Fodors Forum
- The documents do not say whether your data trains AI.
- Your data is used for personalized ads, including by third-party ad companies.
- Data is shared with partners and affiliates; you can opt out.
- Staff may review your content; the policy does not describe an opt-out.
Internet Brands collects a lot, shares it for ads, takes a license on posts.
Agent Trust Hub uses AI and may make mistakes. Review reports and confirm their contents before relying on them.
Collected
Account info, payments, location, photos, health data, device IDs, cookies, and browsing.
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Privacy policy
“we may collect the following personal information directly from you Account or Registration Information where needed to use our sites and services”
Training
They run the site, send ads and emails, and share hashed emails with ad partners.
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Privacy policy
“to inform you about new products or promotional offers, or other opportunities which we feel will be of interest to you, and to provide advertisements to you”
Sharing
Service providers, affiliates, lenders, ad partners like LiveRamp and Mediavine, and others you request.
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Privacy policy
“We may share information that we have about you, such as a cookie ID or IP address, with third-party marketing partners”
Kept
They keep it while your account is open and may keep it after you close the account.
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Privacy policy
“We retain your personal information while your account is active or as needed to provide you services.”
Controls
You can close some accounts in the site, unsubscribe from emails, or email privacy@internetbrands.com.
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Privacy policy
“to close your account, you can log into the site or service where you are registered and navigate to your account”
Fine print
They take a forever license on posts, can close you anytime, not sue in a class.
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Terms of service
“You automatically grant and assign to us, and you represent and warrant that you have the right to grant and assign to us, a , , unlimited, fully paid, fully ”
Expand “Read the exact line” to see the source alongside the explanation.
What you can turn off
The controls and opt-outs their own documents describe, and where they say to find them.
Opt out of sale or sharing of personal information
Cookie banner, “Do Not Sell or Share My Personal Information” or “Manage Preferences” in the footer, or privacy@internetbrands.com
Opt out of LiveRamp matching
https://liveramp.com/opt_out/
Request access or deletion
Email privacy@internetbrands.com or the privacy request link described in section 15.8
Unsubscribe from promotional email
Unsubscribe link in emails or privacy@internetbrands.com
If a switch is not where they say, the deletion request above still applies.
Line by line
The lines that matter most, worst first.
Anything you post can be copied, changed, and given to others forever, even after you leave.
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Terms of service
“You automatically grant and assign to us, and you represent and warrant that you have the right to grant and assign to us, a , , unlimited, fully paid, fully (through multiple tiers), worldwide license”
For example, a travel review you write could be reused in ads or other sites without paying you.
If someone sues them because of something you posted, you may have to pay their legal bills.
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Terms of service
“You agree to and hold us and our representatives harmless from and against any third-party claim, cause of action, demand or damages related to or arising out of: (a) content that you post”
For example, if a hotel sues over your review, they can ask you to cover their lawyers.
They send identifiers to an ad company that can match you to marketing profiles.
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Privacy policy
“when you use our Sites, we may share information that we may collect from you, such as your email address (in hashed form), IP address or information about your browser or operating system, with our service provider, LiveRamp Inc.”
For example, ads on other sites could follow you after you visit Fodor’s.
If you ask for a quote or financing, they may sell your details to lenders.
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Privacy policy
“a third party broker, aggregator, or other referral service to share and/or sell your information to a lender, dealer, or other financial institution in connection with your online request.”
For example, filling a form could lead to calls from companies you never picked.
Paid features generally cannot be refunded once charged.
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Terms of service
“Except as required by law or otherwise stated on the site or in the services, all fees are nonrefundable and payments and purchases may not be canceled by the user.”
For example, if you buy a listing and change your mind the next day, you likely keep no money back.
They can shut your account whenever they want, including without a listed reason.
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Terms of service
“We may, in our sole discretion, terminate or suspend your access to all or part of our sites and services for any reason, including, without limitation, violation of these TOU”
For example, your saved posts could disappear if they decide to suspend you.
They build a profile of your habits and traits from the data they collect.
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Privacy policy
“inferences drawn from any of the information identified in this section to create a profile about users reflecting user preferences, characteristics, psychological trends, predispositions, behavior, attitudes, intelligence, abilities, and aptitudes.”
For example, they may guess your interests from pages you visit and use that for ads.
Closing an account does not always wipe your data.
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Privacy policy
“we may retain personal information even after your account has been closed if retention is reasonably necessary to comply with our legal or regulatory obligations, resolve disputes, prevent fraud and abuse”
For example, old emails and payment records may stay on file after you leave.
