Privacy Policy

Last Updated: March 26, 2025 Effective Date: April 10, 2025 Version: 2.0

Introduction

Welcome to We Are Distributed. We respect your privacy and are committed to protecting your personal data. This Privacy Policy explains how we collect, use, disclose, and safeguard your information when you use our products and services.

We Are Distributed is a career management platform and open-talent marketplace platform that connects talent (freelancers, contractors, job seekers) with employers through intelligent matching and dynamic career development tools. This Privacy Policy applies to all users of our platform, including both talent users and employer users.

Please read this Privacy Policy carefully. By accessing or using We Are Distributed, you acknowledge that you have read, understood, and agree to be bound by this Privacy Policy. If you do not agree with our policies and practices, please do not use our platform.

1. Important Information and Who We Are

1.1 Controller

We Are Distributed Ltd (referred to as "we," "us," or "our" in this Privacy Policy) is the controller and responsible for your personal data. We have appointed a data protection officer (DPO) who is responsible for overseeing questions in relation to this Privacy Policy. If you have any questions about this Privacy Policy, including any requests to exercise your legal rights, please contact the DPO using the details set out below.

1.2 Contact Details

Full name of legal entity: We Are Distributed Ltd
Name of DPO: David Oragui
Email address: support@wearedistributed.com

1.3 Changes to the Privacy Policy

We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time. Any changes will be posted on this page with an updated revision date. We will notify you of any material changes by email or through a notice on our platform prior to the change becoming effective. We encourage you to review this Privacy Policy periodically to stay informed about how we are protecting your information.

2. Data We Collect About You

We collect different types of information from and about users of our platform, depending on whether you are a talent user or an employer user.

2.1 Data Collected from Talent Users

If you are a talent user, we may collect, use, store, and transfer the following kinds of personal data:

2.1.1 Profile Information

• Identity Data: Name, username or similar identifier, profile image.
• Contact Data: Email address, telephone number, location.
• Professional Information: Skills, hourly rates, bio, title, availability, professional experience.
• Verification Data: Information provided for ID verification and skill verification.
• Portfolio Data: Work samples, career updates, certifications.

2.1.2 Account and Usage Information

• Account Data: Login credentials, password (stored in hashed format).
• Technical Data: Internet protocol (IP) address, browser type and version, time zone setting, operating system, and platform.
• Usage Data: Information about how you use our platform, including bidding history, messaging history, profile views, and participation in events.
• Privacy Settings: Your selected privacy controls, including anonymous mode settings, blocked visibility preferences, and notification preferences.‍
• Competitor Domains: Domains you wish to track or block.

2.2 Data Collected from Employer Users

If you are an employer user, we may collect, use, store, and transfer the following kinds of personal data:

2.2.1 Company Information

• Company Identity Data: Company name, logo, domain, industry, size, founded year, headquarters.
• Contact Data: Email address, telephone number, location.
• Professional Information: Company bio, team structure.

2.2.2 Account and Usage Information

• Account Data: Login credentials, password (stored in hashed format).
• Job Request Data: Information about job postings, project requirements, and task specifications.
• Bid Data: Offer and negotiation history with talent.
• Technical Data: Internet protocol (IP) address, browser type and version, time zone setting, operating system, and platform.
• Usage Data: Information about how you use our platform, including talent searching patterns, messaging history, and participation in events.

2.3 Automated Data Collection

When you visit, use, or navigate our platform, we may also collect certain information automatically:

2.3.1 Technical Information

• Information collected automatically through cookies and similar technologies
• Browser and device information
• IP address
• Operating system
• Referring URLs

2.3.2 Usage Information

• Pages or content you view
• Search queries
• Features you use
• Time spent on the platform
• Interaction with other users

2.4 Data We Do Not Collect

• Payment Card Details: We do not directly collect or store your credit card or other payment card details. Payments are processed through our payment processor, Stripe.
• Special Categories of Personal Data: We do not collect any Special Categories of Personal Data about you (this includes details about your race or ethnicity, religious or philosophical beliefs, sex life, sexual orientation, political opinions, trade union membership, information about your health, and genetic and biometric data) unless you explicitly choose to provide such information in your profile.

3. How We Collect Your Data

We use different methods to collect data from and about you including through:

3.1 Direct Interactions

You may give us your personal data by:

• Creating an account and filling in forms on our platform
• Building your profile
• Posting job requests
• Sending bids or offers
• Communicating with other users via our platform
• Subscribing to our service
• Participating in events
• Contacting us

3.2 Automated Technologies or Interactions

As you interact with our platform, we may automatically collect technical data about your equipment, browsing actions, and patterns using cookies, server logs, and other similar technologies.

