Privacy Policy
Last updated: October 14, 2026
1. Introduction
Hello Athena, LLC ("Hello, Athena," "Athena," "we," "us," or "our") operates the Hello, Athena studio software at helloathena.io (the "Service"). This Privacy Policy explains how we collect, use, disclose, and safeguard your information when you use our Service.
By using the Service, you consent to the data practices described in this policy. If you do not agree, please discontinue use of the Service.
2. Information We Collect
2.1 Account Information
When you create an account we collect your:
- Full name
- Email address
- Password (stored in hashed form)
2.2 Profile & Business Information
Photographers may optionally provide business name, phone number, mailing address, website URL, and bio.
2.3 Client Data You Store
As a photographer or videographer using Hello, Athena, you may store your clients' personal information including names, email addresses, phone numbers, event details, and inquiry form answers. You are the data controller for this information; Hello, Athena acts as a data processor on your behalf.
2.4 Payment Information
Payment processing is handled by Stripe. We do not store credit card numbers. We store Stripe customer IDs, transaction amounts, and payment status to display invoices and receipts.
2.5 Public Form Submissions
When a client submits an inquiry form, books a call, or signs a contract, we collect the information entered into those forms, along with their IP address and submission timestamp.
2.6 Waitlist
When you join the waitlist we collect your email address. If you save a look in the branding builder on our homepage, we also keep the branding choices you made and any logo or photo you upload, so your branding settings are already saved when your spot opens. We also record where your visit came from: the website that linked you to us (if your browser shares it), the page you first landed on, and any campaign tags in that link (such as utm_source). We use this only to manage the waitlist, send you a confirmation and your invite (and product updates, if you ask for them), and understand which channels bring people to us.
2.7 Automatically Collected Information
- IP address (for rate limiting and security)
- Browser user agent (in contract signatures and admin audit logs)
- Authentication session cookies (required for login)
- Error and performance telemetry (via Sentry and Vercel Speed Insights)
3. How We Use Your Information
- Provide, operate, and maintain the Service
- Process payments and manage subscriptions
- Send transactional emails (payment receipts, contract notifications, inquiry alerts)
- Confirm your waitlist signup and email you when your spot opens
- Monitor and fix errors in the Service
- Enforce our Terms of Service and prevent abuse
- Respond to support requests
We do not sell your personal information to third parties.
4. Third-Party Service Providers
We share data with the following processors to operate the Service:
| Provider | Purpose | Data Shared |
|---|---|---|
| Supabase | Database, authentication, file storage | All account and business data |
| Stripe | Payment processing | Name, email, payment details |
| Resend | Transactional email delivery | Recipient email, name, email content |
| Sentry | Error monitoring | Error traces, session metadata |
| Cloudflare Turnstile | Bot protection on the waitlist form | Browser signals, IP address |
| Upstash | Rate limiting | IP addresses (ephemeral) |
| Vercel | Hosting, performance monitoring | Page load metrics |
5. Cookies
We use the following cookies:
- Authentication cookies (essential): Supabase session tokens required for login.
- Theme preference (functional): stored in localStorage to remember your color theme.
- Visit source (functional): on our marketing pages, sessionStorage remembers the site that sent you and the page you landed on until you close the tab, so a waitlist signup can record where it came from.
Our error monitoring (Sentry) and performance analytics (Vercel Speed Insights) may set additional cookies or use browser APIs for telemetry.
6. Data Retention
We retain your account data for as long as your account is active. If you delete your account, we will delete your personal data and all associated records within 30 days, except where retention is required by law (e.g., financial transaction records may be retained for up to 7 years for tax and compliance purposes).
Client data stored by photographers is retained until the photographer deletes it or deletes their account.
Waitlist signups are kept until you leave the waitlist or for 12 months after you join, whichever comes first. They are then deleted automatically.
7. Your Rights
Depending on your jurisdiction, you may have the right to:
- Access: Request a copy of the personal data we hold about you.
- Correction: Update or correct inaccurate information via your profile settings.
- Deletion: Delete your account and all associated data from Settings > Profile.
- Export: Download a copy of your data in machine-readable format from Settings > Profile.
- Opt-out of communications: Manage email preferences from Settings > Notifications.
- Leave the waitlist: Use the “Leave the waitlist” link at the bottom of your waitlist confirmation email. Your signup is deleted right away.
To exercise any of these rights, use the controls in your account settings or contact us at privacy@helloathena.io.
8. Data Security
We implement reasonable technical and organizational measures to protect your data, including encryption in transit (TLS/HTTPS), row-level security policies on our database, and PCI-compliant payment processing via Stripe. However, no method of electronic transmission or storage is 100% secure.
9. Children's Privacy
The Service is not directed to individuals under the age of 16. We do not knowingly collect personal information from children. If you believe a child has provided us with personal data, please contact us and we will delete it.
10. California Residents (CCPA)
If you are a California resident, you have the right to know what personal information we collect, request deletion, and opt out of the sale of personal information. We do not sell personal information. To exercise your rights, contact privacy@helloathena.io.
11. International Data Transfers
Our servers and service providers are located in the United States. If you access the Service from outside the U.S., your information will be transferred to and processed in the United States. By using the Service, you consent to this transfer.
12. Changes to This Policy
We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time. We will notify you of material changes by email or by posting a notice on the Service. Your continued use of the Service after changes constitutes acceptance of the updated policy.
13. Contact Us
If you have questions about this Privacy Policy, contact us at:
Hello Athena, LLC
Email: privacy@helloathena.io
Support: support@helloathena.io