Privacy Policy

Last updated: Saturday, October 31, 2026

This page explains what ArtsCal.org collects, why, who helps us run it, and what you can do about it. We tried to write it in plain words. If anything is unclear, ask: contact@artscal.org.

Who we are

ArtsCal.org is a free arts calendar for the Capital Region of New York. It is run by David Payette in New York. Our postal address is 3 Oregon Trl, Waterford, NY 12188.

The short version

You can browse and swipe without an account. As a guest, your picks stay on your own device and are not stored on our servers.
If you make an account, we store what is needed to give you your picks, favorites and calendar.
We use Google Analytics and Cloudflare Web Analytics to understand how the site is used and to make it better. We collect usage statistics that don't identify you by name or email (Google uses a random ID and cookies; see Cookies) with Google Analytics; see Analytics below for how to block it.
We do not show ads and we never sell your data.

What we collect

If you use the site as a guest

Your picks (Interested, Skip, Later, Maybe) and settings are saved in your browser's local storage on your device. They are not sent to us. If you clear your browser data, they are gone.

If you make an account

Your email address, and your name if Apple or Google gives it to us and you allow it.
Your picks, favorites and mutes (venues, series or words you chose to hide).
Optionally, a ZIP code you give us as your home base, used to work out distances. Without it we measure from Albany.
Your private calendar link token (see below) and your email preferences.

Automatically

Our host, Cloudflare, sees your IP address and basic browser details when your device asks for a page. That is how the internet works.
For abuse limits (for example, to stop someone from asking for thousands of sign-in emails), we keep a scrambled one-way hash of your IP address rather than the address itself, for a short time (about two weeks).
Analytics, described below.

If you write to us

We keep the emails you send to contact@artscal.org and our replies so we can follow up. Please do not send anything sensitive that you do not want us to have.

If you are a venue or presenter, we also keep the business contact address you publish on your own website and the emails we exchange with you, to keep your listings correct. We only use addresses a venue publishes for business contact. Our messages to you are sent by an automated assistant that signs as ArtsCal Support, and you can ask us to delete this information, or to never contact you again, at any time.

Why we use it

To run the service: sign you in, remember your picks, build your calendar, and show distances.
To send email you asked for, such as sign-in codes and, if you turn them on, digests or alerts.
To keep the site safe and working: prevent abuse, fix bugs, and keep costs sensible.
To understand what people use and improve it.

Analytics

We collect usage statistics that don't identify you by name or email (Google uses a random ID and cookies; see Cookies) with Google Analytics 4 to understand how the site is used and to improve it, and we also run Cloudflare Web Analytics, which is cookieless. There are no ads, and we do not use either service to build advertising profiles. We do not link these statistics to your account or email address.

Usage data: pages and features used, approximate region from the IP address (Google Analytics anonymizes IP addresses and does not store them), device and browser type, page speed, and technical errors (that a script or a request failed on a page: the name of one of our script files, a line number, the kind of request and its status number, never the content of the page or of your data). Used only to run and improve the site. Not sold, not used for advertising, never combined with your account.
What we never send: your email address, name, notes, custom tags, ZIP code or home base, search words, or account id. We send only event types (for example "swiped Interested", "opened a ticket link", "tapped Open in app", "asked for a sign-in code", "signed in", each only as the type of action, without who you are), the genre and venue of the event, and the website a link went to.
Retention: Google Analytics keeps event data for 14 months.
Choices: We honor Global Privacy Control and Do Not Track: if your browser sends either signal, analytics does not load and nothing is collected. For visitors whose browser reports a European time zone, analytics does not load. You can also block it with your browser's tracking or cookie settings or a content-blocking extension. The site and app work the same either way. More on the Cookies page.
Processor: Google LLC (Google Analytics 4), under Google's data processing terms. Cloudflare Web Analytics is cookieless.

We share data only with the services that help us run ArtsCal.org, and only what they need:

Cloudflare hosts the website, the database and files, and provides Cloudflare Web Analytics.
Resend sends our emails, such as sign-in codes.
Apple and Google, only if you choose to sign in with them. We receive the email address and name you allow.
An AI model may read emails you send to our contact address to help draft a reply. We remove obvious details such as email addresses and phone numbers first. Requests about privacy, legal or safety matters are handled by a person. We do not send your picks or account data to the model. The model is Claude, from Anthropic, under commercial terms that don't let it train on our messages. Automated replies always say so, and you can ask for a person.

Venues and artists never see your name or email. We do not sell, rent or trade your personal information, and we do not share it for advertising. We may disclose information if the law requires it.

Where information is processed

ArtsCal.org is run from New York, and information is processed in the US. Anyone, anywhere, can ask for access, correction or deletion.

Cookies and local storage

We use local storage for your picks and settings, and one session cookie if you sign in. Details are on the Cookies page.

Your calendar link

If you subscribe to your picks in a calendar app, the link contains a private token. Anyone who has the link can see your picks, so treat it like a password. If it gets out, ask us to reset it (contact@artscal.org).

How long we keep it

Account data: until you delete your account. After you ask us to delete it, we remove it within 7 days. Copies in backups age out on the normal backup schedule.
Sign-in codes expire after 60 minutes and each works once.
Abuse-limit records: about two weeks.
Support and venue emails: up to 18 months after the last message. If you ask us never to email you, we keep your address on a do-not-contact list only to honor that request.

Your choices and rights

You can ask us to show you the data we hold about you, send you a copy, correct it, or delete it. You can also unsubscribe from any optional email with one click. Write to contact@artscal.org from the email on your account and we will respond within 30 days.

If you live in New York or another state with a privacy law, you have the rights that law gives you. These generally include access, deletion and correction, and not being discriminated against for using them. We do not sell personal information or share it for cross-context advertising. If we turn down a request you can reply to ask us to look again, and you can contact your state attorney general.

Children

ArtsCal.org is not for children under 13. We do not knowingly collect information from them. If you think a child has given us information, tell us and we will delete it.

Security

We take reasonable steps to protect your information. Connections use HTTPS, sign-in codes are short-lived and single-use, sign-in attempts are limited, and sign-in cookies are marked HttpOnly and Secure. No system is perfectly secure. If a breach affects you, we will tell you and notify authorities where the law requires.

Changes to this page

When we change this page, we will update the date at the top. If a change is significant, we will also tell account holders by email.

Contact

Questions or requests: contact@artscal.org. Mail: ArtsCal.org, 3 Oregon Trl, Waterford, NY 12188.