The Ratist

Privacy Policy

Last updated: April 14, 2026

1. Introduction

The Ratist ("we," "us," or "our") operates theratist.com (the "Service"). This Privacy Policy explains how we collect, use, disclose, and safeguard your information when you visit our website and use our services. By using the Service, you consent to the practices described in this policy.

2. Information We Collect

2.1 Information You Provide

  • Account information: Name, email address, and profile photo when you create an account (via email/password or Google sign-in).
  • Profile data: Display name, avatar, biography, genre preferences, and viewing component preferences you choose to share.
  • Ratings and reviews: Movie and TV show ratings, written reviews, and all associated rating criteria you submit.
  • User-generated content: Forum posts, comments, watchlists, diary entries, community submissions (Hot Takes, Recasts, Looks Like, Pitches), and any other content you create on the platform.
  • Import data: If you choose to import your viewing history (e.g., from IMDb), we process that data to create ratings on your behalf.
  • Payment information: If you subscribe to the Backstage Pass, payment is processed by Stripe. We do not store your credit card details — Stripe handles all payment data securely.

2.2 Information Collected Automatically

  • Usage data: Pages visited, features used, time spent on the site, and interactions with content (views, clicks, searches).
  • Device information: Browser type, operating system, screen resolution, and device identifiers.
  • Log data: IP address, access times, and referring URLs.
  • Cookies and similar technologies: See Section 5 below.

3. How We Use Your Information

We use collected information to:

  • Provide, maintain, and improve the Service.
  • Generate personalized movie and TV show recommendations based on your ratings and preferences.
  • Calculate your Ratist rating scores and community averages.
  • Match you with users who share similar taste profiles.
  • Send transactional emails (account verification, subscription confirmations, password resets).
  • Send optional notification emails (promotional offers, subscription reminders). You can opt out of these at any time via the unsubscribe link in each email or from your profile settings.
  • Display relevant advertisements through Google AdSense (see Section 6).
  • Monitor and enforce our Terms of Service.
  • Detect and prevent fraud, abuse, and security incidents.

4. How We Share Your Information

We do not sell your personal information.

We may share information with:

  • Service providers: Third-party services that help us operate the platform, including Firebase (authentication), Neon/Google Cloud (database hosting), Resend (email delivery), Stripe (payment processing), and Google AdSense (advertising).
  • Other users: Your public profile, ratings, reviews, and community contributions are visible to other users of the Service. Your email address is never publicly displayed.
  • Legal requirements: If required by law, regulation, or legal process, or to protect the rights, property, or safety of The Ratist, our users, or the public.

5. Cookies and Tracking Technologies

We use cookies and similar technologies for:

  • Essential cookies: Required for authentication, session management, and security. These cannot be disabled.
  • Analytics cookies: Help us understand how visitors interact with the site, which pages are most popular, and where users encounter issues.
  • Advertising cookies: Used by Google AdSense and its partners to display relevant advertisements. These cookies may track your browsing activity across websites to deliver personalized ads.

You can manage cookie preferences through your browser settings. Disabling cookies may affect some features of the Service. For more information on how Google uses data from sites that use their services, visit Google's privacy page.

6. Advertising

We use Google AdSense to display advertisements on the Service. Google AdSense uses cookies to serve ads based on your prior visits to our website and other websites. Google's use of advertising cookies enables it and its partners to serve ads based on your browsing patterns.

You may opt out of personalized advertising by visiting Google Ads Settings or by visiting aboutads.info.

7. Third-Party Services

The Service integrates with the following third-party services, each with their own privacy policies:

8. Data Retention

We retain your account data for as long as your account is active. If you delete your account, your data enters a 30-day soft-delete period during which you can recover your account. After 30 days, your data is permanently deleted from our systems.

Anonymized or aggregated data (such as community rating averages) may be retained indefinitely as it cannot be linked back to individual users.

9. Your Rights

Depending on your location, you may have the following rights regarding your personal data:

  • Access: Request a copy of the personal data we hold about you.
  • Correction: Request correction of inaccurate personal data.
  • Deletion: Request deletion of your personal data. You can delete your account from your profile settings.
  • Opt-out of marketing: Unsubscribe from promotional emails via the link in each email or from your profile settings.
  • Data portability: Request your data in a portable format.
  • Opt-out of personalized ads: Manage ad personalization via Google Ads Settings.

To exercise any of these rights, visit your Settings page or contact us via our feedback form.

10. Children's Privacy

The Service is not directed to children under the age of 13. We do not knowingly collect personal information from children under 13. If you believe a child under 13 has provided us with personal data, please contact us and we will promptly delete it.

11. Security

We implement appropriate technical and organizational measures to protect your personal data, including encrypted connections (HTTPS), secure authentication via Firebase, and access controls on our database and infrastructure. However, no method of electronic storage or transmission is 100% secure, and we cannot guarantee absolute security.

12. Changes to This Policy

We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time. We will notify you of significant changes by posting the new policy on this page and updating the "Last updated" date. Your continued use of the Service after changes are posted constitutes acceptance of the updated policy.

13. Contact Us

If you have questions about this Privacy Policy or our data practices, please use our feedback form or manage your data from your Settings page.