Privacy Policy

Last updated: June 2026

Globe4Gamers is committed to protecting your privacy. This Privacy Policy explains what data we collect, how we use it, and your rights regarding your information.

1. Information We Collect

Account Data

You sign in through a third-party provider — Google, Twitch, or Discord. We do not collect or store passwords. From your chosen provider we receive a basic identifier (such as your email address, provider account ID, and display name) needed to create and secure your account. You can connect or disconnect providers from your settings at any time.

Profile Data

When you create a gamer profile, we collect the information you provide: gamer name, country, city, bio, experience level, games, devices, social links, game time availability, and live gameplay links. All of this is voluntarily provided by you.

Avatar Images

If you upload an avatar, the server re-encodes the image before storage. This process strips all metadata, including EXIF data that may contain GPS coordinates, camera information, or other embedded data. We store only the re-encoded image in WebP format.

Activity Data

We track your online status through periodic heartbeat signals while you are using the platform. We also record broadcast requests, connection activity, and leaderboard scores. This data is used to provide real-time features and rankings.

2. Location Privacy

• Location is determined by the city you select during profile creation — we store only the city centroid coordinates (the geographic center of the city).
• We do not use browser GPS or the Geolocation API. Your browser will never be asked for location permission by Globe4Gamers.
• There is no free-text coordinate entry. You select your city from a predefined list.
• The coordinates displayed on the globe represent the city center, not your actual address or precise location.
• If only raw coordinates are available (e.g., from seed data), random jitter of 1–2 km is applied before storage.

3. How We Use Your Data

We use your data to:

• Display your profile and location on the interactive globe.
• Show your online/offline status to other gamers.
• Enable broadcast requests and gamer connections.
• Calculate and display leaderboard rankings.
• Provide search and filter functionality.
• Moderate content and enforce platform rules.

4. Data Visibility

• Guest visitors can only see gamer names on the globe. They cannot see avatars, bios, games, devices, social links, or connection details.
• Logged-in gamers can see full profile information of other gamers.
• Social links are visible only to logged-in gamers, never to guests.
• Admin users can access all user data for moderation purposes.

5. Data Storage and Security

• Authentication is handled by trusted OAuth providers (Google, Twitch, Discord); we never see or store your provider password.
• Sessions use HTTP-only, SameSite cookies with secure flag enabled in production.
• All database queries use prepared statements to prevent SQL injection.
• File uploads are validated, re-encoded, and stored with script execution disabled in the uploads directory.
• CSRF protection is enforced on all state-changing API requests.

6. Data Retention

Account and profile data is retained as long as your account is active. When you request deletion, your account is immediately hidden from all public views and scheduled for permanent removal after a 30-day grace period, during which signing back in cancels the deletion. After 30 days the data is permanently purged, except for the minimum required for moderation and abuse prevention. Broadcast requests expire automatically after 5 minutes.

7. Third-Party Services

Globe4Gamers uses third-party map tile providers (OpenFreeMap / Carto) to render the globe. These providers may receive standard HTTP request data (IP address, user agent) when map tiles are loaded. We do not share your profile data, email, or any personal information with third parties.

8. Cookies

We use a session cookie to keep you logged in. We also use localStorage to store your theme preference. We do not use tracking cookies or third-party analytics in v1.

9. Your Rights

You have the right to:

• View and edit your profile data at any time.
• Delete your account through the settings page.
• Request a copy of your data by emailing [email protected].

10. Changes to This Policy

We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time. The "Last updated" date at the top reflects the most recent revision. Continued use of the platform after changes constitutes acceptance of the revised policy.

11. Contact

If you have questions about this Privacy Policy or your data, contact us at [email protected].