Last updated: October 2026
Who we are
This site is operated by Vital Tides Research LLC., Rancho Santa Fe, California 92091. For any privacy question, contact [email protected].
Information we collect
Information you provide. Name, email address, telephone number, billing address, shipping address, account credentials in hashed form, and the content of any message you send us.
Order and payment information. We record what you ordered, when, and the amount paid. We accept payment by ACH bank transfer and Venmo only. We do not collect or store card numbers or your bank login details. ACH transfers are sent from your own bank using the account details we provide, and Venmo payments are processed by Venmo (a PayPal service) under its own privacy policy. We receive only the payment confirmation details needed to match your payment to your order, such as the amount, date, sender name and memo.
Automatically collected information. IP address, browser and device type, operating system, referring page, pages viewed and time on site, collected through server logs and cookies.
Site analytics and order attribution. We use two analytics tools to understand how the site is used. Burst Statistics runs on our own server and does not send your data to an outside company. We also use Google Analytics, provided by Google LLC, which uses cookies to collect information such as pages viewed, time on site, device and browser type, approximate location (derived from your IP address), and shopping activity such as products viewed, items added to the cart, checkout steps and completed purchases (order number, products and order value). Google processes this information on our behalf to give us aggregated reports. We have turned off Google Signals and Google advertising features, so this data is not used for ad personalisation or remarketing. Visitors in the European Economic Area, the United Kingdom and Switzerland are not tracked by Google Analytics unless they consent through our cookie banner. You can learn how Google uses this data at policies.google.com/technologies/partner-sites, and you can opt out of Google Analytics on any site with the Google Analytics Opt-out Browser Add-on.
WooCommerce also records the source of an order (for example, a search engine or a direct visit) to help us understand how customers find us. We do not use advertising pixels, retargeting or third-party ad tracking.
How we use it
- to process, fulfil and ship your orders;
- to communicate about orders, including confirmations and tracking;
- to respond to enquiries and provide support;
- to maintain your account;
- to verify age and screen orders for research-use compliance;
- to detect and prevent fraud and misuse;
- to meet tax, accounting and regulatory record-keeping obligations;
- to analyse and improve site performance;
- to send marketing email, only where you have opted in.
Cookies and tracking
We use cookies that are strictly necessary for the site to work, including cart, checkout and login cookies, and analytics cookies, including Google Analytics cookies (such as _ga and _ga_*), that help us understand site usage. You can manage non-essential cookies through the consent banner at any time. See our Cookie Policy for the full list.
Who we share it with
We share personal information only with providers who need it to perform a function for us: payment processors, shipping carriers (USPS, UPS and FedEx) and our shipping software, our hosting provider, our email provider, and our analytics provider (Google Analytics). They may use it only for that function. We may also disclose information where required by law, court order, subpoena, or a valid request from a government or regulatory authority, and in connection with a merger or sale of the business.
We do not sell personal information, and we do not share it for cross-context behavioural advertising.
Retention
Order and transaction records are kept for 7 years to meet tax and accounting requirements. Account information is kept until you request deletion. Enquiry correspondence is kept for 2 years. Server logs are kept for up to 90 days.
Your rights
Depending on where you live you may have the right to request access to the personal information we hold about you, correction of inaccurate information, deletion, a portable copy, and to opt out of marketing.
California residents. Under the California Consumer Privacy Act as amended, you have the right to know what personal information is collected, used, shared or sold; the right to delete personal information we hold; the right to correct inaccurate information; the right to opt out of sale or sharing; and the right not to be discriminated against for exercising these rights. To exercise any right, contact us at [email protected]. We will verify your identity before responding and will respond within the period required by law.
Residents of other states. If you live in a state with its own consumer privacy law, such as Virginia, Colorado, Connecticut, Utah or Texas, you may have similar rights to access, correct, delete and obtain a copy of your personal information, and to opt out of targeted advertising, sale or profiling. Contact us at [email protected] to make a request. If we decline a request, you may appeal by replying to our decision with the word “Appeal”, and we will respond within the period required by your state’s law.
Security
This site uses encrypted connections, and access to customer and order data is restricted to personnel who need it. No method of transmission or storage is completely secure and we cannot guarantee absolute security.
Children
This site is not directed at anyone under 18 and we do not knowingly collect information from anyone under that age. If you believe a minor has provided us information, contact us and we will delete it.
Third-party links
Our site may link to other websites. We are not responsible for their content or privacy practices.
Changes
We may update this policy. The revision date above shows when it last changed. Material changes will be posted on this page.
Contact
Vital Tides Research LLC.
Rancho Santa Fe, CA 92091
[email protected]
(858) 461-8002 · Monday – Sunday, 8am – 5pm (Pacific)