Your privacy matters to us
Privacy Policy
We built ProtectMyCircle to protect people — and that means protecting your privacy too. Here's exactly what we do and don't do with your information.
Last updated: June 25, 2026
We built ProtectMyCircle to protect people — and that means protecting your privacy too. Here's exactly what we do and don't do with your information.
ProtectMyCircle ("we", "us", or "our") is a scam detection service operated by Garland A. Hurt. This Privacy Policy explains how we handle information when you use our website at protectmycircle.com and our scam-checking tool.
We take privacy seriously — especially because many of our users are older adults who trust us to handle their information with care. We have designed this service to collect as little information as possible while still providing a useful service.
Plain English summary: We do not store the messages you paste into our checker. They are sent to an AI service for analysis and then discarded. We never read them, sell them, or share them with anyone.
If you create a Family plan account, we collect:
When you visit our website, we may automatically collect:
This information is used only to understand how people use our site and to improve it. It is not linked to your identity.
Messages you paste into the scam checker are never stored by ProtectMyCircle. We do not save them, log them, read them, or share them. Once the analysis is returned to your screen, the message is gone from our systems.
Here is exactly what happens when you paste a message:
We use Anthropic's Claude AI to analyze messages. Your message is sent to Anthropic's API under our account. Anthropic's own privacy policy governs how they handle data sent through their API. According to Anthropic's policies, API inputs are not used to train their models and are not retained beyond the processing of each request. You can review Anthropic's privacy policy at anthropic.com/privacy.
Caution: Because messages are processed by a third-party AI service, we recommend you do not paste messages containing highly sensitive personal information such as full Social Security numbers, bank account numbers, or passwords. Paste only what is necessary to identify whether a message is a scam.
If you are a Family plan subscriber, your check history is saved so you can review past results. This stores the verdict (safe, warning, or danger), the date, and a short preview of the message — not the full message text. You can delete your check history at any time from your account settings.
We use the information we collect to:
We do not use your information for advertising, and we do not sell or rent your information to any third party — ever.
We do not sell, rent, or trade your personal information. We share information only in these limited circumstances:
We work with a small number of trusted companies to operate our service:
All service providers are contractually required to handle your data securely and only for the purposes we specify.
We may disclose information if required to do so by law, court order, or to protect the rights, property, or safety of ProtectMyCircle, our users, or the public.
If ProtectMyCircle is sold or merged with another company, your information may be transferred as part of that transaction. We will notify you before this happens and you will have the option to delete your account.
We use a minimal number of cookies — small files stored on your device — to make the site work:
We do not use advertising cookies or third-party tracking pixels. You can disable cookies in your browser settings, though some features of the site may not work correctly.
The "Recent checks" feature in the scam checker app uses your browser's local storage — this stays entirely on your own device and is never sent to our servers. You can clear it at any time using the "Clear history" button in the app.
ProtectMyCircle is not directed at children under the age of 13. We do not knowingly collect personal information from children under 13. If you believe a child under 13 has provided us with personal information, please contact us and we will delete it promptly.
You have the following rights regarding your personal information:
To exercise any of these rights, contact us at the address below. We will respond within 30 days.
If you are a resident of California, you have additional rights under the California Consumer Privacy Act (CCPA). If you are a resident of the European Economic Area, you have rights under the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR). Please contact us for more information about your specific rights.
We take reasonable technical and organizational measures to protect your information:
No method of transmission over the internet is 100% secure. While we take reasonable precautions, we cannot guarantee absolute security. If you become aware of any security concern, please contact us immediately.
We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time. When we make significant changes, we will notify you by email (if you have an account) and by posting a notice on our website. The date at the top of this page shows when it was last updated.
We encourage you to review this policy periodically. Your continued use of ProtectMyCircle after changes are posted means you accept the updated policy.
If you have any questions, concerns, or requests about this Privacy Policy or how we handle your information, please contact us:
Owner: Garland A. Hurt
Website: protectmycircle.com
Email: privacy@protectmycircle.com
We aim to respond to all privacy requests within 30 days.