3.3 Third Parties or Publicly Available Sources

We may receive personal data about you from various third parties and public sources:

• Technical data from analytics providers, advertising networks, and search information providers
• Skill verification information from third-party verification providers
• Company information from business databases for employer users
• Job listing information from external sources like Airtable

4. How We Use Your Data

We will only use your personal data when the law allows us to do so. Most commonly, we will use your personal data in the following circumstances:

4.1 General Uses for All Users

• To create and manage your account
• To provide and maintain our platform
• To notify you about changes to our platform or terms
• To enable you to communicate with other users
• To respond to your inquiries and provide customer support
• To enforce our terms, conditions, and policies
• To improve our platform and develop new features
• To provide personalized user experience
• To send you service-related communications
• To ensure platform security and prevent fraud

4.2 Specific Uses for Talent Users

• To create and maintain your talent profile
• To match you with relevant job opportunities
• To enable employers to find and contact you based on your skills and preferences
• To process and manage bids and offers
• To facilitate verification of your skills and identity
• To enable anonymous mode when requested
• To implement blocked visibility preferences
• To showcase your career updates and portfolio items
• To enable participation in talent collectives

4.3 Specific Uses for Employer Users

• To create and maintain your employer profile
• To post job requests and find relevant talent
• To process and manage bids and offers
• To manage your team members' access
• To monitor usage and quota for subscription plans
• To provide analytics on talent engagement
• To enable participation in hiring events
• To recommend EOR (Employer of Record) providers for international hiring

4.4 Marketing and Communications

We may use your personal data to form a view on what we think you may want or need, or what may be of interest to you. You will receive marketing communications from us if you have requested information from us, subscribed to our service, or if you provided us with your details when registering for a promotion and, in each case, you have not opted out of receiving marketing.

You can ask us to stop sending you marketing messages at any time by following the opt-out links on any marketing message sent to you or by contacting us at any time.

5. Anonymous Mode and Privacy Controls

We Are Dustributed offers enhanced privacy features to talent users, including:

5.1 Anonymous Mode

When you enable Anonymous Mode:

• Your real name is replaced with an algorithmically generated anonymous name
• Your profile image is replaced with an abstract generated image
• Your identity is protected while your skills and experience remain visible
• All profile analytics and activity tracking still function, but with your anonymous identity
• Messages and bids are still associated with your account but display your anonymous identity

5.2 Blocked Visibility

Talent users can:

• Block specific companies or domains from viewing their profile
• Prevent specific employers from finding them in search results
• Maintain control over who can contact them

5.3 Platform Visibility Controls

All users can control:

• Whether to appear in the Talent Explorer (for talent users)
• Whether skills are discoverable in the Skills Database
• Whether to allow direct messages
• Notification preferences for different types of platform activities

6. Disclosures of Your Personal Data

We may share your personal data with the following categories of recipients:

6.1 Platform Users

• For Talent Users: Your profile information is shared with employer users according to your privacy settings. If you enable anonymous mode, your real identity is not disclosed.
• For Employer Users: Your company information is shared with talent users who interact with your job postings or receive bids from you.
• For All Users: Your messages and bids are shared with the specific users you communicate with.

6.2 Service Providers

We share your information with service providers who perform services on our behalf, including:

• Stripe: For payment processing (subscription management)
• Postmark: For email communications
• Neon.tech: For database hosting
• Analytics Providers: To help us understand platform usage
• Hosting Providers: For platform infrastructure

6.3 Professional Advisers

We may share your information with professional advisers including lawyers, bankers, auditors, and insurers who provide consultancy, banking, legal, insurance, and accounting services.

6.4 Authorities and Others

We may disclose your information when required by law or in response to valid requests by public authorities (e.g., a court or a government agency).

6.5 Business Transfers

In connection with any merger, sale of company assets, financing, or acquisition of all or a portion of our business by another company, user information may be one of the transferred assets.

7. International Transfers

Our platform is hosted and operated in the United States. If you are located outside of the United States, your information may be transferred to, stored, and processed in the United States or other countries where our service providers maintain facilities. By using our platform, you consent to such transfer of your personal information.

