Privacy Policy

Last updated: 1 October 2026

Who we are

This website (www.bamboobasic.org), including the community forum, gallery and web games, is run by Michael Denathorn, based in England, United Kingdom. For data protection purposes, we are the "controller" of your personal data.

Contact: forum@bamboobasic.org

What we collect

When you create a forum account

• Your username and email address
• Your password, stored only in encrypted (hashed) form. We can never see it

What you choose to add

• Profile details such as an avatar, bio and the Website field
• Posts, discussions, shoutbox messages, likes, polls and other content you create
• Files you upload, if uploads are enabled for your account
• Private discussions with other members, if that feature is enabled.

Anything you post publicly, including your profile, can be seen by anyone visiting the forum.

Collected automatically

• IP addresses, recorded when you post or sign in, to help us prevent spam and abuse
• Basic technical information (browser type, pages requested, times) in our web host's server logs
• Your activity on the forum, such as which discussions you've read, so we can show you what's new

Why we use it

UK data protection law requires us to have a lawful basis for using your data. Ours are:

• To provide the service you signed up for: running your account, showing your posts, sending notifications and password resets, and checking you meet the minimum age (contract)
• To keep the community safe: preventing spam, fake accounts and abuse, moderating content and enforcing our rules (legitimate interests)
• To meet legal obligations: for example, responding to lawful requests or meeting our duties under the Online Safety Act 2023 (legal obligation)

We don't use your data for advertising or profiling, and we don't sell or rent it to anyone.

Cookies

The forum uses a small number of cookies that are strictly necessary for it to work:

• a session cookie to keep you logged in while you browse
• a "remember me" cookie, only if you choose to stay logged in
• a security cookie that protects forms against cross-site request forgery

We don't use advertising or tracking cookies. Because these cookies are essential, we don't ask for consent to set them, but you can block or delete them in your browser (you won't be able to log in without them).

Services we use

We use a few trusted providers to run the site. They only process your data on our behalf, or as described in their own policies:

• Hostinger: hosts our website, database and email, which is located in France.
• Cloudflare Turnstile: checks that sign-ups and logins come from real people rather than bots, by analysing browser and device signals. See Cloudflare's privacy policy
• Google Fonts: some pages load fonts from Google, which receives your IP address when they load.

Games and content from other websites

Members can embed games and pages hosted on their own websites into forum posts. When you view a post containing an embed, your browser loads it directly from that website, which will receive your IP address and basic browser information, and may set its own cookies or store data. Those websites are not controlled by us, and their own privacy policies apply. The same applies to links you follow to other sites.

International transfers

Some of our providers, such as Cloudflare, may process data outside the UK. Where they do, they use legally recognised safeguards, such as UK adequacy regulations or the International Data Transfer Addendum, to protect it.

How long we keep it

• Your account and profile: until you delete your account or ask us to erase your data
• Your posts: they stay on the forum as part of the community's discussions. If you ask for erasure, we will delete or anonymise them (see below)
• IP addresses attached to posts and sign-ins: [e.g. up to 12 months]
• Server logs: kept by our host for a limited period, typically a few weeks
• Data export files: deleted automatically shortly after you download them

We may keep information for longer where we need it to deal with abuse, legal claims or a legal obligation.

Your rights

You have the right to:

• access the personal data we hold about you
• correct anything that's wrong (most of it you can edit yourself in your profile and settings)
• erase your data
• restrict or object to how we use it
• receive a copy of it in a portable format

Doing it yourself

Logged-in members can go to Settings → Personal Data on the forum to:

• Export your data: we'll prepare a download of everything linked to your account
• Request erasure: we'll confirm the request by email, then process it. By default your account details are removed and your posts are anonymised, so discussions still make sense to others. You can ask for your posts to be deleted entirely instead

You can also email forum@bamboobasic.org. We'll respond within one month.

Children

You must be at least 18 years old to create an account. When you sign up, we ask for your date of birth to check this. It is used only for that check and is not stored. If we learn that someone under 18 has registered, we will delete the account and its data. Our forum rules ban adult and harmful content, and we moderate to keep the community suitable for younger members. If you're a parent or carer with concerns, please contact us.

Security

We use encrypted connections (HTTPS) throughout the site, store passwords only in hashed form, and limit admin access. No system is completely secure, but if a breach ever affected your data, we would tell you and the regulator where required by law.

Complaints

If you're unhappy with how we've handled your data, please contact us first and we'll try to put it right. You also have the right to complain to the Information Commissioner's Office (ICO), the UK's data protection regulator, at ico.org.uk. If you live in the EU, you can contact your local data protection authority.

Changes to this policy

We may update this policy from time to time. We'll change the date at the top, and for significant changes we'll post a notice on the forum.