Last updated: June 21, 2026
This document is provided for transparency and may be updated. It is not legal advice.
1. Who we are & what this covers
What's New LA ("we," "us," "our") operates whatsnewla.com, an aggregated guide to concerts, shows, sports, and events across Los Angeles. The service is operated from California, USA, and is built for an LA-focused audience.
This Privacy Policy explains what information we collect when you visit the site or sign in, how we use it, who we share it with, and the choices and rights you have. It applies to your use of whatsnewla.com and any features available through it. By using the service you agree to the practices described here.
2. Information we collect
2.1 Information from Spotify (when you sign in)
We use Spotify as our only login method (OAuth). We do not ask for or store your Spotify password. When you connect your Spotify account, we request the scopes user-follow-read, user-top-read, and user-read-private, and we receive and store:
- your Spotify user ID;
- your Spotify display name;
- your Spotify profile avatar (image URL);
- the artists you follow and your top artists, imported from Spotify to personalize your feed;
- an encrypted Spotify refresh token (encrypted at rest with AES-256-GCM) so we can keep your music data current without asking you to log in again.
We only read this data - we never modify your Spotify library, playback, or playlists.
2.2 Your profile
You can set a public profile, which may include your chosen @handle, a short bio, and an avatar. Your profile also reflects your public activity on the service (see Section 4).
2.3 Your preferences & personalization data
- genre, artist, venue, and neighborhood follows;
- price, distance, and genre preferences;
- notification preferences;
- your theme/display preference.
2.4 Your engagement & activity
- likes;
- RSVPs (Going / Interested);
- saved bookmarks (these are private to you);
- comments you post;
- events you submit;
- shares.
2.5 Comments & event submissions (user content)
When you post a comment, submit an event, or write a bio, we store that content along with your account so it can be displayed on the service. Comments, submitted events, and bios are intended to be public.
2.6 Newsletter
If you subscribe to our weekly LA roundup, we store the email address you provide so we can send it to you. You can unsubscribe at any time.
2.7 Information collected automatically
Like most websites, our servers automatically record certain technical information when you visit, which may include your IP address, browser type and version, device and operating-system information, referring pages, and timestamps of requests. We use this for security, debugging, and to keep the service running reliably.
2.8 Cookies
We use a small number of essential and functional cookies. See Section 7 and our Cookie Policy for the full list.
3. How we use your information
- Operate the service - authenticate you via Spotify, keep you signed in, store your account, and display events.
- Personalize your feed - use your followed and top artists, your genre/venue/neighborhood follows, and your price/distance preferences to recommend events you're more likely to care about.
- Power social features - show your public profile, comments, RSVPs, likes, and activity; let people follow you; deliver notifications.
- Security & integrity - protect against fraud, abuse, and unauthorized access, and enforce our Terms and Community Guidelines.
- Communications - send the newsletter (if you subscribed) and service-related messages you've asked for through your notification preferences.
We do not use your data to serve targeted advertising, and we do not run third-party advertising or analytics-tracking cookies at this time.
4. What's public vs. private
Some of what you do on What's New LA is meant to be seen by others, and some is kept private to your account.
Public (visible to anyone, including signed-out visitors, unless you make your profile private):
- your profile -
@handle, bio, and avatar; - your comments;
- your public activity - events you're Going to, events you've Liked, and events you've commented on;
- events you submit (once published).
Private (visible only to you):
- your saved bookmarks;
- your preferences and notification settings;
- your newsletter email;
- your Spotify refresh token (encrypted) and the raw Spotify data behind your personalization.
A private-profile toggle is available in your settings. Turning it on limits the public visibility of your profile and activity. Note that content you've already posted publicly (such as comments) may remain visible in context.
5. How we share information
We do not sell your personal information. We share information only in these limited cases:
- Service providers - vendors who host our infrastructure and help us run the service, under obligations to protect your data and use it only on our behalf.
- Ticketing / affiliate partners (via links only) - when you tap through to buy tickets, you leave our site and go to a third-party ticketer such as Ticketmaster, SeatGeek, or StubHub. We use affiliate links and may earn a commission if you buy. We do not send your account data to these partners; any information you provide on their site is governed by their privacy policy.
- Legal & safety - when we believe in good faith that disclosure is required by law, or is necessary to protect the rights, safety, or property of our users, the public, or us.
