Privacy and Cookies

This notice applies to this GAMERSMESS staging preview. Shop, Comics and Forum are coming soon. Payments, public registration, posting and comments are closed. Sign-in, password-reset and private-account forms are available for controlled staging tests, and website email is simulated. References below to account, community and purchase features are conditional explanations; they do not mean those features are open to visitors.

A short version, especially for younger visitors

We use information about you to run GamersMess, keep your account safe, provide features you choose and deal with problems. We do not sell your personal information or use your activity to build an advertising profile.

Your posts, comments, chosen name and avatar can be seen by the people who can read the discussion. Choose a name and picture you are comfortable sharing. Do not post your home address, school, passwords or other private details. Your email address, purchases, individual votes and private reports are not shown as part of your public contributions. We do not provide public member profiles or private messages between members.

Some games remember settings or progress on your device. Clearing your browser's site data can remove those saves. If a game offers account saving, it may also keep progress with your account.

You can ask what information we hold, ask us to correct it or ask us to delete it. Sometimes we must keep a limited record, such as information needed to deal with a safety report or a payment dispute. We will explain the reason. You can ask for help even if you cannot sign in or your account has been restricted. Email info@gamersmess.com; you do not need legal words or a special form.

Who is responsible and how to contact us

The website operator and data controller is GAMERSMESS, based in London, United Kingdom. We decide how personal information is used for this website. For privacy questions, requests or complaints, email info@gamersmess.com.

For privacy questions, requests or complaints, email info@gamersmess.com. For sign-in and account help, email accounts@gamersmess.com. For product and purchase help, email info@gamersmess.com. Tell us enough to find the relevant account or issue, but do not send a password, full payment-card details or identity documents unless we explain why particular information is needed and how to provide it securely.

Information we collect

Account information. When you create or use an account, we process your username, email address, chosen display name, login and recovery information, account changes and the information needed to manage access. If you give us an age or eligibility declaration, we keep the information needed to apply that decision. Optional account fields are optional: please do not add private details you do not want us to hold.

Community activity. We hold your posts and comments, the account linked to them, publication and edit times, individual votes and the records needed to prevent repeated or abusive submissions. If you choose an avatar, we hold the image, its connection to your account and related image information. Public vote totals do not identify each voter.

Reports, appeals and support. We keep what you send us, the relevant content or account reference, your contact details if supplied, case status, decisions and the information needed to review or explain an outcome. A report about you can contain information supplied by another person. Our team may also record information it observes when investigating a problem. Reports and appeals are handled privately; we do not automatically give the reported person the reporter's identity or the whole report.

Game progress and settings. A game may save preferences, scores or progress in your browser. Where account saving is offered, we also hold the account, game and version references, progress and update information needed to save and restore it. A local-only save is not automatically copied into your account.

Purchases and downloads. If you make a purchase, we hold the information needed to identify your order and access rights: the account or contact details, product and release, price, currency, applicable tax information, payment-provider references, payment or refund status and relevant confirmations, accepted terms and supply choices, cancellation requests and their outcomes. We also keep records of download access and delivery needed to provide repeat access, investigate problems and protect purchases. Payment information you enter at checkout is handled by the payment provider identified there. Do not send card details to our support email addresses.

Technical information. Visiting the site sends technical information to our hosting and security services, including your IP address, requested page or file, date and time, browser or device information and request or error information. These services use it to deliver the site, diagnose faults and protect against misuse. An IP address can also indicate an approximate country; it does not tell us your age or establish where you live.

Sign-in protection. When enabled, our local sign-in protection records IP addresses and the usernames entered in failed sign-in attempts, including attempts that do not match an existing account, to help detect and limit unauthorised access. It may also set a security cookie lasting up to 24 hours.

Please keep sensitive information out of public posts and send only what is needed when asking for help. A report can sometimes contain information about health, discrimination or suspected offences. We restrict access to this information and assess the additional legal conditions that apply before using it beyond what is needed to receive and assess the concern.

Why we use information

We use information for the following purposes and legal reasons:

• Providing the account, community features, saves, purchases and downloads you request, and answering questions about them: to perform our agreement with you or take steps you request before entering an agreement.
• Protecting accounts, maintaining reliable services, investigating abuse or fraud, moderating contributions and handling reports or appeals: our legitimate interests in keeping GamersMess and its users safe, protecting rights and running a fair service. We consider your interests and rights, particularly if you are under 18. Where a particular legal duty requires the processing, we rely on that duty instead.
• Answering general enquiries, resolving complaints and keeping a proportionate record of our decisions: our legitimate interests in providing support, resolving problems and demonstrating what happened.
• Keeping records required for tax, accounting, consumer rights or a lawful request from an authority: compliance with the relevant legal obligation. Information necessary to establish or defend legal claims is used for that purpose.
• An optional use that requires your consent: only for the purpose explained when we ask. You can withdraw that consent without affecting the lawfulness of what we did before withdrawal.

