Privacy policy

1Who is responsible for your data

The data controller (operator) is Fleamily Inc., a Delaware corporation (USA), registration number 10632227, address: 228 Park Ave S, PMB 85451, New York, NY 10003, United States. In this policy, “we” means Fleamily Inc.

World Connection Day (WCD) is a free campaign run by Fleamily Inc., the team behind the Fledge app. WCD is not a separate legal entity.

Send data requests (access, correction, deletion, withdrawal of consent) to legal@fledge.love with the subject “WCD — personal data”. General questions: info@worldconnectionday.com. We also read Instagram messages to @valklimoff, but email is more reliable for data requests: that way your request won’t get lost and we’ll meet the deadline.

2Where this policy applies

This policy applies on the World Connection Day website, worldconnectionday.com, and in the emails we send on behalf of WCD.

It does not apply in the Fledge app or on fledge.love, which have their own policy, or on other companies’ websites we link to: Instagram, TikTok, WhatsApp, Telegram, Google Calendar, map services.

We follow the GDPR and the UK GDPR for people in the EEA and the UK, Federal Law No. 152‑FZ for people in Russia, US state privacy laws (including the CCPA/CPRA) and similar laws in other countries. Even where a law does not formally apply to us, we act as if it did. Nothing in this policy limits the rights your country’s law gives you.

3What we store and why

This is everything that reaches us from the site and through forms. Visit statistics are described in section 6, and service records about emails in section 9. If something isn’t in these sections, we don’t store it.

3.1. Signing up for the day: “I’ll be here”

What

Your email. Your ribbon color: just the color, we don’t store your test answers. Your chosen spot. Your answers to “Who are you going with?” and “My plan if I feel shy”, if you answer. Whether to show your spot on the Stories card. The “I’m 18 or older” checkbox and the versions of the documents you accept. The language of your emails. The news checkbox, if you check it.

Where you came from

Link tags (for example, utm_source=instagram), the inviter’s code if the link was an invite, the Stories card variant, the browser type (regular or built into Instagram and TikTok) and the device type (iPhone, Android, computer).

Card

The image of your Stories card, the same one as in “My WCD”, in vertical and horizontal versions. We need it so your invite link opens in messaging apps and social media with this image. It doesn’t show your name or email; it shows the place only if the “Show the place on the card” toggle is on.

Why

To send you emails with your spot and reminders (section 5), show your pass in “My WCD”, keep honest numbers (confirmed addresses only) and understand which channels and cards work.

Legal basis

Your request to receive the emails: Art. 6(1)(b) GDPR. News: your consent, Art. 6(1)(a). Source statistics: our legitimate interest in understanding how people hear about WCD, Art. 6(1)(f). For people in Russia: consent, Art. 6, Part 1, Clause 1 of Federal Law No. 152‑FZ.

What others see. We never show anyone who chose a spot: a spot shows only a number, and only once 10 or more people have chosen it. If you share an invite link, whoever opens it will see your spot and color, and the link preview will show your card, but not your name or email.

The overall number. On the home page we show how many people have joined WCD, and after you sign up, your number in order of sign-up. These are only numbers: no name, email or spot. You see your number in “My WCD”; others will see it only if you share it.

3.2. “I want a spot here”

What

Your email, the 18+ checkbox, your ribbon color and the news checkbox (if any), the nearest city from the list, your device’s time zone so that emails arrive on time, and a rough map cell: a square of about 5 × 5 km. Your exact coordinates are not sent. Link tags, email language and document versions: as in 3.1.

Why

To confirm your address and write to you as soon as a spot appears within 50 km of you, or on November 14 at the latest. After that, you’ll get the same emails as all participants: reminders on November 20 and 21 and a question on November 22. The cells also show us where spots are missing.

Legal basis

Your request: Art. 6(1)(b) GDPR.

3.3. Suggested places

What

The name of the place and a landmark (“by the fountain, north side”), the type of place, the coordinates of the place itself (not yours), the address and the OpenStreetMap description of the feature, and the “I’ll be there during the day with a ribbon” checkbox, if you check it. The link between the suggestion and your email, the moderator’s decision, the reason for it and your appeal, if you made one.

Why

To check the place, publish it on the map, reply to you and let you appeal. How we check is described in Terms of use, section 6.

What everyone sees

Once approved, only the details of the place: name, landmark, district and the label “suggested by participants”. The map doesn’t show who suggested the place. While the place is under review, only you can see it.

