Ground News now sends personal data to Meta for ad tracking; old 'no sharing with advertisers' claim removed

Snapwise Inc. d/b/a Ground News Privacy Policy – Last Updated Feb 25, 2026 This Privacy Notice describes the information Snapwise Inc., dba Ground News (collectively “Company”, “we”, “our”, or “us”) collects, receives, and processes; how we use this information, with whom we share it; and the choices you or any visitor (as a prospective user) have in connection with Company’s website, mobile application, any sub-domains, and our offline service (collectively, the “Website”) and any other products or services listed below (collectively, our “Services”). This is the main Privacy Policy for the Company, and it covers all related websites, applications, and services that do not have a separate policy. Users of Company’s Online Services must agree to our Website’s Terms of Service, located at https://about.ground.news/terms-and-conditions. Please review the Website’s Terms of Service (sometimes referred to as Terms and Conditions) carefully, as it contains restrictions on your legal rights in any dispute with Company to the extent a dispute involves or is related to our online Services, Application, Website’s Terms of Service, or this Privacy Policy. By using our Services and/or Company Properties (as defined in the Terms of Service), you represent and warrant that you are 18 years of age and/or of legal age to form a binding contract with Company, and meet all the eligibility requirements in the Website Terms of Service. To read Company’s Terms of Service, click here https://about.ground.news/terms-and-conditions. PERSONAL INFORMATION:   INFORMATION WE COLLECT, HOW WE USE IT, HOW LONG WE KEEP IT,  AND HOW WE SHARE IT Through your use of our Services and Company Properties, we collect personal information, which is information that identifies you or relates to you as an identifiable individual (“User Personal Information” or “UIP”). Through your use of our Website, Application, and Services, we collect UIP as outlined below. You can learn how long we retain your UIP in the Data Retention Section of this Privacy Notice. Controller and Contact Details When you use our Website or engage our Services, your personal information (UIP) is collected and processed by Snapwise Inc., dba Ground News, as the data controller. For questions or concerns with respect to this Privacy Notice, please email us at feedback@ground.news or write to us at Snapwise Inc. 280 Joseph St, Kitchener, ON, Canada N2G 4Z5. A. Information we collect directly from you When you visit our Website, open an account with us, and/or become a subscriber, and/or use your account via our Website or mobile Application, we collect your personal information as follows: • What we collect when you create an account. When you create an account through our Website and/or Application, we collect from you your identifiers (name, address (and postal code), telephone/mobile number, email address, and should you choose to provide it your date of birth), and your financial information, (credit card number, debit card number, or bank account number, and routing number)). You will need to create a username and password to access your account. We collect this account information from you directly. We use this information to create your account, to provide you with our Services, to collect payment for use of our Services, and to communicate with you about your account. To the extent EU/UK data protection law applies, the legal basis for this processing is the performance of a contract. If we do not process this information, we cannot provide you our Services or manage your account. If you opt-in to receiving marketing communications from us, we will send you updates related to our Services. Please refer to MY INFORMATION CHOICES Section of this Policy to learn how to unsubscribe at any time. To the extent EU/UK data protection law applies, the legal basis for this processing is your consent. You can revoke your consent at any time. We do not sell or share your personal information with third parties. • What we collect when you enroll in a subscription. You can use our Website for free, however if you choose to upgrade your use of our Services, you can enroll in one of our subscription plans. If you have an existing account with us, you can login to your account and manage your account settings to include the subscription option of your choice. If you have not provided your financial information (credit card number, debit card number, or bank account information), we will collect that directly from you. We collect this information to process your payment and to provide you with the upgraded services. To the extent EU/UK data protection law applies, the legal basis for this processing is the performance of a contract. If we do not process this information, we cannot provide you with the upgraded services associated with your subscription. If you do not have an existing account with us, you will need to create one. We collect from you your (name, address(and postal code), telephone/mobile number, email address, and should you choose to provide it, your date of birth), and your financial information (credit card number, debit card number, or bank account number, and routing number). You will need to create a username and password to access your account. We collect this account information from you directly. We use this information to manage your account, collect payment for subscription, provide you with our Services, and communicate with you regarding your account or subscription. To the extent EU/UK data protection law applies, the legal basis for this processing is the performance of a contract. If we do not process this information, we cannot provide you with the upgraded services associated with your subscription. • What we collect when you use our mobile Application. When you use our mobile Application, the personal information associated with your online account is linked to the mobile application account. We collect from you your identifiers (name, address (and postal code), telephone/mobile number, email address, and should you choose to provide it your date of birth), your financial information (credit card number, debit card number, or bank account number, and routing number). Your account information (username and password) is also linked to your mobile application. We use this information to create your mobile application account, to provide you with our Services, to collect payment for use of our Services, and to communicate with you about your account. To the extent EU/UK data protection law applies, the legal basis for this processing is the performance of a contract. If we do not process this information, we cannot provide you our Services or manage your account. ( We automatically collect your sensitive information (geolocation information) through your mobile carrier, when you use the mobile application. This is a requirement of using Apple’s Application Store or Google Play. To the extent EU/UK data protection law applies, the legal basis for this processing is consent. You may manage the geolocation access by going to the location settings on your mobile phone or device and limiting the use. • What we collect when you contact us. Depending on the method of contact and the nature of your inquiry (e.g., by email or telephone), we may collect from you, your identifiers (name, address, telephone/mobile number, and email address), your account information (username), and any other information related to the nature of your inquiry. We use this information to communicate with you about your inquiry, to appropriately provide you with our Services, to troubleshoot, if necessary, and to respond to any issues. To the extent EU/UK data protection law applies, the legal basis for this processing is consent. We do not sell or share UIP with advertisers. • What we collect when you set your location. If you decide to set your location on our Website, we collect from you your identifiers (ZIP code). We use this to provide you with news and media bias information happening in your area. To the extent EU/UK data protection law applies, the legal basis for this processing is consent. • What we collect when you donate. If you decide to provide a donation to Ground News, we will collect directly from your identifiers (name and address, your financial information (credit card number, debit card number, or banking information), and the amount of your donation. If your donation is $60.00 or above, you will receive a Ground News tote bag and a year of access to Ground News Premium subscription. We use