Privacy Policy

1. Introduction

TipMe ("we," "our," or "us") is committed to protecting your privacy. This Privacy Policy explains how we collect, use, disclose, and safeguard your information when you use our platform to send or receive tips and payments for services.

2. Information We Collect

We collect the following types of information:

Personal Information:

• Name, email address, and phone number
• Profile photo and biographical information
• Identity verification information and government-ID images, which are transmitted to Stripe for verification and are not retained on TipMe servers
• Bank account information (routing and account numbers retrieved via Plaid, stored encrypted with AES-256)

Transaction Information:

• Payment amounts and dates
• Payout history and bank transfer records
• Payment method details (processed by Stripe; card data is not stored by TipMe)

Automatically Collected Information:

• Device information (browser type, operating system, device model)
• IP address and approximate location
• Usage data (pages visited, features used)
• Page visit analytics (pages viewed, visit timestamps, session duration)
• Screen resolution and device type (mobile, tablet, desktop)
• Cookies and similar technologies

3. How We Use Your Information

We use your information to:

• Create and manage your TipMe account
• Process tips, payments for services, and payout transactions
• Verify your identity as required by financial regulations
• Send transactional emails (payment notifications, payout confirmations) and SMS messages (phone number verification)
• Prevent fraud and unauthorized transactions
• Improve our platform and user experience
• Analyze usage patterns and platform traffic to improve our services
• Comply with legal obligations

4. How We Share Your Information

We share your information only with:

• Payment processing and identity verification (Stripe) to process payments and payouts and to verify your identity (KYC)
• Bank account linking (Plaid) to connect your bank account for payouts
• Cloud storage (Cloudflare R2) to store profile photos
• Email services (SendGrid) to send transactional notifications
• SMS services (Vonage, Amazon SNS) to send phone number verification codes
• Law enforcement when required by law or to protect rights

We never sell your personal information to third parties for marketing purposes.

5. Payment Processing and Identity Verification (Stripe)

We use Stripe to process payments and to verify the identity of Recipients. Stripe may collect and process personal information, including transactional data and information about the devices that connect to its services, and uses this information to operate and improve its services, including fraud detection and prevention. For payments made on your instructions, Stripe acts as our service provider (processor); for fraud monitoring and identity verification, Stripe acts as an independent controller under its own policy. You can read Stripe's privacy policy at stripe.com/privacy.

Payment card and financial-account details are handled by Stripe in a PCI-compliant environment and are not stored by TipMe. Government-ID images and identity details you submit for verification are transmitted to Stripe and are not retained on TipMe servers.

6. SMS/Text Messaging

TipMe uses SMS text messaging to send you important account-related communications. By providing your phone number and opting in during registration, you consent to receive text messages from TipMe (Hyperx Inc.) for the following purposes:

• Phone number verification codes
• Account security alerts and login notifications
• Transaction confirmations and payout updates
• Important account-related notifications

Message frequency: Message frequency varies based on your account activity. Typically, you will receive messages only when triggered by an action you take (such as logging in, receiving a payment, or requesting a payout).

Opting out: You may opt out of SMS messages at any time by replying STOP to any message you receive from us. After opting out, you will receive a one-time confirmation message. You may also contact us at support@tipme-app.com to opt out.

Costs: Message and data rates may apply depending on your mobile carrier and plan. TipMe does not charge for SMS messages, but your carrier may.

Carriers: SMS messages are delivered via Vonage and Amazon SNS. Supported carriers include all major U.S. carriers. TipMe is not responsible for delayed or undelivered messages caused by carrier issues.

Help: For help with SMS messaging, reply HELP to any message or contact us at support@tipme-app.com or call +1 (888) 885-8597.

We do not share your phone number or SMS opt-in consent with third parties for their marketing purposes. Your phone number is used solely for the purposes described above.

