Privacy Policy

This Privacy Policy explains what information Support Groups (the “Site” or “Service”) collects about you, how we use it, who we share it with, and the choices you have. It applies to everyone who uses the Service.

Using the Service means you accept the practices described here and in our Terms of Use.

Account information — the name, email address, and password you provide at sign-up. Your password is stored as a one-way hash; nobody at Support Groups can read it.

Profile information — the display name, avatar, and short bio you choose to show other members.

Content you post — the posts, comments, likes, group memberships, direct messages, journal entries, mood check-ins, and any content you send through the contact form or reports.

Technical information — basic logs like your IP address, browser type, device, and the pages you visit, kept for security and to keep the Service running.

Cookies — we use a small number of cookies (or similar local storage) for signing you in, remembering your theme choice, and rate-limiting abusive behavior. We don’t use third-party advertising cookies.

We use the information above to:

• create and secure your account;
• show your posts, comments, and profile to other members you’ve chosen to share them with;
• deliver direct messages between mutually-supporting members;
• send you notifications about activity that involves you (a comment on your post, a new support, etc.);
• detect and prevent spam, abuse, and harmful content;
• investigate reports and take moderation action;
• diagnose bugs and improve the Service;
• meet legal obligations if we have any.

We do not sell your personal information, and we don’t use it for third-party advertising.

Public by default: posts, comments, likes, your display name, avatar, bio, and the list of groups and people you support.

Private: your journal entries, mood check-ins, direct messages, email address, and any reports you file. These are visible only to you (and, in the case of reports and messages flagged for moderation, to our moderators).

Please assume anything you put in a public post or group can be seen and remembered by other members — don’t share information you wouldn’t be comfortable being seen.

We only share your information in these cases:

• With other members, as described in the section above (public posts, profile, etc.).
• With service providers who help us run Support Groups — for example, hosting and email delivery. They can only use your data to provide the service to us.
• With moderators, who may review reports, flagged messages, and public content to keep the community safe.
• When required by law — for example, in response to a valid legal request, or when we believe disclosure is necessary to protect someone’s safety, prevent fraud, or defend our rights.

We take reasonable steps to protect your information — encrypted connections, hashed passwords, access controls on our systems, and rate-limiting to slow down attacks. No online service can promise perfect security, so please choose a strong password and let us know right away if you suspect anything unusual.

We keep account and content data for as long as your account is active. When you delete your account, we remove your profile and your private content (journal, mood check-ins, direct messages). Public posts and comments may be retained in an anonymized or attributed-to-a-deleted-user form so conversations other members took part in don’t vanish out from under them.

Backups and moderation records may be kept longer where needed to protect the Service and its members.

You can, at any time:

• update your profile and settings from Settings;
• turn off the mood check-in reminder;
• block or unblock other members;
• delete individual posts, comments, or journal entries;
• delete your account entirely.

Depending on where you live, you may also have the right to access a copy of your data, correct inaccuracies, or object to certain uses. If you’d like to exercise any of these rights, get in touch via the contact section below.

Support Groups is not intended for anyone under the age of 13. We don’t knowingly collect information from children under 13. If you believe a child has created an account, please let us know and we’ll remove it.

The Service may link to external websites (for example, crisis support lines). We’re not responsible for the privacy practices of those sites — please read their policies separately.

Support Groups may be operated from and hosted in different countries. By using the Service, you understand that your information may be processed in a country whose data-protection laws differ from those in your own.

We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time. Material changes will be posted here with a new effective date. Continued use after the change means you accept the updated policy.

Questions about your privacy or this policy? Get in touch through the Contact section on our home page.