Legal basis

Your request to publish the place: Art. 6(1)(b) GDPR. Checking places and protecting the map from abuse: legitimate interest, Art. 6(1)(f). Explaining decisions and handling appeals: a legal obligation under the EU Digital Services Act (DSA), Art. 6(1)(c).

Who checks. First, automated rules check the place against OpenStreetMap: what the feature is and whether there’s another spot nearby. A moderator from the WCD team, a person, publishes or rejects the place. AI doesn’t check suggestions, and we don’t pass them to any AI services.

3.4. Volunteer form

What

Name, city, roles (Spot beacon, WCD voice, City scout), a spot if you choose one, a WhatsApp number, phone number or Telegram handle, an Instagram or TikTok link (optional), the 18+ checkbox and the news checkbox (optional). The form doesn’t ask for your email; if you enter it instead of a number, we’ll send one email to it saying we’ve received the form.

Why

To contact you, invite you to your city’s chat and, if you’re a beacon, show on the spot card that a beacon will be there, without your name.

Legal basis

Your request: Art. 6(1)(b) GDPR; news: consent, Art. 6(1)(a).

Numbers in chats. In a regular WhatsApp group, members see each other’s phone numbers. Don’t want to show yours? Leave a Telegram handle instead. We invite to chats only people who filled in the form, never participants from the site: the site doesn’t collect phone numbers.

3.5. “Report a problem” and complaints about spots

What

The spot (filled in automatically or entered by name), the reason, the “What happened” text (optional), a contact for a reply (optional), the page it was sent from, and the spot’s country, so we can show the right emergency number. By default, the report is anonymous.

Who reads it

On-duty members of the WCD team: people, not software. A report with a contact reaches them at their WCD work email, and in the admin panel only those who handle complaints can see it. We don’t encrypt the contact separately; section 11 explains how it’s protected.

Why

To look into it, remove the spot or the person breaking the rules, and reply if you leave a contact.

Legal basis

Legitimate interest in the safety of people at spots: Art. 6(1)(f) GDPR; obligations under the DSA: Art. 6(1)(c). We pass a report on only if the law requires it or if there is no other way to protect someone’s life and health: Art. 6(1)(d).

3.6. The “I’m here” check-in on November 21

Checking in is optional. The button in “My WCD” checks on your phone that you are within 300 m of your spot. Only the fact (“+1 to the spot”) and a rough distance go to the server: within 100, 200 or 300 m. Your coordinates and exact distance are not sent.

So that no one checks in twice, a separate key links the check-in to the participant. We will destroy it on November 30, 2026; after that, the check-in is just a “+1” for the spot and can’t be linked to you. Why: to count how many people came to the spots. Legal basis: your consent, since a check-in happens only when you tap the button, Art. 6(1)(a) GDPR.

3.7. The question after the day

On November 22 you’ll get an email, “How did it go?”, with one question: how many people you managed to say hello to (0, 1–2, 3–5, 6 or more). If you tap an answer, we save it together with your spot and city, but not your email, and if you delete your data, we erase it too. We publish the results only as overall numbers. Legal basis: legitimate interest in honest statistics about the day, Art. 6(1)(f) GDPR. Answering is optional.

3.8. Technical data

• Server logs: IP address, time, page address and browser data. Raw IPs are kept for no more than 7 days.
• To protect against abuse at sign-up, we store not your IP but its hash with a secret key, for no longer than 30 days. Rate limits are counted in server memory and never saved anywhere.
• Forms are protected from bots by a hidden trap field and rate limits. There are no third-party checks like CAPTCHA, so your browser doesn’t contact anyone else for this.
• Legal basis: legitimate interest in the security and operation of the site, Art. 6(1)(f) GDPR. You can object to this (section 10).

3.9. Venue and brand applications

What

Your name, the name of the place or brand, city, an email or phone number for contact, the participation options you selected, the 18+ checkbox, the document version and the page language. If you edit the application, the previous version is kept for another 30 days.

Why

To contact you and agree on how your place or brand takes part in WCD.

Who reads it

The WCD team, in the admin panel. We don’t show applications on the site or on the map.

Legal basis

Your request to be contacted: Art. 6(1)(b) GDPR. Correspondence about the partnership: our legitimate interest, Art. 6(1)(f).

3.10. What we don’t collect

• Exact coordinates: not when you choose a spot and not when you check in with “I’m here”.
• Test answers.
• Date of birth, gender, sexual orientation, photos and selfies.
• Name and phone number, except in the volunteer form and in venue or brand applications.
• Phone contacts and payment details: WCD is free.

