Privacy Policy

SearchDraft (“we”, “us”) is a multiplayer draft game that ranks picks using historical search-interest data. We build in public and try to collect only what we need to run accounts, matches, payments, and product improvements.

1. Who this applies to

This policy covers the website at https://searchdraft.app and related services we operate. By creating an account or using the site, you agree to this policy. If you do not agree, do not use SearchDraft.

2. Information we collect

Account and profile

• Sign-in details handled by our authentication provider (Clerk), such as email address and authentication identifiers.
• Profile fields you choose to set (for example display name, username, appearance preferences, and cosmetics).
• Friendship, block, report, and invite activity needed for social features.

Gameplay and product data

• Match settings, picks, scores, timelines, leaderboard/Elo-related results, Daily Challenge attempts, and related history.
• Room presence and lobby state needed to run live private/public matches (often stored temporarily in Redis).
• SearchBucks balances, shop/cosmetic purchases with in-game currency, referrals, and milestone progress.
• Optional entity or Trends result flags you submit to our reports queue.

Payments

If you buy a Premium Season Pass, payment is processed by Stripe. We receive limited billing metadata (for example customer id, purchase status, and season entitlement). We do not store full card numbers.

Device, logs, and analytics

• Standard server logs (IP address, user agent, request paths, error diagnostics) for security and reliability.
• Optional product analytics (for example PostHog) and advertising measurement pixels when those integrations are enabled.
• Web Push subscription endpoints if you enable Daily or lobby notifications.

Cookies and similar technologies

We use cookies and local storage for authentication sessions, theme preferences, how-to-play tips, and similar product state. Third-party providers we use (Clerk, Stripe, analytics, ads when enabled) may set their own cookies according to their policies.

3. How we use information

• Operate accounts, matches, scoring, and leaderboards.
• Provide Premium entitlements and process payments.
• Prevent abuse, enforce caps, and investigate reports.
• Send optional push notifications you opt into.
• Improve reliability, UX, and anti-fraud monitoring.
• Show advertisements when ads are enabled for your account/mode, subject to our ads and Premium rules.
• Comply with law and protect the service and users.

4. Scoring and third-party data processors

To rank picks, we may send entity labels or identifiers to search-trends and knowledge-graph providers (for example DataForSEO, SerpApi, and Google Knowledge Graph APIs). Those providers process the request to return popularity/timeline data used for gameplay.

Other processors commonly used to run the product include Clerk (authentication), Neon/Postgres (durable storage), Upstash Redis (ephemeral rooms/graph cache), Stripe (payments), Vercel (hosting), OpenAI (optional bot/review features when enabled), Sentry (errors), and push/analytics vendors when configured.

5. When we share information

We do not sell your personal information. We share data only with service providers that help us operate SearchDraft, when you direct us to (for example public share cards), if required by law, or to protect rights, safety, and the integrity of the game.

Some gameplay outcomes are intentionally public or semi-public inside the product (leaderboards, share cards, public lobby results). Do not put sensitive personal data into display names or picks.

6. Data retention

Account, match history, and entitlement records are kept while your account is active and as needed for the product. Ephemeral lobby state expires with room TTLs. Logs and analytics are retained for a limited operational window. You may request deletion of account data by contacting us (see Contact).

7. Security

We use industry-standard hosting, transport encryption (HTTPS), and access controls. No method of transmission or storage is 100% secure. Please use a strong unique password with your auth provider and report suspected account issues promptly.

8. Children

SearchDraft is not directed to children under 13, and we do not knowingly collect personal information from children under 13. If you believe a child has provided personal information, contact us and we will take appropriate steps to delete it.

9. Your choices

• Update profile and notification preferences in the product.
• Disable browser notifications at the OS/browser level.
• Premium players may skip certain ad experiences when ads are enabled.
• Request access, correction, or deletion of personal account data by emailing us.

Depending on where you live, you may have additional rights under applicable privacy laws. Contact us to exercise those rights.

10. International users

We primarily operate infrastructure in the United States. If you access SearchDraft from another country, your information may be processed in the U.S. or other locations where our providers operate.

11. Changes

We may update this policy as the product evolves. We will revise the “Last updated” date above and, when changes are material, provide additional notice in the product or on the site.

12. Contact

Privacy questions: hello@searchdraft.app

Also see our Terms of Service and FAQ.