this information to process your donation and to provide you with a tote bag and Ground News Premium subscription should your donation qualify. To the extent EU/UK data protection law applies, the legal basis for this processing is the performance of a contract. If we do not process this information, we cannot accept your donation or provide you with the tote bag and Ground News Premium subscription, if eligible. What we collect if you apply for a role with Ground News. If you apply for a job with Ground News, we will collect from you your identifiers (name and email address), your professional information (resume, CV, cover letter, and the direct link to your LinkedIn Profile (optional)), and, if you choose, your sensory information (a video of yourself explaining your interest in the role). We collect any other information you wish to provide regarding your application. We use this information to communicate with you regarding your application and to determine if you are qualified for the position. To the extent EU/UK data protection law applies, we process this information to discuss the possible contract of employment. B. Information we collect automatically via cookies and similar technologies In addition to the personal information you provide directly to us, we also collect information from you automatically as you use our Services via “cookies” and similar tracking technologies (including through the use of pixel tags). This includes the following internet or other electronic network activity information. We use essential, performance, marketing, and analytics cookies to collect your usage, device, and location information when you interact with the Services. We use this information to: (i) track your activity within the Services; (ii) enhance user experience; (iii) conduct analytics to improve the Services; (iv) prevent fraudulent use of the Services; (v) diagnosis and repair Services errors and, in cases of abuse, track and mitigate the abuse; and (vi) market to you more effectively across different web pages and social media platforms based on your browsing habits and history. Third party marketing and analytics cookies may be considered sharing under the California Privacy Rights Act (“CPRA”). If you are a California resident and wish to opt out, please visit Do Not Sell or Share My Personal Information. You can manage your cookie preference by visiting Do Not Sell or Share My Personal Information. Particular third-party cookies to note on our Website include: Google Analytics, and YouTube. In general, you can also disable cookies by setting your browser to refuse cookies or indicate when a cookie is being sent. Please note, if you opt out of these targeted advertising cookies, your opt-out will be specific to the web browser, app, or device from which you accessed the opt-out. If you use multiple devices or web browsers, you will need to opt out from each browser or device that you use. • Google Analytics. We use Google Analytics to collect information on your use of the Services for its improvement. To collect this information, Google Analytics installs cookies on your browser or reads cookies that are already there. Google Analytics also receives information about you from applications you have downloaded that partner with Google. We do not combine the information collected through the use of Google Analytics with personal information. Google’s ability to use and share information collected by Google Analytics about your visits to our Website or to another application which partners with Google is restricted by the Google Analytics Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. To prevent your data from being used by Google Analytics, you can download the Google Analytics opt-out browser add-on, which can be accessed here. If you are a California resident and wish to opt out of the sale or sharing of cookies, please visit Do Not Sell or Share My Personal Information. • YouTube API Services. We utilize YouTube API Services for audiovisual content viewing. Information about the YouTube API Services can be found at https://developers.google.com/youtube/terms/api-services-terms-of-service. By using the features of the Website utilizing the YouTube API Services, you agree to be bound by the YouTube Terms of Service, found at https://www.youtube.com/t/terms. Please refer to the YOUR INFORMATION CHOICES of this Policy for more information to manage cookies. HOW WE SHARE YOUR PERSONAL INFORMATION A. General Sharing We share your personal information in the following instances: ▪ Within the Company. We share your personal information among our parent company and affiliated entities, if any, for the legitimate business purposes of efficiently and effectively providing the Services. Access to your personal information is limited to those on a need-to-know basis. ▪ With service providers. We share your personal information with service providers that assist us in providing the Services. These service providers include our email provider, IT provider, call center provider, credit check provider, payment processor provider, and App Stores, if applicable. ▪ In the event of a corporate reorganization. In the event that we enter into, or intend to enter into, a transaction that alters the structure of our business, such as a reorganization, merger, acquisition, sale, joint venture, assignment, consolidation, transfer, change of control, or other disposition of all or any portion of our business, assets or stock, we would share your personal information with third parties, including the buyer or target (and their agents and advisors) for the purpose of facilitating and completing the transaction. We will also share your personal information with third parties if we undergo bankruptcy or liquidation, in the course of such proceedings. ▪ For legal purposes. We will share your personal information where we are legally required to do so, such as in response to court orders, law enforcement or legal process, including for national security purposes; to establish, protect, or exercise our legal rights, as required to enforce our terms of service or other contracts; to defend against legal claims or demands; to detect, investigate, prevent, or take action against illegal activities, fraud, or situations involving potential threats to the rights, property, or personal safety of any person; or to comply with the requirements of any applicable law. B. Sharing in the last twelve (12) months In the preceding 12 months, we’ve disclosed the following UIP personal information for a business purpose, with the following categories of third parties: ▪ We have disclosed your internet or other electronic network information collected by cookies to our IT support to detect security incidents, protect against malicious, deceptive, fraudulent, or illegal activity, and to identify and repair website and platform errors. We have disclosed your internet or other electronic network information collected by cookies to our IT support to update, improve, and maintain the website and platform. C. Sale of Personal Information • We do not sell or share UIP with advertisers. • We utilize Google Analytics services to learn about how our users use our Application and Website. As a result, we share user traffic information with Google in order to access Google Analytics services. OUR BROWSER EXTENSION Ground News offers a browser extension as part of the Services, which enables you to use Ground News features while browsing news articles on the web.   With respect to your use of the browser extension only, we collect the following information: - Article metadata: Information about news articles you view, including article title, date published, date accessed, author(s), publisher, and URL. - User notes: Any notes or annotations you create within the extension in connection with an article. - Authorization tokens: To authenticate your Ground News account and sync your activity, the extension uses and stores session authorization tokens. These tokens do not contain your password and are invalidated upon account logout or password change. We use this information to provide and sync the extension's features with your Ground News account, display analysis and information relating to articles you view, and improve the extension and the Services.  