If something unnecessary ends up in a free-text field (for example, someone else’s number in a place description), we delete it as soon as we notice.

4What stays on your device

Some of the site’s work happens right in your browser. This data never reaches us.

• Test. Your answers and the color calculation stay in the browser. We learn your color only when you sign up for a spot.
• Location. The browser asks for it, after our screen explaining why. The answer is used on your device: to sort spots by distance and find spots within 50 km and the nearest big city. You can say no and find your city by search.
• Distance and “daylight until”. The browser calculates the distance to a spot and the sunset time.
• Suggesting a place. The browser runs the “There’s already a spot nearby” check (300 m) itself; the server then repeats it using the coordinates of the place, not yours.
• Stories card and “Ribbon photo”. The image is drawn in the browser, and the photo isn’t uploaded anywhere. You decide whether to share it, through your phone’s menu.
• Calendar. The .ics file and the Google Calendar link are built in the browser. Google gets data only if you open that link.

So that the site remembers your color, spot and settings between visits, it keeps them in browser storage (localStorage). To erase them, clear the site data in your browser settings. The in-app browsers of Instagram and TikTok store this separately from Safari and Chrome.

5Emails

You get emails only if you choose a spot and leave your email. After you sign up, there are four of them, timed to your spot’s time zone:

1. Right away“You’re in”Your spot, a calendar file, the “My WCD” link and the “Confirm I’m in” button.
2. November 20, eveningWCD is tomorrowHow to make a ribbon in 5 minutes, games and a plan in case you feel shy.
3. November 21, morningWCD is todayYour spot and how long it stays light there.
4. November 22How did it go?One question, answered in one click.

The last three emails come only if you confirm your address with the button in the first one. If you don’t confirm, we won’t write again. If you sign up late, reminders that have already gone out won’t come.

Service emails

These come only when you ask for something or something changes:

• change of spot: an email with the new spot and a new calendar file;
• “I want a spot here”: address confirmation and an email when a spot appears nearby, on November 14 at the latest; after that, the same reminders everyone gets;
• suggested place: the moderator’s decision and, if it’s rejected, the reason;
• problem report with a contact: a reply from the on-duty team;
• “Send me the link again”: a link to “My WCD”;
• if a moderator hides your spot: a request to choose another one.

News about future WCDs

We write to you about February 13 and June 21, 2027 only if you check a separate box; it’s unchecked by default. One email before February 13 will also come if you tap “I can’t make it — move to February 13” or “I want to be a beacon”.

What every email includes

• One-click unsubscribe. It stops all emails, reminders included.
• A “Delete my data” link in emails to participants. Emails about a volunteer form or an event, or about a place suggested without signing up for WCD, don’t have it: we’ll delete that data on request at legal@fledge.love.
• The postal address of Fleamily Inc. in New York.

No open-tracking pixel: we don’t know whether an email was opened. We count clicks only on our own links, with no redirect through the email service.

6Cookies, analytics and ads

There are no advertising cookies or pixels on the site. Here’s everything the site stores in your browser and counts:

All of this is either needed for a service you ask for or doesn’t recognize you across sites, so we don’t ask for consent and only let you know in the banner. The invite code goes to the server with your sign-up and is used only for overall invite statistics: the person who invited you learns neither your email nor your spot.

What the statistics store. Umami doesn’t set cookies or store IP addresses. For each visit, it keeps the country, region and city determined from the IP address, the device, operating system, browser, screen size and language, the pages opened, the site you came from and your steps on the site. The invite code isn’t included. Some steps have details: the spot, city and ribbon color in question, the type of form sent (without its text or contacts), the answers chosen to “Who are you going with?”, “My plan if I feel shy” and “How did it go?”, the number of hellos on WCD day, and how far from the spot the “I’m here” check-in was: within 100, 200 or 300 m, or, if the check-in failed, within 1 km, 1–5 km or farther. Steps from one device are linked by a number that Umami calculates from the IP address and browser and changes every month. The statistics contain no email, name or coordinates and aren’t linked to your sign-up.

If we ever run ads

There are no Meta, TikTok or Google Analytics pixels right now. If we launch paid ads, we’ll update this policy first, and the site will ask for your consent before it loads any advertising or analytics pixel, in every country. The “Accept all” and “Essential only” buttons are equally visible, and you can change your mind through the “Cookie settings” link at the bottom of the page. We honor the Global Privacy Control signal. We never pass your color, test answers, spot or city to ad networks.

