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Privacy Policy

Last updated: August 12, 2026

Overview

This Privacy Policy explains what information Trade Books ("we", "us", "our") collects when you use the Trade Books web application and the Trade Books mobile app (together, the "Service"), how we use that information, and the choices you have. Trade Books is a business productivity platform built for home service contractors. We collect business data so the Service can do its job — we do not sell your data, and we do not share the business records you enter into the Service with advertisers. Our website does use standard analytics and advertising cookies — see "Cookies & advertising" below.

Information we collect

  • Account info. Your name, email address, password (stored hashed), business contact info, and the role assigned to you inside your company's Trade Books account.
  • Data you enter. Customer records, jobs, estimates, invoices, payments, parts, vehicles, equipment, time entries, notes, and any other content you create inside the Service.
  • Photos. Photos you take with the in-app camera or attach from your photo library — for example, job-site photos, receipt captures, parts barcodes, equipment QR codes, and customer signature captures.
  • Location (mobile app, in-use only). If you grant permission, we use your device's location while the app is in use to provide turn-by-turn navigation to job sites and to optionally verify that time-clock punches happen at the job site. We do not track your location in the background and we do not store a continuous location history.
  • Device & diagnostic info. Basic device info (operating system, app version) and crash logs so we can keep the app stable.
  • Payments. Customer card payments collected through the Service are processed by our payment partners (Stripe / Increase). Card numbers are entered on hosted pages provided by those partners and we never see or store the full card number on our servers.

How we use the information

We use the information above only to operate the Service for you and your company:

  • Authenticate you and keep your account secure.
  • Show you the jobs, customers, estimates, invoices, and other records that belong to your company.
  • Send appointment reminders, status updates, and other transactional messages on your company's behalf.
  • Provide navigation to job sites and (optionally) verify time-clock punches.
  • Process payments through our payment partners.
  • Diagnose crashes and improve the reliability of the Service.
  • Respond to support requests.

How we share information

We do not sell your personal information, and we do not share the business records you enter into the Service with third parties for advertising. (Our website uses advertising cookies — see "Cookies & advertising" below.) We share information only in these limited cases:

  • Within your company. Other users in your company's Trade Books account can see records based on the roles and permissions your company has configured.
  • Service providers. Hosting, email/SMS delivery, mapping, payment processing, and crash reporting providers who process data on our behalf under contracts that require them to keep it confidential and use it only to provide the service.
  • Legal compliance. When required by law, court order, or to protect the rights, safety, or property of our users or the public.
  • Business transfers. If Trade Books is acquired or merged, your data may transfer as part of that transaction. You will be notified before any change in ownership.

SMS / text messaging

The Service can send SMS text messages — such as appointment reminders, technician on-the-way alerts, booking confirmations, job status updates, and review requests — to individuals who have consented to receive them. Phone numbers and SMS opt-in consent are collected either directly by us or by the business you hired, which records your consent in the Service.

  • No third-party marketing. SMS opt-in consent and phone numbers collected for SMS purposes are not shared with, sold to, or transferred to any third parties or affiliates for their own marketing or promotional purposes. Text messaging originator opt-in data will not be shared with any third parties, except with SMS delivery providers acting on our behalf solely to send the messages you consented to receive.
  • Opting out. Reply STOP to any message to opt out at any time; your opt-out is recorded and honored automatically for all future messages. Reply HELP for help. Message frequency varies; message and data rates may apply.

Cookies & advertising

Our website (thetradebooks.com) uses cookies and similar technologies for analytics and advertising. This includes the Google Ads tag and the Meta (Facebook) Pixel, which let us measure how our ads perform and reach people who may be interested in Trade Books. These tools load across our site and may set cookies and share limited information — such as the pages you visit and whether you start a free trial — with Google and Meta. We do not send the business records inside your Trade Books account — your customers, jobs, invoices, and similar data — to these advertising partners. You can limit this tracking using your browser's cookie controls or your ad-personalization settings with Google and Meta.

Security

All data is transmitted over encrypted connections (HTTPS/TLS) and is encrypted at rest in our backend. Passwords are stored using a one-way hash. Access to production systems is restricted to a small number of authorized employees.

Data retention

We retain your business records for as long as your company maintains an active Trade Books account, plus a reasonable period afterwards for backup, accounting, and legal compliance. You can request deletion of your individual user account at any time by emailing us — see "Your choices" below.

Your choices

  • Access & correction. You can view and edit most of your information directly inside the Service.
  • Camera & photos. You can deny or revoke camera and photo-library permissions in your device settings at any time. Features that need them will stop working.
  • Location. You can deny or revoke location permission in your device settings at any time. Navigation and location-based time-clock features will stop working.
  • Notifications. You can disable push notifications in your device settings.
  • Account deletion. You can delete your individual user account at any time from inside the app — open Settings on the web app or More → Profile on the mobile app and tap Delete my account. Your user record, push devices, and notification preferences are removed immediately and you are signed out. If you would prefer to delete by email, write to [email protected] from the address on your account and we will delete your user record within 30 days. Either way, records owned by your company (jobs, customers, invoices, etc.) are controlled by your company's account administrator and are not deleted by removing your individual user account.

Children

The Service is intended for use by businesses and is not directed to children under 13. We do not knowingly collect personal information from children.

Changes to this policy

We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time. When we do, we will update the "Last updated" date at the top of the page and, for material changes, notify account administrators by email.

Contact

Questions about this policy? Email [email protected].