Privacy Policy
<p>
<strong>Last updated:</strong> June 1, 2018
</p>
<p>This policy explains how NationStates uses information that it collects from you.
</p>
<p>NationStates aims to comply with US privacy law as well as the European Union's
General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR).
</p>
<ol>
<li>Information Collection
</li>
<li>Information Usage
</li>
<li>Information Protection
</li>
<li>Cookie Usage
</li>
<li>Right to Erasure
</li>
<li>Third Party Disclosure
</li>
<li>In-Site Disclosure
</li>
<li>Non-Personally Identifiable Information
</li>
<li>Submitted Content
</li>
<li>Google AdSense
</li>
<li>Fair Information Practices
</li>
<li>GDPR
</li>
<li>COPPA
</li>
<li>CalOPPA
</li>
<li>CAN-SPAM
</li>
<li>Our Contact Information
</li>
<li>Terms &.
Conditions
</li>
</ol>
<p>
</p>What information does NationStates collect from people who visit our website?
<p>We may collect:
</p>
<ul>
<li>
<p>
<b>Your IP address.</b> This happens automatically when you connect to the site.
An
IP address does not uniquely identify you, but usually indicates your general geographic area,
and could be used in conjunction with other information to identify you more specifically.
</p>
</li>
<li>
<p>
<b>Your browser's UserAgent.</b> This is a short summary of the make and model of your
browser and device operating system, which is automatically transmitted to sites unless you disable
it in your browser's settings.
</p>
</li>
<li>
<p>
<b>Cookies.</b> Cookies are used to track returning visitors to the site, so that when you
come back, we can connect that session to your previous activity.
Without cookies, you can't stay
logged in, as we can't tell whether you've already authenticated.
</p>
</li>
<li>
<p>
<b>Your e-mail address.</b> NationStates players may optionally supply an e-mail address.
This is treated as personally identifying information and therefore private data.
You are not required to supply an e-mail address to browse the site or create an account (a nation),
but you can do so for password recovery and if you wish to join the in-game World Assembly organization.
</p>
</li>
</ul>
When does NationStates collect information?
<p>Your IP address is recorded whenever you visit any page.
</p>
<p>Your UserAgent is recorded when you log in.
</p>
<p>Your e-mail address is collected if you choose to supply one during registration (i.e.
nation creation) or if you enter one later via your Settings.
</p>
<p>Cookies are used when a registered user logs into the site.
</p>Why does NationStates collect this information and how is it used? <p>We use this information:
</p>
<ol>
<li>
<p>
<b>To provide basic site functionality</b>
</p>
<p>Cookies are essential to maintaining a login session.
They must be enabled so the site can
remember that you are logged in.
Our cookies don't contain any private information
and only store the name and/or session key of nations you have logged in.
They also support
"autologin" / "Remember me" functionality, which is an optional setting that allows you to
skip entering a password each time you visit the site.
</p>
<p>If you provide an e-mail address, this is used to verify that address, to support password
recovery ("Forgot my password"), and (optionally) to send you a reminder if your account
is scheduled to be deleted for inactivity.
</p>
<p>Beyond this, site moderators may use the information to unravel disputes over account
ownership, or to help verify the legitimacy of a request to reactivate an old account.
</p>
</li>
<li>
<p>
<b>To protect the community</b>
</p>
<p>Site moderators frequently block or ban people for violating site rules, such as attempting
to spam, harass players, or post obscene content.
For such bans to work, we must be able to identify
those people as they attempt to return to the site.
We do this by comparing information such as IP
addresses to that which we have recorded as belonging to banned users.
</p>
<p>Similarly, moderators may use this information to identify the source of problems when a person
uses multiple accounts to conceal their activity.
</p>
<p>In these cases, we retain relevant information as long as we believe the problem user represents
a danger to the community, as indicated by the severity of the behavior and the frequency with which
the person attempts to circumvent our bans.
We will remove the information within eight years of the
most recent contact.
</p>
</li>
<li>
<p>
<b>To uphold a "one player, one World Assembly nation" rule</b>
</p>
<p>The World Assembly is an optional organization within the site that relies on a principle of
one vote per member.
In order to enforce this, we use collected information to perform algorithmic
matching in order to detect when one person appears to be cheating by operating multiple World Assembly
nation accounts.
