Privacy Policy
What we collect, why, who else sees it, and what we cannot delete even if you ask. Written to be read.
Last updated 22 August 2026
This is a draft. It has not been reviewed by a lawyer. It describes honestly what the service does today. Where something is permanent or outside our control, it says so rather than implying a promise we cannot keep.
Merlin Clips
We run campaigns where brands pay creators for views on short-form clips. We are the data controller for the information described here. Reach us at privacy@merlinclips.com.
What we collect when you sign in
You sign in with Google. We receive and store your Google account identifier, name, email address and avatar URL. We use them to know which account is yours, to show you your own work, and to contact you about a payout.
Your payout address
We store the wallet address you link, and we require you to prove you control it by signing a message. We never ask for and never hold a private key or seed phrase. We cannot move funds out of your wallet; we can only send funds to it.
What we read from a connected Instagram account
Connecting Instagram is optional. It exists for one reason: to count views on clips you submit, from the platform rather than from your word for it.
We request two permissions and use them narrowly:
instagram_business_basic— your account id and username, so a submitted clip can be matched to the account that posted it.instagram_business_manage_insights— the view count on the specific clips you have submitted to a campaign, so a payout can be calculated.
We store your Instagram user id, username, and an access token. We store view counts for clips you submitted, as a series of timestamped readings. We do not read, store or process your direct messages, your comments, your follower list, your audience demographics, or any content you have not submitted to a campaign.
Disconnecting Instagram deletes the stored token immediately and stops all further reads. You can also revoke access from Instagram directly, which has the same effect.
What we collect about work you submit
The clip URL, the platform, the post identifier, and the campaign you submitted it to. We take repeated readings of the public view count over time, because a payout is based on views that survive rather than views at a single moment.
We send the clip URL to Google's Gemini model to judge it against the campaign brief. That judgement, and the reasons for it, are stored and shown to you.
What is permanent, and why
Payouts are USDC transfers on a public blockchain. The amount, your wallet address, and the transaction are published on that blockchain by design and cannot be deleted by us or by anyone. That is what makes a payout verifiable rather than a claim, and it is the trade being made. If you would rather that not exist, do not submit a clip for payment.
We also keep our own record of each payout — which clip, how many views, how much — in an append-only log, so a disputed payment can be reconstructed.
Who else sees your data
- Google — sign-in, and the Gemini model that judges clips.
- Meta — if you connect Instagram.
- Circle — our payments provider, which receives your wallet address and the amount in order to send it.
- Google Cloud — where the service runs and data is stored.
We do not sell your data. We do not share it with advertisers. Brands running campaigns see the clips submitted to them and the amounts paid, not your email or your Google account.
How long we keep things
Account details and linked accounts: until you delete them. Instagram tokens: until you disconnect, or until they expire. View readings and payout records: kept for as long as a payment could be disputed, and on-chain records permanently, as above.
Access, correction, deletion
You can ask us for a copy of what we hold, ask us to correct it, or ask us to delete it. See deleting your data for what happens and what cannot be undone. Write to privacy@merlinclips.com.