This Privacy Policy explains how THESHOEBETA ("we", "us", "our") collects, uses, and handles your personal information when you visit theshoebeta.com. We are committed to handling your information in accordance with the Privacy Act 1988 (Cth) and the Australian Privacy Principles (APPs).

For any privacy enquiries, contact us via the Contact page.

1. What Information We Collect

We collect only the information you choose to provide to us:

EMAIL ADDRESS & FIRST NAME
Collected when you subscribe to our newsletter via the email sign-up form on the site. Used solely to send you relevant climbing shoe updates and content. You can unsubscribe at any time via the link in any email we send.
CONTACT FORM DATA
Your name, email address, and message when you submit an enquiry through our Contact page. Used only to respond to your enquiry.
REVIEW SUBMISSIONS
Your display name and review content when you submit a shoe review. Your first name may be displayed publicly alongside your review if approved. We do not collect or store your email address when you submit a review.
ANALYTICS DATA
We may use analytics tools (such as Google Analytics or similar) that collect anonymised, aggregated data — including approximate location at a country or city level, device type, and pages visited. This data cannot identify you personally.

2. How We Use Your Information

We use the information we collect to:

SEND NEWSLETTERS
If you have opted in, we will send you updates about new climbing shoes, guides, and site content. We will never send you unsolicited marketing.
RESPOND TO ENQUIRIES
Contact form submissions are used only to reply to your message. We do not add you to any mailing list as a result of a contact enquiry.
PUBLISH REVIEWS
Approved shoe reviews may be displayed on the site, attributed to your submitted display name only.
IMPROVE THE SITE
Aggregated, anonymised analytics data helps us understand how visitors use the site and how we can improve it.

3. Who We Share Your Information With

We do not sell, trade, or rent your personal information to third parties. We use the following third-party services to operate the site, each of which handles data under their own privacy policies:

FORMSPREE
Processes contact form and email sign-up submissions on our behalf. See Formspree's Privacy Policy.
SUPABASE
Stores shoe review submissions in a secure database. See Supabase's Privacy Policy.
ANALYTICS PROVIDERS
Anonymised usage data may be processed by analytics tools such as Google Analytics. No personally identifiable information is shared with analytics providers.

4. Overseas Disclosure

Some of our third-party service providers (including Formspree and Supabase) store and process data on servers located outside Australia, including in the United States. By using this site, you consent to your information being handled in accordance with those providers' privacy policies and applicable laws in those jurisdictions.

5. How Long We Keep Your Data

We retain your personal information only for as long as necessary for the purposes described in this policy, or as required by law. Newsletter subscriber data is held until you unsubscribe. Contact enquiry data is held for a reasonable period to manage the correspondence, then deleted. Review data may be retained on the site indefinitely unless you request removal.

6. Your Rights

Under the Australian Privacy Principles, you have the right to request access to the personal information we hold about you, and to request that we correct or delete it. To make a request, please contact us via the Contact page. We will respond within a reasonable timeframe.

If you are located in the EU or UK, you may also have additional rights under the GDPR or UK GDPR, including the right to data portability and the right to lodge a complaint with a supervisory authority.

7. Cookies

Our site may use cookies and similar tracking technologies to support analytics and basic site functionality. You can control cookie settings through your browser. Disabling cookies may affect some site functionality.

8. Affiliate & Advertising Disclosure

THESHOEBETA participates in affiliate programmes. This means that some links on this site — including links to retailers — may be affiliate links. If you click one of these links and make a purchase, we may earn a small commission at no additional cost to you. These commissions help us keep the site running and free to use.

Affiliate relationships do not influence our reviews, recommendations, or ratings. We only recommend shoes we genuinely believe are worth considering. Our quiz results and editorial content are based entirely on technical specs, fit characteristics, and climbing performance — not on commercial arrangements.

We are transparent about this relationship and will never recommend a product solely for financial gain.

In plain English: We may get paid a small amount if you buy through a link on this site. It doesn't cost you anything extra, and it doesn't affect which shoes we recommend. We think that's a fair deal.

9. Changes to This Policy

We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time. Any changes will be posted on this page with an updated date at the top. We encourage you to review this policy periodically. Continued use of the site after any changes constitutes your acceptance of the updated policy.

Last updated: May 2026