Legal

Privacy Policy

How PRISM collects, uses, and protects information when you use theprisminstitute.org and related services.

Last updated: August 4, 2026

PRISM (“PRISM,” “we,” “us,” or “our”) operates the website at www.theprisminstitute.org (the “Site”). This Privacy Policy explains what information we collect, how we use it, and the choices you have. By using the Site, you agree to this policy.

1. Who we are

PRISM is an educational publication and digital institute that publishes essays and frameworks on truth, wisdom, perspective, health, family, economics, and civilization. Our Site is publicly available. Some features—such as newsletter subscription, account access, payments, or integrations with platforms like TikTok for our official content analytics—may involve limited personal or account information.

2. Information we collect

We may collect the following categories of information:

  • Account and contact information. Email address and, if you create or link an account, related identity details needed to sign you in (for example via magic link).
  • Subscription and billing information. If you purchase or manage a membership or product, payment is processed by Stripe. We receive limited billing metadata (such as subscription status); we do not store full payment card numbers on our servers.
  • Newsletter information. Email address and subscription preferences when you subscribe to PRISM essays or updates (typically via Ghost or a similar provider).
  • Social / TikTok information. When we connect to TikTok through the TikTok for Developers APIs, we may receive only the data permitted by the scopes we request and that an authorized TikTok account grants. For PRISM’s official TikTok presence (and any account an authorized operator connects), that may include:
    • Basic identity (user.info.basic): open id, display name, and avatar;
    • Profile data (user.info.profile): username, public profile web/deep links, bio description, and verification status;
    • Public stats (user.info.stats): likes count, follower count, following count, and video count;
    • Public videos (video.list): metadata and listings of public videos on that TikTok account.
    We use this information to operate PRISM’s content and analytics workflows (for example, understanding reach of educational shorts and keeping an inventory of published videos). We do not access private messages, contacts, or non-public content. We only request scopes needed for these features.
  • Usage and technical data. Standard server and analytics data such as IP address, browser type, device information, pages viewed, and approximate location derived from IP. This may be collected through hosting, CDN, or analytics providers.
  • Communications. Content of messages you send us (for example support or privacy requests).

3. How we use information

We use information to:

  • Operate, maintain, and improve the Site and educational content;
  • Send newsletters and confirmations you request;
  • Authenticate accounts and manage entitlements or memberships;
  • Process payments and prevent fraud;
  • Operate TikTok integrations for our official presence—including reading authorized profile details, public account statistics, and public video listings—to support educational content distribution and performance analytics, in accordance with TikTok’s terms and the scopes granted;
  • Respond to inquiries and enforce our Terms of Service;
  • Comply with law and protect the rights, safety, and integrity of PRISM and its users.

We do not sell your personal information.

4. How we share information

We may share information with:

  • Service providers who help us run the Site (for example hosting on Vercel, content/membership via Ghost, payments via Stripe, email delivery, and analytics). These providers process data on our instructions.
  • Social platforms when you connect or share through them (for example TikTok). Their use of data is governed by their own policies.
  • Legal and safety recipients when required by law, or to protect rights, safety, and security.
  • Business transfers if we are involved in a merger, acquisition, or asset sale, subject to appropriate protections.

5. Cookies and similar technologies

We may use cookies, local storage, and similar technologies for session management, security, preferences, and analytics. You can control cookies through your browser settings. Disabling certain cookies may limit Site features (for example staying signed in).

6. Data retention

We retain personal information only as long as needed for the purposes described above, unless a longer period is required by law. Newsletter and account data are retained until you unsubscribe, delete your account, or request deletion, subject to legal and operational needs (for example billing records).

7. Security

We use reasonable administrative, technical, and organizational measures to protect personal information. No method of transmission or storage is completely secure; we cannot guarantee absolute security.

8. Your choices and rights

Depending on where you live, you may have rights to:

  • Access, correct, or delete personal information we hold about you;
  • Object to or restrict certain processing;
  • Withdraw consent where processing is based on consent;
  • Unsubscribe from marketing emails (via the link in each email);
  • Revoke TikTok access through TikTok’s account permissions settings, and contact us to delete any TikTok-derived data we store about an authorized connection.

To exercise these rights, contact us using the details below. We may need to verify your identity before fulfilling a request.

9. Children’s privacy

The Site is not directed to children under 13 (or the minimum age required in your jurisdiction). We do not knowingly collect personal information from children. If you believe a child has provided us information, contact us and we will take appropriate steps to delete it.

10. International users

The Site may be operated from the United States. If you access it from another country, your information may be transferred to and processed in the United States or other locations where our providers operate. Those places may have different data-protection laws than your home country.

11. Third-party links and platforms

The Site may link to third-party sites or services (including TikTok, X, payment providers, and others). We are not responsible for their privacy practices. Review their policies before providing information to them.

12. Changes to this policy

We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time. The “Last updated” date at the top will change when we do. Continued use of the Site after changes constitutes acceptance of the updated policy, except where applicable law requires additional consent.

13. Contact

For privacy questions or requests, contact us at: