Privacy Policy

1. Information We Collect

We collect information you provide directly when you create an account, submit articles, or contact us. This may include:

• Email address
• Name and username (handle)
• Profile information (bio, description, avatar)
• Content you submit (articles, comments, bookmarks)
• Communication preferences

2. How We Use Your Information

We use your information to:

• Provide and maintain our services
• Publish your articles and comments
• Communicate with you about your account
• Send notifications (if enabled)
• Improve our platform and user experience
• Comply with legal obligations

3. Information Sharing

We do not sell your personal information. We may share information:

• When you publish content (your name and profile are visible)
• With service providers (email, hosting, analytics)
• If required by law or to protect our rights
• In connection with a merger or acquisition

4. Data Retention

We retain your information as long as your account is active. If you delete your account, we will delete your personal data within 30 days, except:

• Published articles remain with author shown as “Former Contributor”
• Comments may be anonymized rather than deleted
• Legal obligations may require longer retention

5. Your Rights (GDPR)

Under GDPR and applicable privacy laws, you have the right to:

• Access your personal data
• Correct inaccurate data
• Request deletion of your data
• Object to processing of your data
• Data portability (export your data)
• Withdraw consent at any time

6. Cookies and Tracking

We use cookies and similar technologies for the following purposes:

Strictly necessary cookies

Required for the site to function. These cannot be disabled and do not require consent.

• Session and authentication cookies (keep you logged in)
• Theme preference cookie
• Cookie consent choice (dexameni_cc, expires after 365 days)

Analytics & audience cookies (consent required)

With your consent, we use Google Analytics 4 and Google Signals(both provided by Google LLC, 1600 Amphitheatre Parkway, Mountain View, CA 94043, USA) to understand how visitors use the site and to analyse audience demographics.

This includes:

• Traffic analytics — pages visited, session duration, referral sources, device and browser type, approximate geographic location (country/city)
• Audience demographics via Google Signals — aggregate, anonymised data on age group, gender, and interest categories, derived from Google account information of signed-in users who have enabled Web & App Activity. This data is never linked to individual identities and is only shown when sample sizes meet Google's anonymity thresholds.

The cookies set for these purposes include _ga, _ga_*, and _gid. Data may be transferred to and processed in the United States under Google's Standard Contractual Clauses. We do not use advertising cookies and ad personalisation is disabled.

You can review or withdraw your analytics consent at any time using the cookie settings link in the consent banner, or by visiting Google's privacy controls. You can also opt out of Google Analytics across all sites via the Google Analytics Opt-out Browser Add-on.

Google's privacy policy: policies.google.com/privacy

7. Data Security

We implement appropriate technical and organizational measures to protect your data against unauthorized access, alteration, disclosure, or destruction. This includes:

• Password hashing (bcrypt)
• HTTPS encryption for all communications
• Rate limiting to prevent abuse
• Regular security updates

8. Children's Privacy

Our service is not directed to children under 16. We do not knowingly collect personal information from children under 16. If you believe we have collected such information, please contact us.

9. Changes to This Policy

We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time. We will notify you of any changes by posting the new policy on this page and updating the “Last updated” date.

10. Contact Us

If you have questions about this Privacy Policy or wish to exercise your data rights, please contact us at:

• Email: dexameniforum@gmail.com
• Through our contact page