TREES.APP PRIVACY POLICY

1. INFORMATION WE COLLECT

We do not intentionally collect sensitive categories of data such as racial or ethnic origin, political opinions, or precise geolocation. We may process information that is considered sensitive under certain laws, including account credentials, government-ID or tax identifiers, and identity, fraud, or sanctions-screening information. We use such information only as reasonably necessary to verify eligibility, secure accounts, process payouts, prevent fraud and misuse, comply with law, and operate the Service. We do not use sensitive personal information to infer characteristics about you.

When you enable bandwidth sharing, your internet connection and IP address are used to route internet traffic for our business customers, so that the websites and services they reach see your IP address instead of theirs. We do not monitor, inspect, or log the content of your own internet use, and we do not share your name or identity with those customers. For more information on how bandwidth sharing works, see our Terms of Service.

2. HOW WE USE YOUR INFORMATION; LEGAL BASES FOR PROCESSING

3. COOKIES AND SIMILAR TECHNOLOGIES

We use cookies and similar technologies to operate our website, remember your preferences, understand how visitors use the Service, and measure performance. We use the following categories of cookies:

• Strictly Necessary Cookies. These cookies are necessary for the operation, security, and functionality of our website, including storing your cookie preferences. They are always active, cannot be disabled through our Cookie Settings, and do not require your consent.
• Analytics Cookies. With your prior consent, we use performance and analytics cookies to understand how you interact with the Service, measure performance, test functionality, and improve our website.

Non-essential cookies and similar technologies are disabled by default and are activated only after you consent to the relevant category. You can accept or reject non-essential cookies, or withdraw your consent at any time through the Cookie Settings in the footer of our website. Withdrawing consent does not affect processing carried out before withdrawal. You may also configure your browser to block or delete cookies. However, blocking strictly necessary cookies may affect the operation of our website.

Some cookies are placed by third-party providers that support the operation and analytics of our website. These providers process personal data subject to their own applicable terms and privacy information. We remain responsible for our own use of these technologies and for obtaining consent where required.

A current list of the cookies and similar technologies used on our website, including their providers, purposes, categories, and durations, is available through the Cookie Settings.

4. DISCLOSURE OF INFORMATION

We disclose personal information to the following categories of recipients:

• Proxidize and its business customers: When you enable bandwidth sharing, we disclose your public IP address and a pseudonymous account identifier, such as a hashed email address or internal user identifier, to Proxidize Ltd. Proxidize uses this information to connect your device to the bandwidth-sharing network, route and account for traffic, make the shared connection available through its proxy services, measure usage, support the calculation of rewards, operate and secure its network, investigate suspected misuse or complaints, and comply with applicable law.

As part of providing its proxy services, Proxidize may make your public IP address available to its business customers. Those customers, and the websites and online services they access through your connection, will see your public IP address. Trees.App does not provide Proxidize’s business customers with your name, unhashed email address, government-issued identification information, or other direct account details.

Sales and targeted advertising under U.S. state privacy laws: We do not disclose personal information for cross-context behavioral advertising or targeted advertising. However, because a public IP address is transferred as part of the commercial bandwidth-sharing arrangement, applicable U.S. state privacy laws may treat these transfers as a sale of personal information. You can stop future transfers associated with bandwidth sharing at any time by disabling bandwidth sharing in the Service. Where applicable law provides an additional right to opt out, you may also submit a request as described in the “Your Rights” section below.

• Service Providers: Trusted vendors that host infrastructure, process payments, detect fraud, or provide analytics, bound by confidentiality obligations. We also work with service providers who help us with identity verification and sanctions screening. We require service providers to process personal information only for the purposes of providing their services to us and subject to appropriate confidentiality, security, and data-protection obligations.
• Business Transfers: In connection with a merger, acquisition, or asset sale, subject to standard protections.
• Government Authorities or Other Third Parties: (i) If required to do so to comply with a legal obligation, or in the good faith belief that such action is necessary to comply with a legal obligation; (ii) to protect and defend our rights or property; (iii) where reasonably necessary and permitted or required by law, where there is a violation of our terms, policies, or the law; (iv) to detect or prevent fraud or other illegal activity; (v) to protect the safety, security, and integrity of our Service, employees, or other users; or (vi) to protect us against legal liability.
• With Your Direction: For example, when you link a payout provider or use a referral link.

