AmericanSitters.com Privacy Policy

Last Updated: August 12, 2025

1. Who this policy covers

This policy applies to:

Care Seekers (individuals and organizations looking to hire caregivers).
Care Providers (individuals or agencies offering services).
Visitors who browse our site without creating an account.

This policy does not apply to third-party sites, tools, or services that have their own privacy notices.

By using the Services, you agree to this Privacy Policy and our Terms of Use. If you do not agree, please discontinue use of the Services.

2. Information we collect and sources

A. Information you provide directly

Depending on how you use the Services, you may provide:

Account details (name, email, phone, password, mailing address, date of birth).
Profile/job details (care type, schedule, location, experience, education, languages, certifications, references, photos, audio, videos, rates, availability, preferences).
Identity and verification information (e.g., government ID, selfie, address, social media handle) when you ask us to verify your identity or eligibility.
Communications and content (messages, reviews/ratings, audio/video messages, forms, support requests, survey responses).
Documents (ID, Passports, Driver's license, First aid certificates, Background checks)
Payment information (billing address and basic payment instrument details). Card and bank data are collected and processed by our payment processors; we only receive limited information necessary to record your transaction.
Employer or benefits information if your access is provided through an employer program.
Health/special needs information you choose to include in job posts or messages. Do not share highly sensitive health information.

B. Information provided by others

We may receive information about you from:

Other users (e.g., reviews, references, invitations, messages, dispute reports).
Background screening and identity verification partners (see "Background checks and identity verification" below).
Payment processors, fraud prevention partners, analytics providers, and marketing partners.
Publicly available sources and social media (consistent with your settings).
Employers or agencies that invite you to the platform or enable access as a benefit.

C. Information you allow us to collect

With your permission (e.g., via app or browser settings), we may collect:

Precise or general location to show nearby jobs/providers and features.
Contacts you choose to import to find connections or send referrals.
Camera/photos, microphone, or push notifications to enable specific features.

D. Information collected automatically

We and our partners automatically collect information about your device and use of the Services, including:

Log and usage data (pages viewed, links clicked, search queries, session length, referring/exit pages, timestamps, crash/error data).
Device and network data (IP address, device identifiers, browser and OS, mobile carrier, language, screen resolution).
Cookies, pixels, SDKs, and similar technologies. These help us recognize you, remember preferences, understand activity, measure campaigns, and show relevant content and ads. See "Cookies and online tracking" below.

3. How we use information

We use information to:

Provide, operate, and improve the Services (including matching, recommendations, search, payments, customer support, and safety features).
Create and manage accounts and profiles; enable posting and messaging; facilitate bookings and payments.
Verify identity and eligibility; conduct safety checks; detect, prevent, and respond to fraud, abuse, and illegal activity.
Verify your documents and certificates to display the relevant badges on your profile.
Personalize content and recommendations; measure and improve advertising and marketing effectiveness.
Send service, transactional, and security notices; respond to requests; communicate about features, surveys, promotions, and news (you can opt out of marketing).
Enforce our terms and policies; protect the rights, property, and safety of AmericanSitters.com, our users, and the public.
We may use AI or automated tools to provide features like job matching or fraud detection. These tools process data based on algorithms, and you have the right to opt out of certain automated decisions where required by law. We do not use AI for solely automated decisions with legal effects without human oversight.
Comply with legal obligations and exercise legal claims.
For other purposes with your consent or as disclosed at collection.

4. How we disclose information

We may disclose information as follows:

With other users: Care Seekers see Care Provider profile details; Care Providers see relevant job details. Information you choose to make public (e.g., profile photo, first name, last initial, city/state, skills, ratings/reviews, job post descriptions, references, geolocation) may be visible to other users and, in some cases, to visitors and search engines.
With service providers/processors: We share information with vendors that help us operate the Services (hosting, customer support, analytics, ads measurement, AI-processors, data-analytics platforms, background checks and identity verification, payment processing, communications, security, cloud storage).
With marketing and analytics partners: We allow partners to set cookies/pixels/SDKs to measure use and show ads, including interest‑based advertising (you can opt out—see "Your choices" and "California and other U.S. state privacy rights").
With third‑party tools you connect: If you connect third-party apps (e.g., Google, Apple), or share via social features, we share information as needed to enable that connection—subject to your permissions with those services.
If a user leaves or is removed, other users who communicated with them may be informed of that status (as part of maintaining community trust).
For safety, legal, and compliance: We may disclose information to law enforcement, regulators, government entities, or other third parties if we believe disclosure is required or appropriate (e.g., to comply with law, protect individuals from harm, or respond to legal process).
Corporate transactions: We may disclose information in connection with a merger, acquisition, financing, reorganization, bankruptcy, or sale of assets.
With your consent or at your direction.

