Privacy Policy

PrepperDirect ("we," "us," or "our") is operated by Blue Star Marketing Firm. This Privacy Policy explains how we collect, use, disclose, and safeguard your information when you visit prepperdirect.org (the "Site"). Please read this policy carefully. Optional browser analytics start only after you choose to allow them.

1. Information We Collect

Personal Information You Provide

• Email address (when you subscribe to our newsletter or create an account)
• Name (if provided during signup or purchase)
• Selected guide identifiers, payment and delivery status, email verification time, and your separately chosen promotional email preference and consent wording.
• Payment information (processed securely by Stripe; we do not store card numbers)
• Quiz responses and preparedness preferences
• Any information you voluntarily submit through our contact form

Information Collected Automatically

• Browser type, operating system, and device information
• IP address and approximate geographic location
• Pages visited, time spent on pages, and navigation patterns
• With your optional analytics permission, limited campaign and episode labels that led you to the Site; we do not keep full referring URLs or query strings for this attribution.
• Click data on product links used for reader-supported attribution and site improvement

2. How We Use Your Information

• To deliver email newsletters and preparedness content you subscribed to
• To process digital product purchases and deliver your planning packages
• To personalize readiness guidance based on your quiz responses and saved plan preferences
• To track product link clicks for reader-supported attribution and reporting
• To analyze Site usage and improve our content, recommendations, and user experience
• To communicate with you about your account, purchases, or inquiries
• To detect and prevent fraud or abuse

3. Third-Party Services

We use the following third-party services that may collect or process your data:

• Self-hosted Supabase on Hostinger — Database hosting and authentication. Stores account data and email subscriptions.
• Stripe — Payment processing for digital product purchases. Handles all payment card data directly; we never see or store your full card number.
• PostHog — With your permission, browser analytics for public visits, resource availability, checkout starts and verified purchases. Essential server-side payment and delivery records remain separate.
• Rybbit and OpenAI advertising measurement — Optional public-page and advertising measurement, loaded only after you allow analytics and only on permitted page contexts.
• Self-hosted Stalwart on Hostinger — Our PrepperDirect mail service delivers order verification and protected-download emails from [email protected] and stores contact messages in our mailboxes. Optional updates and promotions require a separate opt-in; purchase and verification alone do not enroll you.
• Commerce tracking partners — May place cookies to track product clicks and purchases for reader-supported attribution.
• Third-party retailers — May place cookies when you click product links leading to their sites.
• Hostinger — Infrastructure hosting for the Site and self-hosted database services.

Each of these services operates under its own privacy policy. We encourage you to review their respective policies for details on how they handle your data.

4. Cookies and Tracking Technologies

We use cookies and similar technologies for the following purposes:

• Essential cookies — Required for Site functionality, such as session management and security.
• Analytics choice — A first-party preference cookie remembers your allow or decline choice for up to one year. Optional PostHog browser analytics use memory rather than persistent identifiers.
• Campaign attribution — If you allow analytics, a first-party cookie retains only validated campaign and episode labels for up to 30 days. These labels can accompany a resource request and our checkout metadata. They contain no email address, full URL or private plan link.
• Commerce attribution cookies — Placed by reader-supported commerce partners to attribute purchases to the correct referral source.

Use Analytics settings at the bottom of the site to allow or decline optional analytics. Declining leaves downloads, plans and checkout available. Withdrawing permission clears the campaign cookie and reloads the page to stop previously loaded measurement scripts. Earlier transaction records are not erased by this browser setting. Retailer cookies are controlled by the retailer and your browser.

We do not send automatic analytics pageviews from admin, account, download or payment-verification pages. A verified purchase can be measured without its private download-access link when you have allowed analytics. PostHog session recording is disabled. Remote measurement scripts are withheld on private pages and pages or referrers with query strings or fragments.

5. Data Retention

We retain your personal information for as long as your account is active or as needed to provide you services. Email subscriber data is retained until you unsubscribe; we retain a minimal suppression record to honor that choice. Guide verification links expire after 7 days and download links after 30 days. Guide marketing preferences are recorded separately from payment and delivery. Purchase records are retained for seven years for accounting and tax compliance. Analytics data is retained in aggregate form indefinitely. Click tracking data is retained for up to 24 months for affiliate reconciliation purposes.

Readiness plan data can include practical household details such as household size, planning preferences, and preparedness gaps. We aim to collect only what is needed to provide the planner experience and improve recommendations. Community or organization reporting, when offered, is designed to use aggregate readiness coverage rather than exposing private household inventory or sensitive personal details by default.

6. Your Rights and Choices

All Users

• Unsubscribe — Every marketing email includes an unsubscribe link. You can opt out at any time.
• Access — You may request a copy of the personal data we hold about you.
• Deletion — You may request that we delete your personal data. We will comply unless we are legally required to retain it.
• Correction — You may request that we correct inaccurate personal data.

California Residents (CCPA)

If you are a California resident, you have the right to know what personal information we collect, request its deletion, and opt out of any "sale" of personal information. We do not sell personal information in the traditional sense, but affiliate tracking cookies may constitute a "sale" under the CCPA's broad definition. To exercise your rights, contact us at [email protected].

European Residents (GDPR)

If you are located in the European Economic Area, you have additional rights including the right to access, rectify, erase, restrict processing, data portability, and the right to object to processing. Our legal basis for processing your data is either your consent or our legitimate interest in operating the Site. To exercise your rights or lodge a complaint, contact us at [email protected].

7. Data Security

We use commercially reasonable technical and organizational measures to protect your personal information. Data is transmitted over HTTPS and stored in secured databases. However, no method of electronic transmission or storage is 100% secure, and we cannot guarantee absolute security.

8. Children's Privacy

The Site is not intended for children under the age of 13. We do not knowingly collect personal information from children under 13. If we learn that we have collected information from a child under 13, we will delete it promptly. If you believe a child has provided us with personal information, please contact us at [email protected].

9. Third-Party Links

The Site contains links to third-party websites, including retailer product pages and affiliate partner sites. We are not responsible for the privacy practices of these external sites. We encourage you to read the privacy policy of every site you visit.

10. Changes to This Policy

We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time. Changes will be posted on this page with an updated "Last updated" date. Your continued use of the Site after any changes constitutes acceptance of the revised policy. For material changes, we will make reasonable efforts to notify subscribers via email.