We do not use any of this data for advertising nor do we share this data with third parties. The legal basis for this processing is performance of the contract to provide the extension services; authorization tokens are processed on the basis of our legitimate interest in maintaining secure account access. You may uninstall the Ground News browser extension at any time through your browser's extension management settings. Data previously collected through the extension and associated with your account is retained subject to the terms of this Privacy Policy. To request deletion of extension data, please contact us at feedback@ground.news. YOUR INFORMATION CHOICES You have the following choices with respect to your personal information: ▪ Correct or view your personal information. You may use your account to correct or view certain personal information you have provided to us. ▪ Opt-out of marketing communications. You may opt-out of receiving marketing emails from us by clicking the “unsubscribe” link provided with each email. Please note that we will continue to send you emails necessary to the Services or any assistance you request. ▪ Push notifications. You may update your settings on your account or mobile phone to stop receiving push notifications from us. You can do this by updating your account information or by adjusting the settings on your mobile device. ▪ Location settings. You can prevent your mobile device from sharing your location data by adjusting the permissions on your mobile device or within the Services. ▪ Opt Out of Google Analytics. To prevent your data from being used by Google Analytics, you can download the Google Analytics opt-out browser add-on, which can be accessed here. ▪ Opt Out of Advertising Cookies. Irrespective of your jurisdiction, to set your cookie preferences or opt out of the sale/sharing of your information via cookies, please see our cookie preference center. All session cookies are temporary and expire after you close your web browser. Persistent cookies can be removed by following your web browser’s directions. To find out how to see what cookies have been set on your computer or device, and how to reject and delete the cookies, please visit: https://www.aboutcookies.org/. Please note that each web browser is different. To find information relating to your browser, visit the browser developer’s Website and mobile application. If you reset your web browser to refuse all cookies or to indicate when a cookie is being sent, some features of our website may not function properly. If you choose to opt out, we will place an "opt-out cookie" on your device. The "opt-out cookie" is browser specific and device specific and only lasts until cookies are cleared from your browser or device. The opt-out cookie will not work for essential cookies. If the cookie is removed or deleted, if you upgrade your browser or if you visit us from a different computer, you will need to return and update your preferences. By clicking on the “Opt-Out” links below, you will be directed to the respective third-party website where your computer will be scanned to determine who maintains cookies on you. At that time, you can either choose to opt out of all targeted advertising or you can choose to opt out of targeted advertising by selecting individual companies who maintain a cookie on your machine. o Association of National Advertisers opt-out registration: https://dmachoice.thedma.org/ o Network Advertising Initiative (NAI) Opt-Out: https://www.networkadvertising.org/managing/opt_out.asp o Digital Advertising Alliance (DAA) Opt-Out: https://optout.aboutads.info o European Union (EU) /European Economic Area (EEA) Opt-Out: http://www.youronlinechoices.eu RIGHTS OF NEVADA RESIDENTS If you are a resident of the State of Nevada, you may request to opt-out of the current or future sale of your personal information. We do not currently sell any of your personal information under Nevada law, nor do we plan to do so in the future. However, you can submit a request to opt-out of future sales by sending an email, with the subject line “Opt-Out Request Under Nevada Rights” to nevadaprivacy@ground.news. RIGHTS OF CALIFORNIA RESIDENTS The California Privacy Rights Act, (“CPRA”) and California’s Consumer Protection Act (“CCPA”) entitles California residents to certain rights. To the extent the CPRA and/or CCPA applies to our processing of your personal information, you are entitled to the following rights: ▪ Right to Access/Know. You have the right to request what personal information we have collected, used, disclosed, and sold about you, unless doing so proves impossible or would involve disproportionate effort. You may only make a request for access twice within a 12-month period. To exercise your right to access your personal information, you may submit a request by completing our email/webform, or by contacting us toll-free at +1 (866) 471-9181. ▪ Right to Deletion. You have the right to request the deletion of your personal information that we collect or maintain, subject to certain exceptions. For example, if we are required by law to retain the information that you are asking to be deleted, we would not be able to delete the information until we are legally permitted to delete it. To exercise your right to delete your personal information, you may submit a request by completing our webform, or by contacting us toll-free at +1 (866) 471-9181. ▪ Right to Opt-Out of Sale/Sharing. You have the right to opt-out of the sale or sharing of your personal information to third parties. Ground News does not have actual knowledge that it sells or shares personal information of minors under the age of sixteen (16) years. To exercise your right to delete your personal information, you may submit a request by completing our email/webform, cookie management platform, or by contacting us toll-free at +1 (866) 471-9181. ▪ Right to Non-Discrimination. You have the right to not receive discriminatory treatment if and when you exercise your rights to access, delete, opt-out, correct, or limit use of sensitive personal information under the CPRA. ▪ Right to correct: You have the right to correct inaccurate personal information that we collect or maintain. Please note, you can use your account to update or correct any personal information. To exercise your right to correct your personal information, you may submit a request by completing our email/webform, or by contacting us toll-free at +1 (866) 471-9181. ▪ Right to limit use of sensitive personal information: You have the right to limit the use of your sensitive personal information when such use goes beyond that which is necessary for providing the Services or certain other permissible purposes like fraud, customer service or quality control. Sensitive information includes Social Security number, driver’s license number, biometric information, precise geolocation, and racial and ethnic origin. Ground News does not use sensitive information collected through the Services in this manner. To exercise your right to access/know or delete your personal information, you may submit a request toll-free at +1 (866) 471-9181, send in a request via mail at the address below. For requests submitted via telephone or mail, you must provide us with sufficient information that allows us to reasonably verify that you are the person about whom we collected the personal information and describe your request with sufficient detail to allow us to properly evaluate and respond to it. If you are a current, former, or prospective user, we require your full name, address, username (if known), phone number, and email address. If we are not able to verify your identity for access and deletion requests with the information provided, we may ask you for additional pieces of information. Only you, or a person that you authorize to act on your behalf, may make a request related to your UIP. If you are an authorized agent making a request on behalf of an individual, you must provide us with signed documentation proving that you are authorized to act on behalf of that individual. RIGHTS OF EU AND UK RESIDENTS Individuals in the European Union (EU) and United Kingdom (UK) are entitled to certain rights to their personal information under applicable law. If our processing of your personal information is subject to these laws, you are entitled to the following rights: • Right to access: You have the right to ask us for copies of your personal information. This right has some exemptions, which means you may not always receive all the personal information we process. Applicable exemptions may include the management information exemption (data that we process for management forecasting or management planning about a business or other activity), confidential references (references given or received about an individual), or certain instances of ongoing or prior negotiations with the requestor, among others. • Right to rectification: You have the right to ask us to rectify