privacy

This is the privacy notice for the desk (thedesk.fyi), a small site where people share what they're currently into. The desk is operated by Softgrain LLC, a Wyoming limited liability company. We try to collect as little as possible, and to be specific about what we do collect, what we do with it, and what you can do about it. Questions: hello@thedesk.fyi.

what we collect

account information. When you sign up, we collect your email address (used to send sign-in links), the handle you choose, and the display name you choose. We don't use passwords (sign-in is via a one-time link sent to your email), so we never see or store a password from you.

what you put on your desk. Anything you type into a card (what you're currently listening to, reading, eating, thinking about, and so on, including the optional notes) is stored so we can show it on your public desk page. This is, by design, public.

social activity. Who you follow, who follows you, comments you leave on others' desks, likes, and friend-of-the-week selections. Comments and likes are public; follow relationships appear on both desks.

settings. Whether you've opted out of "from the desk" coverage, whether you want transactional emails, and which skin you've selected.

visit timestamps. When someone visits a desk, we may record the time so we can show "someone's been by." We do not record who, only that a visit happened.

light technical data. Standard server logs (IP address, browser type, page requested) kept briefly for security and debugging. Our hosting and database providers may keep their own logs in line with their privacy policies.

We do not use analytics tracking, behavioral profiling, or third-party advertising. We do not sell or share your data for marketing purposes.

what we don't collect

We don't collect: your real name (unless you put it in your display name), your address, your phone number, your contact lists, or your precise location. If you ever buy a paid skin, the payment is handled by a third-party processor. We do not see or store your card number.

how we use what we collect

• To run the site (show your desk, deliver comments, send sign-in links).
• To send transactional emails when something on the site is about you: a comment on your desk, a friend-of-the-week mention, a new follower. You can turn these off in /me/settings.
• To improve the site, looking at aggregate, anonymous activity.
• To prevent abuse.

That's it. We do not use what's on your desk to train AI models, to build advertising profiles, or to share with third parties for any commercial purpose.

“from the desk” pieces

From time to time we publish a piece on /hop/from-the-desk reflecting on patterns across desks: consensus, outliers, the funny stuff. These pieces are written from an anonymized data export: no handles, no display names, no stable identifiers. Each desk is referenced only by a random token generated fresh for that run.

If you'd rather your desk not be material for these pieces, turn on opt out of “from the desk” in settings. The export filters out opted-out users entirely before any writing happens.

who else sees your data

We use a small number of trusted services to run the site. Each handles a narrow slice:

• Supabase: authentication and database hosting. They store your account record and everything on your desk.
• Vercel: application hosting. Page requests pass through them.
• Resend: sending transactional email (the sign-in link, comment notifications). They see the recipient email and the message body.

Fonts are self-hosted: your browser never contacts a font provider, so no third party sees your visit through them.

We do not share your data with any third party for advertising or analytics.

cookies

We use one kind of cookie: authentication cookies set by Supabase to keep you signed in. They are essential. Without them you couldn't be signed in. We do not use tracking, analytics, or advertising cookies.

your choices

• see and edit your data: settings; your desk at /[your-handle].
• opt out of "from the desk": settings.
• turn off email notifications: settings.
• delete your account: open settings and use "danger zone → delete my account." You'll be asked to type your handle to confirm. Deletion is immediate and removes your profile, desk, comments, likes, follows, and notifications.

how long we keep your data

We keep your data for as long as you have an account. When you delete your account, your profile, cards, comments, likes, follows, and related records are removed. Light technical logs may persist for a short period after that for security purposes.

children

The desk is not directed at children. You should be at least 16 years old (or the minimum age in your country) to sign up.

changes

If we change this notice in a material way, we'll update the "last updated" date above. For substantive changes (especially anything that affects how we share data), we'll also email signed-in users who haven't turned off notifications.

contact

Questions, requests, deletions: hello@thedesk.fyi.