Privacy Policy
Effective 2026-07-30. Not legal advice.
We sell privacy. Our own data practices have to survive the same scrutiny we teach. The policy is simple: we collect the minimum needed to sell and deliver you a device, and we delete what we can as soon as we no longer need it.
What we collect and why
| Data | Why | Kept for |
|---|---|---|
| Shipping name + address | Deliver a shipped order | Until you confirm delivery, then erased — see "Shipping & pickup" below. Local pickup orders never collect this at all. |
| Order details (device, tier, price, payment ID) | Warranty support, bookkeeping | Warranty period, plus standard bookkeeping/tax retention |
| Username + email | Account login, your order/message history | As long as you have an account |
| Messages with us | Support continuity | Until you delete them, or your disappearing-messages timer expires — and we can't read the content even while it's stored |
No real name or phone number is required to create an account — a username is your public identity, and email exists only for login and account recovery.
Account & messaging
Registering gives you an encryption keypair generated in your browser — we never see your private key, ever. Messages between you and us are end-to-end encrypted client-side before they're sent: the server stores ciphertext only, so a database breach, a subpoena, or us being nosy all see the same thing — nothing readable.
Shipping & pickup
At checkout you choose local pickup (default — arranged over encrypted message, no name or address ever collected) or ship to me (your name and address are collected to address the box). Either way:
- The device's own record references only a sale ID and payment ID — never your name.
- The moment we confirm your order delivered, your shipping name and address are erased from the order — not archived, gone. What stays: the order id, what was purchased, the price, and the payment ID.
Payment
- PayPal: subject to PayPal's own privacy policy, which collects more than we do. We receive a transaction/capture ID, not your full payment details.
- Bitcoin (direct, no processor): you send from your own wallet straight to our receiving address — no payment processor in the transaction at all. Honest caveat: Bitcoin's ledger is public and permanent; we never learn your wallet's identity beyond the transaction itself, but if that address has been linked to you elsewhere, that's not something either of us can erase after the fact.
- Cash, in person: the most private option, where available — ask.
Bookkeeping
Sales get recorded in our own internal invoicing system (self-hosted, not a third-party cloud CRM) for standard accounting and tax purposes. If we invoice a sale, your name — and email, if you gave us one for that purpose — may be stored there, separate from the sale-ID-only record described above.
What we never collect
- No analytics or tracking on our website — no pixels, no fingerprinting, no third-party requests of any kind. Server logs only.
- No advertising or tracking cookies. Functional cookies only (staying logged in).
- Nothing from your device. We don't create accounts on your device, keep your passphrases beyond the one-time handoff, or retain copies of data-migration data.
- No marketing lists without explicit opt-in. Unsubscribe is one click and actually works.
Third parties (unavoidable minimum)
- Our hosting provider: like any website, ours collects standard server-level technical data when you connect — IP address, request logs, whatever a typical web host logs by default.
- Payment processor (PayPal), if you choose it.
- Shipping carrier, if you choose to ship: receives your name + address to deliver the box. Not applicable to local pickup.
- Marketplaces (eBay etc.), for sales made there: governed by that platform's own privacy policy.
We don't share or sell your data to anyone else — full stop. The only parties who ever see anything are the ones you chose to interact with to complete or manage a purchase.
What we never do
- Sell, rent, or share your information with anyone for marketing. Ever.
- Keep your shipping name/address around past delivery confirmation.
- Confirm or deny to third parties that any specific person is a customer.
Legal requests
We comply with valid legal process, and beyond it we can't be compelled to produce what we don't have — our retention design means there is very little to produce once an order is delivered. Where legally permitted, we will notify you of a request for your data.
High-risk customers
- Local pickup collects nothing — no name, no address, arranged entirely over encrypted message.
- Bitcoin payment keeps a payment processor out of the picture entirely.
- Your username doesn't have to be your name.
- Warranty is honored by order ID alone — you don't need to prove who you are.
Your rights
Ask what we hold on you, correct it, or have it deleted (past what warranty/bookkeeping genuinely requires): message us, or email help@obsidiandevices.com. No account required to ask, no dark patterns.
Changes to this policy are dated and archived; material changes announced before taking effect. See also Terms of Service, Warranty Policy, and Returns & Refunds.