Privacy Policy

Last updated: January 2026

TheBadGamer is committed to protecting your privacy. We collect only what we need to provide a great gaming platform and never sell your data.

What We Collect

→Account information: email, username, display name, password hash
→Profile data: avatar, bio, gaming preferences, linked accounts
→Platform activity: games added, reviews written, forum posts, wiki edits
→Usage data: pages visited, features used, device type, browser, IP address
→Payment data: processed by Razorpay/Stripe — we never store card numbers

How We Use Your Data

→Providing, operating, and improving the Platform
→Personalizing your experience (recommendations, feed, notifications)
→Processing payments and managing subscriptions
→Sending transactional emails (password reset, account alerts)
→Optional: weekly digest and feature update emails (opt-out anytime)
→Analytics via Google Analytics 4 to understand feature usage

What We Never Do

→We never sell your personal data to third parties
→We never share your email with advertisers
→We never show you ads based on your personal profile
→We never use dark patterns to trick you into purchases

Data Sharing

→Public profile data (username, level, reviews, wiki edits) is visible to all users by default
→You can set your profile to private in Settings → Privacy
→We share minimal data with payment processors (Razorpay, Stripe) for transactions only
→We may disclose data when required by law or to prevent fraud

Cookies

→Authentication cookies: required to keep you logged in
→Preference cookies: dark mode, sidebar state, language
→Analytics cookies: Google Analytics 4 (can be opted out in Settings)
→We do not use advertising or tracking cookies

Your Rights

→Access: request a copy of all data we hold about you
→Correction: update incorrect information in Settings
→Deletion: delete your account and all associated data permanently
→Export: download your library, reviews, and wiki contributions
→Opt-out: disable email notifications in Settings → Notifications

Data Retention

→Active accounts: data retained indefinitely while account is active
→Deleted accounts: personal data removed within 30 days; anonymized activity logs may be retained for analytics
→Payment records: retained for 7 years for legal compliance

Security

→Passwords are hashed using bcrypt (never stored in plain text)
→All data transmitted over HTTPS with TLS encryption
→Database access restricted to production servers only
→Regular security audits and dependency updates
→Report security vulnerabilities to: security@thebadgamer.in

Questions about your data? Contact us at privacy@thebadgamer.in or through our contact form.