Privacy Policy

1. Introduction

Welcome to Commune ("we," "our," or "us"). We are committed to protecting your privacy. This Privacy Policy explains how we collect, use, and safeguard your information when you use our website and software platform (the "Service").

By using Commune, you acknowledge that we operate as a "Headless" social layer that interacts with third-party Email Service Providers (ESPs) like Kit and MailerLite.

2. Data We Collect

A. Information from Creators

• Account Information: Name, email address, and billing details.
• Integration Data: When you connect an ESP (e.g., Kit), we access your API keys to sync your newsletter archives and subscriber lists.
• Content: The newsletters, articles, and posts you have published via your ESP.

B. Information from Subscribers (Readers)

• Profile Data: Name, avatar, and bio when a reader creates a Commune profile.
• User-Generated Content: Comments, replies, likes, and discussion threads posted on the Service.
• Imported Contact Data: For readers who are not yet Commune users, we store the email address (in lowercase) synced from a Creator’s connected ESP, on that Creator’s behalf and as their Data Processor. We use it to (a) reconnect the reader to the Creator’s community if they later join Commune, and (b) send occasional community invitations, which the reader can opt out of at any time with one click.

C. Usage Data

We collect technical data such as IP addresses, browser types, and interaction logs to improve the performance of our "Town Square" feeds.

D. Reading Interests (the For you feed)

The For you feed on the home page is ordered by what you tend to read. To do that it keeps a short reading profile: how much weight each topic gets, based on the posts you open, read, like, reply to and the newsletters you subscribe to, plus the list of the last 500 or so feed posts you have already seen, so they are not shown to you again.

• Without an account: this profile stays in your browser’s local storage and is never stored on our servers. Your browser sends it along when it asks for the next page of the feed, with no name, account or other identifier attached, and we use it only to choose that page. You can delete it at any time by clearing this site’s data in your browser.
• With an account: when you sign up or log in, the profile in your browser is added to your account and removed from the browser. From then on it is stored with your account, updated from the same activity, and deleted with your account.

3. How We Use Your Data

We use your data strictly to provide and improve the Commune platform:

• To generate the "Social Layer" for your newsletter.
• To sync content and subscribers between your ESP and Commune.
• To notify users of new replies or interactions (transactional emails).
• To order the For you feed by each reader’s reading interests (see section 2D).
• To detect and prevent fraud or abuse.

4. Data Ownership & Processing (GDPR)

• For Creators: You act as the Data Controller of your subscriber list. Commune acts as the Data Processor. We do not sell, rent, or trade your subscriber list to third parties. Your list belongs to you.
• For Readers: You have the right to access, correct, or delete your personal data.

5. Third-Party Services

Our Service relies on integrations with third-party ESPs. We are not responsible for the privacy practices of platforms like Kit, MailerLite, or others you choose to connect. Please review their privacy policies regarding how they handle your data.

6. Data Retention

We retain your personal information only as long as necessary to provide the Service. If a Creator disconnects their ESP or deletes their account, we purge the associated synchronized data (including imported subscriber addresses) from our systems periodically, and on request.

7. Contact Us

If you have questions about this policy or wish to exercise your GDPR rights, please contact us at: fran@fmvilas.me.