Requests to other services

When pages load, your browser contacts services that technically see your IP address: Google Fonts for fonts and a map service for map images. City and place search goes through our server to OpenStreetMap search, and we don’t link the query to you. We don’t pass any form data to these services.

7Who we share data with

We don’t sell data, don’t “share” it for advertising and don’t use it for advertising, ours or anyone else’s.

Contractors process data on our instructions and under contracts that forbid them to use it for their own purposes:

• hosting and database;
• email service: sending the emails in section 5;
• map and map search services.

Within Fleamily Inc., only the WCD team members who need the data for their work can access it, under a duty of confidentiality. Every action in the admin panel is logged.

We disclose data only when the law requires it (on a binding request from a court or a government authority), to establish or defend legal claims, or to protect someone’s life and health. And only to the extent this requires.

8Transfers to other countries

The site is open to people all over the world, so data may be processed on servers outside your country, including in the US and in EEA countries.

For people in the EEA, the UK and Switzerland, when data goes to countries without an adequacy decision, we use the European Commission’s Standard Contractual Clauses (SCC) and, where possible, the EU–U.S. Data Privacy Framework. You can request a copy of these safeguards at legal@fledge.love.

For people in Russia: by sending data through the site’s forms, you consent to its cross-border transfer for the purposes in section 3.

9How long we keep data

“WCD day” means the day a sign-up relates to: November 21, 2026, for sign-ups up to and including November 21, and February 13, 2027, for sign-ups from November 22 and for moves. If a sign-up, form or application is made after the last announced WCD day, we keep it for no longer than a year, and a news subscription until you unsubscribe.

When you tap “Delete my data”, we delete right away: we wipe your email, codes and links and cancel scheduled emails. Only numbers not linked to you remain in the statistics.

10Your rights

To the extent the law of your country provides, you can:

• find out what data we have about you and get a copy;
• correct inaccurate data;
• delete your data;
• restrict processing;
• object to processing based on legitimate interest;
• receive your data in a machine-readable format;
• withdraw consent (this does not affect the lawfulness of processing before the withdrawal);
• lodge a complaint with a supervisory authority.

How to delete your data

The fastest way is the “Delete my data” link in any email to participants or the button in “My WCD”: once you confirm, we delete right away. If you have no emails, or you need to delete a volunteer form, a venue application or a suggested place, write to legal@fledge.love with the subject “WCD — personal data” and include your email or the contact from the form.

Other requests

These also go to legal@fledge.love. We may ask a follow-up question to make sure the owner of the address is writing; we don’t ask for documents. We reply without undue delay and within 30 days at most.

Supervisory authorities: in the EEA and the UK, the data protection authority of the country where you live or work; in Russia, Roskomnadzor; in other countries, the authority under that country’s law. We’d appreciate it if you wrote to us first: it’s usually faster.

For residents of California and other US states. We don’t sell data or “share” it for advertising, don’t store precise geolocation and don’t use sensitive data. You can access, correct and delete your data as described above. We won’t discriminate against you for exercising these rights.

11Security

The whole site runs over HTTPS. Only those who need access to the server and database have it. Team members who can see email addresses and contacts sign in to the admin panel with two-factor authentication. We don’t separately encrypt contacts from complaints and volunteer forms: in the admin panel, only those who handle complaints and forms can see them, and a complaint notification with a contact goes only to the on-duty team. Links in emails are signed with a secret key, aren’t stored in the database and work for a limited time: 400 days for unsubscribe links, 90 days for all others. We store sign-in codes and form edit keys only as hashes. Team actions in the admin panel are logged.

No one can guarantee complete protection. If a data breach happens, we will notify the supervisory authority and you within the time the law requires.

12Age

Choosing a spot, leaving your email, suggesting a place and filling in the volunteer form are for people 18 and older; the forms have a separate checkbox for this. The test and the map of spots are open to any age and ask for no data.

If we learn that data was left by someone under 18, we delete it. A parent or legal guardian can write to us at legal@fledge.love.

13Automated decisions

We don’t make automated decisions that have legal or similarly significant effects on you, and we don’t build profiles.

• The color in the test is a game: it’s calculated in the browser and doesn’t affect anything.
• Suggested places are first checked by automated map-based rules, but a person publishes or rejects them. Our reply with the decision says whether automation was involved.
• The Stories card variant is assigned at random so we can compare variants. It doesn’t affect your participation.

14Changes to this policy

A new version appears on this page with a number and date. We’ll email people who get WCD emails about material changes (new purposes or new data), and we won’t apply them to data already collected without your consent. We’ll send past versions on request.

15Contact