</p>
</li>
<li>
<p>
<b>To manage Store disputes</b>
</p>
<p>We don't retain any personal information associated with store transactions.
But if you make
a purchase using PayPal or Stripe, those organizations will record data.
You can find the
privacy policy of PayPal here and Stripe here.
A NationStates super-admin can use those sites to look up details of NS transactions,
which may include some personal information such as your name, location, and purchase method.
If you ask those organizations to delete your personal information, we can no longer see it.
</p>
</li>
<li>
<p>
<b>To perform basic analytics</b>
</p>
<p>We use aggregated data to generate internal and Google Analytics reports on the numbers of people using the site,
their geographic spread, the relative popularity of different browsers, devices, and operating systems,
and so on.
More on Google Analytics.
</p>
</li>
<li>
<p>
<b>To serve advertising</b>
</p>
<p>We are ad-supported and allow third-party ad networks such as Google AdSense to place advertisements
on the site.
We do not share any of your information with these networks.
However, they are
capable of independently recording your IP Address and using cookies to track how often you
view their ads.
</p>
</li>
<li>
<p>
<b>To allow account recovery</b>
</p>
<p>NationStates was founded in 2002 and has a rich community history.
To allow users to return to the site
and revive their nations even years later, and for this purpose only, we retain e-mail addresses for up
to eight years.
After this, all information is scrubbed, and the account can only be reactivated by
password.
</p>
</li>
<li>
<p>
<b>To provide backups</b>
</p>
<p>Our systems are regularly backed up against data loss, and these backups may include information
such as e-mails and IP addresses associated with nations.
Backups aren't accessed at all under normal
circumstances, and cannot be viewed by moderators.
They are purged after three years.
</p>
</li>
</ol>
Who can see my information?
<p>Site moderators can view IP Addresses, UserAgents, and e-mail addresses associated with an
account.
When they view such information, their actions are logged.
</p>How does NationStates protect visitor information?
<p>NationStates employs SSL (aka HTTPS) so that all communication between your device and our
servers are encrypted.
</p>
<p>User passwords are encrypted and never stored in plain text.
</p>
<p>Moderators and administrators are trained in dealing with personal information, and whenever
a moderator accesses such information, this access is logged in a way that is visible to all other
moderators and administrators.
</p>Does NationStates use cookies?
<p>Yes.
Cookies are small files that a site or service provider transfers to your computer's hard drive through your
browser (if you allow) that enables the site's or service provider's systems to recognize your browser and capture and
remember certain information.
</p>
<p>You can choose to have your computer warn you each time a cookie is being sent, or you can choose to turn
off all cookies.
You do this through your browser settings.
Each browser is a little different, so look at your
browser's Help menu to learn the correct way to modify your cookies.
</p>
<p>If you disable cookies, it is impossible to remain logged in.
You can only browse the site anonymously.
</p>Right to Erasure
<p>You may request that we erase from your account all information we have collected from you: your IP
addresses, e-mail addresses, and UserAgents.
You can also request to view all the information we have collected
without erasing it.
In either case, please use the Private Info page.
If you
have questions, you can also file a Getting Help Request.
</p>
<p>If you operate multiple accounts, you must make one request per nation.
</p>
<p>It may take a few days to erase all your information.
</p>
<p>We may refuse requests in special cases where information must be retained for essential operation of the
site.
for example, if a person who is banned from the site wants their identifying information erased.
</p>Third Party Disclosure
<p>Under normal circumstances, NationStates doesn't sell or transfer any of your information to outside parties.
However, we may do so when we believe it is necessary in order to comply with the law,
respond to a real-world threat or personal emergency,
or protect ours or others' rights, property, or safety.
</p>
<p>In the event that ownership of NationStates transfers to a third party
in the future, said party will be bound by these same conditions, and be required to notify users in advance
should they wish to alter them.
</p>In-Site Disclosure
<p>We don't disclose your personally identifiable information via forum post or
any other kind of in-site communication to other users.
For example, moderators are not
permitted to inform users of another user's IP address or e-mail address.
</p>
<p>A user may sometimes post their own information (IP address or e-mail address) in order
to seek technical help.