We ensure appropriate safeguards are in place for data transfers where required by applicable law, including:

• Standard Contractual Clauses approved by the European Commission
• Ensuring third-party service providers are Privacy Shield certified (where applicable)
• Obtaining your explicit consent for certain transfers

8. Data Security

We have implemented appropriate security measures to protect the security of your personal data, including:

• Storing passwords using scrypt hashing with salt
• Using secure, session-based authentication
• Employing HTTPS across our platform
• Implementing access controls for internal systems
• Regular security monitoring and testing

While we strive to use commercially acceptable means to protect your personal data, no method of transmission over the Internet or method of electronic storage is 100% secure. Therefore, we cannot guarantee its absolute security.

9. Data Retention

We will only retain your personal data for as long as necessary to fulfill the purposes we collected it for, including for the purposes of satisfying any legal, accounting, or reporting requirements.

9.1 Retention Periods

• Account Data: We retain this information for the duration of your account plus 2 years after account deletion (for legal compliance and backup purposes).
• Profile Information: Retained for the duration of your account.
• Communications: Messages between users are retained for 3 years from the date of the message.
• Job Requests: Retained for 2 years after posting.
• Bid and Offer History: Retained for 5 years for contract record purposes.
• Usage Data: Retained in anonymized form for analytics purposes.

9.2 Account Deletion

When you delete your account:

• Your profile is no longer visible to other users
• Your personal information is removed from our active databases
• Certain data may be retained in anonymized form for analytics
• Some information may be retained for legal compliance and legitimate business purposes (such as billing records)

To request deletion of your account, please contact us at support@wearedistributed.org.

10. Your Legal Rights

Depending on your location, you may have certain rights regarding your personal data:

10.1 For Users in the European Economic Area (EEA), UK, and Similar Jurisdictions

You have the following rights under the GDPR and similar regulations:

• Right to Access: Request access to your personal data.
• Right to Rectification: Request correction of inaccurate data.
• Right to Erasure: Request deletion of your personal data.
• Right to Restrict Processing: Request restriction of processing of your data.
• Right to Data Portability: Request transfer of your data.
• Right to Object: Object to processing of your personal data.
• Right to Withdraw Consent: Withdraw consent where processing is based on consent.

10.2 For California Residents

Under the California Consumer Privacy Act (CCPA/CPRA), you have rights including:

• Right to Know: Request disclosure of personal information we collect and share.
• Right to Delete: Request deletion of your personal information.
• Right to Opt-Out: Opt-out of the sale or sharing of your personal information.
• Right to Non-Discrimination: Not be discriminated against for exercising these rights.

10.3 For All Users

Regardless of location, you can:

• Access and Update: View and update your account information through your profile settings.
• Notification Controls: Manage notification preferences in settings.
• Communication Preferences: Opt-out of marketing communications.
• Anonymous Mode: Enable or disable as described in Section 5.

10.4 How to Exercise Your Rights

To exercise your data protection rights, please submit a request by:

• Emailing us at support@wearedistributed.org
• Using the contact information in Section 1.2

We may need to request specific information from you to help us confirm your identity and ensure your right to access your personal data. This is a security measure to ensure that personal data is not disclosed to any person who has no right to receive it.

We try to respond to all legitimate requests within 30 days. Occasionally it may take us longer if your request is particularly complex or you have made a number of requests.

11. Cookies and Tracking Technologies

11.1 What Are Cookies

Cookies are small data files that are placed on your computer or mobile device when you visit a website. We use cookies and similar tracking technologies to track activity on our platform and hold certain information.

11.2 Types of Cookies We Use

• Essential Cookies: Required for the operation of our platform. These include cookies for authentication, security, and basic functionality.
• Analytical/Performance Cookies: Allow us to recognize and count the number of visitors and see how visitors move around our platform.
• Functionality Cookies: Enable us to personalize your experience by remembering your preferences.
• Targeting Cookies: Record your visit to our platform, the pages you have visited, and the links you have followed.

11.3 Managing Cookies

Most web browsers allow control of cookies through browser settings. To find out more about cookies, including how to see what cookies have been set and how to manage and delete them, visit www.aboutcookies.org or www.allaboutcookies.org.

12. Children's Privacy

Our platform is not intended for children. If we learn we have collected or received personal data from a person under 18 without verification of parental consent, we will delete that information. If you believe we might have any information from or about a person under 18, please contact us.

13. Third-Party Links

Our platform may include links to third-party websites, plug-ins, and applications. Clicking on those links or enabling those connections may allow third parties to collect or share data about you. We do not control these third-party websites and are not responsible for their privacy statements. When you leave our platform, we encourage you to read the privacy policy of every website you visit.

14. Contact Information

If you have any questions or concerns about this Privacy Policy or our data practices, please contact us:

Email: hello@wearedistributed.org