Privacy Policy

1. Information we receive

Accounts and applications: names, contact details, age, gender, occupation, city, Companion photo and documents, languages, experience, availability and proposed rate, or Career Seeker/Advisor details such as role, field, goals, LinkedIn URL and budget.

Requests and service: your written or speech-to-text description, preferred format, time, general location, duration, offered rate, whether you allow gender to appear in an invitation, responses, booking, service start/end and location, feedback, and safety reports. A free-text request could reveal health, pregnancy, family, or other sensitive circumstances; please include only what is needed for matching.

Transactions and technical records: amounts, payment status and processor references, AN Credits records, email/SMS delivery information, IP address, browser/device details, request logs, security events, and locally saved session drafts. AlongNow does not ask for full card numbers in its own request forms; a payment processor handles checkout details.

2. How we use information

We use information to create profiles, review applications, prepare private matching briefs, invite suitable Companions, show responses to Clients, calculate prices, process payments, maintain service and AN Credits records, communicate service updates, review concerns, secure and improve the platform, and meet legal obligations. AlongNow does not use your request to provide clinical diagnosis or treatment.

3. AI-assisted matching

When configured, AlongNow may send the request text, meeting preferences, general area, budget, approximate age range, gender only if the Client chose to share it, and relevant Companion profile details to an AI service provider (currently an OpenAI API) to create a limited brief and rank candidates. The brief is designed to omit direct contact details and the exact address, but circumstances can sometimes identify a person indirectly and automated output can be imperfect. A rules-based fallback may be used. AI matching is not a clinical or crisis assessment.

4. Who receives information

Invited Companions may see a limited request brief with approximate area, format, timing, duration and rate. After a match is confirmed, the participants may receive information needed to carry out the booking. Clients see responding Companions’ relevant public profile details, not private application documents. AlongNow’s authorized operators may access information needed for review, matching, payment and support.

Providers may process data needed for hosting and storage, AI analysis, email delivery, SMS, and payment. The current integration may use OpenAI, Resend, Twilio, Stripe and PayPal where configured. Their own notices may apply when you use their interfaces. We may disclose information when required by law, for a legitimate safety or fraud inquiry, or as part of a business transfer subject to applicable law.

5. Payments, messages and device storage

Stripe or PayPal, when available, processes the payment details you enter; AlongNow retains transaction amounts, status and references. Service emails and SMS may include application decisions, activation information, or invitations. SMS delivery depends on provider availability and your carrier. Contact us to stop optional messages; stopping necessary service messages may affect participation.

The quick-request form may keep a temporary draft in your browser session storage. Hosting and sign-in infrastructure may use cookies or logs needed to operate and protect the service. Browser speech recognition may process audio under your browser or device provider’s practices; the request form is designed to submit the resulting text rather than store the original recording. You can type instead.

6. Retention

AlongNow’s policy is to retain application materials, booking and service records, and safety reports for seven years after account closure, unless earlier deletion is appropriate or law, a pending dispute, or another valid obligation requires longer retention. During an active account, we retain information needed to operate the service. Other information, including unapproved applications without an account, request narratives, routine communications, technical logs and browser drafts, is kept only as long as needed for its purpose, security, dispute resolution and applicable legal duties. We delete or de-identify information when it is no longer needed, subject to valid exceptions.

7. Your choices and requests

You may ask to access, correct, or delete your information, or to close your account, by emailing info@alongnow.com with “Privacy Request” in the subject line. We may verify your identity before disclosing or changing records and explain applicable exceptions. Rights under California or other privacy laws apply where those laws cover AlongNow. We will not unlawfully discriminate for exercising a privacy right. You can also choose not to provide optional information, though some details are necessary to request a match or apply.

8. Security, age and changes

AlongNow uses access controls and service-provider infrastructure, but no online system is completely secure. Do not email passwords or payment-card numbers. AlongNow is intended only for adults 18 and older and does not knowingly collect information from children through this service. Contact us if you believe a minor submitted information. We will post material changes with a new effective date and provide additional notice where required.

9. Contact

AlongNow · 1445 Brookmill Road, Los Altos, CA 94024 · info@alongnow.com.