Privacy Policy

1. Information We Collect

We collect the following types of information:

• Account Information: When you sign in via Google OAuth, we receive your display name, email address, and profile photo URL from Google.
• Anonymous Sessions: If you use anonymous sign-in, we generate a temporary anonymous user ID. No personal information is collected.
• User-Generated Content: Forum posts, comments, Q&A questions, and contact form submissions you voluntarily provide.
• Contact Information: Name, email, and message content submitted through our contact form.
• Newsletter Subscription: Email address provided when subscribing to our newsletter.
• Usage Data: Pages visited, search queries, browser type, device type, and general geographic location via Google Analytics.

2. How We Use Your Information

• To provide and improve our academic research platform
• To enable community features (forum, comments, Q&A)
• To respond to contact form inquiries
• To send newsletter updates (only if you subscribe)
• To analyze site usage and improve user experience
• To prevent abuse and maintain platform security

We do not sell, rent, or share your personal information with third parties for marketing purposes.

3. Third-Party Services

We use the following third-party services:

• Google Analytics (G-BQ81J3V9EN): Collects anonymized usage data. See Google's Privacy Policy.
• Firebase Authentication: Handles user sign-in. See Firebase Privacy Policy.
• Firebase Realtime Database: Stores community content (forum posts, comments, contact messages, newsletter subscriptions).
• GitHub Pages: Hosts the website. See GitHub Privacy Policy.
• Google BigQuery: Powers our AI search functionality with document embeddings.

4. Google OAuth

When you sign in with Google, we request access to your basic profile information:

• Display name
• Email address
• Profile photo URL

We do not access your Google Drive, Gmail, contacts, or any other Google services. You can revoke access at any time through your Google Account settings.

5. Cookies & Tracking

We use cookies for:

• Authentication: Firebase uses cookies/local storage to maintain your session.
• Analytics: Google Analytics uses cookies to track anonymized usage patterns.

We do not use advertising cookies or tracking pixels. You can disable cookies in your browser settings, though this may affect some functionality.

6. Data Storage & Security

Your data is stored on Firebase (Google Cloud) servers. We implement reasonable security measures including:

• Firebase Security Rules that restrict data access
• HTTPS encryption for all data in transit
• Authentication requirements for write operations
• Write-once policies for community content (preventing unauthorized edits)

No method of electronic storage is 100% secure. While we strive to protect your data, we cannot guarantee absolute security.

7. Your Rights

You have the right to:

• Access: Request a copy of the personal data we hold about you.
• Correction: Request correction of inaccurate data.
• Deletion: Request deletion of your personal data. Contact us and we will remove your data within 30 days.
• Opt-out: Unsubscribe from newsletters at any time via the unsubscribe link.
• Revoke Access: Revoke Google OAuth access through your Google Account settings.

To exercise any of these rights, contact us via our contact form.

8. Children's Privacy

Our service is not directed to children under 13. We do not knowingly collect personal information from children. If you believe a child has provided us with personal data, please contact us and we will delete it promptly.

9. Changes to This Policy

We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time. Changes will be posted on this page with an updated "Last updated" date. Continued use of the site after changes constitutes acceptance of the updated policy.

10. Contact Us

If you have questions about this Privacy Policy, contact us:

• Contact Form: khmerresearch.com/contact.html