# PRIVACY POLICY
## Whiteout Community Forum

**Last Updated: February 25, 2025**

This Privacy Policy explains how the Whiteout Community Forum ("we," "us," or "our") collects, uses, shares, and protects the personal information of our users ("you" or "your"). We are committed to protecting your privacy and handling your data with transparency and care.

### 1. INFORMATION WE COLLECT

#### 1.1 Information You Provide to Us

When you register for and use our Forum, we may collect the following types of information:

- **Account Information**: Username, email address, password (stored in encrypted form), and optional profile information.
- **Profile Information**: Any information you choose to add to your profile, such as a profile picture, biography, location, and game-related information.
- **Communication Data**: Information you provide when participating in forum discussions, sending private messages to other users, or communicating with moderators and administrators.
- **Support Requests**: Information you provide when contacting us for support or submitting feedback.

#### 1.2 Information We Collect Automatically

When you use our Forum, we may automatically collect certain information about your device and usage:

- **Device Information**: IP address, browser type and version, operating system, device type, and other technical identifiers.
- **Usage Data**: Pages visited, time spent on pages, links clicked, posting frequency, and other interactions with the Forum.
- **Cookies and Similar Technologies**: We use cookies, local storage, and similar technologies to enhance your experience. These help us remember your preferences, keep you logged in, and understand how you use our Forum.

### 2. HOW WE USE YOUR INFORMATION

We use the information we collect for the following purposes:

#### 2.1 To Provide and Maintain the Forum

- To create and manage your account
- To enable your participation in discussions and community features
- To personalize your experience
- To improve and develop the Forum's features and functionality

#### 2.2 For Communication and Support

- To respond to your inquiries and support requests
- To send administrative messages regarding the Forum
- To inform you about changes to our Terms or Privacy Policy
- To send you notifications about activity relevant to you (such as replies to your posts), based on your notification preferences

#### 2.3 For Security and Moderation

- To protect the security and integrity of the Forum
- To verify accounts and activity
- To investigate violations of our Terms and Community Guidelines
- To prevent spam, fraud, and other prohibited activities

### 3. HOW WE SHARE YOUR INFORMATION

#### 3.1 Public Information

Please be aware that any information you post on public areas of the Forum (such as discussions, threads, and profiles) is visible to other users. Exercise caution when deciding what information to share publicly.

#### 3.2 Service Providers

We may share your information with third-party service providers who help us operate and improve the Forum, such as:

- Hosting providers
- Database management services
- Analytics providers
- Spam prevention services

These service providers are bound by contractual obligations to keep personal information confidential and use it only for the purposes for which we disclose it to them.

#### 3.3 Legal Requirements

We may disclose your information if required to do so by law or in response to valid requests by public authorities (e.g., a court or government agency). We may also disclose your information to:

- Enforce our Terms and Conditions
- Protect and defend our rights or property
- Prevent or investigate possible wrongdoing in connection with the Forum
- Protect the personal safety of users or the public

#### 3.4 Business Transfers

If we are involved in a merger, acquisition, or sale of all or a portion of our assets, your information may be transferred as part of that transaction. We will notify you via a prominent notice on our Forum of any change in ownership or uses of your personal information.

### 4. DATA RETENTION

We retain your personal information for as long as necessary to fulfill the purposes outlined in this Privacy Policy, unless a longer retention period is required or permitted by law. If you delete your account, we will delete or anonymize your personal information, except where we need to retain certain information for legitimate business or legal purposes.

### 5. YOUR PRIVACY RIGHTS AND CHOICES

Depending on your location, you may have certain rights regarding your personal information:

#### 5.1 Access and Update

You can access and update certain personal information through your account settings. You can also contact us directly to request access to, correction of, or deletion of your personal information.

#### 5.2 Communication Preferences

You can manage your notification preferences through your account settings. Even if you opt out of promotional communications, we may still send you administrative messages regarding the Forum.

#### 5.3 Cookies and Tracking

Most web browsers are set to accept cookies by default. You can usually set your browser to remove or reject cookies, but this may affect certain features of the Forum.

#### 5.4 Data Protection Rights

Depending on your jurisdiction, you may have the right to:

- Access and receive a copy of your personal information
- Rectify inaccurate or incomplete information
- Request deletion of your personal information
- Restrict or object to processing of your personal information
- Data portability (receiving your data in a structured, commonly used format)
- Withdraw consent where processing is based on consent

To exercise these rights, please contact us using the information provided in Section 10.

### 6. DATA SECURITY

We implement appropriate technical and organizational measures to protect your personal information from unauthorized access, use, or disclosure. However, no method of transmission over the Internet or electronic storage is 100% secure. While we strive to use commercially acceptable means to protect your personal information, we cannot guarantee its absolute security.

### 7. INTERNATIONAL DATA TRANSFERS

Your information may be transferred to and processed in countries other than the country in which you reside. These countries may have data protection laws that are different from those in your country. We take appropriate safeguards to require that your personal information remains protected in accordance with this Privacy Policy.

### 8. CHILDREN'S PRIVACY

The Forum is not intended for children under the age of 13. We do not knowingly collect personal information from children under 13. If you are a parent or guardian and believe that your child has provided us with personal information, please contact us. If we become aware that we have collected personal information from children without verification of parental consent, we take steps to remove that information.

### 9. CHANGES TO THIS PRIVACY POLICY

We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time. The updated version will be indicated by an updated "Last Updated" date at the top of this Privacy Policy. We encourage you to review this Privacy Policy periodically to stay informed about how we are protecting your information.

### 10. CONTACT US

If you have any questions about this Privacy Policy or our privacy practices, please contact us at:

contact@whiteoutcommunity.com

**Forum Administrator**
Whiteout Community Forum

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By using the Whiteout Community Forum, you acknowledge that you have read this Privacy Policy and understand its contents.