NearbyGridNearbyGrid Privacy Policy
Effective date: July 23, 2026
NearbyGrid ("NearbyGrid," "we," "us") operates the NearbyGrid mobile app and website (the "Service"). NearbyGrid is operated from the United States; by using the Service your information is transmitted to and processed in the United States.
The Service is for adults only. You must be 18 years or older (or the age of majority where you live, if higher). We do not knowingly collect information from anyone under 18.
1. Information We Collect
Required to create an account: email and/or phone; date of birth (you must be 18 or older); and, where required by law or for safety, an optional AI age-estimation selfie ("age assurance") reviewed by our AI provider (Anthropic) to help confirm you appear to be an adult. The selfie is analyzed only for this age check and is not retained afterward. We may add document/ID-based verification for borderline or failed checks in the future.
Profile information (optional; PUBLIC where shown): display name, photos, bio; gender(s), pronouns, sexual orientation; body type, height, interests/lifestyle tags, relationship intent. You choose what to add, and you can edit or remove any of it at any time.
Sensitive information: information that may reveal sexual orientation (derived from your gender and who you are interested in) and your precise device location, which we use to power proximity discovery. You control the visibility of these where applicable; we never sell sensitive information or use it for advertising.
Automatically collected: location/distance; message content and media; device/technical data and IP address (used for security, fraud prevention, and rate limiting); cookies and SDKs (web).
From third parties: payment/subscription processors (Apple, Google, RevenueCat), analytics/crash providers (Firebase, Sentry), uploaded-image moderation and age assurance (Anthropic), SMS delivery (Twilio), email delivery (Resend), authentication partners (Apple, Google).
2. How We Use Information
To provide and personalize the Service and support; power the map, discovery, presence, chat, and private albums; safety, trust, and moderation (automated checks on uploaded public images and broadcast content, narrow high-confidence bot/spam detection for new cold direct messages, age assurance, report review, fraud prevention, and enforcement); process subscriptions; improve the Service, analytics, and crash diagnosis; comply with law and protect users. Ordinary direct, group, and event messages are not read or AI-reviewed before they are sent. We do not use your sensitive information (including anything revealing sexual orientation) for advertising or to train AI/ML, and never sell it.
Data minimization & your choices. We collect only what is needed to run the Service. Creating an account is not blanket consent to every optional use. We ask separately before optional processing such as publishing a map check-in, promotional email/SMS, or age assurance where required. Uploaded public images may be sent to our image-moderation provider; the optional age-assurance selfie may be sent to our age-assurance provider. You can withdraw an optional choice in the relevant settings, check out from the map, or delete your account. We do not condition paid features on granting non-essential data.
Reports and evidence: when you report another user, message, photo, group, or event, the reported item, reason, details, and any screenshot you choose to attach are stored securely and are accessible only to authorized safety staff to review and act on that report. Report evidence is kept privately for a limited time and is never shown publicly. We do not attach or review surrounding conversations that were not submitted as report evidence.
Text updates (SMS): if you opt in to text updates for a group or event, we use your mobile number only to send transactional notifications (delivered via our SMS provider, Twilio) about that group or event (schedule or location changes, reminders, cancellations). These messages are screened for prohibited content and are sent only to people who opted in. We do not sell your number or use it for third-party marketing. Reply STOP to opt out or HELP for help at any time. See our Text Updates page and Community Guidelines.
3. Location & Privacy by Design
The Service shows approximate, obfuscated location only. Your true coordinates are stored securely and are never sent to other users. Any location shown to other members (on the map, grid, or as distance) is randomly offset from your real position by roughly half a mile to a mile and a half and rounded, so your exact location is never revealed. You can hide your distance, go invisible, or disable location at any time. Please note: no location-obfuscation method is perfect — a determined person could attempt to estimate a general area from distance information over time. Use the same caution you would with any location-based app, and see our Safety page before meeting anyone in person. The grid is a social/discovery feature, not a locator or emergency-safety system.
