Privacy Policy

The short version

Handled Money collects very little. If you sign up for our newsletter or a free resource, we collect your name and email address so we can send you what you asked for. We use privacy-conscious analytics to understand how the site is used. We do not sell your personal information, and we never will.

The rest of this page explains the details. This policy applies to handledmoney.com and is written for a U.S. audience. It works alongside our Terms of Use, Financial Education Disclaimer, and Affiliate Disclosure.

Who we are

“Handled Money,” “we,” and “us” refer to [PLACEHOLDER — legal entity name], the U.S.-based publisher of handledmoney.com. Contact details are at the end of this page.

What we collect

Information you give us

Name and email address — when you sign up for The Handled List (our newsletter), request a free resource such as the Money Clarity Check, or contact us through a form.
Anything you choose to include in a message — if you email us or use a contact form, we receive what you send.

Please don't send us sensitive personal financial details (account numbers, Social Security numbers, and the like). We don't need them, and we'd rather you keep them safe.

Information collected automatically

Analytics data — general, aggregated information about how visitors use the site: pages viewed, approximate location (country or region), device and browser type, and how you found us. This helps us understand what's useful and what isn't.

How we use your information

We use the information above to:

Send you the newsletter and free resources you signed up for
Respond when you contact us
Understand which articles and tools are most helpful, so we can improve the site
Keep the site secure and functioning properly

That's it. We don't use your information to build advertising profiles, and we don't sell or rent it to anyone.

Who processes your information for us

Like most small publishers, we rely on a few trusted service providers to run the site. They process data only on our behalf and only to provide their services:

Email service provider — [PLACEHOLDER — email service provider] stores subscriber names and email addresses and delivers our emails.
Analytics provider — [PLACEHOLDER — analytics provider] collects the aggregated usage data described above.

Each provider has its own privacy policy governing how it handles data as a processor.

Cookies

Our approach to cookies is currently minimal. The site does not use advertising or cross-site tracking cookies. Our analytics are designed to be privacy-conscious, and any cookies used are limited to essential site functions and basic, aggregated measurement.

If we ever introduce tracking that requires consent under applicable law, we will add a clear consent banner before that tracking begins — not after.

You can also control or delete cookies through your browser settings at any time.

Interactive tools and what stays on your device

Some of our tools — the Money Clarity Check, and the Handled Money Reset when it opens — ask you to think about your own finances. What you type into them is handled differently from what you send us in a form, and the difference matters.

Your answers stay in your own browser, on your own device. They are not transmitted to us, not stored on our servers, and not backed up anywhere. We cannot read them, and we could not retrieve them for you if you asked. Where a tool saves your progress so you can return to it, that saved copy lives in your browser's local storage — which means clearing your browser data erases it permanently.

Two practical consequences. First, please don't use a shared, borrowed, or public computer for a tool that saves your progress; anyone using that browser afterwards could open it. The Handled Money Reset asks you up front whether the computer is shared and, if it is, keeps nothing on the machine. Second, if you want a copy of your work, use the tool's own print or export option.

These tools never ask for account passwords, complete account numbers, Social Security numbers, or logins, and they do not connect to your bank. Nicknames and approximate figures are all they need. The only information that reaches us is what you deliberately submit — your name and email address when you ask us to send you something, along with the result category you were given, so that what we send next is relevant.

We do not sell your personal information

We do not sell personal information, and we do not share it with third parties for their own marketing. Some links on this site may be affiliate links, which are explained in our Affiliate Disclosure; clicking an affiliate link takes you to a third-party site governed by its own privacy practices.

Unsubscribing

Every email we send includes an unsubscribe link. One click, and you're off the list — no guilt trips, no “are you sure?” mazes. You can also email us and we'll remove you promptly.

How long we keep information

We keep subscriber information for as long as you remain subscribed. When you unsubscribe, your address is removed from active mailings; our email provider may retain a suppression record so we don't accidentally email you again. We keep correspondence only as long as reasonably needed to respond and maintain business records.

Links to other sites

Articles and resources here link to third-party websites we think are useful. Once you leave handledmoney.com, this policy no longer applies — the destination site's privacy practices govern. We encourage you to review them, especially before entering personal information.

Children's privacy

This site is written for adults and is not directed to children under 13. We do not knowingly collect personal information from children under 13. If you believe a child has provided us personal information, contact us and we will delete it.

Your U.S. state privacy rights

Depending on where you live, state privacy laws may give you rights over your personal information — such as the right to know what we hold about you, to request a copy, to correct it, or to have it deleted. Residents of certain states (including, for example, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Texas, and Virginia) may have specific statutory rights.

You don't need to cite a statute to us. If you want to know what we have about you, or you want it corrected or deleted, just ask using the contact details below and we will honor the request wherever we reasonably can, regardless of which state you live in.

Changes to this policy

If we change how we handle personal information, we will update this page and revise the “Last updated” date above. For significant changes, we'll also mention it in the newsletter. Continued use of the site after changes take effect means the updated policy applies.

Contact us

Questions, requests, or concerns about privacy are welcome:

Email: [PLACEHOLDER — contact email address]
Mail: [PLACEHOLDER — business mailing address]