They describe some security tools like encryption in transit and firewalls.
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Privacy policy
“To prevent unauthorized access, maintain data accuracy, and ensure the appropriate use of the information we collect, we deploy a wide range of technical, physical, and administrative safeguards, including: Transport Layer Security (TLS), firewalls, system alerts”
For example, payment details are said to be sent with TLS and not stored on their systems.
Words to know
Legal words from the lines above, in plain English.
- personal data
- Any information that is about you or can be linked to you, from your name to your phone's ID. For example, your email, your IP address and the list of apps on your phone are all personal data.
- cookies
- Small files a website saves on your device so it can recognise you and remember what you did. For example, a cookie keeps you logged in and can also tell an ad company which sites you visited.
- third parties
- Any company or person other than you and the app, such as advertisers, partners or analytics firms. For example, an analytics company that receives a record of every screen you tap is a third party.
- retention
- How long a company keeps your data before deleting it. For example, a policy might keep your messages for 30 days after you delete them, or for as long as it likes.
- perpetual
- Lasting forever, with no end date. For example, a perpetual licence means the company can keep using your video years after you leave.
- irrevocable
- Cannot be taken back or cancelled once given, even if you change your mind or delete your account. For example, an irrevocable licence to your photos means you cannot withdraw it later.
- sublicensable
- The company can pass its rights over your content on to other companies without asking you. For example, an app can let an advertiser or a partner reuse your video under the licence you gave.
- worldwide license
- You let the company use your content anywhere on earth, usually for free and for as long as it likes. For example, a video you post can be shown in ads in any country without asking you again.
- indemnify
- You promise to pay the company's legal costs and losses if your use of the service gets it sued. For example, if you post a song you do not own and the label sues the app, you owe the app's lawyer bills.
- service providers
- Outside companies that handle your data on the app's instructions, such as a cloud host or an email sender. For example, the company that stores the app's files in the cloud sees your data but only does what the app tells it.
- sell or share
- Under California law, selling means passing your data to others for money or other value; sharing means passing it on for targeted ads. For example, letting an ad network use your browsing history in return for ad space counts as a sale.
- profiling
- Building a picture of who you are, what you like and what you might do next from your data. For example, an app may guess your income, health or politics from what you watch and tap.
How we got here · grade F · score 31/100 · 15 of 15 policy answers backed by a verified quote · 1 not stated
What does the app collect beyond what it needs to work?
They collect more than account and posts: location, photos, health, job and ID numbers, device IDs, browsing, and cookies.
Does it record your voice, face or body, and what happens to that?
They list photographs, physical characteristics, and biometric information among data they may collect and keep.
Are your chats and uploads used to train AI models, and is that off by default?
Not stated in the documents.
Can employees or contractors read your conversations, and when?
Staff may manually screen and read user content and communications; no opt-out of that review is described.
Are you profiled or tracked for advertising?
They use cookies, LiveRamp, Mediavine, and other ad partners to track and target ads.
Do they sell or share your data, and can you opt out?
They share or sell data with marketing partners and sometimes lenders, and describe a sale/share opt-out.
What rights do they take over what you type and what the AI makes?
You give them a perpetual, irrevocable, worldwide, sublicensable license to anything you post.
How long do they keep your data after you delete it, and can you delete it in the app?
Some sites let you close an account in settings; deletion otherwise is by request, and they may keep records after close.
Does it build a lasting memory or profile of you, and can you see, edit or turn it off?
They say they draw inferences to create a user profile; they do not describe viewing or turning that off.
Do they commit to basic security, and have they leaked data?
They describe TLS, firewalls, alerts, and that they do not store card data on their systems. No audit or leak history is given.
Is there a real age gate, and are teens protected?
Under 13 is not allowed and sites generally require 18; they do not describe age checks beyond that.
Will they tell you when the rules change, and is the policy specific?
The policy is dated. Significant changes get a site or written notice, but continued use means you accept.
Can they close your account without warning, and can you get your data out first?
They may terminate or suspend access for any reason in their sole discretion; no export-before-close is described.
If something goes wrong, who pays?
The service is as-is, liability is capped at six months of fees or $500, and you must indemnify them for your posts.
Do subscriptions renew on their own, and can you get a refund?
They charge fees for some features and say all fees are nonrefundable unless the law or the site says otherwise.
The privacy policy is 8,330 words at a professional or legal expert level (Flesch reading ease 29); the terms are 6,519 words at a college graduate level.
