Privacy Policy

The short version: we never ask for your location, we strip all photo metadata before anything is stored, and your phone number exists only to pay you and keep bots out.

What we collect

A random device identifier stored on your phone; the reports you submit (venue, door, crowd, ratio, timestamp); photos you choose to upload, after all metadata including GPS is stripped; your phone number, only if you opt into the reward program and verify it; a coarse device fingerprint (screen size, browser, timezone hash) used solely to prevent duplicate reward payouts; and standard server logs.

What we never collect

Location. BenderWatch never requests foreground or background location permission. Reporting a venue is a claim you make, not a place we track you to. We also never store original photo files — only re-encoded copies with all EXIF data removed.

How we use it

Reports are aggregated into anonymous venue-level signals. Photos display publicly on the venue page for up to 2 hours, then are deleted. Phone numbers are used to send verification codes, pay rewards, and enforce the one-payout-per-person rule. We do not sell personal data or share it with advertisers. Venues see only the same aggregated signals everyone sees.

Retention

Photos: deleted after 2 hours (removed images are hash-blocked so they cannot be re-uploaded, but the image itself is deleted). Reports: kept as anonymous aggregates. Phone numbers: kept while the reward program runs and as needed for tax records ($600+ cumulative payouts require a 1099). Payout records: kept as required by law.

Your choices

Use BenderWatch without any account or phone number (viewing and reporting work anonymously). To delete your phone number or content, email [email protected].

Age

BenderWatch is for people 21 and over.

Contact

[email protected] — reachable with no account, for any content or privacy issue.