We believe in radical transparency. This document explains everything about how your data is handled — in plain English.
REAL (trading name, hereinafter "REAL", "we", "us", "our") operates the website realverified.co.uk. REAL is a cross-platform identity verification platform that enables individuals to prove ownership of their online accounts and social media profiles.
For the purposes of UK GDPR and EU GDPR, REAL is the data controller — meaning we are responsible for deciding how and why your personal data is processed.
We collect different categories of data at different stages of your relationship with REAL.
When you join our waitlist, we collect:
When you become a verified member, we will additionally collect:
When you visit our website, we may automatically collect:
This data is used solely for security, performance monitoring, and improving the service. It is not used to identify you individually.
| Purpose | Data Used | Legal Basis |
|---|---|---|
| Managing your waitlist position | Name, email, handle, platform | Legitimate interests |
| Sending waitlist updates and launch notifications | Name, email | Consent |
| Providing the REAL verification service | All member data | Contract performance |
| Processing subscription payments | Billing data (via Stripe) | Contract performance |
| Identity verification | Handled entirely by Stripe Identity | Contract performance / Legal obligation |
| Sending transactional emails (receipts, alerts) | Name, email | Contract performance |
| Fraud prevention and platform security | IP address, usage data | Legitimate interests |
| Complying with legal obligations | As required by law | Legal obligation |
| Improving the service | Anonymised usage data only | Legitimate interests |
We will never sell your personal data. We will never use your data for advertising profiling. We will never share it with third parties for their own marketing purposes.
Under UK GDPR and EU GDPR, we are required to have a lawful basis for processing your personal data. We rely on the following:
Where you have actively agreed to receive communications from us — for example, by joining the waitlist and opting in to updates. You may withdraw consent at any time by contacting us or clicking unsubscribe in any email.
Processing necessary to deliver the REAL service to you — including verification, billing, account management, and member communications.
Processing that is in our legitimate business interests, provided it does not override your rights — including maintaining the security of our platform, fraud prevention, and improving the service using anonymised data.
Where we are required by law to process or retain certain data — for example, financial records under UK tax law.
We use a small number of trusted third-party services to operate REAL. Each has been chosen for their security standards and compliance with data protection law.
| Provider | Purpose | Data Shared | Privacy Policy |
|---|---|---|---|
| Supabase | Database and backend infrastructure | All member data (stored securely, encrypted at rest) | supabase.com/privacy |
| Stripe | Payment processing and identity verification | Billing data, identity verification (Stripe only) | stripe.com/privacy |
| Resend | Transactional email delivery | Name and email address | resend.com/privacy |
| Vercel | Website hosting | IP address, access logs | vercel.com/legal/privacy-policy |
All third-party providers are contractually required to process your data only for the purposes we specify, and to maintain appropriate security standards. We do not share your data with any other third parties without your explicit consent, except where required by law.
We may be required to disclose personal data to law enforcement or regulatory bodies where required by law. We will only do so to the minimum extent required, and where legally permissible, we will notify you.
REAL is based in the United Kingdom. Our primary database (Supabase) is hosted in the EU West (Ireland) region, keeping your data within the European Economic Area.
Some of our third-party providers (including Stripe and Vercel) may process data in the United States and other countries. Where this occurs, we ensure appropriate safeguards are in place, including:
By using REAL from any country, you acknowledge that your data may be transferred to and processed in countries other than your own. We take all reasonable steps to ensure your data remains protected to the standards described in this policy.
We do not keep your data longer than necessary.
| Data Type | Retention Period |
|---|---|
| Waitlist data (name, email, handle) | Until the service launches and you are onboarded, or until you request removal |
| Active member data | For the duration of your membership |
| Billing and financial records | 7 years (required by UK tax law) |
| Verification records | For the duration of your membership, then deleted unless legally required to retain |
| Data following membership cancellation | Deleted within 90 days of cancellation, except financial records retained as above |
| GDPR erasure requests | All personal data deleted within 30 days of verified request. REAL ID number permanently retired with no data attached. |
Under UK GDPR and EU GDPR, you have the following rights regarding your personal data. These rights apply regardless of where in the world you are based — we honour them globally.
You can request a copy of all personal data we hold about you.
You can ask us to correct any inaccurate or incomplete data.
You can ask us to delete your personal data ("right to be forgotten").
You can ask us to pause processing your data in certain circumstances.
You can request your data in a portable, machine-readable format.
You can object to processing based on legitimate interests, including direct marketing.
You have rights regarding any automated decision-making that significantly affects you.
Where processing is based on consent, you can withdraw it at any time.
To exercise any of these rights, contact us at info@realverified.co.uk. We will respond within 30 days. We may need to verify your identity before processing your request.
If you believe we have not handled your data correctly, you have the right to lodge a complaint with the relevant supervisory authority:
We would always prefer to resolve concerns directly — please contact us first and we will do our best to put things right.
We take the security of your personal data seriously. Measures we have in place include:
No system is perfectly secure. In the event of a data breach that is likely to result in risk to your rights and freedoms, we will notify the ICO within 72 hours and affected individuals without undue delay, as required by UK GDPR.
Our website uses a minimal number of cookies — only those strictly necessary for the site to function. We do not use advertising cookies, tracking cookies, or third-party analytics cookies that profile you.
| Cookie Type | Purpose | Can be disabled? |
|---|---|---|
| Strictly necessary | Core site functionality (e.g. session management) | No — required for the site to work |
| Analytics | Not currently used | N/A |
| Advertising / tracking | Not used — ever | N/A |
You can manage cookies through your browser settings. Disabling strictly necessary cookies may affect your ability to use parts of the site.
REAL is not intended for use by anyone under the age of 18. We do not knowingly collect personal data from children. If you believe a child under 18 has provided us with personal data, please contact us immediately at info@realverified.co.uk and we will delete it promptly.
If you are a resident of California, the California Consumer Privacy Act (CCPA) grants you additional rights in relation to your personal information.
We do not sell personal information. We have not sold personal information in the preceding 12 months and do not intend to do so.
California residents have the right to:
To exercise your California rights, contact us at info@realverified.co.uk.
We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time as our service evolves or as required by law. When we make material changes, we will:
Continued use of REAL after changes take effect constitutes acceptance of the updated policy.
For any questions, requests, or concerns about your personal data, please get in touch. We are committed to responding promptly and thoroughly.
Privacy enquiries
info@realverified.co.ukWe aim to respond to all privacy requests within 5 business days, and will always act within the 30-day statutory deadline.