We may also share aggregated or de‑identified information that does not identify you.

5. Background checks and identity verification

Where offered or required, we may facilitate background checks or identity verification through third‑party consumer reporting agencies and verification providers. These checks are initiated by you or, where permitted by law, by a Care Seeker considering you for engagement. We may receive confirmation of results (e.g., pass/fail indicators or reports) and will handle such information in accordance with this Policy and applicable law (including the Fair Credit Reporting Act). Background checks and identity verification are performed by third parties and are not a guarantee of safety or suitability. Always use your best judgment, follow our safety tips, and comply with applicable law when selecting or working with others.

6. Cookies and online tracking

We and our partners use cookies, web beacons/pixels, SDKs, local storage, and similar technologies to:

Keep you signed in and remember preferences.
Understand usage, diagnose issues, and improve performance.
Measure campaigns and personalize content and ads on our Services and on third‑party sites and apps.

Controls: Most browsers let you block or delete cookies. You can also opt out of interest‑based advertising by visiting the NAI (networkadvertising.org/choices) and DAA (aboutads.info/choices) opt‑out pages. If you block cookies, some features may not work.

Do Not Track: Some browsers transmit "Do Not Track" signals. At this time, we do not respond to such signals. We honor legally required opt‑out signals where applicable (e.g., Global Privacy Control for certain state laws).

7. Advertising and analytics services provided by others

We may allow third parties to provide analytics and to serve advertisements on our behalf across the Internet. These entities may use cookies, pixels, SDKs, and similar technologies to collect information about your use of the Services and other websites/apps (e.g., IP address, browser, pages viewed, time spent, links clicked) to analyze and track data, measure the effectiveness of content and ads, and deliver ads tailored to your interests. See "Cookies and online tracking" for opt‑out options.

8. Social sharing features

The Services may offer social sharing features and other integrated tools (for example, a "Like" button) that let you share actions you take on the Services with other media, and vice versa. Your use of such features may enable the sharing of information with your friends or the public, depending on your settings with the entity that provides the feature. Please review the privacy policies of those providers for more information.

9. Referrals

If you choose to use a referral feature, we may ask for your contact's name and email or let you import contacts. We'll use that information to send a one‑time invitation and to track the success of our referral program. Your contact may request that we remove their information by contacting us.

10. Your choices and controls

Profile and account: You can view and update certain account and profile details in your settings. You may deactivate or delete your account (we may retain some information as permitted by law—see "Data retention").
Communications: You can opt out of marketing emails by using the unsubscribe link. You can manage push notifications in your device settings. We may still send transactional and administrative messages.
Location, contacts, and device permissions: You can disable collection via your device or browser settings.
Advertising choices: You can opt out of interest‑based ads via industry tools and, where available, our privacy controls.

11. Children's privacy

You must be at least eighteen (18) years of age to register for or use the Services. The Services are not available to individuals under the age of 18.

If we learn that a child under 18 has provided personal information, we will delete it.

12. Data retention

We retain personal information for as long as necessary to provide the Services, comply with legal obligations, resolve disputes, enforce agreements, protect our users, and for other legitimate business purposes. Retention periods may vary based on the type of data and our legal obligations. We may also retain cached/archived copies.

13. Data security

We implement administrative, technical, and physical safeguards designed to protect personal information (for example, encryption in transit, access controls, and logging). No security program is perfect, and we cannot guarantee absolute security.

14. International users

If you access the Services from outside the U.S., you understand your information may be transferred to, stored, and processed in the U.S. and other countries where we or our service providers operate, which may have data protection laws different from those in your country.

