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ScalingCFO Privacy Policy

Effective date: September 21, 2026

Operator: Zonda Strategic Consulting LLC, operating as Ascend Growth Ventures under the ScalingCFO brand ("ScalingCFO," "we," "us"). Contact: support@ascendgrowthventures.com.

1. Scope and our role

This policy explains how we handle information through the ScalingCFO website, assessments, client and advisor platform, Eli AI features, connected services and related support. Available features vary by account and release. Describing a category of information does not mean every account supplies it or that every planned feature is available.

We use account, website and relationship information to operate our business. When a business or advisory practice supplies information about its employees, customers or other people for processing through ScalingCFO, we generally handle that information on its behalf and under its instructions and applicable agreements. That business may have its own privacy obligations and notices. This policy does not replace an applicable data-processing agreement.

This policy applies to ScalingCFO's services. It does not replace the separate Ascend Growth Ventures website's policy. Information collected under an earlier notice remains subject to applicable commitments and the material-change process described below.

2. Information we collect

  • Account and business details: names, contact information, login/account identifiers, company profile, role, advisor relationships, goals and information supplied during onboarding.
  • Assessments and declarations: answers, scores, business characteristics, stated targets, check-ins and identifiers used to associate a submission with an account.
  • Connected or uploaded records: financial statements, balances, transactions, account mappings, invoices, receivables/payables and other records made available by an authorized accounting connection or upload. Records can contain customer, supplier or employee information.
  • Eli and work products: prompts, conversations, relevant business context, uploaded files, feedback, generated analyses, reports, plans and other artifacts saved in the service.
  • Technical and support information: IP address, browser/device details, authentication and security events, page or feature interactions, errors, support messages and diagnostic information provided when reporting an issue.
  • Commercial information: engagement or subscription details and payment status where applicable. Payment details entered into a payment provider's checkout are also governed by that provider's notice; the payment flow identifies the provider involved.

Where enabled, lead and contact submissions may be sent to our customer relationship management service to manage inquiries and follow-up. Future authorized integrations, such as additional accounting systems or expanded CRM connections, may supply sales, pipeline, customer activity or other dashboard metrics. We will explain the relevant connection and access before enabling it. Please provide only information needed for the service and that you are authorized to share.

3. How we use information

We use information to create and secure accounts; connect authorized data sources; calculate and explain metrics; deliver assessments, dashboards, Eli responses and artifacts; support collaboration with authorized advisors or team members; maintain records and history; provide support; administer engagements; diagnose problems; prevent misuse; and meet applicable legal obligations.

Where applicable law requires a lawful basis, we rely on the basis appropriate to the activity: performing an agreement or taking requested pre-contract steps; legitimate interests such as security, support and service improvement where not outweighed by individual rights; legal obligations; or consent where required. When processing on a customer's behalf, we follow its lawful instructions and applicable agreements. Marketing preferences are separate from permission to process private books or Eli content.

We may associate an earlier assessment with a later account after verifying the relationship, including through verified contact information. Providing an assessment does not automatically authorize publication of its answers or unrestricted access by other clients.

We use appropriately aggregated or de-identified information to understand usage, evaluate quality and improve the service. We do not attempt to re-identify information represented as de-identified. Replacing a company name alone does not make its records anonymous. Publishing an identifiable case study, testimonial or client-data demonstration requires separate authorization.

4. Eli and AI service providers

Eli uses AI services to generate responses and work products. Relevant prompts, selected business context, documents and other information needed for a requested feature may be sent to AI inference, embedding or retrieval providers. Depending on the feature, information can be processed by more than one provider.

The current development configuration uses DeepSeek models through OpenRouter. Other services may support document retrieval and embeddings. AWS and Amazon Bedrock are planned alternatives, not a description of the current hosting or AI configuration.

We do not treat your use of Eli as permission for ScalingCFO to train a general-purpose model on your identifiable private books, documents or conversations. Provider retention and training practices depend on the actual endpoint, settings and applicable terms. We do not represent that all AI processing has zero retention. Contact us for current provider information or with questions about your account's configuration.

Eli output can be inaccurate or incomplete. Saved conversations and generated artifacts may remain in account history even when a provider does not retain its inference inputs. Deleting an account record and revoking a connected service are separate actions.

