Privacy Policy

1. Who We Are

Relic Bid (“Relic Bid,” “we,” “our,” or “us”) is a forming Massachusetts LLC operating an online auction marketplace for donated antiques and artifacts. Our website is located at relicbid.nanocorp.app and our primary email is relicbid@nanocorp.app.

This Privacy Policy describes how we collect, use, store, and share personal information we receive from visitors, bidders, buyers, and donors who interact with our website and services. By using our site, you agree to the practices described here.

2. Information We Collect

2.1 Account Information

When you create a Relic Bid account we collect your name, email address, and a password hash. You may also optionally provide a mailing address and phone number for shipping purposes.

2.2 Donor Information

Donors who submit items for review provide contact information, a description of the item, and supporting provenance documentation (receipts, estate records, photographs, customs paperwork). This information is used exclusively to evaluate and process donated lots.

2.3 Transaction & Payment Information

When you complete a purchase, payment processing is handled entirely by Stripe. Relic Bid receives a transaction confirmation, order amount, and basic billing summary (e.g., last-four card digits, billing country) but does not receive or store your full card number, CVV, or banking credentials. Stripe's privacy practices are governed by the Stripe Privacy Policy.

2.4 Shipping Information

When a purchase is processed, we collect the delivery name and address you provide at checkout. This information is shared with our shipping carriers solely for the purpose of delivering your lot.

2.5 Usage & Technical Data

Like most websites, we collect certain technical information automatically when you visit, including your IP address, browser type, operating system, referring URL, pages visited, and time of visit. This data is collected through our analytics platform (PostHog — see Section 5).

2.6 Communications

If you contact us by email, we retain your messages and contact information for the purpose of responding and maintaining a record of the interaction.

3. How We Use Your Information

We use the information we collect to:

• Operate, maintain, and improve the Relic Bid marketplace and website;
• Create and manage user accounts;
• Evaluate donated items and communicate with donors;
• Process payments via Stripe and fulfill purchase orders;
• Arrange insured shipping of purchased lots to winning bidders;
• Respond to inquiries, disputes, and authenticity challenges;
• Send transactional emails (winning notifications, shipping confirmations, receipts);
• Analyze how visitors use the site in order to improve it (aggregated and anonymized where possible);
• Detect and prevent fraud, policy violations, and abuse;
• Comply with applicable legal obligations.

We do not sell your personal information to third parties. We do not use your personal information to serve behavioral advertising beyond what is described in Section 5.

4. How We Share Your Information

We share personal information only as described below:

4.1 Payment Processors

We share transaction data with Stripe to process payments. Stripe is a PCI-DSS-certified processor. Your payment card data is transmitted directly to Stripe and is never stored on Relic Bid servers.

4.2 Shipping Carriers

We share your name, delivery address, and basic item description with the shipping carrier (e.g., UPS, FedEx, USPS, or specialty freight) solely to facilitate delivery of your purchased lot.

4.3 Service Providers

We use third-party service providers to help operate the site and our business. These include:

• NanoCorp / Vercel — hosting and deployment infrastructure;
• PostHog — product analytics (see Section 5);
• Email service providers — for transactional email delivery.

Service providers are contractually prohibited from using your information for any purpose other than providing services to us.

4.4 Legal Requirements

We may disclose personal information if required by law, court order, or government request, or if we believe in good faith that disclosure is necessary to protect the rights, property, or safety of Relic Bid, our users, or the public.

4.5 Business Transfers

If Relic Bid is acquired, merges with another entity, or transfers substantially all its assets, personal information we hold may be transferred as part of that transaction. We will notify users of any such change via the email address on file.

5. Cookies & Analytics

5.1 Cookies

Our website uses cookies and similar technologies (e.g., local storage) to maintain session state, remember preferences, and enable analytics. By using the site you consent to the placement of these cookies. You can disable cookies in your browser settings, but doing so may limit site functionality.

5.2 PostHog Analytics

We use PostHog, an open-source product analytics platform, to understand how visitors use the site. PostHog collects page views, click events, session replays (if enabled), Core Web Vitals, and JavaScript errors. This data is associated with a pseudonymous session identifier and may be linked to your account if you are logged in.

PostHog data is used solely to improve the site experience and diagnose technical issues. We do not use PostHog to serve advertising. More information about PostHog's data practices is available at posthog.com/privacy.

5.3 No Third-Party Advertising

Relic Bid does not use advertising networks, ad-targeting cookies, or behavioral tracking for advertising purposes.

6. Data Retention

We retain personal information for as long as necessary to fulfill the purposes described in this Policy, comply with applicable legal obligations, resolve disputes, and enforce our agreements. Specific retention periods include:

• Account data: retained while your account is active and for up to 3 years after closure or last activity;
• Transaction records: retained for a minimum of 7 years to comply with tax and accounting requirements;
• Donor intake records: retained for the life of the associated lot plus 7 years;
• Analytics data: retained per PostHog's default retention settings (typically 12 months), or as configured by Relic Bid;
• Email correspondence: retained for 3 years or as required for legal proceedings.

When data is no longer required, it is securely deleted or anonymized.

7. Your Rights

Depending on your location, you may have the following rights regarding your personal information:

• Access: request a copy of the personal information we hold about you;
• Correction: request correction of inaccurate or incomplete data;
• Deletion: request deletion of your personal information, subject to legal retention requirements;
• Restriction: request that we restrict processing of your data in certain circumstances;
• Portability: request your data in a structured, machine-readable format;
• Objection: object to processing based on legitimate interests.

Massachusetts Residents: Massachusetts law includes certain data privacy protections. Although a comprehensive state consumer privacy law is still evolving in Massachusetts, Relic Bid is committed to honoring the rights described above for all users regardless of location.

To exercise any of these rights, contact us at relicbid@nanocorp.appwith the subject line “Privacy Request.” We will respond within 30 days. We may require identity verification before fulfilling a request.

8. Security

Relic Bid uses commercially reasonable administrative, technical, and physical safeguards to protect personal information against unauthorized access, alteration, disclosure, or destruction. These include encrypted data transmission (TLS/HTTPS), access controls, and use of reputable third-party infrastructure providers.

No method of transmission or storage is 100% secure. If you believe your account has been compromised, contact us immediately at relicbid@nanocorp.app.

9. Children

Relic Bid is not directed to children under the age of 13 (or 16 where required by applicable law). We do not knowingly collect personal information from children. If we learn that we have inadvertently collected information from a child, we will delete it promptly. If you believe we may have data from a child, please contact us at relicbid@nanocorp.app.

10. Changes to This Policy

We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time. When we do, we will revise the effective date at the top of this page. Material changes will be announced on the website or by email to registered users at least 14 days before they take effect. Continued use of the site after the effective date constitutes your acceptance of the revised Policy.

11. Contact & Privacy Requests

For privacy questions, data access requests, or to exercise any right described in Section 7, contact us at: