FAQ
The questions
you’re actually asking.
We collected every question real people asked about CiaoJin and answered every single one. Honestly. If something is still unclear, ask us directly.
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All questions14
How earnings work5
Data & privacy4
Who can join3
Trust & security2
Do I earn just from scrolling, or only if I post content?
Everyone earns — whether you post or not. CiaoJin has three earning tiers. Passive presence (scrolling, watching, reading) earns a base rate. Giving engagement (liking, commenting, sharing) earns more. Creating content that receives engagement earns the most.
You don’t need to be a creator or an influencer to earn on CiaoJin. Simply using the app generates data that has real market value.
Does the time I spend on a piece of content affect my earnings?
Yes and we go further than just measuring time. Raw dwell time is a signal, but CiaoJin weights quality of attention over quantity. Scrolling back to re-read something, pausing and restarting a video, screenshotting content, or sharing immediately after watching, these signals indicate genuine engagement and are weighted higher than simply leaving a tab open.
This means you’re rewarded for real attention, not just screen time. We think that’s a more honest model.
How does the earning weighting work exactly? Is it the same for everyone?
No and that is intentional. Earnings are weighted by contribution. Four factors determine your weight:
1. Activity level — how much you use the app
2. Engagement quality — depth and authenticity of interactions, not just volume
3. Data categories enabled — more valuable data categories earn higher rates
4. Network effect — content that generates engagement from others contributes more to the data pool
The full methodology is published in our transparency report and updated quarterly. We believe you have a right to understand exactly how your earnings are calculated.
1. Activity level — how much you use the app
2. Engagement quality — depth and authenticity of interactions, not just volume
3. Data categories enabled — more valuable data categories earn higher rates
4. Network effect — content that generates engagement from others contributes more to the data pool
The full methodology is published in our transparency report and updated quarterly. We believe you have a right to understand exactly how your earnings are calculated.
How and when do I actually get paid?
Your earnings accumulate in real time in your CiaoJin balance, visible in the app at any moment. When you want to transfer to your bank account, you request a withdrawal. The money arrives within 48 hours. There is no minimum withdrawal amount and no processing fee.
Your earnings are euros. Not points. Not credits. Not tokens. Euros, transferred to your bank account within 48 hours of requesting.
If sensitive data must be encrypted by law, how can I earn more by sharing it?
Encryption and monetisation are not mutually exclusive, this is the most common misunderstanding about how the data economy works.
Your raw data is never exposed. What CiaoJin sells are derived insights from anonymised, aggregated pools of user data. For example: “35% of users in Dublin who engaged with fitness content also showed purchase intent for premium food brands” — no individual’s health data was exposed, but the insight has significant advertising value.
Sensitive categories generate more valuable insights at the aggregate level, which is why they earn you more. The encryption protects your identity. The monetisation captures the value of the pattern — not the person.
Your raw data is never exposed. What CiaoJin sells are derived insights from anonymised, aggregated pools of user data. For example: “35% of users in Dublin who engaged with fitness content also showed purchase intent for premium food brands” — no individual’s health data was exposed, but the insight has significant advertising value.
Sensitive categories generate more valuable insights at the aggregate level, which is why they earn you more. The encryption protects your identity. The monetisation captures the value of the pattern — not the person.
Your raw data is always encrypted and anonymised. What earns money is the collective insight, not your individual information.
What exactly happens to my data? Who buys it?
CiaoJin sells anonymised, aggregated behavioural insights to advertisers, brands and data buyers, the same type of buyers that Instagram, TikTok and every major platform sells to. The difference is that we share the revenue with you.
What is sold: patterns and insights derived from the collective behaviour of our users.
What is never sold: your individual identity, your name, your raw data, or anything that could identify you personally.
You also control what categories you contribute to. Toggle off location data and it is not included. Toggle off health and lifestyle and it is excluded entirely. You set the boundaries, we operate within them.
What is sold: patterns and insights derived from the collective behaviour of our users.
What is never sold: your individual identity, your name, your raw data, or anything that could identify you personally.
You also control what categories you contribute to. Toggle off location data and it is not included. Toggle off health and lifestyle and it is excluded entirely. You set the boundaries, we operate within them.
Does sharing more data mean I lose my privacy?
Privacy on CiaoJin is a choice you make with full information, not something taken from you without your knowledge. This is fundamentally different from how current platforms operate.
When you share more data on CiaoJin: you know exactly what you are sharing, you know exactly what it is worth, you receive payment for it, and you can withdraw consent at any moment.
When you share data on Instagram: you don’t know what is collected, you don’t know what it is worth, you receive nothing, and your “consent” is buried in a 40-page terms of service.
When you share more data on CiaoJin: you know exactly what you are sharing, you know exactly what it is worth, you receive payment for it, and you can withdraw consent at any moment.
When you share data on Instagram: you don’t know what is collected, you don’t know what it is worth, you receive nothing, and your “consent” is buried in a 40-page terms of service.
Privacy without awareness is not real privacy. CiaoJin gives you the information to make a genuine choice.
Can minors join CiaoJin? How does it work for under-18s?
Yes with appropriate protections in place. CiaoJin complies fully with GDPR and child data protection laws across all markets.
Under 16: Parental consent required. A parent links their account, approves data sharing settings, and manages payouts. Earnings accumulate and are transferred to the parent’s account.
16–17: Can join independently in most European jurisdictions. Earnings transferred to their own account.
18+: Full independent participation, all features available.
The ID requirement applies only to the payout mechanism, not to creating an account. Young people are one of the groups most affected by the current data economy, and we believe they deserve to benefit from it.
Under 16: Parental consent required. A parent links their account, approves data sharing settings, and manages payouts. Earnings accumulate and are transferred to the parent’s account.
16–17: Can join independently in most European jurisdictions. Earnings transferred to their own account.
18+: Full independent participation, all features available.
The ID requirement applies only to the payout mechanism, not to creating an account. Young people are one of the groups most affected by the current data economy, and we believe they deserve to benefit from it.
We will never process a minor’s data without appropriate consent. The protection of younger users is non-negotiable.
Is CiaoJin only for content creators and influencers?
Absolutely not. This is one of the most important things to understand about CiaoJin.
A person who never posts but scrolls for two hours a day generates significant behavioural data — what they stop on, what they skip, how long they linger, what they save. That data has real market value to advertisers. CiaoJin pays for it.
Creators earn more because they generate more data, their content drives others’ behaviour, which is the highest-value signal. But passive users earn meaningfully too. We built CiaoJin for everyone who uses social media, which is everyone.
A person who never posts but scrolls for two hours a day generates significant behavioural data — what they stop on, what they skip, how long they linger, what they save. That data has real market value to advertisers. CiaoJin pays for it.
Creators earn more because they generate more data, their content drives others’ behaviour, which is the highest-value signal. But passive users earn meaningfully too. We built CiaoJin for everyone who uses social media, which is everyone.
This sounds too good to be true. What’s the catch?
We appreciate you asking this directly, so here is a direct answer.
What CiaoJin is: A social network that generates revenue from user data, exactly like every other platform, but shares that revenue with users. The model is economically sound. The technology exists. It is not magic.
What CiaoJin is not: A get-rich-quick scheme. You will not replace your salary. Early earnings will be modest as the platform builds scale, the more users and advertisers on the platform, the higher the data pool value and the higher individual earnings.
The honest risk: We are pre-launch. We are building something new. Early-stage products carry risk. We believe the model works, our beta data supports it, but we cannot guarantee the future.
Why we think it is worth your time anyway: Joining the waitlist costs you nothing. If CiaoJin delivers, you earn money doing what you already do. If it doesn’t, you lost nothing. The asymmetry favours you.
What CiaoJin is: A social network that generates revenue from user data, exactly like every other platform, but shares that revenue with users. The model is economically sound. The technology exists. It is not magic.
What CiaoJin is not: A get-rich-quick scheme. You will not replace your salary. Early earnings will be modest as the platform builds scale, the more users and advertisers on the platform, the higher the data pool value and the higher individual earnings.
The honest risk: We are pre-launch. We are building something new. Early-stage products carry risk. We believe the model works, our beta data supports it, but we cannot guarantee the future.
Why we think it is worth your time anyway: Joining the waitlist costs you nothing. If CiaoJin delivers, you earn money doing what you already do. If it doesn’t, you lost nothing. The asymmetry favours you.
We would rather tell you the honest limitations than overpromise and lose your trust. That is the entire point of CiaoJin, honesty between a platform and its users.