Where information is particularly sensitive, we also need an additional legal condition. Depending on the circumstances, this may concern information you have clearly made public, the establishment or defence of legal claims, or a legally permitted safeguarding purpose. We do not treat accepting our Terms as permission to use sensitive information for any purpose.

You can browse public pages without creating an account. We need the requested account details to provide an account, and the necessary order details to fulfil a purchase. Without that information we may be unable to provide the relevant feature. You do not have to upload an avatar, post, vote or add information that is marked optional.

We do not send marketing emails, forum subscriptions, activity digests or mention notifications. We may send messages needed for account access and security, a privacy request, support or an order. These messages do not sign you up to advertising.

What other people can see

Your chosen name, avatar and contributions are visible wherever the relevant discussion is visible. Public contributions can be read, copied or indexed by people and services outside GamersMess. Please consider that before posting. We cannot promise to retrieve copies already taken by someone else, but we will consider the steps the law requires when dealing with a removal request.

Your account settings and purchase library are private. Moderators and authorised support staff can access the information needed for their work. We do not publish individual voting records or private report and appeal files. Where an explanation of a decision is needed, we share relevant information with the people concerned while considering confidentiality, safety and other people's rights.

Who helps us provide the site

We use Krystal for website hosting and email services, and Cloudflare for network delivery and security. These providers process information needed for those services. Their privacy information is available at https://krystal.io/legal/privacy-policy and https://www.cloudflare.com/privacypolicy/.

Where checkout is available, we use Stripe Managed Payments. Stripe receives the contact, billing, payment and order information needed to handle the transaction. We receive payment and order information needed to provide access, fulfil our seller obligations and offer support. Checkout links to the provider’s privacy information, including its own uses for fraud prevention, payments and legal responsibilities.

Authorised people maintaining the site, providing support or reviewing community cases receive only the access their work requires. We may share relevant information with professional advisers, regulators, law enforcement or a court where necessary to obtain advice, meet a legal obligation, protect someone from harm or establish or defend a legal claim. We assess the legal basis and scope rather than automatically sharing an entire account or case file.

We do not sell or rent personal information to advertisers. Following a link to another website takes you to that organisation's service and privacy arrangements.

Where information is processed

GamersMess operates from the UK. Our providers may process information elsewhere: Cloudflare operates internationally, including in the United States and the European Economic Area. A provider's processing locations can include places where its group companies or approved service providers operate.

International processing must have the protection required by applicable data protection law. The transfer arrangements include recognised adequacy arrangements where they apply and approved contractual safeguards for other transfers, including the relevant UK protections. Cloudflare describes its Data Privacy Framework arrangements and contractual safeguards in its privacy notice and data-processing terms at https://www.cloudflare.com/cloudflare-customer-dpa/.

You can email info@gamersmess.com for information about the arrangements that apply to your data and a copy of relevant safeguards, with confidential or unrelated information removed where appropriate. Publishing a contribution on an open discussion also makes it available to readers around the world.

How long we keep information

We keep information for its stated purpose, then delete it or remove identifying links when they are no longer needed. The decision depends on the type of information, the service you still use, an unresolved issue and any legal retention requirement:

• Accounts and saves: while needed to provide and recover your account and the saves or access you choose to keep. When an account closes, we review what can be removed and what must be retained for an outstanding order, safety matter or legal obligation.
• Posts and comments: while the discussion remains available, unless they are removed sooner. Closing an account does not automatically remove every contribution. We consider requests to remove personal information or identifying attribution separately from preserving a useful discussion.
• Votes: while needed for the voting feature and its integrity. Where identifying vote records are removed, totals may remain if they no longer identify you.
• Avatars and other uploaded images: while used for the chosen feature or another legitimate purpose. Replacing or removing an avatar does not automatically remove every original, copy or image reference. If an image identifies you, contact us to request its removal. We will assess the original and copies, shared uses and any justified retention, and explain the outcome.
• Reports, appeals and support: while the issue and any review are open, and afterwards only where needed to understand repeated problems, protect people, resolve disputes or meet a legal duty. We review whether the detail and identifying information are still necessary; closing a case is not a reason to keep everything indefinitely.
• Orders, refunds and delivery records: for ongoing access and support, applicable accounting or tax requirements, disputes and legal claims. Optional information is not kept merely because some transaction records must be retained.
• Technical and security records: for the period needed to investigate faults, misuse or a security incident and demonstrate the action taken. We limit access and review whether continued retention is justified.
• Privacy requests and export copies: a limited record of the request and outcome is kept to demonstrate our response. Access to temporary export copies expires after the delivery period explained to you. We then remove the temporary files through our cleanup process. Contact us if you need another opportunity to obtain your information.

