How we handle personal information.

Effective date: 4 September 2026

In short: we collect only the information needed to answer enquiries, provide services, process orders and—where you choose to connect TikTok—read limited account and video-performance information. We do not sell personal information, and Darwin Perception cannot publish TikTok content, place adverts or spend money.

1. Who controls your information

This website and the related Dark Beacon Studios, Unnatural Selection and Darwin Perception services are operated by Simon Paul Evans, a sole trader trading as Dark Beacon Studios. Unnatural Selection is a trading name used for the online store.

Simon Paul Evans
2 Millstream Cottages
Westbury, Wiltshire
BA13 3SR
United Kingdom

Email: hello@darkbeaconstudios.co.uk

2. What this policy covers

This policy applies when you visit darkbeaconstudios.co.uk, contact Dark Beacon Studios, buy from Unnatural Selection, or authorise Darwin Perception to access limited TikTok information. A third-party service may also provide its own privacy notice.

3. Information we may collect

Enquiry and project information: your name, business name, email address, telephone number, message, project requirements and correspondence.
Order and fulfilment information: contact, delivery, order, payment-status and customer-service information needed to sell and fulfil an order. Full payment-card details are handled by payment providers rather than stored by us.
Website information: IP address and server logs, device/browser details, referring page, campaign parameters and submission time. Our forms may record source information such as UTM parameters so we can understand how an enquiry arrived.
TikTok connection information: authorisation tokens and the permissions you grant. Login Kit includes basic account identification, and Darwin currently requests video.list to read authorised video data.
TikTok video information: video identifier, title, posting time, duration, view count, like count, comment count, share count and AI-generated-content flag, where supplied by TikTok.

4. How and why we use it

To answer enquiries and take steps requested before entering a contract.
To provide agreed creative, marketing and technical services and manage our contracts.
To process, fulfil and support store orders and comply with consumer, tax and accounting duties.
To secure, operate and improve our sites and services where we have a legitimate interest that does not override your rights.
To analyse authorised TikTok video performance inside Darwin Perception, only after you choose to connect your TikTok account.
To send optional marketing only where we have permission or another lawful basis, with an unsubscribe option.

5. TikTok and Darwin Perception

Darwin Perception is designed as a read-only analytics connection at this stage. It uses authorised TikTok information to compare organic video performance and create privacy-minimised evidence for research and decision support.

Darwin does not use the TikTok connection to publish videos, edit or delete content, buy advertising, spend money or place orders.
It does not request private messages, contact lists or precise location information.
Raw TikTok responses and access tokens are not shown in Darwin's browser interface or sent to its AI decision component.
TikTok information is not sold, used to build unrelated profiles or combined for targeted advertising.
You can withdraw TikTok access through your TikTok settings or by contacting us. We will stop new collection when access is withdrawn.

Dark Beacon Studios and Darwin Perception are independent services and are not sponsored, endorsed or operated by TikTok.

6. Who receives information

We share information only where necessary with service providers that help us run the business, such as:

Netlify or another web host for website delivery and form handling;
email and business-software providers;
Shopify and payment providers for storefront and checkout services;
Printful or another disclosed fulfilment partner for print-on-demand production and delivery;
TikTok when you use a TikTok connection;
professional advisers, regulators or law-enforcement bodies where legally required.

We do not sell or rent personal information.

7. International transfers

Some providers may process information outside the United Kingdom. Where UK data-protection law requires it, we rely on recognised adequacy arrangements, approved contractual safeguards or another lawful transfer mechanism.

8. How long we keep information

Unconverted enquiry information is normally removed after 12 months unless a conversation is still active.
Project, transaction and accounting records may be kept for up to six years after the relevant relationship or transaction where needed for legal, tax or contractual purposes.
TikTok access tokens are retained only while the connection is authorised and needed. They are removed or made unusable after revocation, expiry or disconnection.
Privacy-minimised TikTok evidence is kept only while needed for the authorised analytics purpose. If the integration ends or TikTok requires deletion, TikTok information will be deleted or anonymised as required.
Security and server logs are retained according to the relevant provider's operational schedule.

9. Cookies and external resources

The main Dark Beacon Studios site does not currently use advertising cookies. It loads Google Fonts, which may receive technical information such as your IP address. Shopify, TikTok and other linked services operate their own sites and may use cookies under their own notices.

10. Your rights

Depending on the circumstances, UK data-protection law may give you rights to access, correct, erase or restrict your information; object to certain use; receive portable data; or withdraw consent without affecting earlier lawful processing.

Your right to object: you can object at any time to direct marketing. You may also object to processing based on our legitimate interests, and we will assess the request as the law requires.

To exercise a right, email hello@darkbeaconstudios.co.uk. We may need enough information to verify your identity.

11. Automated decisions

Darwin may analyse commercial evidence and generate recommendations, but it does not make solely automated decisions about individuals that produce legal or similarly significant effects.

12. Security and children

We use proportionate organisational and technical safeguards, including restricted credentials and privacy-minimised evidence. No internet service can be guaranteed completely secure. Our services are not directed at children under 13, and we do not knowingly collect their information.

13. Complaints and changes

Please contact us first so we can try to resolve any concern. You may also complain to the UK Information Commissioner's Office through ico.org.uk/make-a-complaint.

We may update this policy when our services or legal obligations change. The effective date at the top shows the latest version.