Privacy Policy

1. Who we are

YouthSkilledTrades.com and AdultSkilledTrades.com ("we," "us," "our") are directory platforms that connect students and adult career-changers with skilled trades training programs, apprenticeships, and scholarships. These sites are operated by Matthew Hollingsworth and are based in Jacksonville, North Carolina, USA.

Questions about this policy: privacy@youthskilledtrades.com

2. What information we collect

Information you provide directly

• Candidate accounts: Name, email address, phone number (optional), ZIP code, trade interest, age group, pathway (career changer, veteran, etc.), and funding interest.
• Organization accounts: Organization name and type, contact name and title, work email, phone, city/state, website URL, program description, and plan/billing information.
• Contact forms: Name, email, organization, subject, and message content.
• Newsletter subscriptions: Email address, first name, trade interest, and ZIP code.

Information collected automatically

• Log data: IP address, browser type, device type, pages visited, referrer URL, and timestamps when you visit our sites.
• Cookies: Session cookies for login state and analytics cookies (see Section 5).
• Usage data: Which listings you view, which programs you click, and how long you spend on pages — used to improve search results and relevance.

Information we do not collect

• We do not collect Social Security numbers, government ID numbers, or financial account information.
• We do not collect payment card numbers directly — all payment processing is handled by Stripe (see Section 6).
• We do not collect sensitive personal information such as race, ethnicity, religion, health conditions, or sexual orientation.

3. How we use your information

We use the information we collect to:

• Match candidates with relevant trade programs, apprenticeships, and scholarships based on their location and interests
• Send account confirmation and welcome emails
• Send program match notifications and newsletter updates (only if you opt in)
• Process subscription payments for organization listings
• Allow organizations to manage their listings and view analytics
• Respond to contact form submissions and support requests
• Improve the relevance and quality of our program directory
• Comply with legal obligations

We do not use your information for automated decision-making that produces legal or similarly significant effects on you.

4. How we share information

We do not sell your personal information. We share information only in these limited circumstances:

With organizations (when you apply or inquire)

When you click "Apply now" or submit an inquiry through a listing, the relevant organization receives your name and email address. We only share this when you take an explicit action to contact them. We do not automatically share your profile with all listed organizations.

With service providers

• Stripe: Payment processing for organization subscriptions. See Section 6.
• Email delivery: We use SMTP services (Gmail or SendGrid) to send transactional emails.
• Analytics: Google Analytics for aggregate site usage data. See Section 5.
• Hosting: Our web hosting provider (Netlify or DigitalOcean) processes data to serve the website.

All service providers are contractually required to use your data only to provide services to us, not for their own purposes.

Legal requirements

We may disclose information if required by law, court order, or governmental authority, or to protect the rights, safety, or property of our users or the public.

Business transfers

If the platform is acquired or merged, your information may be transferred. We will notify users and give you the opportunity to delete your account before any transfer of data to a new entity.

5. Cookies and tracking

We use the following cookies:

• Essential cookies: Required for login sessions and security. Cannot be disabled.
• Analytics cookies (Google Analytics): Used to understand aggregate traffic patterns — pages visited, geographic region, device type. We have IP anonymization enabled. You can opt out using the Google Analytics opt-out browser add-on.
• Preference cookies: Remember your search filter settings. These are session cookies that expire when you close your browser.

We do not use advertising cookies, cross-site tracking, or retargeting pixels.

6. Payment information

All payment card processing is handled by Stripe, Inc., a PCI-DSS Level 1 certified payment processor. We never see, transmit, or store your full card number, CVV, or expiration date. What we store is a Stripe customer ID that allows us to manage your subscription.

Stripe's privacy policy is available at stripe.com/privacy.

7. Your rights and choices

You have the following rights regarding your personal information:

• Access: Request a copy of the personal data we hold about you.
• Correction: Update or correct inaccurate information in your account settings or by contacting us.
• Deletion: Request deletion of your account and associated personal data. Email privacy@youthskilledtrades.com. We will process deletion within 30 days.
• Portability: Request your data in a structured, machine-readable format (CSV).
• Unsubscribe: Opt out of marketing emails at any time using the unsubscribe link in any email, or by updating your preferences in your account.
• California residents (CCPA): You have the right to know what personal information we collect, to request deletion, and to opt out of the sale of personal information. We do not sell personal information. To exercise CCPA rights, email us at privacy@youthskilledtrades.com.
• EU/UK residents (GDPR): You have the right to object to processing, restrict processing, and lodge a complaint with your supervisory authority. Our legal basis for processing is your consent (for marketing) and legitimate interests (for account management and security).

8. Data retention

We retain your personal information for as long as your account is active or as needed to provide services. Specifically:

• Candidate profiles: Retained until you request deletion or your account has been inactive for 3 years
• Organization accounts: Retained for the duration of the business relationship plus 2 years for financial records
• Contact form submissions: Retained for 2 years
• Newsletter subscribers: Retained until you unsubscribe
• Server logs: Automatically deleted after 90 days

9. Children's privacy

YouthSkilledTrades.com is intended for users age 14 and older. We do not knowingly collect personal information from children under 13. If you are a parent or guardian and believe your child under 13 has provided us with personal information, please contact us at privacy@youthskilledtrades.com and we will delete that information promptly.

For users between 13–17, we encourage parental involvement in the program discovery process. We do not target advertising to minors and do not share minor users' information with any third parties except as described above.

10. Security

We implement appropriate technical and organizational security measures including:

• HTTPS encryption for all data in transit
• Bcrypt password hashing (never stored in plaintext)
• JWT tokens with expiration for session management
• Stripe's PCI-compliant payment infrastructure
• Regular security reviews of our codebase

No system is 100% secure. If you discover a security vulnerability, please disclose it responsibly to security@youthskilledtrades.com.

11. Changes to this policy

We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time. We will notify registered users of material changes via email at least 14 days before the change takes effect. Continued use of our services after that date constitutes acceptance of the updated policy. The "Last updated" date at the top of this page reflects the most recent revision.

12. Contact us

For privacy-related questions, data requests, or to exercise your rights:

• Email: privacy@youthskilledtrades.com
• Contact form: youthskilledtrades.com/pages/contact.html
• Mailing address: YouthSkilledTrades.com, Jacksonville, NC 28540

We aim to respond to all privacy requests within 5 business days.