Effective as of: 3/9/2026
Civie LLC ("Civie," "we," "us," or "our") is committed to protecting privacy and supporting anonymous civic participation. This Privacy Policy explains how we collect, use, and safeguard information when you use our Service.
Phone numbers are stored in Firebase Authentication and are not stored in your user profile document in Firestore.
SMS messaging: SMS messages are informational only and include daily question reminders when you haven't answered yet, account-related notifications, and participation reminders. Message frequency is typically up to one message per day when SMS reminders are enabled. We do not send marketing promotions via SMS. We only message users who have opted in through the Civie website and do not use third-party lead lists.
No mobile information will be shared with third parties/affiliates for marketing/promotional purposes at any time. Your phone number, SMS opt-in consent, and any data collected in connection with SMS (including authentication and reminders) are used only to operate the Service. We do not sell, rent, or share this information with third parties or affiliates for their marketing or promotional purposes.
Identity Verification Data: If you choose to verify your identity using Persona (optional), Persona processes your government-issued ID documents according to their privacy policy. Civie does not store copies of your identity documents. We only store the Persona inquiry ID and verification status (approved, pending, failed, etc.) that Persona provides to us.
This demographic information is required to participate and can be collected in two ways:
This information is used solely for verification purposes and anonymized demographic aggregation. It is stored in your user account document and is also included (without identifiers) in anonymous response records for aggregation purposes.
Civie uses a dual-storage architecture designed to protect anonymity:
User Account Document (Stored in Firestore):
Anonymous Response Collection (Stored separately in Firestore):
This architecture ensures that your user account cannot be linked to your specific answers. We can see that you participated, but not what you answered. We can see what was answered, but not who answered it.
Real-Time Updates: Response data is aggregated and displayed in real-time as users submit answers. Aggregated results update automatically to reflect new responses, but individual responses remain anonymous and cannot be linked to specific users.
We process your personal information based on the following legal bases, as applicable under GDPR, CCPA, and other privacy laws:
For sensitive personal information (such as race/ethnicity), we rely on your explicit consent, which you provide when you complete the verification process.
Data Minimization and Purpose Limitation: We collect and process only the personal information that is necessary for the purposes described in this Privacy Policy. We do not collect more information than needed, and we use your information only for the purposes for which it was collected, as described in Section 4.
Automated Decision-Making: We do not use automated decision-making or profiling that produces legal effects concerning you or similarly significantly affects you. All processing is done to provide the Service, aggregate responses, and maintain data integrity.
We use the information we collect for the following purposes:
We do NOT use your information to:
Certain demographic attributes may be considered sensitive under privacy laws. We collect this information only with explicit consent and solely for anonymized aggregation.
Civie uses a dual-storage architecture specifically designed to prevent association between user accounts and individual responses:
users/{user-id}): Store only participation status (boolean true) indicating you engaged with a question on a given date. If you did not engage, the key does not exist (undefined). These documents do NOT store which answer you selected, whether you skipped, or when you answered.answers/{date}/responses): Store the specific answer selected, demographic data, and timestamp, but contain NO user identifiers, account IDs, email addresses, phone numbers, or names.This design means that even with full database access, it is not possible to determine which specific answer any individual user selected. We can only see that you participated, not what you answered.
When you answer or skip a question:
answers["2024-01-15-1"]: true for each question)While Civie is designed to maximize anonymity, no technical system can guarantee absolute anonymity. Theoretical risks include: correlation attacks using demographic combinations, timing analysis, or future advances in re-identification techniques. However, our architecture is specifically designed to minimize these risks and prevent practical re-identification.
Data is stored using the following infrastructure:
While we implement industry-standard security measures, no method of transmission over the Internet or electronic storage is 100% secure. We cannot guarantee absolute security of your information. You use the Service at your own risk.
In the event of a data breach that compromises your personal information, we will:
Notification will be provided via email to the address associated with your account, or through the Service if email is not available. In cases where notification may pose a security risk, we may delay notification as permitted by law.
Third-Party Service Breaches: If a third-party service provider (such as Persona, Firebase, Twilio, or Vercel) experiences a data breach that affects your information, that service provider is responsible for notifying affected users according to their own privacy policies and applicable legal requirements. We will also notify you if we become aware of such a breach that significantly impacts your data.
Mobile and SMS data: No mobile information will be shared with third parties/affiliates for marketing/promotional purposes at any time. Opt-in and consent data related to SMS are not sold, shared, or disclosed to third parties or affiliates for marketing or promotional purposes.
Only anonymized, aggregated data may be shared or published.
We use the following third-party service providers to operate the Service:
These service providers are contractually restricted in their use of data and are only permitted to use data as necessary to provide services to us. They are not permitted to use your personal information for their own marketing purposes or to sell your information.
Information may be disclosed as required by law or during corporate transactions.
Some questions on Civie may be sponsored by external organizations. A Sponsored Question is a neutral, issue-based question funded by an external organization, written and moderated by Civie, and not explicitly branded in the question itself.
Data Handling: Sponsored questions are handled identically to non-sponsored questions. Your responses to sponsored questions are processed, stored, and aggregated in exactly the same manner as responses to non-sponsored questions. There are no special data handling practices, privacy implications, or data sharing arrangements for sponsored questions.
Sponsor Access: Sponsors receive only anonymized, aggregated data (counts, percentages, demographic breakdowns) - the same aggregated data that is publicly available. Sponsors do not receive individual responses, personal information, or any data that could identify individual users. Sponsors cannot access your account information, demographic data, or any personally identifiable information.
Editorial Control: Civie retains full editorial control over all questions, including sponsored questions. Sponsors do not control question wording, answer options, or interpretation of results. Sponsored questions appear identical to non-sponsored questions in layout and user experience.
Sponsored questions are clearly disclosed in the user interface. By participating in sponsored questions, you acknowledge that aggregated results may be shared with the sponsoring organization in the same anonymized, aggregated form that is publicly available.
You may access and update account information through your account settings and profile, or by contacting us at chris@civie.org or through the contact form on the Service.
You may request deletion of your account at any time. Upon account deletion:
This design protects both your anonymity and the integrity of the aggregated civic datasets. Once your account is deleted, there is no way to link you to any specific responses in the anonymous collection.
You may request a copy of your account data by contacting us at chris@civie.org or through the contact form on the Service.
You may opt out of non-essential communications. You can manage your email and SMS notification preferences in your account settings, including opting out of daily reminders. You may also opt out of SMS at any time by replying STOP to any Civie text message. Essential service communications (such as account security notifications) may still be sent.
Depending on your location, you may have additional privacy rights:
To exercise any of these rights, please contact us at chris@civie.org or through the contact form on the Service. We will respond within the timeframes required by applicable law and may need to verify your identity before processing your request.
You can control cookies through your browser settings. However, disabling essential cookies may prevent you from using certain features of the Service. We do not use cookies for advertising or third-party tracking purposes.
Some browsers include a "Do Not Track" (DNT) feature that signals to websites you visit that you do not want to have your online activity tracked. Currently, there is no industry standard for recognizing or honoring DNT signals. We do not respond to DNT signals at this time. However, we do not track your activity across other websites or services, and we only use cookies and tracking technologies as described in this Privacy Policy.
The Service is not intended for, and we do not knowingly collect personal information from, individuals under the age of 18. If you are under 18, you must not use the Service or provide any personal information.
If we become aware that we have collected personal information from an individual under 18, we will immediately delete that information and terminate the account. If you believe we have collected information from someone under 18, please contact us immediately.
We comply with the Children's Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA) and do not knowingly collect information from children under 13. If you are a parent or guardian and believe your child has provided us with personal information, please contact us to have it removed.
Account data (user profile, demographic information, participation records, Persona inquiry ID and verification status if applicable) is retained while your account is active. Upon account deletion, account data is permanently deleted as described in Section 10.2.
Anonymous response records are retained indefinitely in the anonymous collection. These records cannot be deleted upon account deletion because they contain no user identifiers and are essential for maintaining aggregated datasets. This retention is necessary to preserve dataset integrity and support long-term civic research.
Published aggregated datasets (CSV files, visualizations, statistics) are retained indefinitely as part of Civie's mission to provide open civic data for research and public understanding.
Usage logs, analytics data, and security logs are retained for operational, security, and legal compliance purposes, typically for a period not exceeding 12 months unless required by law or for security investigations.
Your information may be transferred to and processed in countries other than your country of residence, including the United States where our service providers (Google Cloud, Firebase, Twilio, Persona, Vercel) operate.
These countries may have data protection laws that differ from those in your country. When we transfer personal information from the European Economic Area (EEA) or other regions with data protection laws, we rely on appropriate safeguards, including:
By using the Service, you consent to the transfer of your information to the United States and other countries where our service providers operate.
Civie will never:
We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time to reflect changes in our practices, technology, legal requirements, or other factors. Material changes will be communicated to you through:
Your continued use of the Service after such modifications constitutes your acceptance of the updated Privacy Policy. If you do not agree to the modified Privacy Policy, you must stop using the Service and may delete your account.
We encourage you to review this Privacy Policy periodically to stay informed about how we collect, use, and protect your information.
For privacy-related questions, data access requests, correction requests, deletion requests, or other privacy concerns, please contact us at:
We will respond to privacy requests within the timeframes required by applicable law (typically 30-45 days, depending on your jurisdiction and the nature of the request).
Data Controller Information: If you are located in the European Economic Area (EEA), the data controller is Civie LLC. For questions about data processing or to exercise your GDPR rights, please contact us at the email address above.