Information we collect
We collect information you provide directly, including your email address, account information, newsletter preferences, support requests, saved content, follows, comments, and information associated with a Northwise purchase or membership.
Passwords are processed through our authentication system and stored in protected, one-way form rather than as readable text. We may also process limited technical and security information needed to maintain sessions, prevent abuse, diagnose failures, and protect accounts.
How we use information
- Provide and secure Free, Premium, and other authorized access.
- Deliver research emails and honor subscription preferences.
- Process purchases and maintain accurate membership status.
- Respond to support, access, correction, and deletion requests.
- Improve Northwise content, products, reliability, and usability.
- Prevent fraud, misuse, unauthorized sharing, and security threats.
- Meet legal, accounting, and operational obligations.
Northwise does not sell personal information.
Cookies and similar technology
Northwise uses essential browser storage and cookies for account sessions, security, preferences, and separate signed-out article and tracker preview meters. The tracker preview lasts 30 minutes; its essential cookie remembers that trial for up to one year. Blocking these technologies may prevent account or gated-content features from working correctly.
Google Analytics helps Northwise understand traffic and engagement on customer-facing pages. When enabled after its privacy controls are verified, Microsoft Clarity is limited to signed-out, strictly masked heatmaps and session recordings on a narrow set of queryless public home, research, company, portfolio, Premium, About, and policy pages so we can identify confusing layouts and broken customer journeys. Northwise does not send account tier, account identifiers, email addresses, payment details, model values, protected member content, or custom user identifiers to Clarity. Contact, signed-in member, staff, account, checkout, admin, internal-tool, download, and unrecognized routes are excluded.
Automatic pageviews are not sent from account or checkout routes. When optional analytics is allowed, Northwise may send limited registration-start, registration-completion, email-verification, sign-in, checkout-start, and purchase funnel events from those routes. These events may include an access category, registration intent, sign-in method, offer version, and query-free source pathname. They do not include email addresses, passwords, form values, account identifiers, or payment details.
When optional analytics is active, Northwise may also set a first-party, pseudonymous journey cookie for up to 395 days. It links allowed product events across visits so Northwise can measure registration, conversion, and return behavior. It is not an email address or payment identifier, is not sent to Google Analytics as an account identity, and is deleted when you reject optional analytics.
After Stripe verifies a paid checkout, Northwise sends Google Analytics a purchase-completed event with the purchase value, currency, and an opaque, HMAC-derived transaction identifier that cannot be reversed into the Stripe checkout reference. Northwise does not include the purchaser's identity, payment details, or a Stripe customer, checkout, subscription, or payment identifier in that event. Advertising storage, Google signals, and advertising personalization are disabled, and sensitive query details are not sent. You can turn analytics off or change your choice through Privacy choices in the footer. Browser Global Privacy Control signals override a prior analytics choice. Outside the EEA, United Kingdom, Switzerland, and Québec, optional analytics starts without a prompt unless you have turned it off. Visitors in those regions must allow optional analytics before Google Analytics or an enabled Microsoft Clarity integration loads. If a visitor's location cannot be determined, Northwise waits for a choice before loading either service.
Email and service providers
Research email
Northwise currently uses Kit to manage research-email subscriptions and delivery. You can unsubscribe using the link in an email. An email unsubscribe does not automatically delete a Northwise account or end paid access.
Payments
Northwise uses Stripe for applicable payment and subscription processing. Payment-card details are submitted to and handled by Stripe rather than stored directly by Northwise. Northwise retains the references and membership facts needed to administer access, support, reconciliation, and accounting.
We may use additional providers for hosting, database, storage, transactional email, monitoring, security, and analytics. Providers receive only the information reasonably needed to perform their service, subject to the applicable terms and agreements.
When information may be shared
Northwise does not sell or rent personal information. Information may be shared with service providers that operate Northwise, when required to comply with law or protect rights and security, or as part of a business transaction such as a merger or acquisition.
Retention and security
We retain information for as long as needed to provide an account or membership, keep required business and transaction records, resolve disputes, enforce agreements, and protect Northwise and its users. Retention periods may differ by record type and legal requirement.
Northwise uses reasonable administrative and technical safeguards, but no online system can guarantee absolute security. Please use a unique password and contact us if you believe your account has been compromised.
Your choices
You may unsubscribe from research emails at any time. You may also request access to, correction of, or deletion of personal information through the Contact Us form. Some transaction, security, customer-service, or legal records may need to be retained after an account request.
Third-party links and children
Northwise may link to websites we do not control. Their privacy practices are governed by their own policies. Northwise is not directed to children under 13, and we do not knowingly collect personal information from children under 13.
Policy changes and contact
We may update this policy as Northwise, its providers, or applicable requirements change. Material changes will be reflected here with a revised date and any additional notice that is appropriate.
Questions about this policy can be submitted through the Contact Us form.