7. Plaid and Financial Data

TipMe uses Plaid Inc. ("Plaid") to connect your bank account for receiving payouts. When you link your bank account through TipMe, you acknowledge and agree that:

• Your bank login credentials are transmitted directly to Plaid and are not stored on TipMe servers
• Plaid retrieves your bank account information (such as account and routing numbers) to facilitate payouts. These details are stored on TipMe servers encrypted with AES-256, and only the last 4 digits are ever displayed
• Plaid's use of your data is governed by the Plaid End User Privacy Policy
• By using our bank linking feature, you grant TipMe and Plaid the right to access and transmit your financial information as described in this policy
• You may revoke Plaid's access to your bank account at any time through TipMe account settings or by contacting us at privacy@tipme-app.com

We collect only the minimum financial data necessary to process payouts. We do not sell, rent, or share your financial data with any third party for marketing purposes.

8. Where We Store Your Data

To be clear about where your most sensitive information lives:

• Card and identity-verification data, including government-ID images: held by Stripe. TipMe does not store card numbers or retain ID images.
• Social Security Number / Taxpayer Identification Number: transmitted to Stripe for verification; the full value is cleared from TipMe systems once Stripe holds it.
• Bank account and routing numbers (via Plaid): stored on TipMe servers encrypted with AES-256; only the last 4 digits are ever displayed.
• Profile photos: stored with our cloud storage provider, Cloudflare R2.
• Account profile data (name, email, phone): stored on TipMe servers.

9. Data Security

We implement industry-standard security measures to protect your personal and financial information, including:

• SSL/TLS encryption for all data in transit
• AES-256 encryption for sensitive data at rest
• PCI-compliant payment processing through Stripe
• Role-based access controls limiting data access to authorized personnel
• Secure authentication with multi-factor verification
• Continuous system monitoring and logging for unauthorized access detection
• Regular security assessments and vulnerability patching

We maintain administrative, technical, and physical safeguards designed to protect the security, confidentiality, and integrity of your personal and financial information in accordance with applicable laws, including the Gramm-Leach-Bliley Act (GLBA) Safeguards Rule where applicable.

10. Data Breach Notification

In the event of a data breach that compromises your personal or financial information, we will:

• Notify affected users within 72 hours of discovering the breach
• Describe the nature of the breach and the types of data involved
• Outline the steps we are taking to address the breach and prevent future occurrences
• Provide guidance on steps you can take to protect yourself
• Report the breach to relevant regulatory authorities as required by applicable law

11. Your Rights

Depending on where you live, you have the right to:

• Access the personal data we hold about you
• Request correction of inaccurate data
• Request deletion of your account and data
• Object to or restrict certain processing activities
• Data portability (receive your data in a structured format)
• Opt out of the "sale" or "sharing" of personal information and of targeted advertising
• Limit the use of sensitive personal information
• Withdraw consent at any time
• Revoke third-party access to your financial data (including Plaid)

To exercise any of these rights, contact us at privacy@tipme-app.com. We will not discriminate against you for exercising your rights.

12. Data Retention

We retain your personal data for as long as your account is active. After account deletion, we may retain certain data for up to 7 years as required by financial regulations and tax laws. Financial transaction records may be retained as required by the Bank Secrecy Act and other applicable regulations. Government-ID images are not retained by TipMe (see Section 8).

13. Children's Privacy

TipMe is not intended for users under 18 years of age. We do not knowingly collect information from children. If you believe a child has provided us with personal data, please contact us immediately.

14. California and U.S. State Privacy Rights

If you are a resident of California or another U.S. state with a comprehensive privacy law (including, for example, Virginia, Colorado, Connecticut, Utah, Texas, Oregon, and Montana), you have rights to know, access, correct, delete, and obtain a portable copy of your personal information, to opt out of any sale or sharing of personal information and of targeted advertising, and to limit the use of sensitive personal information (such as your Social Security Number). TipMe does not sell your personal information.

You may use an authorized agent to submit a request, and you may appeal a decision on your request. To exercise your state privacy rights, contact us at privacy@tipme-app.com. We will verify your request consistent with applicable law.

15. Cookies and Tracking Technologies

We use cookies and similar technologies for essential functionality, security, preferences, and analytics. Some third parties we use (such as Stripe) may also set cookies to provide their services. For details and your choices, see our Cookie Policy.

16. Changes to This Policy

We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time. We will notify you of material changes via email or a notice on our platform. Continued use after changes constitutes acceptance of the revised policy.

17. Contact Us

For privacy-related questions or requests, contact us at:

Email: privacy@tipme-app.com

Hyperx Inc.
2810 N Church St #147904
Wilmington, DE 19802