Privacy Policy

This page explains what information RatingScope collects, how it is used, and what is stored where. This is a factual disclosure, not legal advice.

The condition guides are read-only content. RatingScope is designed to ask for structured facts, not names, records, or identifying details. Text typed into the AI chat is covered in section 8.

RatingScope uses Vercel Analytics and Vercel Speed Insights to understand page traffic and site performance. These tools report aggregate usage patterns (such as which pages are visited and how quickly they load) and do not collect names, email addresses, or medical information. On ratingscope.org, Google Analytics also measures visits to public pages, including the homepage, condition guides, and educational articles. It collects page visits and information about how pages are used. It does not collect names, email addresses, medical information, or uploaded records. The Google Analytics tag is not added on assessment, results, My Claim, tools, start-claim, or combined-ratings pages, where people may enter claim or health facts. If one of those pages is opened after a public page in the same visit, Google Analytics is turned off and does not receive that address. RatingScope does not use Google Analytics for advertising or ad personalization and does not upload records.

Vercel Analytics and Speed Insights operate without cookies. When Google Analytics is loaded on a public ratingscope.org page, Google may set first-party cookies, for example, to tell repeat visits from new visits. These cookies are not set on assessment, results, My Claim, tools, start-claim, or combined-ratings pages. Cookies from a previous public page may remain in your browser until they expire or you clear them.

RatingScope keeps some information in your browser. That browser copy is not written to a RatingScope database.

Session storage lasts for the current browser tab. It holds answers you have started but not finished in a record-comparison, combined-rating rows, a result kept so you can open it again during that visit, and the information needed to reopen that result or continue the comparison in the same tab. Closing the tab removes session storage. Clearing site data removes it too.

Local storage lasts until you clear site data or erase it in the product. RatingScope uses several items. They cover a claims vault designed to be encrypted on this device, older portfolio copies, packet notes, tracked conditions, chat feedback saved in the browser, intent-to-file records, a selected pathway, claim-journey and situation choices, Benefits Delivery at Discharge triage progress, start-claim progress, and an unlock token, if one is saved on this device.

For a record comparison, RatingScope's server processes your structured answers to calculate a result. The assessment keeps a copy of the result in your browser tab's session so you can open it again in that tab.

For the record-comparison usage limit, RatingScope uses a server-held secret to turn an IP address into a one-way identifier. Upstash keeps only that identifier and a one-minute request counter, which expires after 60 seconds. Your answers, condition, result ID, and raw IP address are not sent to that counter. Our limiter does not log the raw IP address.

The intake questions themselves are designed to collect structured clinical facts only (for example, a measured degree of motion, or a documented finding), not free-text records or identifying information. The results page displays a direct warning not to upload records or enter sensitive personal information, including Social Security numbers, claim numbers, or full dates of birth.

The "Track this condition" option on a condition page and the My Tracked Conditions list save your selections. The selections are designed to be stored in this browser's local storage. Clearing your browser data removes it.

The pathway you select on the My Claim tab (such as Still Serving, Appeal, or Increase Claim) is designed to be stored in this browser's local storage. Clearing your browser data, or using a different browser or device, removes it.

The feedback form on the results page sends your submitted category and description to RatingScope's own server, which returns a confirmation receipt. It is not shared with any third-party analytics or advertising service.

The contact link on this site opens a direct email to contact@ratingscope.org through your own email application. RatingScope does not collect or store contact-form submissions separately from that email.

Do not enter personal, sensitive, or confidential information. Text you type is sent to our server. While AI chat is paused, it is not sent to Google. When AI chat is active, it is also sent to Google's Gemini API to answer. Under Google's applicable terms, unpaid-service content may be used to improve Google products and may be reviewed by humans.

When AI chat is active, the chat sends recent messages from that chat and short excerpts from RatingScope condition pages to Google to answer.

The chat is separate from RatingScope's rating calculations, which use fixed coded rules.

RatingScope logs usage counters for the chat. RatingScope's chat usage counters do not include the text of your prompt.

When AI chat is active, RatingScope hashes the IP address with a key that only the server holds, and stores request counters under that hash in Upstash. Without that key, the hash cannot practically be matched back to an IP address by guessing. If the key is not configured, RatingScope does not create the hash and does not write the counters. Those counters do not include what you typed. While AI chat is paused, the counters are not written.

Rate-limit counters expire after 10 minutes or 24 hours, depending on the counter. A separate daily total counter expires after 24 hours and does not include an IP-based identifier.

RatingScope uses Vercel to host the site and measure traffic. Vercel keeps normal request logs that include the IP address. On public pages of ratingscope.org, Google Analytics also measures visits. When AI chat is active, Google generates the chat answers. While AI chat is paused, chat text is not sent to Google. Upstash keeps the one-minute record-comparison usage counters and, when AI chat is active, its separate chat rate-limit counters. Porkbun forwards email sent to the contact address. These providers may process information in countries other than yours.

RatingScope does not currently embed or link to Tally.so or any other third-party form-building service.

Links to official VA.gov pages (such as disability ratings and compensation rates) open an external site operated by the Department of Veterans Affairs, which has its own privacy practices.

RatingScope uses one hidden, non-interactive link on condition pages that a sighted or assistive-technology visitor never encounters, placed specifically to catch automated scrapers that ignore normal page structure. If an automated tool follows that link, RatingScope logs the requester's IP address, referring page, and browser identification string.

This logging exists solely for anti-scraping and security purposes, is invisible during normal use, and only occurs when a non-compliant automated tool accesses a page disallowed in RatingScope's robots.txt. This data is written to Vercel's function logs, not a database, and is never linked to any veteran's assessment answers, tracked conditions, or other activity on the site.

RatingScope is intended for use by veterans and their representatives and is not directed at children. It does not knowingly collect information from children.

We may update this page as RatingScope's features change. Continued use of the Service after changes are posted constitutes acceptance of the revised policy.

Questions about this policy or privacy requests can be sent to contact@ratingscope.org. Depending on where you live, you may have privacy rights; use this address to ask about them.