personal information you think is inaccurate. You also have the right to ask us to complete information you think is incomplete. • Right to erasure: You have the right to request erasure of your personal information that we are not obligated to keep in some cases (also known as the right to be forgotten). For example, you can request us to delete such personal data if: (i) we no longer need the data for the purpose it was collected for, (ii) we process the data based on your consent and you revoke your consent, (iii) you object to our processing based on legitimate interest (and we do not have an overriding legitimate interest), or (iv) you object to our processing the personal data for direct marketing purposes. We may not be able to immediately erase your personal information if we have a lawful reason or a legal or contractual obligation to retain the information or continue the processing. • Right to restrict processing: If you believe that your personal data is inaccurate, that our processing is unlawful, or that we do not need the information for a specific purpose, you have the right to request that we restrict the processing of such personal data. You may also request that we stop processing your personal data while we assess your request. If you object to our processing (per your right to object below), you may also request us to restrict processing of that personal data while we make our assessment. • Right to object to processing: You have the right to object to processing of your personal data which is based on our legitimate interest (Article 6(1)(f) UK GDPR), by referencing your personal circumstances. You also have the right to object to our use of your personal data for direct marketing purposes. When you object to our use of your data for direct marketing purposes (i.e. let us know that you no longer wish to receive direct marketing from us), we will stop sending you direct marketing correspondence. • Right to data portability: This right only applies to personal information you have given us. You have the right to ask that we transfer the personal information you gave us from one organization to another or give it to you. • Right to lodge a complaint: You have the right to lodge a complaint with the relevant Supervisory Authority. A list of Supervisory Authorities is available here. Please feel free to contact us regarding this or any other EU data subject right at feedback@ground.news. DO NOT TRACK We will not place cookies or collect information via cookies when your browser is set to Do Not Track (DNT). DNT is a preference you can set in your web browser to inform websites that you do not want to be tracked. You can enable or disable DNT by visiting the Preferences or Settings page of your web browser. We do not respond to DNT signals. DATA RETENTION When you provide us with UIP we’ll let you know how long we’ll hold it for. Please keep in mind the following: (i) we only hold UIP for as long as we engage and/or perform the activities we told you about or have a valid reason to keep it; (ii) we think about what type of information it is, the amount collected, how sensitive it might be, and any legal requirements; (iii) we design our Services so that we don’t hold UIP any longer than necessary; (iv) we may close your account if you have not used it in the last 90 days. You may delete data that you have provided to the Services at any time. We will delete any account information following the termination of a registered account. SECURITY OF YOUR PERSONAL INFORMATION Ground News employs data collection, storage, and processing practices and security measures designed to protect personal information against unauthorized access, alteration, disclosure or destruction. Where appropriate, we use firewalls and limits on who can access databases that store Personal information. Further, data privacy laws vary from country to country and they may not be equivalent to, or as protective as, the laws in your home country. We take steps to ensure that reasonable safeguards are in place with an aim to ensure an appropriate level of protection for your information, in accordance with applicable law. By providing us with your information, you acknowledge any storage or use. Please keep in mind that it is not possible to achieve a perfect state of data security. Although we maintain reasonable administrative, physical, and electronic security measures designed to protect personal information from unauthorized access, we cannot ensure absolute security of any information you transmit to us or guarantee that this information will not be accessed, disclosed, altered, or destroyed. However, no security measure or modality of data transmission over the Internet is 100% secure, and we are unable to guarantee the absolute security of the personal information we have collected from you. OTHER WEBSITES AND SERVICES The Services may contain links to other websites or services that we do not own or operate. We are not responsible for the practices employed by any websites or services linked to or from the Services, including the information or content contained within them. Your browsing and interaction on any third-party website or service, including those that have a link on our Services, are subject to that third party’s own rules and policies, not ours. AGE RESTRICTION The Services are not intended for individuals that are not of legal age in your jurisdiction. If we learn that we have collected or received personal information from a child or a person that is not of legal age, we will delete that information. If you believe we might have information from or about a child, or a person, that is not of legal age, please contact us at feedback@ground.news . CHANGES TO THIS PRIVACY POLICY We may amend this Privacy Policy at our sole discretion at any time. If we do, we will post the changes to this page, and will indicate the date the changes go into effect. We encourage you to review our Privacy Policy to stay informed. If we make changes that materially affect your privacy rights, we will notify you by prominent posting on the Website and/or via email. CONTACT US If you have any questions regarding this Privacy Policy, please contact us at: toll free at +1 (866) 471-9181 or via mail at feedback@ground.news ; or address at 280 Joseph St, Kitchener, ON, Canada N2G 4Z5 Ground News Privacy Policy Last Updated: July 24, 2026 Snapwise Inc., dba Ground News (collectively "Company", "we", "our", or "us") provides products including our websites, browser extension, and mobile apps designed to help users evaluate, analyze, and understand news media coverage (collectively, our "Services"). When you interact with the Services, we may collect information about you, including information considered "personal data" or "personal information" under applicable laws ("personal data"). This Privacy Policy explains how we collect, use, and share personal data and your choices relating to it. Ground News is the data controller with respect to personal data we receive from you via your interactions with the Services, and if you want to contact us directly, you can find our contact details in the "Contact Us" section below. This Privacy Policy forms part of the Ground News Terms of Service, located at https://about.ground.news/terms-and-conditions (the "Terms"). By using our Services, you agree to be bound by the Terms, including this Privacy Policy. INFORMATION WE COLLECT When you use the Services, create an account with us, and/or become a subscriber, we may collect your personal information in several ways. A. Information you provide to us We collect certain types of personal data that you provide to us directly: - Personal Details. When you create a Ground News account, we collect your name, approximate location (such as zip code or region, as provided through a menu option), phone number, email address, and date of birth. If you reach out to us with questions or seeking support on your account, we may collect your name, phone number, email, username, and details about the issue. We do not collect precise geolocation data (such as GPS coordinates) based solely on your account creation; precise geolocation, where collected, is obtained only through your mobile device's location services if you grant the mobile app permission to access your location, as further described below. - Payment Information. When you enroll in a subscription or in some cases as part of a free trial, we will collect payment card numbers or account information and billing addresses. - Your Preferences. When you set your preferences and interests in your account settings or otherwise within the Service, we collect that information. We do not use preference data to infer sensitive personal characteristics such as political beliefs or ideology, and we do not transmit raw preference data to advertising partners. - Professional Information. If you apply for a role at Ground News, in addition to personal identifiers, we will collect professional information (for example resume, cover letter, employment history). - Survey Responses. From time to time, we may invite you to participate in surveys or provide feedback about your experience with the Services. Participation is always voluntary. Surveys may ask for information about your motivations for subscribing, perceptions of the Services, and occasionally optional demographic information such as age, gender, or general political orientation, subject to your explicit consent where necessary. We use this information solely for internal product research and development, and we do not share individual survey responses with third parties. B. Information we collect automatically In addition to the personal data you provide directly to us, we also collect information automatically as you use our Services as follows: - Usage Data. We collect information about your activity on the Service, including time spent, links you click, and viewing history. If you use our browser extensions, we also collect certain information about the articles you read as described in NOTE ON OUR BROWSER EXTENSION below. - Device Information. We also collect information about your devices, including operating system type, version, device model, and IP address. - Location. We collect low accuracy information about your location, such as city or zip code. If you use our mobile app and grant the app permission to access your device's location, the app may collect geolocation information from your device's location services. This occurs only with your permission as required by Apple's App Store and Google Play guidelines. You may revoke location permission at any time through your device settings. - Advertising Information. If you access our Services after clicking on a Ground News advertisement on a third-party platform (such as Facebook or Google), we may collect information about that interaction, including the platform identifier associated with your ad click (e.g., Meta Click ID), for the purpose of measuring the effectiveness of our ads. We use several technologies to collect and track this information, including cookies, pixel tags, and browser’s local storage. For EU/UK users, all non-essential cookies and tracking technologies are subject to prior consent via the Cookie Preferences Center in compliance with the ePrivacy Directive. Cookies Cookies are small data files stored on the hard drive of your computer or mobile device by a website. We may use both session cookies (which expire once you close your web browser) and persistent cookies (which stay on your computer or mobile device until you delete them). We classify the cookies we use as either essential, marketing, personalization, or analytics cookies: - Essential cookies are required to enable basic Service functionality. Without these cookies, the Service cannot be provided, and you cannot disable essential cookies. - Marketing cookies are used to assist with our advertising efforts, including to measure the effectiveness of advertising campaigns we run on third-party platforms such as Facebook or Instagram. You may enable or disable this category through our cookie preference center. - Personalization cookies allow the Service to remember choices you make (such as your username, language, or the region you are in) and provide enhanced, more personal features. You may enable or disable this category through our cookie preference center. - Analytics cookies help us understand how the Service performs, how users interact with it, and whether there may be technical issues. You may enable or disable this category through our cookie preference center. We use Google Analytics for analytics purposes, which uses its own cookies: - Google Analytics. We use Google Analytics to collect information on your use of the Services for its improvement. Google Analytics also receives information about you from applications you have downloaded with that partner with Google. We do not combine the information collected through the use of Google Analytics with personal data. Google's ability to use and share information collected by Google Analytics about your visits to our Website or to another application which partners with Google is restricted by the Google Analytics Terms of Service and Privacy Policy. To prevent your data from being used by Google Analytics, you can download the Google Analytics opt-out browser add-on, which can be accessed here. We will not place cookies or collect information via cookies when your browser is set to Do Not Track (DNT). DNT is a preference you can set in your web browser to inform websites that you do not want to be tracked. You can enable or disable DNT by visiting the Preferences or Settings page of your web browser. You can manage your cookie preferences by visiting our Cookie Preferences Center. In general, you can also disable cookies by setting your browser to refuse cookies or indicate when a cookie is being sent. Please note that cookie opt-outs are specific to the web browser, app, or device from which you access the opt-out. If you use multiple devices or web browsers, you will need to opt out from each browser or device that you use. Third party marketing and analytics cookies may be considered sharing under the California Privacy Rights Act ("CPRA"). If you are a California resident and wish to opt out, please visit Do Not Sell or Share My Personal Information. Pixel tags We also make use of pixel tags (which are also known as web beacons and clear GIFs) to track the actions of users on our Service. Unlike cookies, which are stored on the hard drive of your computer or mobile device by a website, pixel tags are embedded invisibly on webpages. Pixel tags measure and compile statistics about usage of the Service. We may use third party pixels, for example those provided by Meta or Google, and you can read more about our use of the data obtained via these pixels in the HOW WE SHARE YOUR PERSONAL INFORMATION section below. Browser local storage We also store data locally on your device, for example to record your most recent landing page, feed stories viewed, or coupon offers presented to you. C. Information we receive from third parties If you choose to create or access your account using a third-party service (e.g. Apple, Google, etc.), we will receive certain information from that provider which may include your name, email address, and profile picture. Ground News is not responsible for the third-party provider's processing of your personal data, and you can learn more about how the relevant third party processes your personal data by reviewing its privacy policy and your privacy settings with that third party. HOW WE USE YOUR PERSONAL INFORMATION The purposes for which we use your personal data are laid out below, along with the relevant legal basis for processing such data from EU/UK data subjects in parentheses: - To operate, maintain, and improve the Services (basis: legitimate interest or performance of a contract). - To provide you with content that is relevant to where you live (basis: performance of a contract). - To market to you more effectively across different web pages and social media platforms (basis: consent). You may revoke your consent at any time using the account settings within the Service. - To create, manage, and communicate with you about your account on the Service (basis: performance of a contract). - To collect and process payments and donations (basis: performance of a contract). - To protect the safety and security of the Service and our users and prevent fraud and abuse (basis: legitimate interest). - To send you marketing communications related to our Services (basis: consent). You may revoke your consent at any time using the account settings within the Service. - To provide you with customer service and answer your questions about the Services (basis: consent). - To evaluate your application for employment at Ground News and communicate with you about it (basis: legitimate interest). - To optimize and measure the effectiveness of our advertising on third party platforms (basis: consent for EU/UK users; legitimate interest for other users). - To enforce our terms and comply with applicable law and legal process (basis: legitimate interest. We do not sell personal data, nor do we conduct automated