4. Public vs. Private Content
Public surfaces (profile photos, bio, bubble) must be non-explicit (SFW); images must be of you. In private albums and chats you may share nude images of yourself only through consensual, grant-based access; you approve each viewer and can revoke access at any time. Sharing images of another person requires their explicit, enthusiastic consent. Album access is always free · content is never sold, and we never charge to unlock a specific person's images.
5. How We Share Information
With other users: your public profile and content you choose to share. Service providers (processors): cloud hosting and CDN; map/geocoding providers (Apple Maps, Google Maps, OpenStreetMap/Nominatim); RevenueCat (subscriptions); Firebase (analytics); Sentry (crash/error monitoring); Anthropic (uploaded-image moderation and age assurance, not ordinary chat review); Twilio (SMS delivery); Resend (email delivery); Apple/Google (in-app purchases). Legal and safety and business transfers as needed. We do not sell your personal information, and we do not share it for cross-context behavioral advertising (as those terms are defined by the CCPA and similar laws). Sensitive information is never shared with advertisers. We do not permit scraping of the Service or the use of your data to train third-party AI models.
6. Child Safety & Zero Tolerance for CSAE
NearbyGrid is adults-only; no one under 18 may use the Service. We have zero tolerance for child sexual abuse and exploitation (CSAE) — including child sexual abuse material (CSAM), grooming, sexual solicitation or enticement of a minor, sextortion, and child sex trafficking. We use detection tooling and human review, remove such content, terminate and device-ban offending accounts, and report apparent violations to NCMEC (the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children) and law enforcement — preserving related data for at least one year as required by law (18 U.S.C. §2258A, as amended by the REPORT Act). Report child-safety concerns to [email protected]. See our full Child Safety Standards.
7. Non-Consensual Intimate Imagery · TAKE IT DOWN Act
Consistent with the U.S. TAKE IT DOWN Act, any identifiable individual (or authorized representative) may request removal of nonconsensual intimate visual depictions, including AI-generated "deepfakes." Upon a complete, valid request we will remove or disable access within 48 hours and make reasonable efforts to remove known identical copies. Submit requests to [email protected].
8. Data Retention
We keep information only as long as necessary. On account deletion, your profile is generally deleted within ~28 days (we may retain limited data longer for safety, fraud/security, or legal obligations). Limited device/log identifiers may be retained up to 2 years. Inactive accounts may be deleted after 2 years.
9. Your Choices & Rights
You can access, correct, or delete your profile and delete your account in the app. Depending on where you live, you may have rights to access/portability, correction, deletion, opt out of "sale"/"sharing"/targeted advertising, and limit use of sensitive personal information. California (CCPA/CPRA): rights to know, delete, correct, opt out; we do not sell/share sensitive PI for cross-context advertising. Washington "My Health My Data" / Nevada: consumer-health-data rights. Colorado and other states: corresponding rights. Contact [email protected]; you may appeal by replying to our response.
10. Security
We maintain administrative, technical, and physical safeguards appropriate to the data. If a security breach compromises your personal information, we will notify you without undue delay in accordance with applicable law. No method is 100% secure; the Service is provided on an "as-is" basis with respect to security.
11. Cookies & Tracking (Web)
We use first- and third-party cookies, SDKs, and similar technologies for authentication and analytics only. We do not run third-party advertising, do not use ad networks, and do not track you across other companies' apps or websites for advertising. Manage preferences via in-app controls, browser settings, and recognized opt-out signals (e.g., Global Privacy Control).
12. Children
The Service is not directed to and may not be used by anyone under 18. If we learn we collected information from someone under 18, we delete it and terminate the account.
13. International Users
The Service is operated from the United States and local features are available only in the territories listed on our availability page. Accessing a store listing, website, or waitlist from another country does not mean local profiles or messages are open there. Information is processed in the United States and by the service providers described above. Before opening another country, we publish any additional notice and consent required for that territory.
14. Changes to This Policy
We may update this Policy; we will revise the effective date and, for material changes, provide additional notice. Continued use after changes constitutes acceptance.
15. Contact
NearbyGrid · Privacy
Email: [email protected]
Account / safety / content removal: [email protected]
Solstice Labs LLC, 7234 W North Ave, Ste 208 #268, Chicago, IL 60707, United States.