Privacy

Last updated: September 23, 2026

This Privacy Policy explains how AroundMadison (“we,” “us”) collects, uses, shares, and retains information when you use aroundmadison.com and related web services. We aim to describe our practices accurately for the current launch product. If something here does not match how the product works, contact us and we will correct it.

Account eligibility and minors

AroundMadison accounts are for people 18 years of age or older. You must confirm this at registration. We do not perform independent identity or date-of-birth verification. The service is not directed to children under 13, and we do not knowingly collect personal information from children under 13. If you believe someone under 18 has created an account, contact hello@aroundmadison.com.

The 18+ rule applies to account holders. AroundMadison may still include legitimate community information involving minors (schools, youth sports, family events, missing-child or public-safety notices, and similar). Members must handle photographs, identifying details, and locations involving minors responsibly and in accordance with our Guidelines and Safety Center.

Information we collect

• Account information — email, name, username, password (stored hashed), and profile details you choose (bio, area label, avatar, cover, privacy settings).
• Content you create — posts, comments, reactions, Marketplace listings, events, messages, reports, appeals, saves, follows, friend connections, and business/claim information.
• Uploaded media — photos and videos attached to posts, profiles, listings, or messages (public vs private storage paths as implemented).
• Messages and interactions — direct and group messages, Marketplace inquiries, follows, friend requests, blocks, and similar actions needed to operate the product.
• Support communications — messages you send via Help / Contact or similar channels.
• Technical and usage data — cookies and session identifiers, IP address, approximate browser/device information, and logs used for security, reliability, rate limiting, and abuse prevention. First-party product analytics and search-demand signals may be recorded for operations; private message bodies are not mined for advertising.
• Measurement / analytics providers — on the production website we use Google Analytics 4 (GA4) to understand aggregate traffic, acquisition sources (including campaigns such as Facebook promotions), section usage, and conversion funnels (for example, registration and first participation). GA4 may set cookies or similar technologies and receive technical identifiers and page URLs. We configure GA4 to avoid sending personal content such as message bodies, passwords, or email addresses as event parameters. Google processes measurement data under its own terms as an independent analytics provider.
• Location-related data — Madison / Jefferson County context, map pins or addresses you choose to publish (for example Marketplace locations with your consent), and geocoding for Places/maps. Exact residential location is not publicly exposed by default.
• Business-account information — when you claim or manage a business: membership, roles, hours, categories, logos/covers, and related management activity.
• Connected login identifiers — if Google or Facebook linking is enabled by configuration, we may store provider identifiers privately. Social login is not claimed as generally live until configured for the environment.
• Imported / third-party information — Local Info sources, weather providers, NWS alerts/forecasts, and Google Maps/Places responses processed to power those features.

How we use information

We use information to operate AroundMadison: authenticate accounts, display content according to audience settings, power Places/Events/Weather features, moderate abuse, enforce rules, send in-app notifications, improve reliability, measure aggregate website usage (via Google Analytics 4 on the production site), and comply with law. Email notifications are not generally available at launch (in-app notifications are). We do not sell your personal information. Private messages are not mined for advertising. Advertisers do not receive individual private message histories or individual private search/activity histories.

Cookies and similar technologies

We use first-party cookies/session storage for sign-in and security. On the production website (aroundmadison.com), Google Analytics 4 may also set cookies or use similar technologies to measure visits, acquisition sources, and feature usage in aggregate. Analytics is not loaded on staging, preview, or local development hosts. AroundMadison is operated for a U.S. local audience and accounts are limited to adults 18+. We do not currently present a separate cookie-consent wall for GA4; if legal requirements change for our audience or operations, we will update this policy and the site accordingly.

Public and shared content

Content you publish as public — and profile, business, or Marketplace information you make visible — can be seen, shared, or indexed by others according to the audience you select. Friends-only or members-only content is limited by those settings, but recipients can still screenshot or reshare.

Service providers and third parties

We use processors reasonably necessary to run the service, including hosting and databases, object/media storage, Google Maps / Places, weather and alert data providers, Google Analytics 4 for production website measurement, transactional email delivery (when configured, for account security mail such as password reset), and (when enabled) OAuth identity providers. These parties process information on our behalf or as needed to provide their APIs under their own terms. External links leave AroundMadison.

Legal and safety disclosures

We may preserve or disclose information when reasonably necessary to comply with law, protect users, investigate fraud or security problems, enforce our Terms and Guidelines, or respond to valid legal process. Reporter identity and moderation notes are not shown to reported members.

Retention

We retain information for as long as reasonably necessary to operate AroundMadison, maintain security, resolve disputes, comply with legal obligations, enforce agreements, maintain moderation and audit records, and preserve legitimate community records where appropriate. We do not promise a single fixed calendar retention period for all data types.

Your choices

• Update profile and privacy settings in My AroundMadison.
• Change password in account credentials settings.
• Download a JSON export of your profile, posts, comments, saves, and your own messages from Account settings (excludes passwords, tokens, and other people's private data).
• Request account deletion from Account settings (asynchronous anonymization — see Account Deletion).
• Contact us about privacy questions at the email below.

Security

We use reasonable technical and organizational measures (including hashed passwords, session cookies, CSRF protections, and rate limits). No method of transmission or storage is completely secure.

Changes

We may update this Privacy Policy. Material changes will be identified with an updated “Last updated” date, and we will provide reasonable notice where appropriate. Continued use after the effective date means you accept the updated policy, except where additional consent is required by law.

Contact hello@aroundmadison.com or Help / Contact. Related: Terms, Messaging Rules, Advertising.