Privacy Policy

1. About This Policy

LookBefore ("we", "us", "our") is committed to protecting your privacy in accordance with the Privacy Act 1988 (Cth) and the Australian Privacy Principles (APPs). This policy explains how we collect, use, disclose, and store your personal information.

By using LookBefore, you consent to the practices described in this policy and our Terms of Service.

2. Information We Collect

2.1 Information you provide directly

• Account information: email address, name (optional), and a hashed password when you create an account. We never store your password in plain text.
• Search queries: property addresses you search for and report parameters (property type, floor level, orientation, search radius).
• Saved properties: reports you choose to save to your account.

2.2 Information collected automatically

• Usage analytics: page views, referrer URLs, browser type, and country via Vercel Web Analytics. This data is anonymous and does not use cookies or track individual users.
• Error reports: technical error data (stack traces, browser info) via Sentry to help us fix bugs. This may include your IP address.
• Server logs: IP addresses and request metadata for rate limiting and security purposes. These are not stored persistently.

3. How We Use Your Information

We use your personal information to:

• Provide the LookBefore service, including generating property impact reports.
• Manage your account and authenticate your access to premium features.
• Send password reset emails when requested.
• Enforce usage limits and prevent abuse of the service.
• Monitor and improve the reliability and performance of the service.

We do not use your information for marketing, advertising, or profiling purposes. We do not sell your personal information.

4. Automated Decision-Making and AI

LookBefore uses artificial intelligence (Claude, developed by Anthropic) to analyse development application data and council planning documents. When you request a report:

• Your property address and search parameters are sent to the Anthropic API along with publicly available DA metadata and council document text.
• The AI generates risk assessments, impact analysis, and recommendations based on this data.
• These AI outputs are estimates and should not be treated as definitive assessments. See our Terms of Service for details.

No fully automated decisions are made that have a legal or similarly significant effect on you. AI analysis is provided as informational content for your own decision-making.

5. Third Parties

We share information with the following third-party services, solely to provide the LookBefore service:

We do not share your personal information with any other third parties, and we do not sell your data.

6. Cookies

LookBefore uses a single essential cookie for authentication (session management via NextAuth.js). This cookie is necessary for the service to function and cannot be disabled.

We do not use advertising cookies, tracking cookies, or third-party analytics cookies. Vercel Web Analytics operates without cookies.

7. Data Storage and Security

• Account data is stored in a PostgreSQL database hosted by Supabase in the Asia-Pacific region.
• Passwords are hashed using bcrypt (12 rounds) and are never stored in plain text.
• All data is transmitted over HTTPS (TLS encryption in transit).
• Premium analysis results and fetched council documents are stored temporarily in server memory and are not retained after the analysis session ends.

8. Data Retention

• Account data: retained for as long as your account exists.
• Saved properties: retained until you delete them or delete your account.
• Premium usage counts: daily counters used for rate limiting, retained indefinitely but contain no personal information beyond your user ID.
• Password reset tokens: expire after 1 hour and are marked as used.

9. Your Rights Under Australian Privacy Law

Under the Australian Privacy Principles, you have the right to:

• Access the personal information we hold about you (APP 12).
• Correct any inaccurate or out-of-date personal information (APP 13).
• Request deletion of your account and associated data.
• Complain to the Office of the Australian Information Commissioner (OAIC) if you believe your privacy has been breached.

To exercise any of these rights, contact us via the details on our website.

10. Cross-Border Disclosure

Some of the third-party services listed above may process data outside Australia, including in the United States (Anthropic, Vercel, Sentry, Resend). By using LookBefore, you consent to this cross-border transfer. We take reasonable steps to ensure these providers protect your information in accordance with the APPs (APP 8).

11. Children

LookBefore is not directed at children under the age of 16. We do not knowingly collect personal information from children. If you believe a child has provided us with personal information, please contact us so we can delete it.

12. Changes to This Policy

We may update this policy from time to time. The "Last updated" date at the top reflects the most recent revision. Material changes will be communicated via the website.

13. Contact and Complaints

If you have questions about this policy or wish to make a privacy complaint, please contact us via the details on our website. We will respond within 30 days.

If you are not satisfied with our response, you may lodge a complaint with the Office of the Australian Information Commissioner (OAIC).