decision-making with legal or similarly significant effects. We may share certain personal data with third parties as described in this Policy, and this sharing may constitute ‘sale’ or 'sharing' for cross-context behavioral advertising under California law and may therefore be subject to the opt-out rights described below. HOW WE SHARE YOUR PERSONAL INFORMATION A. General Sharing We may share your personal information in the following instances: - Within the Company. We share your personal information among our parent company and affiliated entities, if any, for the legitimate business purposes of efficiently and effectively providing the Services. Access to your personal information is on a need-to-know basis. - With service providers. We share your personal information with service providers that assist us in providing the Services. These service providers include our cloud infrastructure providers, payment processors, app stores, analytics providers (for example, Google), advertising measurement providers (for example, Meta), and others. - To measure the effectiveness of our advertising. We share personal data to help us measure the effectiveness of advertisements we run on third-party platforms, including social media such as Facebook or Instagram. These platforms allow us to track whether users who clicked on one of our advertisements subsequently created an account or purchased a subscription (a 'conversion event'). - When a conversion event occurs, our systems may transmit certain personal data to the platform on which we ran the advertisement. This information may include: - Email address; - IP address; - Phone number, if you have provided it to us; - First and last name, if you have provided it to us; - Click ID (for example the Meta Click ID, a unique identifier placed in your browser by Meta when you click a Ground News advertisement on a Meta platform) - We do this in order to match the conversion event to the advertisement click so we can know which ads are effective and direct future advertising to audiences likely to be interested in Ground News. - If you are a California resident, this sharing may constitute ‘sale’ or 'sharing' of personal information for cross-context behavioral advertising under the CPRA. If so, you may opt out by visiting our Do Not Sell or Share My Personal Information page. If you are a resident of the EU or UK, transmission of your data in this way is subject to your consent provided through our Consent Management Platform (CMP) found here. You may withdraw consent at any time through the CMP or by contacting us at privacy@ground.news. Where you have not provided consent (for EU/UK residents) or have exercised the right to opt out (where applicable), we will not share your data for this purpose. - In the event of a corporate reorganization. In the event that we enter into, or intend to enter into, a transaction that alters the structure of our business, such as a reorganization, merger, acquisition, sale, joint venture, assignment, consolidation, transfer, change of control, or other disposition of all or any portion of our business, assets or stock, we would share your personal information with third parties, including the buyer or target (and their agents and advisors) for the purpose of facilitating and completing the transaction. We will also share your personal information with third parties if we undergo bankruptcy or liquidation in the course of such proceedings. - For legal purposes. We will share your personal information where we are legally required to do so, such as in response to court orders, law enforcement or legal process, including for national security purposes; to establish, protect, or exercise our legal rights, as required to enforce our terms of service or other contracts; to defend against legal claims or demands; to detect, investigate, prevent, or take action against illegal activities, fraud, or situations involving potential threats to the rights, property, or personal safety of any person; or to comply with the requirements of any applicable law. B. Sharing in the last twelve (12) months In the preceding 12 months, we have disclosed personal data for a business purpose with the following categories of third parties: - We have disclosed your internet or other electronic network information collected by cookies to our IT support to detect security incidents, protect against malicious, deceptive, fraudulent, or illegal activity, and to identify and repair website and platform errors. - We have disclosed your internet or other electronic network information collected by cookies to our IT support to update, improve, and maintain the website and platform. - We have disclosed, or may have disclosed, identifiers (email address, IP address, phone number, and name, each in pseudonymized form where feasible) and internet activity information (Meta Click ID) to Meta Platforms, Inc. for advertising conversion tracking purposes as described in this Privacy Policy. C. Sale of Personal Information We do not sell personal information. However, some sharing of personal information we describe in this Policy may constitute a ‘sale’ of personal information under California law. For example, we utilize Google Analytics services to learn about how our users use our Services, and, as a result, we share user traffic information with Google in order to access Google Analytics services. We also share certain personal information with Meta for advertising conversion measurement purposes as described in this Policy. California residents have the right to opt out of the sale of personal information as described in the RIGHTS OF CALIFORNIA RESIDENTS section. NOTE ON OUR BROWSER EXTENSION Ground News offers a browser extension that enables you to view Ground News features and analysis while browsing news articles on the web. With respect to your use of the browser extensions only, we collect the following information: - Article metadata: Information about news articles you view, including article title, date published, date accessed, author(s), publisher, and URL. - User notes: Any notes or annotations you create within the extension in connection with an article. - Authorization tokens: To authenticate your Ground News account and sync your activity, the extension uses and stores session authorization tokens. These tokens do not contain your password and are invalidated upon account logout or password change. We use this information to: (i) provide and sync the extension's features with your Ground News account; (ii) display analysis and information relating to articles you view; and (iii) improve the extension and the Services. We do not use any of this data for advertising, nor do we share this data with third parties. The legal basis for this processing is performance of the contract to provide the extension services; authorization tokens are processed on the basis of our legitimate interest in maintaining secure account access. You may uninstall the Ground News browser extension at any time through your browser's extension management settings. Data previously collected through the extension and associated with your account is retained subject to the terms of this Privacy Policy. To request deletion of extension data, please contact us at privacy@ground.news. YOUR INFORMATION CHOICES You have the following choices with respect to your personal information: - Correct or view your personal information. You may use your account to correct or view certain personal information you have provided to us. - Opt-out of marketing communications. You may opt-out of receiving marketing emails from us by clicking the "unsubscribe" link provided with each email. Please note that we will continue to send you emails necessary to the Services or any assistance you request. - Push notifications. You may update your settings on your account or mobile phone to stop receiving push notifications from us. You can do this by updating your account information or by adjusting the settings on your mobile device. - Location settings. You can prevent your mobile device from sharing your location data by adjusting the permissions on your mobile device or within the Services. - Opt Out of Google Analytics. To prevent your data from being used by Google Analytics, you can download the Google Analytics opt-out browser add-on, which can be accessed here. - Opt Out of sharing personal data for advertising conversion tracking. If you do not wish us to transmit your personal data to the platforms on which we advertise (such as Meta) for conversion tracking purposes, you may opt out by: (i) visiting our 'Do Not Sell or Share My