Privacy policy

Who we are

GearScout operates GearScout, an independent sports-gear buying-guide website published at https://www.gearscouted.com. For privacy questions, contact us at hello@gearscouted.com.

Information we collect

Depending on how you use the site, we may collect:

• Information you provide. If you subscribe to our newsletter, we collect your email address. If you contact us, we collect the information you include in your message.
• Usage and device data. When you visit our site, we may collect technical information such as your browser type, device type, operating system, approximate location (derived from IP address), pages viewed, and referring URL. We collect this through analytics tools only when you consent to analytics cookies (see our cookie policy).
• Cookie and consent data. We store your cookie preferences locally so we can honor your choices on return visits.

We do not knowingly collect sensitive personal information (such as health records, government IDs, or payment card numbers) through this website. Purchases you make through retailer links are handled entirely by those retailers on their own sites.

How we use information

We use the information we collect to:

• Publish, maintain, and improve our buying guides
• Send the newsletter you subscribed to (you can unsubscribe at any time)
• Respond to corrections, questions, and editorial inquiries
• Measure site traffic and understand how readers use our content (with consent)
• Protect the site against abuse, spam, and technical problems
• Comply with legal obligations

We do not sell your personal information. We do not use your email for unrelated third-party marketing without your consent.

Legal bases (EEA, UK, and similar regions)

If you are in the European Economic Area, the United Kingdom, or another region with similar privacy laws, we process personal data on these bases:

• Consent — for analytics cookies, optional marketing cookies (if enabled), and newsletter subscriptions
• Legitimate interests — to operate and secure the website, measure aggregated performance, and respond to reader inquiries, balanced against your rights
• Contract — to deliver the newsletter you requested
• Legal obligation — when required to retain or disclose information

Third-party services

We use trusted service providers who process data on our behalf, including:

• Vercel — website hosting and delivery
• Resend — newsletter email delivery and list management
• Google Analytics — site analytics when you consent to measurement cookies (measurement ID G-3W2QFLG96C)
• Consent management (c15t) — stores and applies your cookie choices in your browser

When you click an affiliate or retailer link on our guides, you leave GearScout and are subject to that retailer's privacy policy. Retailers may set their own cookies to attribute sales. See our affiliate disclosure.

Retention

We keep newsletter subscriber emails until you unsubscribe or ask us to delete them. Analytics data is retained according to Google Analytics settings (typically up to 14 months for standard properties). Server logs and security records are kept for as long as needed to operate and protect the site, then deleted or aggregated.

Your rights and choices

Depending on where you live, you may have the right to:

• Access, correct, or delete personal information we hold about you
• Withdraw consent for analytics or marketing cookies at any time
• Object to or restrict certain processing
• Port your data in a machine-readable format where applicable
• Lodge a complaint with your local data protection authority

California residents may have additional rights under the CCPA/CPRA, including the right to know what categories of information we collect and to opt out of the “sale” or “sharing” of personal information. We do not sell personal information as defined by California law.

To exercise your rights, email hello@gearscouted.com. We may need to verify your request before responding.

Children

GearScout is intended for adults making purchasing decisions. We do not knowingly collect personal information from children under 13 (or under 16 in certain jurisdictions). If you believe a child provided us information, contact us and we will delete it.

Security

We use reasonable technical and organizational measures to protect information, including HTTPS encryption in transit. No method of transmission over the internet is 100% secure; we cannot guarantee absolute security.

International visitors

GearScout is published in English and primarily serves readers in the United States. If you access the site from outside the U.S., your information may be processed in the United States or other countries where our service providers operate, which may have different data protection laws than your home country.

Changes to this policy

We may update this privacy policy from time to time. We will revise the “last updated” date at the top of this page when we do. Material changes may also be noted on the site or in our newsletter where appropriate.