Privacy Policy
FounderWorld is a members-only network for business owners, available as an app for iPhone and Android. It is operated by Zee Palm ("we", "us"). This policy explains what information we collect, why, who we share it with, and the choices you have. If you have a question, email zubair@zeepalm.com.
1. Information we collect
Information you give us
| What | Examples | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Account | Email address and password (passwords are handled by our sign-in provider and never visible to us) | To create and secure your account |
| Application and profile | Name, username, photo, role, business name and description, website, LinkedIn and other public links, industry, city and country, headline and highlights | To review your application, build your profile and match you to the right rooms and feeds |
| Verification documents | Files you choose to upload to show you own your business (for example a registration certificate) | To verify you. Only our review team can see them |
| Content | Posts, threads, comments, images, stories, highlights, reactions, saves, follows | To show your content to other members |
| Messages | Messages in group rooms and direct messages | To deliver them to the people you're talking to |
| Safety reports | Reports and blocks you make, and verification requests | To keep the community safe and respond to reports |
| Support | Emails you send us | To help you |
Information collected automatically
- Approximate location when you apply. To check the country you're applying from, the app looks up your approximate location (country, region and city) from your IP address using the ipwho.is service, and falls back to your device's region setting. We do not use GPS or track your location over time.
- Technical data needed to run the service, such as your device's language, app version, and sign-in timestamps kept by our infrastructure providers.
- Subscription status. When you subscribe, Apple or Google processes the payment. We receive the subscription status (active, renewed, cancelled, refunded, expiry date) through RevenueCat. We never receive your card number or payment details.
We do not use advertising identifiers, analytics SDKs or third-party ad networks.
2. How we use information
- To review applications and decide who can join, including checking the details and documents you provide.
- To run the network: profiles, feeds, rooms, posts, messages, stories, search and notifications inside the app.
- To tag your business. When you apply, we send your business name and description, website, role and location to an AI model (Claude, provided by Anthropic) to suggest an industry, niches and tags. You can review and change the suggestions before submitting. Room names you search for may also be sent to the same model to suggest the right room.
- To manage your membership and subscription.
- To keep FounderWorld safe: moderating content, acting on reports, preventing abuse and enforcing our Terms.
- To respond to your requests and contact you about your application or account.
- To meet legal obligations.
If you are in the European Economic Area or the UK, we rely on these legal bases: performing our contract with you (running your account and membership), our legitimate interests (safety, verification, improving the service), your consent where we ask for it, and legal obligations.
3. What other members can see
Approved members can see your profile (name, username, photo, business details, city, country, highlights and verification badges), your posts, comments and stories, and the messages you send in rooms. Direct messages are visible to you and the person you're messaging. Your email address, verification documents, application answers and reports are never shown to other members.
4. Who we share information with
We don't sell or rent personal information. We share it only with service providers who run FounderWorld for us, under contracts that limit how they use it:
| Provider | Purpose |
|---|---|
| Google (Firebase, Google Cloud) | Sign-in, database, file storage and server functions |
| Anthropic | AI tagging of business descriptions and room names |
| RevenueCat | Subscription status management |
| Apple and Google | App distribution and in-app purchase payments |
| ipwho.is | Approximate location lookup from your IP address when you apply |
| Vercel | Hosting this website |
We may also disclose information if required by law, to protect the rights and safety of our members or others, or as part of a merger or sale of the service (in which case this policy will continue to apply to your information).
5. International transfers
Our providers store and process data in the United States and other countries. Where required, transfers are protected by standard contractual clauses or equivalent safeguards.
6. How long we keep information
- Account, profile, posts and follows: until you delete your account.
- Stories: removed automatically 24 hours after posting.
- Applications that are rejected or withdrawn, and their documents: until you delete your account or ask us to remove them.
- Messages you sent in rooms or to other members, and comments on other members' posts, stay visible to those people after you delete your account so their conversations stay intact. You can ask us to remove them by emailing us.
- Safety reports and moderation records: as long as needed to protect the community, then deleted.
- Backups kept by our providers are overwritten on their regular schedules.
7. Your choices and rights
- Edit your profile at any time in the app.
- Delete your account in the app under Settings → Delete account. This permanently removes your profile, posts, verification files, application and follows. See how to delete your account. Deleting your account does not cancel a store subscription; cancel it in your App Store or Google Play settings.
- Block and report other members from their profile or content.
- Depending on where you live, you may have the right to access, correct, delete, restrict or object to our use of your information, and to receive a copy of it. Email zubair@zeepalm.com and we'll respond within 30 days. You can also complain to your local data protection authority.
8. Children
FounderWorld is for adults who own or run a business. You must be at least 18 to apply. We do not knowingly collect information from anyone under 18; if we learn we have, we delete it.
9. Security
Information is encrypted in transit and stored with our infrastructure providers, and access to private data such as verification documents is limited to our review team. No system is perfectly secure, so please use a strong, unique password.
10. Changes
We'll update this policy as FounderWorld changes and show the new effective date at the top. If a change is significant, we'll tell you in the app before it takes effect.
11. Contact
Zee Palm, operator of FounderWorld
Email: zubair@zeepalm.com