1. Introduction

SkillLinkup B.V. (“SkillLinkup”, “we”, “us”) is a freelance marketplace based in The Netherlands. This Privacy Policy explains what personal data we collect when you use skilllinkup.com, why we collect it, and how we handle it in compliance with the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) and applicable Dutch law.

By creating an account or using our platform, you acknowledge that you have read and understood this policy. If you have questions, contact us at info@skilllinkup.com.

2. Information We Collect

Account data — When you sign up or log in, authentication is handled by Clerk. Clerk collects your name, email address, and (optionally) a profile photo. If you use Google or another OAuth provider to sign in, Clerk receives the data your provider shares with us. We store your Clerk user ID in our own database to link your account to your marketplace activity.

Profile and marketplace data — Freelancers can add additional profile information such as skills, a bio, portfolio items, hourly rate, and location. Clients provide project descriptions and requirements when posting jobs or requesting quotes.

Usage data — We use PostHog to collect anonymised analytics including pages visited, features used, session duration, and general geographic region (country level). PostHog processes this data on our behalf and does not sell it to third parties.

3. How We Use Your Information

We use your personal data to operate and improve SkillLinkup. This includes: authenticating your account and keeping it secure; matching freelancers with relevant job opportunities; processing payments and managing escrow; sending transactional emails (order confirmations, dispute updates, earnings notifications); and resolving disputes between users.

We may also use anonymised, aggregated data to understand how the platform is used and to improve features. We do not sell your personal data to third parties, and we do not use it for automated decision-making that produces legal or similarly significant effects without human review.

4. Cookies & Tracking

Authentication cookies — Clerk sets session cookies that are strictly necessary to keep you logged in. These cookies do not track you across other websites and cannot be disabled without breaking login functionality.

Analytics cookies — PostHog places cookies to distinguish unique sessions and track user flows within SkillLinkup. We have configured PostHog to anonymise IP addresses and to respect Do Not Track signals. No data collected by PostHog is used for cross-site advertising. You may opt out of PostHog tracking by visiting our cookie settings or by using a browser extension that blocks analytics scripts.

5. Payment Data

Payments on SkillLinkup are processed by Stripe. When you enter payment details, that information is submitted directly to Stripe and is never seen or stored by SkillLinkup's servers. Stripe is certified to PCI DSS Level 1, the highest standard for card data security.

We receive from Stripe a transaction reference, the last four digits of your card (for display purposes only), and your payout account details if you are a freelancer connected via Stripe Connect. Your full card number, CVV, and other sensitive payment credentials are never accessible to us.

6. Data Sharing

We share your data only with the third-party services required to operate the platform. Each provider acts as a data processor under a Data Processing Agreement:

Clerk — Identity and authentication. Your login credentials and authentication tokens are stored and managed by Clerk. Clerk is SOC 2 Type II certified and stores data in EU-based infrastructure where available.

Stripe — Payment processing and payouts. Freelancers who accept payments connect a Stripe account; Stripe handles all financial data in accordance with their own privacy policy and PCI DSS obligations.

PostHog — Product analytics. Anonymised usage events are sent to PostHog to help us understand feature adoption and platform performance.

Convex — Real-time data infrastructure. Marketplace data such as messages, orders, milestones, and gig listings are stored in Convex. Convex processes this data on our behalf and does not use it for its own purposes.

7. Your Rights Under GDPR

As a resident of the European Economic Area, you have the following rights regarding your personal data:

Access — You can request a copy of the personal data we hold about you at any time.

Rectification — You can correct inaccurate or incomplete data by updating your profile or contacting us directly.

Erasure — You can request that we delete your account and personal data. We will do so unless we are legally required to retain certain records (e.g. financial transaction history for tax purposes).

Portability — You can request your data in a structured, machine-readable format.

Objection — You can object to processing based on legitimate interests or withdraw consent where processing is based on consent. To exercise any of these rights, email us at info@skilllinkup.com. We will respond within 30 days. You also have the right to lodge a complaint with the Dutch Data Protection Authority (Autoriteit Persoonsgegevens) at autoriteitpersoonsgegevens.nl.

8. Data Retention

We retain your account data for as long as your account is active. If you close your account, we delete your personal profile data within 90 days. We retain financial transaction records for seven years to comply with Dutch bookkeeping requirements (Wet op de jaarrekening).

Anonymised analytics data collected via PostHog may be retained indefinitely as it cannot be linked back to an individual.

9. Security

We take technical and organisational measures to protect your data against unauthorised access, loss, or disclosure. These include encrypted data transmission (HTTPS/TLS), row-level security in our database, multi-tenant data isolation, and access controls limiting which team members can view user data.

Authentication is delegated to Clerk, which provides features such as multi-factor authentication, bot protection, and anomaly detection. Despite these measures, no system is completely secure. If you suspect a security issue, please contact us immediately at info@skilllinkup.com.

10. Children's Privacy

SkillLinkup is intended for users aged 13 and older. We do not knowingly collect personal data from children under 13. If we become aware that a user is under 13, we will promptly close the account and delete the associated data. If you believe a child under 13 has registered on our platform, please contact us at info@skilllinkup.com.

11. Changes to This Policy

We may update this Privacy Policy when we introduce new features, change our service providers, or when laws require it. We will notify registered users of material changes by email or by displaying a prominent notice on the platform. The “Last updated” date at the top of this page always reflects the most recent version. Continued use of SkillLinkup after changes take effect constitutes acceptance of the updated policy.