Who We Are
Tether ("we," "us," or "our") operates tethergear.io, a Gear Intelligence platform that provides personalized outdoor gear recommendations. Our contact email is [email protected].
Information We Collect
We collect information you provide directly when using the Tether quiz, including:
- First name and email address (if you choose to save your gear)
- Hiking preferences: experience level, region, season, terrain, and trip duration
- Body dimensions: height, weight, shoe size, and fit preference
- Existing gear information entered in the Gear Locker
- Budget preference
We may also collect basic usage data such as pages visited and time spent on the site through analytics tools. We do not collect payment information.
How We Use Your Information
We use the information you provide to:
- Generate your personalized gear recommendations
- Send your gear results to your email address if requested
- Send periodic field check-in emails (30, 60, and 90 days) to ask how your gear is performing
- Improve the accuracy of our recommendation engine
We do not use your data for advertising profiling or sell it to third parties under any circumstances.
Affiliate Links
Tether participates in affiliate marketing programs. When you click a "Shop Now" link and make a purchase, we may earn a commission at no additional cost to you. This is how Tether generates revenue and remains free to use. We only recommend gear we would genuinely recommend regardless of commission — our recommendations are driven by your profile, not by affiliate relationships.
Our affiliate partners may include REI, Backcountry, and other outdoor retailers. These partners have their own privacy policies governing any data collected on their sites after you click through.
Cookies and Analytics
We use basic analytics to understand how people use Tether so we can improve it. This may involve cookies or similar tracking technologies. We do not use advertising cookies or cross-site tracking. You can disable cookies in your browser settings at any time.
Email Communications
If you provide your email address, you may receive:
- A one-time email containing your gear recommendations
- Field check-in emails at 30, 60, and 90 days after your gear build
- Occasional product updates or new feature announcements (infrequent)
Every email we send includes an unsubscribe link. You can opt out at any time and we will remove you from all future communications promptly.
Data Storage and Security
Your data is stored securely. We take reasonable precautions to protect your information from unauthorized access, disclosure, or loss. However, no internet transmission is completely secure and we cannot guarantee absolute security.
We retain your data only as long as necessary to provide our services. You can request deletion of your data at any time by emailing [email protected].
Third-Party Services
Tether is hosted on Netlify and uses Cloudflare for DNS and security. These providers may process basic request data as part of normal internet infrastructure operation. We encourage you to review their respective privacy policies.
Children's Privacy
Tether is not directed at children under 13. We do not knowingly collect personal information from children under 13. If you believe we have inadvertently collected such information, please contact us and we will delete it promptly.
Your Rights
You have the right to:
- Access the personal information we hold about you
- Request correction of inaccurate data
- Request deletion of your data
- Opt out of email communications at any time
To exercise any of these rights, email us at [email protected].
Changes to This Policy
We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time. When we do, we will update the "Last updated" date at the top of this page. Continued use of Tether after changes are posted constitutes acceptance of the updated policy.
Questions about this policy?
Email us at [email protected] and we will respond within 2 business days.