This Privacy Policy describes how Start.dev ("Start.dev," "we," "us," or "our") collects, uses, shares, and protects information when you access or use our website, applications, and related services (collectively, the "Services").
By using the Services, you agree to the collection and use of information in accordance with this Privacy Policy.
1. Information We Collect
Information You Provide
Depending on how you use the Services, we may collect:
- Name
- Username
- Email address
- Password (stored securely in encrypted or hashed form)
- Profile image
- Comments and community posts
- Messages submitted through support forms
- Course submissions
- Code and projects you create
- Certificate and achievement information
- Account preferences
If you purchase a subscription, our payment processor may provide us with limited transaction information, such as subscription status, payment confirmation, customer identifiers, and billing-related metadata. We do not receive or store full payment card numbers.
Information Collected Automatically
When you use the Services, we may automatically collect certain information, including:
- Device, browser, operating system, IP address, and general location
- Usage activity, including pages viewed and features used
- Referring URLs and advertising or campaign identifiers
- Cookie consent choices
- Log and diagnostic data
- Cookies and similar technologies
2. How We Use Information
We use the information we collect to:
- Provide, operate, and maintain the Services
- Create and manage your account
- Deliver courses, lessons, and learning features
- Process subscriptions and provide access to paid features
- Personalize your learning experience
- Provide customer support and respond to inquiries
- Send service-related communications
- Send learning tips, product updates, and occasional promotional offers according to the marketing email preference and applicable location-specific policy
- Monitor usage, troubleshoot issues, and improve the Services
- With your consent, analyze usage, measure advertising performance, and create or improve advertising audiences
- Detect, prevent, and address fraud, abuse, and security issues
- Comply with legal obligations
3. Payments
Payments and subscription billing are processed by third-party payment processors, such as Stripe.
Start.dev does not collect, process, or store full payment card numbers, bank account information, or other sensitive payment credentials.
When you make a purchase, your payment information is provided directly to the payment processor and is subject to that provider's privacy policy and terms.
We may receive limited information related to transactions, including:
- Payment confirmation
- Subscription status
- Billing dates
- Transaction identifiers
- Customer identifiers
We use this information to manage subscriptions, provide access to paid features, prevent fraud, maintain our Services, and, with your consent, measure advertising performance.
4. How We Share Information
Service Providers
We may share information with trusted providers who help us operate the Services, including:
- Hosting providers
- Authentication providers
- Payment processors (such as Stripe)
- Analytics and advertising providers, when your consent permits it
- Customer support tools
- Transactional and marketing email providers, such as Resend
- AI service providers
These providers may access information only as necessary to perform services on our behalf.
Legal and Safety Disclosures
We may disclose information if we believe it is necessary to comply with applicable law, respond to lawful requests, protect the rights and safety of Start.dev, our users, or others, or investigate fraud or security issues.
Business Transfers
If Start.dev is involved in a merger, acquisition, reorganization, or sale of assets, your information may be transferred as part of that transaction, subject to this Privacy Policy.
5. Public Information
Certain information you choose to make public through the Services, such as public profiles, comments, shared projects, or community contributions, may be visible to other users.
You are responsible for the information you choose to share publicly.
6. Cookies and Analytics
We use cookies and similar technologies to remember preferences, maintain sessions, understand how the Services are used, and improve performance.
With your consent, analytics and advertising providers may process online or account identifiers, usage activity, campaign information, and limited purchase information to measure advertising performance and create or improve advertising audiences.
We retain advertising attribution data for up to 90 days and delete it sooner when you withdraw consent or delete your account. Withdrawing consent stops future advertising tracking.
You can change or withdraw your choices at any time using Cookie preferences in the website footer or your account menu. You can also control cookies through your browser settings. Disabling cookies may affect certain features of the Services.
7. Data Retention
We retain information for as long as necessary to provide the Services, maintain your account, comply with legal obligations, resolve disputes, and enforce our agreements.
When you request account deletion, we will delete or anonymize your information unless retention is required by law or for legitimate business purposes such as fraud prevention, security, or dispute resolution.
8. Your Choices
You may:
- Update account information through your profile or settings
- Request deletion of your account
- Change marketing email preferences through Profile settings or by using the unsubscribe link in any marketing message
- Control cookie preferences through your browser
- Change or withdraw analytics and advertising consent through Cookie preferences
To exercise privacy-related requests, contact us using the information below.
9. Security
We implement reasonable administrative, technical, and organizational measures designed to protect information against unauthorized access, loss, misuse, or alteration.
No method of transmission or storage is completely secure, and we cannot guarantee absolute security.
10. Children's Privacy
The Services are not intended for children under 13 years of age, and we do not knowingly collect personal information from children under 13.
If we learn that we have collected personal information from a child under 13, we will take steps to delete that information and may terminate the associated account.
11. International Users
Start.dev is operated from the United States. If you access the Services from outside the United States, your information may be processed and stored in the United States or other countries where we or our service providers operate.
12. Changes to This Privacy Policy
We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time.
When we make changes, we will post the updated policy on the Services and revise the "Last updated" date above.
Your continued use of the Services after changes become effective constitutes acceptance of the updated Privacy Policy.
13. Contact Information
If you have questions about this Privacy Policy, contact us at:
Start.dev
Vancouver, Washington, United States
Email: support@start.dev
Website: https://start.dev