Privacy Policy

ValidGuest ("we," "our," or "us") is committed to protecting your privacy. This Privacy Policy explains how we collect, use, disclose, and safeguard your information when you use our ValidGuest browser extension and related services.

1. Information We Collect

1.1 Personal Information

We collect the following types of personal information:

• Account Information: Email address, hotel/property name, and authentication credentials when you create an account
• Guest Data: Guest names, email addresses, and booking IDs that you choose to check or report through the extension
• Incident Reports: Information about problematic guests that you voluntarily report, including incident descriptions and severity ratings

1.2 Usage Data

We automatically collect certain information when you use our extension:

• Extension usage analytics (searches performed, pages viewed)
• Technical information (browser type, extension version)
• Interaction data (features used, buttons clicked)

1.3 Payment Information

If you subscribe to our Premium tier, payment processing is handled securely by Stripe. We do not store your credit card information on our servers. We only receive confirmation of successful payments and subscription status from Stripe.

2. How We Use Your Information

We use the collected information for the following purposes:

• Service Delivery: To provide guest verification services and display trust scores
• Account Management: To create and manage your account, authenticate your identity
• Database Matching: To check guest information against our shared watchlist database
• Incident Tracking: To maintain records of reported problematic guests
• Service Improvement: To analyze usage patterns and improve our extension features
• Communication: To send you important updates about your account or service changes
• Security: To detect and prevent fraud, abuse, or security issues

3. How Guest Data is Processed

3.1 Manual Activation

The ValidGuest extension does NOT automatically scan all bookings. Guest information is only processed when:

• You manually click the extension to check a specific guest, OR
• The extension detects a guest that you personally reported on an OTA platform and previously added to your ValidGuest watchlist

3.2 Data Extraction

When activated, the extension extracts guest information (name, email, booking ID) from supported booking platforms (Booking.com, Airbnb, Expedia, Hotels.com, Agoda) only from the current page you're viewing.

3.3 Shared Database

When you report a guest incident, that information may be shared with other property owners using ValidGuest to help the hospitality community identify problematic guests. Reports include the guest's name, email, incident description, and severity rating.

4. Data Sharing and Disclosure

4.1 We DO NOT Sell Your Data

We do not sell, rent, or trade your personal information to third parties for marketing purposes.

4.2 Sharing Within the ValidGuest Community

Incident reports you submit are shared with other verified property owners using ValidGuest. This is the core purpose of our service - creating a shared watchlist to protect the hospitality community.

4.3 Service Providers

We share information with trusted service providers who assist us:

• Stripe: Payment processing for Premium subscriptions
• Email Service: Sending authentication magic links (Gmail SMTP)
• Hosting Provider: Hetzner (server hosting and database storage)

4.4 Legal Requirements

We may disclose your information if required by law, court order, or to protect our rights, property, or safety.

5. Data Storage and Security

5.1 Storage Location

Your data is securely stored on servers provided by Hetzner in Germany, complying with GDPR requirements.

5.2 Security Measures

• All data transmission uses HTTPS encryption (SSL/TLS)
• Passwords are never stored; we use secure magic link authentication
• Database access is restricted and monitored
• Regular security audits and updates

5.3 Data Retention

• Account Data: Retained while your account is active
• Incident Reports: Retained indefinitely to maintain the integrity of the shared watchlist
• Usage Analytics: Aggregated and anonymized after 12 months

6. Your Rights and Choices

6.1 Access and Correction

You can access and update your account information through the extension settings.

6.2 Data Deletion

You can request deletion of your account by contacting us at hotelsunity@gmail.com. Note that incident reports you've submitted may be retained in anonymized form to protect other property owners.

6.3 Opt-Out of Analytics

You can disable usage analytics in the extension settings.

6.4 GDPR Rights (EU Users)

If you're in the European Union, you have additional rights:

• Right to access your personal data
• Right to rectification of inaccurate data
• Right to erasure ("right to be forgotten")
• Right to restrict processing
• Right to data portability
• Right to object to processing

7. Cookies and Local Storage

The ValidGuest extension uses browser local storage to:

• Store authentication tokens for your session
• Cache guest verification results for faster performance
• Save your extension preferences and settings

This data is stored locally on your device and not transmitted except when necessary for authentication.

8. Third-Party Services

Our extension interacts with third-party booking platforms (Booking.com, Airbnb, Expedia, Hotels.com, Agoda) to extract guest information when you manually activate the extension. We are not responsible for the privacy practices of these platforms. Please review their respective privacy policies.

9. Children's Privacy

Our service is not intended for individuals under the age of 18. We do not knowingly collect personal information from children.

10. Changes to This Privacy Policy

We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time. We will notify you of significant changes by:

• Posting a notice in the extension
• Sending an email to your registered address
• Updating the "Last Updated" date at the top of this policy

Your continued use of ValidGuest after changes constitutes acceptance of the updated policy.

11. International Data Transfers

If you're accessing ValidGuest from outside the European Union, please be aware that your information may be transferred to and processed in Germany (EU). We ensure appropriate safeguards are in place to protect your data in compliance with applicable data protection laws.