5. Who may receive information

Information may be available to:

  • Authorized account participants: users, administrators and advisors granted access to the relevant business workspace. Membership in one workspace does not itself authorize access to another client's records. Access depends on the account relationship and permissions, not simply the subscription price.
  • Service providers: hosting, database, authentication, storage, AI, communications, security, diagnostics and other providers needed to operate the service, subject to the applicable arrangements. An integration selected by you may also process information under its own terms.
  • Support and operations personnel: when reasonably necessary to address a request, maintain the service, investigate misuse or protect accounts, within their authorized responsibilities. If we introduce a feature allowing staff to view an account as a user, we will explain the feature and applicable controls when it is introduced.
  • Other recipients where necessary: to comply with lawful requests, protect legal rights or safety, or evaluate or complete a business transaction, subject to appropriate confidentiality and applicable law.

We do not sell or rent personally identifiable information to third parties. Private customer content is not licensed to us for advertising or publication simply because it is uploaded or processed. Service providers acting on our behalf must use information for specified purposes under applicable instructions and confidentiality/security requirements, not sell it for their own purposes. Independent services you choose to connect may have their own obligations and terms.

6. Cookies, analytics and diagnostics

The service uses browser storage and similar technologies for functions such as sign-in, security and preferences. We may use usage analytics and error reporting to understand which features work and where people encounter problems. Diagnostic reports may include technical identifiers and information you provide in a bug report.

We aim to minimize sensitive content in routine telemetry. Product analytics do not require unrestricted copies of accounting records, conversations or uploaded documents. If we introduce optional session recording, advertising technologies or other materially different tracking, we will update the relevant notice and provide choices or obtain consent where required. We do not claim that a planned analytics or recording feature is already enabled.

7. Retention and deletion

We retain information as reasonably necessary for the purposes described here, considering account activity, the type of record, service history, applicable agreements, security needs and legal requirements. Unclaimed assessment submissions, account-linked assessments, financial imports, conversations, artifacts and diagnostic records may have different retention periods.

Contact us to request deletion or details of the retention rules applicable to your information. Where we process information on behalf of a business, we may need to refer or coordinate the request with that business. We verify identity and authority before disclosing or deleting records.

Disconnecting QuickBooks or another integration stops the ongoing connection; it does not automatically remove data already imported into ScalingCFO. Ask separately about deleting imported data and associated work products. Some records may need to be retained for legal, dispute, fraud-prevention or security purposes. Backup copies may persist until they expire under the applicable backup process, rather than being removed immediately.

8. Security and processing locations

We use technical and organizational measures intended to protect information, including access controls appropriate to the service. No system can guarantee complete security. Please protect your credentials and notify support promptly about suspected unauthorized access.

Access by staff and partners is limited to an authorized business need and is subject to confidentiality obligations. We investigate suspected personal-data breaches and notify affected people and relevant authorities when legally required.

We and our service providers may process information in the United States and other countries, depending on the service and provider. Protections and legal requirements can differ between countries. We do not promise a particular processing region or certification unless expressly agreed and supported for your service.

9. Your choices and requests

Depending on your location and our role, you may have rights to access, correct, delete or receive a copy of personal information, object to or restrict processing, withdraw consent, or complain to a relevant authority. Contact support@ascendgrowthventures.com to make a request. Withdrawal does not invalidate prior lawful processing and may affect features that need the information.

You can manage available integrations and account settings, request assistance revoking access, and use an unsubscribe mechanism in promotional messages. Essential account, security and service messages may still be sent. Where information was supplied by your employer or advisor, contact that organization as well so the request can be handled by the appropriate party.

We aim to respond to legitimate privacy requests within one month and will meet any shorter applicable legal deadline. If an extension is permitted and necessary, we will explain it. Requests are normally free; any fee or refusal must be permitted by applicable law. You may complain to the relevant authority without contacting us first.

10. Children

ScalingCFO is a business service for adults and is not directed to children under 18. Please contact us if you believe a child has supplied personal information so we can investigate and take appropriate action.

11. Changes and contact

We may update this policy as our services, providers or legal obligations change. We will update the effective date and provide notice of material changes through appropriate channels, such as email or an in-product notice. Where required, we will obtain consent before applying materially different uses to previously collected information. Posting an updated policy alone does not authorize every new use of existing information.

Questions and requests: support@ascendgrowthventures.com.

Postal contact: 460 Franklin St Unit 220, Framingham, MA 01702.

Related document: End-User License Agreement.