Privacy policy
Last updated October 9, 2026
Plaid Orca is owned and operated by PDM Group (“we”, “us”). This policy explains what we collect through plaidorca.com, the Plaid Orca finder (including when it appears on a health center's website) and the staff dashboard. It also explains how we use that information and the choices you have.
The short version: patients never create an account, and the finder never asks for your name, birth date, Medi-Cal number, immigration status, health condition or contact details. We don't use advertising or analytics trackers, and we don't sell or share personal information.
- Patients
- Staff accounts
- Access requests
- What we collect
- Service providers
- How long we keep it
- Your rights
- Health information
- Contact
Patients and visitors using the finder
When someone searches in the finder, we record only:
- the type of care chosen (for example, primary care or cardiology);
- the ZIP code entered;
- how many results were shown;
- which health center's finder was used, if any, and the time of the search.
We don't store your IP address, device ID or any identifier with these records, and we don't link them to each other or to a person. Health centers see totals from their own finder, such as the number of searches for each type of care and ZIP code. They never see who searched. The finder sets no cookies and stores nothing on your device.
If you tap Directions, you leave Plaid Orca for Google Maps with the provider's address. We send nothing about you. If you tap a phone number, your phone places the call directly.
Health center staff with dashboard accounts
If your organization gives you access, we keep:
- your work email address and the organizations and roles you have;
- your password, stored only as a one-way hash by our authentication provider (we can't see it);
- sign-in times and security logs;
- the provider calls you log, including any notes, and who logged them;
- when you accepted our Terms for organizations, which version, and the IP address and browser you used, as a record of the agreement;
- your organization's settings: name, logo link, phone number, clinic site addresses and approved website domains.
Notes are visible only to your organization. The outcome of a call, such as “taking new patients, about a 2-week wait,” is shown to patients and other participating organizations. Sharing those outcomes is the purpose of logging them.
People who request access
If you use the request form, we keep your name, work email, organization, the kind of organization and your message so we can reply. We don't add you to marketing lists.
Categories of information, at a glance
| Category (California law) | Examples | From whom | Why |
|---|---|---|---|
| Identifiers | Work email, name on the request form, IP address in security logs | Staff, people requesting access, all visitors (logs) | Accounts, replies, security |
| Professional information | Organization, role | Staff, people requesting access | Access control, replies |
| Account credentials | Email with hashed password | Staff | Signing in only |
| Internet activity | Pages requested, browser type, errors | All visitors | Security and reliability |
| General location | ZIP code typed into the finder, not linked to anyone | Finder users | Showing nearby care, community totals |
We don't use personal information to make automated decisions about anyone, and we don't build profiles.
How we use information
- to run the finder and the dashboard, and to send sign-in emails;
- to show health centers totals about what their community is searching for;
- to keep the service secure, prevent abuse and fix problems;
- to reply to access requests and support questions;
- to keep records of agreements and to meet legal obligations.
Who processes it for us
We use these service providers, under contracts that limit them to processing information for us:
- Vercel: website hosting and delivery (United States);
- Supabase: database and staff sign-in (United States);
- Our email delivery provider: sign-in emails to staff;
- U.S. Census Bureau Geocoder: turns clinic site addresses that staff enter into map coordinates. No patient information is ever sent.
Fonts and all page resources are served from our own domain, so visiting Plaid Orca doesn't send your information to font, analytics or advertising companies. We may disclose information if the law requires it, to protect people's safety or our rights, or as part of a sale or reorganization of our business under this policy.
We don't sell or share personal information
We don't sell personal information, and we don't share it for cross-context behavioral advertising. We haven't done either in the past 12 months. We honor Global Privacy Control signals, though there is nothing to opt out of. We collect account credentials only to let staff sign in, so there is no other use to limit.
Cookies
We use one strictly necessary cookie, and only for staff who sign in. See our cookie notice for details.
How long we keep information
- Finder search records: deleted automatically after 24 months.
- Access requests: deleted automatically 24 months after they are received.
- Staff accounts: kept until the account is removed, or deleted within 45 days of a verified request.
- Notes and organization settings: kept while the organization uses Plaid Orca, and deleted within 90 days after it leaves or sooner on request.
- Call outcomes: kept as part of the shared provider record, without notes.
- Records of accepted terms: kept for as long as needed to show the agreement, up to seven years after the account ends.
- Hosting and database logs: kept by our providers for a short period, generally days to weeks.
Security
All traffic is encrypted with HTTPS, and stored data is encrypted at rest by our database provider. Access is limited by role, so staff see only their own organization. Database rules block direct access to tables. Patient searches can't be read by staff. No system is perfectly secure, but we work to protect information. If a breach affects you, we will notify you as the law requires.
Your California privacy rights
If you live in California, you have the right to:
- know what personal information we have about you and how we use and disclose it;
- get a copy of it;
- correct it if it's wrong;
- have it deleted, with some legal exceptions;
- not be treated differently for using these rights.
To make a request, email patrick@pdmgrp.com. We'll confirm we received it within 10 business days and respond within 45 days. We'll verify your request by checking that it comes from the email address on file. An authorized agent may make a request for you with your signed permission. Because finder searches aren't linked to anyone, we can't find or return a specific person's searches. We offer these rights to everyone, not only California residents.
Health information
Plaid Orca is not a health care provider, health plan or clearinghouse. It does not receive protected health information from health centers, so HIPAA doesn't apply to it. It also doesn't collect medical information as defined by California's Confidentiality of Medical Information Act. Health center staff agree not to enter patient information. If any is entered by mistake, we delete it when we learn of it.
Children
The finder doesn't collect personal information from anyone, including children. Dashboard accounts are for adults working for participating organizations. We don't knowingly collect personal information from children under 16.
Health center websites
When the finder appears on a health center's website, it runs in a separate frame served by Plaid Orca. The health center's own website and its privacy policy are separate from ours. The finder doesn't read or share anything from the page around it. If the health center adds its logo, the finder loads that image from the health center's own website.
Changes
If we change this policy, we'll update the date at the top. If a change materially affects how we use information we already have, we'll tell affected account holders before it takes effect.
Contact
PDM Group · patrick@pdmgrp.com