Privacy Policy

1. Who We Are

Dao Essence ("we", "us", or "our") operates the website www.daoessentia.com. We provide online tools and resources rooted in Chinese metaphysics traditions, including BaZi (Four Pillars of Destiny) calculators, Chinese Zodiac analysis, Soulmate compatibility calculators, Five Elements personality assessments, Feng Shui guidance, and related educational content.

All calculations are performed automatically using algorithmic interpretations based on traditional Chinese metaphysics frameworks. We do not provide live consultations or human-delivered readings.

For any privacy-related questions, please contact us at: support@daoessentia.com

2. What Information We Collect

We collect different categories of information depending on how you interact with our website:

3. How We Handle Birth Data

Our birth data practices:

• Birth data is used only to perform the requested calculation or generate your reading
• For paid readings, birth data is stored alongside your order for fulfillment and delivery purposes
• For free tools (BaZi calculator, Soulmate Finder), calculation results are displayed on-screen and are not permanently stored on our servers unless you initiate a paid service
• We do not use your birth data for any purpose other than the service you requested
• We do not share your birth data with any third party except as described in Section 6
• You do not need to provide your real name for free tools; you may use a nickname or alias

4. How We Use Your Information

5. Marketing Communications

When you interact with our services (such as submitting a contact form, placing an order, or using our free tools), your email address may be added to our marketing subscriber list to receive updates about new content, products, or promotions.

• Opt-out: Every marketing email includes an unsubscribe link. You may opt out at any time by clicking the link or emailing us at support@daoessentia.com with "Unsubscribe" in the subject line.
• Transactional emails (order confirmations, delivery notifications) are not marketing emails and cannot be unsubscribed — they are necessary to fulfill your order.
• We will never sell or rent your email address to third parties for their marketing purposes.

6. How We Share Your Information

We do not sell your personal data to any third party. We may share it only in the following circumstances:

• Creem (payment processor): transaction data necessary to process your payment securely
• Aliyun DirectMail (email service): to deliver order confirmation and marketing emails on our behalf
• Redis Cloud (database): for temporary storage of order data and subscriber lists on encrypted servers
• Vercel (hosting): for website infrastructure and serverless function execution
• Law enforcement or regulators: when required by applicable law

All third-party providers are contractually required to handle your data securely and only for the specified purpose.

7. Cookies and Tracking

Our website uses cookies and similar technologies. Here is what we use:

You can control cookies through your browser settings. Disabling essential cookies may affect the functionality of our website.

8. Data Retention

We retain your personal data only as long as necessary for the purposes described in this policy:

• Order and transaction records: retained for the lifetime of our operations, as they are necessary for order fulfillment, customer support, and legal compliance
• Birth data (paid readings): retained alongside the associated order for delivery and reference purposes
• Birth data (free tools): not permanently stored — used only for the current session calculation
• Marketing subscriber list: retained until you unsubscribe or request deletion
• Contact form submissions: retained for up to 2 years for follow-up purposes
• Analytics data: 14 months (Google Analytics default retention), after which it is automatically deleted

You may request earlier deletion of your data at any time by contacting us (see Section 10).

9. Data Security

We implement appropriate technical and organizational measures to protect your personal data, including:

• HTTPS / SSL encryption for all data in transit
• Encrypted database storage (Redis Cloud with authentication)
• Access controls limiting who can view personal data
• Secure third-party payment processing (we never store card data)
• Environment variables for sensitive configuration (API keys, auth tokens) — never committed to source code
• Regular review of our security practices

10. Your Rights

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

• Access: request a copy of the data we hold about you
• Correction: request correction of inaccurate data
• Deletion: request deletion of your data ("right to be forgotten")
• Portability: receive your data in a structured, machine-readable format
• Restriction: request restriction of processing in certain circumstances
• Objection: object to processing based on legitimate interest (including marketing emails)
• Withdraw consent: where processing is based on consent, you may withdraw at any time

To exercise any of these rights, please contact us at support@daoessentia.com with "Privacy Request" in the subject line. We will respond within 30 days.

Unsubscribe from marketing: You do not need to make a formal request to stop receiving marketing emails. Simply click the unsubscribe link in any marketing email, or email us with "Unsubscribe" in the subject line.

11. International Data Transfers

Our website is hosted via Vercel (United States) and uses Redis Cloud (Netherlands / United States) for data storage. If you are located in the European Economic Area (EEA), the United Kingdom, China, or other regions with data protection laws, your data may be transferred to and processed in countries outside your region. We ensure such transfers comply with applicable data protection laws, including Standard Contractual Clauses where required.

12. Children's Privacy

Our website is not directed at children under 16 years of age. We do not knowingly collect personal information from children under 16. If you are under 16, please do not use our services or provide any personal information. If you believe we have inadvertently collected data from a child under 16, please contact us immediately and we will delete it promptly.

13. Updates to This Policy

We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time. When we do, we will update the "Last updated" date at the top of this page. We encourage you to review this policy periodically. Continued use of our website after changes constitutes acceptance of the updated policy.

14. Contact Us