Personal Information' page; (ii) contacting us at privacy@ground.news with the subject line 'Opt Out – Conversion Tracking'; or (iii) for EU/UK residents, withdrawing your consent through our Consent Management Platform (CMP). Please allow up to 30 days for your opt-out to take effect. Note that applicable law provides for exceptions to these opt out rights in some circumstances (such as the service provider exception in California) and note also that opting out does not affect the number of Ground News advertisements you may see on third party platforms. - Opt Out of Advertising Cookies. Irrespective of your jurisdiction, to set your cookie preferences or opt out of the sale/sharing of your information via cookies, please see our cookie preference center. All session cookies are temporary and expire after you close your web browser. Persistent cookies can be removed by following your web browser's directions. To find out how to see what cookies have been set on your computer or device, and how to reject and delete the cookies, please visit: https://www.aboutcookies.org/. Please note that each web browser is different. To find information relating to your browser, visit the browser developer's Website and mobile application. If you reset your web browser to refuse all cookies or to indicate when a cookie is being sent, some features of our website may not function properly. If you choose to opt out, we will place an "opt-out cookie" on your device. The "opt-out cookie" is browser specific and device specific and only lasts until cookies are cleared from your browser or device. The opt-out cookie will not work for essential cookies. If the cookie is removed or deleted, if you upgrade your browser or if you visit us from a different computer, you will need to return and update your preferences. By clicking on the "Opt-Out" links below, you will be directed to the respective third-party website where your computer will be scanned to determine who maintains cookies on you. - Association of National Advertisers opt-out registration: https://dmachoice.thedma.org/ - Network Advertising Initiative (NAI) Opt-Out: https://www.networkadvertising.org/managing/opt_out.asp - Digital Advertising Alliance (DAA) Opt-Out: https://optout.aboutads.info - European Union (EU) / European Economic Area (EEA) Opt-Out: http://www.youronlinechoices.eu RIGHTS OF NEVADA RESIDENTS If you are a resident of the State of Nevada, you may request to opt-out of the current or future sale of your personal information (Nev. Rev. Stat. § 603A.340). We do not currently sell any of your personal information under Nevada law, nor do we plan to do so in the future. However, you can submit a request to opt-out of future sales by sending an email, with the subject line "Opt-Out Request Under Nevada Rights" to privacy@ground.news. RIGHTS OF CALIFORNIA RESIDENTS The California Privacy Rights Act ("CPRA") and California's Consumer Privacy Act ("CCPA") entitle California residents to certain rights. To the extent the CPRA and/or CCPA applies to our processing of your personal information, you are entitled to the following rights: - Right to Access/Know. You have the right to request what personal information we have collected, used, disclosed, and sold about you, unless doing so proves impossible or would involve disproportionate effort. You may only make a request for access twice within a 12-month period. To exercise your right to access your personal information, you may submit a request by completing our email/webform, or by contacting us toll-free at +1 (866) 471-9181. - Right to Deletion. You have the right to request the deletion of your personal information that we collect or maintain, subject to certain exceptions. For example, if we are required by law to retain the information that you are asking to be deleted, we would not be able to delete the information until we are legally permitted to delete it. Similarly, if retaining the information is necessary to complete the transaction for which it was collected or to fulfill the terms of a written warranty or product recall, or to provide a good or service that you have requested and that is reasonably anticipated within the context of our ongoing business relationship with you, we may not be required to delete it. To exercise your right to delete your personal information, you may submit a request by completing our webform, or by contacting us toll-free at +1 (866) 471-9181. - Right to Opt-Out of Sale/Sharing. You have the right to opt-out of the sale or sharing of your personal information to third parties, including for purposes of cross-context behavioral advertising and conversion tracking as described in this Policy, subject to certain exceptions (such as the service provider exception). Ground News does not have actual knowledge that it sells or shares personal information of minors under the age of sixteen (16) years. To exercise your right to opt-out, you may submit a request by completing our email/webform, using our cookie management platform, or by contacting us toll-free at +1 (866) 471-9181. - Right to Non-Discrimination. You have the right to not receive discriminatory treatment if and when you exercise your rights to access, delete, opt-out, correct, or limit use of sensitive personal information under the CPRA. - Right to Correct. You have the right to correct inaccurate personal information that we collect or maintain. Please note that you can use your account to update or correct any personal information. To exercise your right to correct your personal information, you may also submit a request by emailing us at privacy@ground.news or by contacting us toll-free at +1 (866) 471-9181. - Right to Limit the Use of Sensitive Personal Information. You have the right to limit the use of your sensitive personal information when such use goes beyond that which is necessary for providing the Services or certain other permissible purposes like fraud, customer service or quality control. Under the CPRA, sensitive personal information includes: Social Security number or other government-issued ID numbers; financial account credentials (account log-in, financial account, debit card, or credit card number in combination with any required security access code); precise geolocation data; racial or ethnic origin; religious or philosophical beliefs; union membership; the contents of personal communications (mail, email, text messages) unless Ground News is the intended recipient; genetic data; biometric data processed for the purpose of uniquely identifying you; health, sex life, or sexual orientation data (Cal. Civ. Code § 1798.140(ae)). Ground News does not use sensitive personal information collected through the Services to infer characteristics about you or for purposes beyond those necessary to provide the Services. For requests submitted via telephone or mail, you must provide us with sufficient information that allows us to reasonably verify that you are the person about whom we collected the personal information and describe your request with sufficient detail to allow us to properly evaluate and respond to it. If you are a current, former, or prospective user, we require your full name, address, username (if known), phone number, and email address. If we are not able to verify your identity for access and deletion requests with the information provided, we may ask you for additional pieces of information. Only you, or a person that you authorize to act on your behalf, may make a request related to your personal data. If you are an authorized agent making a request on behalf of an individual, you must provide us with signed documentation proving that you are authorized to act on behalf of that individual. EU AND UK RESIDENTS Individuals in the European Union (EU) and United Kingdom (UK) are entitled to certain rights to their personal information under applicable law. If our processing of your personal information is subject to these laws, you are entitled to the following rights: - Right to access: You have the right to ask us for copies of your personal information. This right has some exemptions, which means you may not always receive all the personal information we process. - Right to rectification: You have the right to ask us to rectify personal information you think is inaccurate. You also have the right to ask us to complete information you think is incomplete. - Right to erasure: You have the right to request erasure of your personal information that we are not obligated to keep (also known as the right to be forgotten). For example, you can request us to delete such personal data if: (i) we no longer need the data for the purpose it was collected for, (ii) we process the data based on your consent and you revoke your consent, (iii) you object to our processing based on legitimate interest (and we do not have an overriding legitimate interest), or (iv) you object to our processing the personal data for direct marketing purposes. We may not be able to immediately erase your personal information if we have a lawful reason or a legal or contractual obligation to retain the information or continue the processing. - Right to restrict processing: If you believe that your personal data is inaccurate, that our processing is unlawful, or that we do not need the information for a specific purpose, you have the right to request that we restrict the processing of such personal data. - Right to object to processing: You have the right to object to processing of your personal data which is based on our legitimate interest (Article 6(1)(f) of Regulation (EU) 2016/679 (GDPR) and the UK GDPR) by referencing your personal circumstances. You also have the right to object to our use of your personal data for direct marketing purposes. When you object to our use of your data for direct marketing purposes (i.e. let us know that you no longer wish to receive direct marketing from us), we will stop sending you direct marketing correspondence. This right also applies to the processing of your personal data for advertising conversion tracking to the extent that processing is based on legitimate interest. Where you object to such processing, we will cease transmitting your data for that purpose. - Right to data portability: This right only applies to personal information you have given us. You have the right to ask that we transfer the personal information you gave us from one organization to another or give it to you. - Right to withdraw consent: Where we process your personal data on the basis of consent—including consent to advertising conversion tracking via the Meta Conversions API—you have the right to withdraw that consent at any time without affecting the lawfulness of processing that occurred before withdrawal. To withdraw consent, please contact us at privacy@ground.news or use our Consent Management Platform. - Right to lodge a complaint: You have the right to lodge a complaint with the relevant Supervisory Authority. A list of Supervisory Authorities is available here. Please feel free to contact us regarding this or any other EU data subject right at privacy@ground.news. RIGHTS OF QUEBEC RESIDENTS Quebec's Act respecting the protection of personal information in the private sector, as substantially amended by Act respecting the protection of personal information in the private sector, CQLR c P-39.1, as amended by Law 25 (formerly Bill 64), grants individuals in Quebec specific privacy rights. To the extent this law applies to our processing of your personal information, you have the following rights: - Right of access: You have the right to access your personal information held by us and to receive it in a structured, commonly used technological format. - Right to rectification: You have the right to have inaccurate, incomplete, or equivocal information corrected. - Right to erasure / de-indexing: In certain circumstances, you have the right to have your personal information de-indexed or deleted. - Right to object to automated decision-making: You have the right to be informed of and to object to decisions made solely through automated processing that significantly affect you. Quebec residents should be aware that some of our services involve the communication of personal information outside Quebec, including to the United States. This includes the transmission of personal data to Meta Platforms, Inc. (a US company) for advertising conversion tracking and to Google for analytics. We take steps to ensure that personal information communicated outside Quebec receives an adequate level of protection, including by conducting privacy impact assessments (PIAs) as required by Law 25. To exercise your rights or for more information, please contact us at privacy@ground.news or at Snapwise Inc. 280 Joseph St, Kitchener, ON, Canada N2G 4Z5. INTERNATIONAL DATA TRANSFER Your personal data may be transferred to, stored in, and processed by us and our third party providers in countries, including the United States, where data protection and privacy regulations may not offer the same level of protection as in other parts of the world. Where personal data originating in the UK or EU is transferred to us, we make use of a variety of legal mechanisms to safeguard the transfer, including the European Commission-approved Standard Contractual Clauses, and conduct Transfer Impact Assessments where required. As Ground News is available around the world and we use technical infrastructure in the United States to provide you with the Services, we need to transfer your personal data to the United States and to other jurisdictions as necessary to provide the Services. Without doing so, we would not be able to provide the Services and perform under our contract with you. For EU/UK residents, this transfer is additionally subject to your consent as provided through our Consent Management Platform. DATA RETENTION We retain your personal data as long as your account remains open and will delete it within 90 days after you deliver us a data deletion request, provided that we may retain the data longer where required in order to comply with applicable law or serve a legitimate interest. Data collected through the browser extension, including article metadata and user notes, is retained for the same period as your account and is subject to the same deletion rights described in this Privacy Policy. Personal data transmitted to third parties as described in this Policy may be subject to the third party’s own data retention policies, and we recommend reviewing those policies for details on how long they retain such data. SECURITY OF YOUR PERSONAL INFORMATION Ground News employs reasonable technical and organizational measures in our data collection, storage, and processing practices designed to protect personal data against unauthorized access, alteration, or disclosure. Data collected through the browser extension, including authorization tokens, is transmitted using industry-standard TLS/HTTPS encryption. Authorization tokens are invalidated upon account logout or password change. Personal data transmitted to Meta Platforms, Inc. via the Meta Conversions API is pseudonymized prior to transmission where technically feasible. However, please keep in mind that no mode of data transmission or storage is 100% secure, and we cannot guarantee absolute security of any information you transmit to us or definitively ensure that this information will not be accessed, altered, or disclosed. THIRD PARTY WEBSITES AND SERVICES The Services may contain links to third party websites or services that we do not own or operate. We are not responsible for any third-party websites or services linked to or from the Services, including the information or content contained within them. Your use of any third-party website or service, including those that have a link on our Services, is subject to that third party's own rules and policies, not ours. In particular, your use of third-party platforms on which we advertise, including, for example, Facebook, Instagram, or Youtube, is subject to terms of service and privacy policies provided by those platforms. AGE RESTRICTION The Services are not intended for individuals that are under 13 or otherwise not of legal age in their jurisdiction. If we learn that we have collected or received personal information from a person under 13 or otherwise not of legal age, we will delete that information. If you believe we might have information from or about a person that is not of legal age, please contact us at privacy@ground.news. CHANGES TO THIS PRIVACY POLICY We may amend this Privacy Policy at our sole discretion at any time. If we do, we will post the changes to this page and will indicate the date the changes go into effect. We encourage you to review our Privacy Policy to stay informed. If we make changes that materially affect your privacy rights, we will notify you by prominently posting them and via email. CONTACT US For questions or concerns with respect to this Policy or your personal data, please email us at privacy@ground.news or write to us at: Snapwise Inc. dba Ground News, 280 Joseph St, Kitchener, ON, Canada N2G 4Z5. For privacy inquiries from Quebec residents, please address correspondence to the attention of the Privacy Officer. ©2026 Snapwise Inc. d/b/a Ground News