, and improve the service — on the basis of our legitimate interests, balanced against your rights.
5. The natal card and compatibility unlock
If you create a digital natal card, it displays a name or username of your choosing and eight chart placements — never your date, time, or place of birth. The card includes a QR code that, while you keep it switched on, lets another person pay to receive a compatibility reading between their own chart and yours. To generate that reading, we use your stored chart placements together with the birth details the other person enters; the other person never receives or sees your underlying birth details, only the resulting compatibility reading. You can switch this feature on or off at any time; switching it off stops new purchases from that point forward but does not affect a reading already generated. We process your chart data for this feature on the basis of your consent, given when you activate it, and process the other person's data on the basis of our contract with them.
6. The connection features (voluntary introductions)
Some features, including "Dates That Matter", may let people who wish to be introduced come forward voluntarily. We want to be clear about how this works:
- Participation is entirely voluntary. You are never required to submit a photograph, social handles, or preferences to use the rest of EtheReal.
- These connection features are strictly for adults aged 18 or over. You must be at least 18 to submit a photograph or ask to be introduced to anyone, and you confirm you are 18 or over when you take part.
- We do not publish any individual's identity, exact birth date, or personal details publicly. Any general information shown publicly is limited and non-identifying.
- We do not share your contact details with another person unless both people separately agree to be introduced. Where there is mutual interest and mutual consent, we may share the agreed contact details so you can connect directly. You can decline or withdraw at any point before that happens.
- We charge no fee for these connection features.
Because these features involve introducing people, please share only what you are comfortable sharing, and treat information you receive about others with the same care.
7. How long we keep your data
We keep personal data only for as long as it is needed for the purpose it was collected, and then delete or anonymize it:
- Account, reading, and connection data — for as long as your account is active or you are using the relevant feature. If you close your account or withdraw from a feature, we delete or anonymize the associated personal data within a reasonable period, unless we must keep it to meet a legal obligation.
- Optional data such as photographs, preferences, and social handles — until you withdraw it or close your account, after which we delete it within a reasonable period.
- Transaction and accounting records — for as long as tax and accounting law requires (in Estonia, generally up to seven years), even after account closure.
You can ask us to delete your data at any time (see section 10), and we will do so except where we are legally required to retain certain records.
8. Who we share it with
We do not sell your personal data. We share it only with trusted providers who help us run EtheReal, and only to the extent needed:
- our payment providers (merchants of record), to process purchases and taxes — the provider used depends on the product;
- our email provider, to deliver readings and account messages;
- our hosting and database providers, to run the platform and store data securely;
- our accountant and professional advisers, and public authorities where the law requires.
These providers act as our processors under written agreements and may only use your data on our instructions. Patreon is different: if you join as a Patreon member, you create your own account directly with Patreon, and Patreon acts independently, under its own privacy policy, for that relationship — not as our processor.
9. Where your data is stored and international transfers
We aim to store personal data within the European Union / European Economic Area. Some providers may process data outside the EEA. Where that happens, we rely on legal safeguards recognized under the GDPR — such as an adequacy decision, the EU–US Data Privacy Framework, or Standard Contractual Clauses — so that your data remains protected to an equivalent standard.
10. Your rights
Under the GDPR you have the right to: access the data we hold about you; have inaccurate data corrected; request erasure of your data; restrict or object to certain processing; withdraw consent at any time where we rely on it; and receive your data in a portable format. To exercise any of these, contact us and we will respond within the time limits the law sets (generally one month). You also have the right to lodge a complaint with a supervisory authority — in Estonia, the Data Protection Inspectorate (Andmekaitse Inspektsioon), or the authority in your country of residence.
11. Security
We use appropriate technical and organizational measures to protect your data — including hashing of passwords, encryption in transit, restricted access, and separation of our most sensitive systems. No method of transmission or storage is completely secure, but we work continually to safeguard your information and to limit who can access it.
12. Cookies
We use only the cookies necessary to operate and secure the site and to remember your session. If we later introduce optional cookies (for example, analytics), we will ask for your consent first and provide a way to manage your choices.
13. Age and children
EtheReal is intended for adults. We do not knowingly collect personal data from anyone below the age of digital consent that applies in their country. Separately, and regardless of that age, the optional connection features described in section 6 are strictly limited to people aged 18 or over. If you believe someone under the applicable age has provided us with personal data, please contact us and we will delete it.
14. Changes to this policy
We may update this policy as EtheReal develops. When we make material changes, we will update the "last updated" date above and, where appropriate, notify you.
This document is a carefully prepared draft, written to reflect how EtheReal actually collects and uses data, and is intended to be reviewed and finalized by a qualified lawyer before launch. It is provided in good faith but does not yet constitute final legal advice, and the connection features in particular should be confirmed with counsel before going live.
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