Deleted information may remain in restricted backup copies until those copies are replaced through the backup cycle. We do not use those copies for ordinary account or marketing purposes. If a backup is restored, deletion decisions must be applied again before the affected information returns to normal use. If we cannot immediately remove information, we will explain the reason and the limits on its use.

Cookies and storage on your device

Cookies are small pieces of information a website asks your browser to store and return. Local storage keeps information in the browser between visits; session storage is normally limited to a tab or browsing session. These technologies can be used for a feature you request as well as for tracking. We use them for the purposes described here, not to build an advertising profile.

Sign-in and security. Cookies identify your signed-in session, allow account and security checks and keep private features connected to the correct account. Some last for the browsing session; others support remaining signed in for a later visit and expire according to that login choice. The hosting and network security services can also use storage to check requests and protect the site. Blocking essential sign-in or security storage can stop login or other protected features working.

Arcade best score (optional). You can play without saving: scores then stay in memory for the current page. Choosing “Remember my best score on this device” allows this feature to save your best score in this browser. Your choice is remembered for up to 180 days from when you make it. A saved score expires no later than that choice; playing or improving your score does not extend the period. This feature does not link your score to an account or send it to us.

You can withdraw permission using the control below. It stops saving on the current page and removes this feature’s saved score and remembers your refusal when browser storage allows those changes. If a change fails, the control explains the limitation; you can also clear the data through your browser’s site-data controls. Expired records stop being used and are removed when the component next runs. They cannot be physically deleted while your browser is closed.

Forms and preferences. A form may remember information only when you choose that convenience. Do not select a remember option on a shared device if you do not want another person using that browser to see it. You can change remembered settings or clear them through your browser's site-data controls.

We do not use advertising cookies or optional visitor analytics on this site. If we introduce a use that requires consent, we will explain it and ask before enabling it. Storage that is necessary to provide a feature you request does not use an advertising-consent choice as its legal basis.

You can inspect, block or remove cookies and stored site data through your browser's privacy or site settings. Those controls show the cookies and storage present in that browser. Clearing site data may sign you out, reset preferences or remove local game progress. It does not cancel an order, remove a public post or erase all information held by GamersMess. Contact us if that is what you want to request. On a shared device, sign out when you finish and consider clearing the site's data.

Children and younger users

The age and other eligibility requirements for an account are explained before registration and in our Terms of Use. Age restrictions for individual content or purchases can be different. Meeting an account age rule does not make a person under 18 an adult or remove their privacy rights.

We take particular care with younger users' information. We do not need a home address, school or identity-document image in a public contribution. If an eligibility check is needed, we ask for the minimum information appropriate to the check and explain its purpose. A parent or guardian can contact us with a concern; we will consider the young person's rights and check the adult's authority before disclosing private information or changing an account.

If you think we hold information from someone who does not meet an applicable account age requirement, email info@gamersmess.com. We will assess the situation and the appropriate restriction or removal of information. A child can still ask us for help, report a concern or exercise privacy rights.

Your choices and rights

Depending on the law and circumstances, you can ask us to tell you whether we hold information about you, provide a copy, correct inaccurate information, delete information, limit its use or provide eligible information in a portable format. If we rely on consent, you can withdraw it by contacting us or using the control provided for that choice.

Your right to object: you can object to processing based on our legitimate interests, explaining your particular situation. Email info@gamersmess.com. We will consider the objection and explain whether there is a lawful reason to continue. You also have the right to object to direct marketing; we do not use your information for that purpose.

Send requests to info@gamersmess.com. You do not need an active account or a particular form. We may ask for proportionate information to verify who is making the request or which records they mean. We do not require identity documents as a routine first step. We respond within the time required by applicable law and explain any permitted extension, restriction or refusal. Rights can be limited where another person's rights, a necessary legal record or another applicable exception is involved; we will not treat those exceptions as a reason to ignore a request.

Automated checks can identify suspicious requests, limit repeated actions or apply access rules. They can sometimes block a genuine visitor. If a check or restriction appears wrong, contact info@gamersmess.com or, for account access, accounts@gamersmess.com so a person can review the issue. A payment provider may operate its own fraud checks, which are explained in its privacy information.

If you are unhappy with our handling of personal information, contact info@gamersmess.com. You can also complain to the UK Information Commissioner's Office at https://ico.org.uk/make-a-complaint/. Where another data protection authority has jurisdiction, you may complain to that authority as well; for example, an EU resident may contact the authority where they live or work.

Changes to this notice

We keep this notice up to date when our services or use of information changes. The date at the top shows the latest version. Where a change materially affects you, we will bring it to your attention through an appropriate notice. An update to this page does not itself give us consent for a new optional use of your information.