Privacy Policy
1. Who we are
Ghost Smart Homes ("Ghost Smart Homes," "we," "us," "our") operates this website (the "Site") and its subdomains (collectively, the "Sites"), including ghostsmarthomes.com, managed.ghostsmarthomes.com, and the per-service-line subdomains. We are based in Vista, California, USA.
For privacy questions: privacy@ghostsmarthomes.com.
2. What this policy covers
This policy explains what personal information we collect through the Sites, how we use it, who we share it with, how long we keep it, and your rights. It applies to information we collect on these websites. When and if you sign up for a Ghost Smart Homes Managed service, additional terms in our service agreement and a separate Customer Privacy Policy will apply to data we receive from your home or systems.
3. Information we collect
3.1 Information you give us directly
- Waitlist signups: the email address you submit on a Site form. Optional fields if added in the future will be clearly labeled.
- Refundable deposits: if you make a $50 founders' deposit, our payment processor (Stripe) collects payment information. Stripe is the data controller for that payment data. We receive a confirmation including your email, the line you signed up for, and the last four digits of your card — never your full card number.
- Bookings: if you book a free audit or review through Calendly, Calendly collects your name, email, and any answers you give to its intake questions, then shares them with us.
- Direct contact: if you email us, we receive your message and reply-to address.
3.2 Information collected automatically
- Server-side request data: when you load a Site, our hosting provider (Cloudflare) and our analytics tool log standard request data including IP address, user agent, referrer, page requested, and timestamp. This is used to operate the Sites and detect abuse.
- Form-submission metadata: when you submit a waitlist form we record the submission time, your IP address, your user agent, the page you submitted from, and any UTM tracking parameters in the URL. This helps us understand which channels work and detect spam.
- Analytics: we use a privacy-respecting analytics product (currently Cloudflare Web Analytics or Plausible — neither sets cross-site tracking cookies). We see aggregate page views, referrers, and country-level location. We do not use Google Analytics, Meta Pixel, or any cross-site advertising tracker.
3.3 What we do not collect on these Sites
- Sensor readings, camera footage, voice recordings, or any data from your home — there's no service yet, and even when there is, those will live on your hardware in your accounts, never our metric database. See the (future) Customer Privacy Policy for details.
- Race, religion, health, or other special-category data.
- Information about children under 16 — these Sites aren't directed to children.
4. How we use your information
- To run the waitlist and service-line validation — emailing you when there's something concrete to share, when our service launches, or when we have a relevant pilot opportunity.
- To operate the Sites — security, debugging, abuse prevention.
- To improve marketing and product decisions — understanding which service lines and pages generate interest. Aggregate level only.
- To respond to you — replying to emails, scheduling calls, processing your refundable deposit.
- To comply with the law — when we're legally required.
We do not use your data to train AI models. We do not sell your data. We do not "share" your data for cross-context behavioral advertising as defined under the California Consumer Privacy Act.
5. Who we share your information with
The Sites use a small number of third-party service providers who process data on our behalf under contractual obligations:
- Cloudflare — hosting, DNS, CDN, edge functions, KV storage of waitlist signups, analytics. Located in the U.S.
- Resend (or equivalent transactional-email provider) — sending notification emails. Located in the U.S.
- Stripe — payment processing for refundable deposits. Located in the U.S.
- Calendly — booking software for free audits/reviews. Located in the U.S.
- Google Workspace — our business email, including any messages you send us. Located in the U.S.
We may share information with these providers only to the extent needed for them to perform their function. We may also disclose information if compelled by valid legal process, to enforce our terms, or to protect rights, property, or safety.
If we are ever acquired or merge, your information may be transferred to the successor entity, subject to this policy.
6. How long we keep it
- Waitlist emails: until you unsubscribe or ask us to delete you, or until the relevant service line is shut down (whichever is sooner).
- Deposit and payment records: seven (7) years to comply with U.S. tax and accounting requirements.
- Server logs and analytics: 30 days for raw logs; aggregated analytics may be retained indefinitely.
- Support email: as long as the conversation is operationally relevant, then archived per our retention schedule (typically 2 years).
7. Your rights
7.1 Everyone
You can ask us to:
- Access a copy of the data we hold on you.
- Correct inaccurate data.
- Delete your data (we'll keep payment records for legal reasons but will delete the rest).
- Stop emailing you — every marketing email has an unsubscribe link, or just reply "unsubscribe."
- Port your data — we'll give you a JSON or CSV copy.
Email privacy@ghostsmarthomes.com with "Privacy Request" in the subject. We aim to respond within 30 days. Free of charge unless requests are excessive.
7.2 California residents (CCPA / CPRA)
You have the right to know what personal information we collect, to delete it, to correct it, to opt out of "sale" or "sharing" (we don't do either), and to limit use of sensitive personal information (we don't collect any). Submit requests using the contact above. We will not discriminate against you for exercising these rights.
7.3 EU/EEA/UK residents (GDPR / UK GDPR)
Our lawful bases are: (a) consent (waitlist signups, marketing emails — withdrawable any time); (b) contract (processing your deposit); (c) legitimate interests (running and securing the Sites, operating analytics). You also have the right to object to processing, to lodge a complaint with your supervisory authority, and to be informed of significant changes.
8. Cookies and similar technologies
The Sites use:
- Strictly necessary session storage to remember form state. No cross-site tracking.
- Privacy-respecting analytics that does not set tracking cookies and does not identify individuals.
We do not use advertising cookies, fingerprinting, or third-party trackers.
9. Security
We protect your information with industry-standard measures including TLS encryption in transit, encrypted storage, access controls, and least-privilege principles. No system is perfectly secure. If we ever experience a breach affecting your personal information, we will notify you and the relevant authorities as required by law.
10. Children
The Sites aren't directed to children under 16. If you believe a child has submitted information, email us and we'll delete it.
11. International users
The Sites are operated from the United States. If you're outside the U.S., understand that your data will be transferred to and processed in the U.S. By using the Sites you consent to that transfer. We rely on Standard Contractual Clauses where required.
12. Changes to this policy
We will update this policy as our practices evolve. Material changes will be communicated by email (to anyone on our list) and by an updated effective date at the top. Continued use of the Sites after a change means you accept the updated policy.
13. Contact
Ghost Smart Homes
Vista, California, USA
Email: privacy@ghostsmarthomes.com