This is not recommended, and we instruct users to use a private
channel instead (the Getting Help page).
</p>Non-Personally Identifiable Information
<p>We may disclose non-personally identifiable information we collect.
in particular, under
some circumstances we may disclose publicly that particular nations are connected—operated
by the same person—while not personally identifying the owner.
</p>
<p>This is done in order to enforce site rules and etiquette,
e.g.
to combat "puppet wanking," when a person posts from multiple accounts
in order to promote the false impression that many people agree with them.
</p>Submitted Content
<p>Users can voluntarily post content to NationStates in a variety of ways, such as:
</p>
<ul>
<li>
<p>Sending a telegram to another nation.
</p>
</li>
<li>
<p>Posting on a regional message board (RMB).
</p>
</li>
<li>
<p>Posting in the forums.
</p>
</li>
<li>
<p>Writing a factbook or dispatch.
</p>
</li>
<li>
<p>Uploading an image to use as a national flag.
</p>
</li>
<li>
<p>Voting in a poll or World Assembly motion.
</p>
</li>
<li>
<p>Customizing their nation via fields such as its name, national slogan, currency, and animal.
</p>
</li>
<li>
<p>Writing a World Assembly proposal.
</p>
</li>
<li>
<p>Submitting an Issue.
</p>
</li>
</ul>
<p>All such content can be viewed by moderators and/or administrators.
</p>
<p>With particular reference to <b>telegrams</b>, NationStates assumes a <em>high but
incomplete</em> level of privacy.
Our policy:
</p>
<ul>
<li>
<p>Moderators may only view the content of telegrams of another nation when they have <em>cause</em>.
A moderator has cause to inspect telegrams when they have reasonable grounds to believe a violation
of site rules has occurred or is likely to occur in the near future (e.g.
in response to a user
complaint about harassment), or
when the nation in question is being considered for elevation to the site staff.
When investigating telegrams, moderators are permitted to view both sides of a conversation,
even when only one party is being investigated.
</p>
</li>
<li>
<p>Our system requires moderators to enter a reason/reference to view a telegram,
which is permanently logged.
This enables administrators and other moderators to verify who viewed
which telegram, when, and for what reason, in order to ensure compliance
with site policy.
</p>
</li>
<li>
<p>NationStates does not disclose which telegrams have been viewed by moderators,
but does investigate internally any query as to whether site policy was followed.
</p>
</li>
</ul>
Google AdSense
<p>NationStates uses Google AdSense to display ads to most visitors.
You can view
Google's main Privacy Policy
and their more specific
Advertising Privacy Policy.
Google lets you change your ad preferences via
Google Ad Settings.
</p>
<p>NationStates has implemented the following:
</p>
<ul>
<li>
<p>Google Display Network Impression Reporting
</p>
</li>
<li>
<p>Demographics and Interests Reporting
</p>
</li>
<li>
<p>DoubleClick Platform Integration
</p>
</li>
</ul>
<p>You should know that:
</p>
<ul>
<li>
<p>Third party vendors, including Google, use cookies to serve ads based on your visits to this website (for example to distinguish between a new and returning visitor, and track which ads you have clicked on before).
</p>
</li>
<li>
<p>Google's use of the DoubleClick cookie enables it and its partners to serve ads to you based on your visit not only to NationStates but other sites using the DoubleClick network across the Internet.
</p>
</li>
<li>
<p>You may opt out of the use of the DoubleClick cookie for interest-based advertising by visiting Google Ad Settings.
You can opt out of third-party vendors' use of cookies for interest based advertising at aboutads.info.
</p>
</li>
<li>
<p>A list of approved ad exchange vendors, which may serve ads on NationStates via Google DoubleClick, is available here.
</p>
</li>
</ul>
General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR)
<p>We support the GDPR.
In particular, as of May 25, 2018, you can request a list
of the information we have collected about you, and request that this information
be erased (see: Right to Erasure).
</p>California Online Privacy Protection Act
<p>CalOPPA is the first state law in the US to require commercial websites
and online services to post a privacy policy.
The law aims to reach beyond
California to require any person or company
that operates websites collecting personally identifiable information
from California consumers to post a conspicuous privacy policy on its website
stating exactly the information being collected and those individuals with whom
it is being shared, and to comply with this policy.