5. INTERNATIONAL DATA TRANSFERS

Trees Research Inc. is headquartered in the United States. Your personal data may be processed in the United States and in other countries where our service providers or we operate. Where data is transferred outside the EEA, the United Kingdom, or Switzerland, we rely on safeguards permitted by applicable law, including adequacy decisions, Standard Contractual Clauses, or another lawful mechanism to protect it. You may contact us using the contact details below to learn more or request a copy of the relevant safeguards.

6. DATA RETENTION

We keep personal data only as long as needed for the purposes described above, taking into account the nature and sensitivity of the data, the risks associated with retaining it, applicable legal requirements, and whether the purpose can be achieved by other means.

• Account data: Stored while your account is active and for up to 3 years after closure for legal or dispute-resolution purposes.
• Financial records: Retained for the period required under tax and accounting regulations (typically 7 years).
• Diagnostics logs: Aggregated or deleted within 12 months.
• Identity and compliance records: For as long as needed to document verification, sanctions-screening, payout, fraud-prevention, and compliance decisions, subject to the applicable legal and contractual retention period.
• Security, abuse, and traffic metadata: Retained for up to 24 months where reasonably necessary to identify patterns, investigate complaints, prevent repeat misuse, secure the Service, or establish or defend legal claims.

We periodically review retention periods and anonymize or delete data that is no longer required.

7. YOUR RIGHTS

Depending on your location, you may have rights to:

• Know whether we process your personal data and request information about the categories and specific pieces of personal data we have collected about you, the categories of sources, our purposes for collecting, using, selling, or sharing it, and the categories of third parties to which it is disclosed.
• Access a copy of your personal data.
• Request correction of inaccurate data.
• Request deletion of your data, subject to lawful exceptions.
• Object to or restrict certain processing, including processing based on legitimate interests and direct marketing.
• Port your data to another service where technically feasible.
• Limit certain uses or disclosures of sensitive personal data, where applicable.
• Opt out of the sale of personal data, targeted advertising, and profiling in furtherance of decisions that produce legal or similarly significant effects.
• Withdraw consent at any time where processing is based on consent.
• Lodge a complaint with a supervisory authority if you believe that we have processed your personal information in breach of applicable data protection laws.
• Exercise these rights without being discriminated against, and appeal a decision on your request where your state provides an appeal right.

Submit requests by email to [email protected]. We will verify your identity and respond within the timeframe required by law. If you use an authorized agent to submit a request on your behalf (where permitted by law), we may require proof of the agent’s authority (such as a signed authorization letter or valid power of attorney), and for certain requests, verification of your identity directly with us.

If we decline to act on your request, we will tell you why. Where your state provides a right to appeal, you may appeal by emailing us at [email protected]. We will respond in writing within the time required by applicable law (generally within 45 to 60 days) and explain our decision. If we deny your appeal, you may submit a complaint to your state Attorney General.

8. SECURITY

We employ commercially reasonable administrative, technical, and physical safeguards to protect information, including encryption in transit and least-privilege access controls. No system is completely secure; we encourage you to use strong passwords and keep credentials confidential.

9. CHILDREN’S PRIVACY

The Service is not directed to children under 18. We do not knowingly collect personal data from minors. If you believe a minor has provided us with personal data, contact us, and we will promptly delete it.

10. CHANGES TO THIS POLICY

We may update this Policy from time to time. We will post the updated version and revise the “Last updated” date. If changes are material, we will notify you by email or in-app notice at least 30 days before the updated Policy takes effect.

11. CONTACT US

Trees Research Inc.
447 Broadway 2nd Floor Suite
#3153, New York, NY 10013, United States.
Email: [email protected]