15. California and other U.S. state privacy rights

Depending on where you live (including, but not limited to, CA, CO, CT, DE, IA, MN, MT, NE, NH, NJ, OR, TN, TX, UT, VA), you may have rights regarding your personal information. These may include the rights to:

Know/access the categories and specific pieces of personal information we collected, the categories of sources, the purposes, and the categories of third parties to whom we disclosed the information.
Request correction of inaccurate personal information.
Request deletion of personal information, subject to certain exceptions.
Opt out of (a) "sale" or "sharing" of personal information, and (b) targeted advertising, as those terms are defined by applicable law.
Opt-out for automated decision-making/profiling (required in OR, CO, CT, MN).
Limit use and disclosure of "sensitive personal information," where applicable.
Appeal a denial of your request (for states that provide this right).

How to exercise your rights: You or your authorized agent may submit a request through our privacy webform, by email, or by mail (see "Contact us"). We will verify your request (for example, by asking you to confirm ownership of the email or phone associated with your account or by requesting additional information) and respond within the timeframes required by law. If you use an authorized agent, we may require proof of authorization.

Disclosure of categories (past 12 months): We may collect and disclose the following categories as defined by California law: identifiers; customer records; characteristics of protected classifications (if you choose to provide); commercial information; internet/network activity; geolocation data; audio/visual data you upload; professional or employment-related information; inferences; and sensitive personal information (e.g., government ID for verification).

Categories of recipients: We disclose these categories to service providers/processors (e.g., hosting, analytics, payment processing, customer support, background checks, identity verification, fraud prevention, ai-processors), to marketing/advertising partners (for interest‑based ads), to other users as needed to provide the Services, to corporate affiliates, and to government/law enforcement when required by law.

Sale/share/targeted advertising: We do not sell personal information for money. We may "share" personal information for cross‑context behavioral advertising or engage in "targeted advertising" as defined by certain state laws. You can opt out via our privacy controls and by enabling Global Privacy Control where supported. We do not knowingly sell or share the personal information of consumers under 16 years of age.

Shine the Light (CA): California residents may request information about our disclosure of personal information to third parties for their direct marketing during the preceding calendar year. To make a request, contact us as described below with "Shine the Light" in the subject line.

Nevada: We do not sell personal information as defined under Nevada law. Nevada residents may submit a request to opt out of future sales by contacting us.

16. Third‑party links and services

The Services may contain links to third‑party websites, plug‑ins, or apps. Your interactions with those features are governed by the privacy policies of the third parties, not this Policy.

17. Enterprise/benefit programs

If you access the Services through an employer or other organization, we may receive information about you from that organization and share limited information with them to enable the program, consistent with our contract with that organization.

18. Changes to this Policy

We may update this Policy from time to time. If we make material changes, we will notify you (e.g., by email or a notice on the Services) and indicate the "Last Updated" date. Your continued use after the effective date means you accept the changes.

19. Contact us

AmericanSitters.com

Privacy Requests: [email protected]

General Support: [email protected]

If you have a disability and need this Policy in an alternative format, contact us at accessibility@americansitters .com.

20. Additional notices for EEA/UK/Canada users (if applicable)

If we offer services to individuals in the EEA/UK/Canada, the following apply:

Controller: AmericanSitters.com (contact above).
Legal bases: We process personal data as necessary to perform a contract (provide the Services), for our legitimate interests (e.g., to secure and improve the Services), to comply with legal obligations, and with consent where required (e.g., certain marketing or precise location).
Rights: You may have the rights to access, rectify, erase, restrict, object, data portability, and withdraw consent. You may lodge a complaint with your local data protection authority.
Transfers: We rely on appropriate safeguards for transfers (e.g., Standard Contractual Clauses).

21. State‑specific disclosures summary

Subject to state law, we provide the following choices and disclosures:

Opt‑out mechanism for targeted advertising and "sale"/"share" of personal information.
Right to appeal (CO, CT, DE, IA, MN, NJ, OR, TN, TX, VA, etc.). To appeal a decision on your privacy request, reply to our response email with "Appeal."
Categories of personal information and purposes are described above; we will provide more detail upon request.

22. SMS and communications program

If you enroll in SMS/text programs, we will send messages (e.g., verification codes, alerts). Message frequency varies. Message and data rates may apply. You can opt out by replying STOP; for help, reply HELP. We do not share SMS opt‑in data with third parties for their independent marketing purposes.

23. User content and community areas

Information you post in public or community areas (e.g., forums, reviews) may be visible to others and can be indexed by search engines. Avoid posting personal or sensitive information in these spaces. To request removal of personal information from a public area that we control, contact us; in some cases we may not be able to remove content (for example, if we are required by law to retain it), and we will let you know if we cannot comply.