More information is available
here.
</p>
<p>In accordance with CalOPPA, NationStates agrees that:
</p>
<ul>
<li>
<p>Users can visit our site anonymously.
</p>
</li>
<li>
<p>A link to this Privacy Policy will be maintained on the NationStates home page.
</p>
</li>
<li>
<p>The Privacy Policy link includes the word "Privacy" and can be easily be found on the page specified above.
</p>
</li>
<li>
<p>When privacy policy changes, this fact will be posted and timestamped at the top of this Privacy Policy page.
</p>
</li>
<li>
<p>Users are usually able to change some of their personal information by logging in to their account.
Specifically, users with active accounts can change their current e-mail address.
Users with deleted nations can restore their account and log in.
However, users of accounts that are perma-deleted by moderators, banned from the site,
or otherwise permanently barred from the public site are thereafter not able to log in and change their personal
information.
Users are never able to change their IP address, which is not publicly displayed but is
logged.
All information may be archived in periodic private system backups.
</p>
</li>
</ul>
COPPA (Children Online Privacy Protection Act)
<p>When it comes to the collection of personal information from children under 13,
the Children's Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA) puts parents in control.
The Federal Trade Commission, the US consumer protection agency, enforces
the COPPA Rule, which spells out what operators of websites and online services
must do to protect children's privacy and safety online.
</p>
<p>NationStates does not specifically market to children under 13.
</p>Fair Information Practices
<p>The Fair Information Practices Principles form the backbone of privacy law
in the United States and the concepts they include have played a significant
role in the development of data protection laws around the globe.
Understanding
the Fair Information Practice Principles and how they should be implemented
is critical to comply with the various privacy laws that protect personal information.
</p>
<p>In line with Fair Information Practices, NationStates will take the following responsive action, should a data breach occur: users will be notified via a message posted on the site within seven business days.
</p>
<p>NationStates also agrees to the individual redress principle, which requires that
individuals have a right to pursue legally enforceable rights against data
collectors and processors who fail to adhere to the law.
This principle requires
not only that individuals have enforceable rights against data users, but also
that individuals have recourse to courts or a government agency to investigate
and/or prosecute non-compliance by data processors.
</p>CAN SPAM Act
<p>The CAN-SPAM Act is a law that sets the rules for commercial e-mail, establishes
requirements for commercial messages, gives recipients the right to have e-mails
stopped from being sent to them, and spells out tough penalties for violations.
</p>
<p>
<strong>NationStates does not send any advertising or promotional e-mail messages.
If you supply your e-mail address, it may be used:</strong>
</p>
<ul>
<li>
<p>To help enforce a site rule limiting players to one World Assembly member nation per person
</p>
</li>
<li>
<p>To help identify when a site visitor is banned from the site for rule violations by moderators.
</p>
</li>
<li>
<p>To send you an e-mail notification when your account is about to be deleted for lack of activity.
(You may disable this in your Settings.)
</p>
</li>
<li>
<p>To send you topic update notification e-mails for any forum topics to which you manually subscribe to receive such updates.
</p>
</li>
<li>
<p>To respond to inquiries and/or other requests or questions.
</p>
</li>
</ul>
<p>
<strong>
<br>If at any time you would like to unsubscribe from receiving future e-mails, you can</strong>:
</p>
<ul>
<li>
<p>Follow the instructions at the bottom of each e-mail.
or
</p>
</li>
<li>
<p>Contact us
</p>
</li>
</ul>
Contacting Us
<p>If there are any questions regarding this privacy policy, or you require
help, you may contact us:
</p>
<ul>
<li>
<p>
<strong>Contact site moderators</strong>: This
is the fastest way to receive help, and your message is private.
</p>
</li>
<li>
<p>
<strong>Visit
the Technical forum</strong>: This is a public forum for technical help
visited by users, moderators, and site administrators.
</p>
</li>
<li>
<p>
<strong>E-mail site administrators</strong>:
Please note this is a slow channel and if you require urgent assistance, use one of
the other options above.
</p>
</li>
</ul>
Terms &.
Conditions
<p>If this document has left you wanting more, you may enjoy our thrilling
Terms &.
Conditions.
</p>