Privacy Policy
Last updated: 18 October 2026
In short: we only collect what you give us when you join the waitlist, plus a few technical details needed to keep the site safe. We use it to keep you updated about Arête and to shape the app. We never sell it, we don't use advertising or tracking cookies, and you can ask us to see, change or delete your details at any time by emailing [email protected].
1. Who we are
Arête is a mountaineering training app in development, founded by Thomas Verbart. In this policy, "Arête", "we" and "us" mean the Arête team, which is responsible for the personal information collected through aretesummit.com. You can contact us about privacy at any time at [email protected].
2. What we collect
When you join the waitlist, you give us:
- your name and email address
- your mobile number, if you choose to add it
- your answers about your climbing (what best describes you, what you'd want from Arête, and how excited you'd be)
- anything you write in the optional message box
We also record automatically:
- the date and time you joined
- your approximate country, worked out from your connection by our hosting provider (never your exact location)
- your personal invite code, and the code of the person who invited you if you joined through an invite link, so we can show your place in line
To keep the site secure, we:
- use Cloudflare Turnstile, which checks that a real person is using the form. It processes technical information about your browser and device for that check.
- limit how often the same connection can submit forms. To do this we store a scrambled ("hashed") version of your IP address with a time stamp. We never store your IP address itself, and these records are deleted automatically after 24 hours.
Peak cards and the Arête range. Your peak card is made in your own browser and is not uploaded to us. When you download or share a card, we add one to the count for that mountain. To avoid counting the same person twice, we keep a scrambled ("hashed") code made from your connection next to that mountain. It can't be turned back into your IP address, and no name or contact details are attached to these counts.
"Get your number". If you look up your climber number, we check the email you type against the waitlist and show your number. We don't store the email you typed for this.
On your own device, the site saves a few settings in your browser's local storage: whether the sound is on, your invite code, the code of whoever invited you, and which peaks you've counted. These stay on your device and you can clear them at any time in your browser settings. We do not use advertising, tracking or analytics cookies.
3. How we use your information
- to add you to the waitlist and send you a welcome email
- to keep you updated about Arête's development and launch
- to understand who is interested in Arête and what they want from it, so we can build the right app
- to show your climber number, place in line and peak card, and to credit invites
- to keep the site and the waitlist safe from spam and abuse
- to reply to you if you contact us
We only email you about Arête, and we never sell, rent or trade your personal information.
4. Our legal basis
If you are in the European Union, the United Kingdom or a similar jurisdiction, we rely on your consent to collect and use the details you give us when you join the waitlist, and on our legitimate interest in keeping the site secure for the security measures described above. You can withdraw your consent at any time (see section 8).
5. Who we share it with
We use a small number of trusted service providers to run the site. They only process your information on our behalf and under their own security and privacy commitments:
| Provider | What they do for us |
|---|---|
| Cloudflare | Hosts the website and stores the waitlist database; provides Turnstile, security and email forwarding for [email protected] |
| Brevo | Sends our emails, such as the welcome email |
| Google (Gmail) | The inbox where emails to [email protected] arrive |
| Google Fonts | Delivers the typefaces the site uses, which means your browser connects to Google's servers |
We may also share information if the law requires us to. Only the Arête founder can see the waitlist, through a password-protected admin page.
6. Where your information is stored
Our providers operate around the world, so your information may be processed outside your own country, including in the United States, the European Union and Australia. Where information leaves the European Economic Area or the United Kingdom, our providers use recognised safeguards such as the European Commission's Standard Contractual Clauses or the EU–US Data Privacy Framework.
7. How long we keep it
- Waitlist details: until 12 months after Arête launches, unless you ask us to delete them sooner. After that we delete them or ask whether you'd like to stay in touch.
- Security records (hashed connections): deleted automatically after 24 hours.
- Peak counts: kept as totals per mountain, with the hashed codes that stop double counting.
- Emails you send us: for as long as needed to help you.
8. Your rights
You can ask us at any time to:
- tell you what personal information we hold about you and give you a copy
- correct anything that's wrong or out of date
- delete your information and remove you from the waitlist
- stop emailing you (just reply "unsubscribe" to any email from us)
- withdraw your consent, or object to or restrict how we use your information
- send your information to you or another service in a common format
Email [email protected] with the subject "Privacy request". We'll reply within 30 days, and it's free. We may ask you to confirm your identity first, to protect your information.
If you're unhappy with how we've handled your information, please contact us first so we can put it right. You also have the right to complain to a privacy regulator. In Australia, that is the Office of the Australian Information Commissioner (oaic.gov.au). In the Netherlands, it is the Autoriteit Persoonsgegevens (autoriteitpersoonsgegevens.nl). Elsewhere in the European Union, it is your country's data protection authority. In the United Kingdom, it is the Information Commissioner's Office (ico.org.uk).
9. Keeping it safe
We protect your information with encrypted connections (HTTPS) across the whole site, a strict security policy for the website, a password-protected admin page with limits on login attempts, spam and bot protection, and by only collecting what we need. No system is perfectly secure, but if a data breach ever affected you in a way likely to cause serious harm, we would tell you and the relevant regulator as the law requires.
10. Children
Arête is meant for adults and older teenagers preparing for mountain climbs. The waitlist is not intended for children under 16. If you're under 16, please ask a parent or guardian before signing up. If we learn we've collected a child's information without that permission, we'll delete it.
11. Changes to this policy
We may update this policy as Arête grows, for example when the app launches. We'll change the date at the top, and if the changes are significant we'll let waitlist members know by email.
12. Contact
Questions or requests about your privacy: [email protected].