- Business transfers - if the service is involved in a merger, acquisition, or sale of assets, your information may transfer as part of that transaction.
Publicly visible content (Section 4) is, by its nature, shared with anyone who can view it.
6. Third-party services
We rely on third parties for authentication and for the event and enrichment data that powers the service. These services have their own privacy policies, which govern how they handle your information.
- Spotify - authentication and music data. See the Spotify Privacy Policy.
- Ticketing partners - Ticketmaster, SeatGeek, and StubHub (affiliate links; you transact directly with them).
- Event & enrichment data sources - MusicBrainz, Last.fm, Setlist.fm, PredictHQ, TheSportsDB, public venue feeds, and public posts from Reddit and Bluesky. These provide event listings and artist/venue context; we aggregate them to build the guide.
We are not responsible for the privacy practices of these third parties. We encourage you to review their policies.
7. Cookies & similar technologies
We use a session cookie to keep you logged in, a short-lived state cookie during Spotify sign-in, and a functional cookie to remember your theme/preference. We do not use third-party advertising or analytics-tracking cookies at this time. For the full, named list and how to control cookies, see our Cookie Policy.
8. Data security
We take reasonable measures to protect your information. Your Spotify refresh token is encrypted at rest using AES-256-GCM, and your session is maintained through an httpOnly cookie that isn't readable by client-side scripts. No method of transmission or storage is perfectly secure, so we cannot guarantee absolute security, but we work to protect your data and to respond promptly if an issue arises.
9. Data retention
We keep your account information and the data described above for as long as your account is active. If you delete your account, we delete or de-identify your personal data - including your encrypted Spotify token and personalization data - except where we must retain limited information to comply with legal obligations, resolve disputes, or enforce our agreements. Public content you posted (such as comments) may be removed or anonymized when you delete your account. Aggregated event data that is not tied to you may be retained.
10. Your rights & choices
You have meaningful control over your data:
- Access & correct - view and update your profile, handle, bio, and preferences in your settings.
- Delete - delete your account and associated personal data from your settings or by contacting us.
- Unfollow - remove genre, artist, venue, or neighborhood follows at any time.
- Make your profile private - use the private-profile toggle to limit public visibility.
- Unsubscribe - opt out of the newsletter from any newsletter email or your settings.
- Disconnect Spotify - revoke our access from your Spotify account settings; doing so will disable login and personalization.
11. California privacy rights (CCPA/CPRA)
If you are a California resident, the California Consumer Privacy Act (as amended by the CPRA) gives you the right to:
- Know what personal information we collect, use, and disclose;
- Access a copy of the personal information we hold about you;
- Correct inaccurate personal information;
- Delete your personal information, subject to legal exceptions;
- Opt out of the sale or sharing of personal information - note that we do not sell or share your personal information as those terms are defined under California law, so there is nothing to opt out of;
- Non-discrimination - we will not discriminate against you for exercising any of these rights.
To exercise these rights, email us at privacy@whatsnewla.com. We will verify your request, typically using your Spotify account identity, before acting on it. You may use an authorized agent where permitted by law.
12. EU/UK rights (GDPR)
If you are in the European Economic Area or the United Kingdom, you have rights under the GDPR/UK GDPR, including the rights of access, rectification, erasure, restriction, portability, and objection. Our legal bases for processing are: consent (e.g., connecting Spotify, subscribing to the newsletter), contract (operating the service you've asked to use), and legitimate interests (security, preventing abuse, and keeping the service reliable). To make a data-subject access request (DSAR) or exercise any of these rights, contact privacy@whatsnewla.com. You also have the right to lodge a complaint with your local supervisory authority.
13. Children
What's New LA is not directed to children under 13, and we do not knowingly collect personal information from anyone under 13. You must be at least 13 years old to use the service, and at least 16 years old to use the social features (comments, public profile, and other public activity). If you believe a child under 13 has provided us personal information, contact us and we will delete it.
14. Changes to this policy
We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time. When we do, we'll revise the "Last updated" date above, and for material changes we'll take reasonable steps to let you know. Your continued use of the service after an update means you accept the revised policy.
15. Contact us
Questions about your privacy or this policy? Email us at privacy@whatsnewla.com.