Privacy Policy

1 Information We Collect

We collect only what is necessary to operate the platform. This includes:

• Account data: Username and email address provided during registration.
• Profile data: Optional avatar, bio, or social links you choose to add.
• Gaming activity: Game logs, tick entries, ratings, reviews, and lists you create.
• Usage data: Pages visited, search queries, and feature interactions — used in aggregate for platform improvement.
• Technical data: IP address, browser type, and device information collected automatically when you access the service.

We do not collect payment information — Tickrates is currently free of charge.

2 How We Use Information

We use the data we collect to:

• Create and manage your Tickrates account.
• Personalise your gaming lists, recommendations, and activity feed.
• Display your public profile, reviews, and lists to other users (based on your privacy settings).
• Send transactional emails such as password resets and account confirmations.
• Monitor and improve the performance, stability, and security of the platform.
• Investigate and respond to reports of abuse or policy violations.

We do not sell, rent, or trade your personal data to third parties for advertising or commercial purposes.

3 Authentication & Security

All passwords are stored using industry-standard cryptographic hashing (bcrypt). Your plaintext password is never stored or transmitted.

Session management is handled through JSON Web Tokens (JWT) and secure HTTP-only cookies with appropriate expiry periods. We use HTTPS (TLS) across all endpoints to encrypt data in transit.

While we implement reasonable technical and organisational measures to protect your data, no system can guarantee absolute security. In the event of a data breach that affects your rights or freedoms, we will notify relevant authorities and affected users as required by law.

4 Third-Party Services

Tickrates integrates with the following third-party services to deliver its functionality. Each provider handles data under their own privacy policies:

• IGDB (Twitch Interactive, Inc.): Provides game metadata, artwork, and ratings. We query their API server-side; no user data is shared with IGDB.
• Steam Web API (Valve Corporation): Supplements game data. No user credentials are shared with Valve.
• Cloudflare: Used for DNS, DDoS protection, and CDN. Cloudflare may process IP addresses and request metadata as part of their service.

We do not use Google Analytics, Facebook Pixel, or any third-party advertising trackers.

5 Data Retention & Deletion

We retain your account data for as long as your account is active. If you delete your account through the Settings page, your personal data — including your profile, gaming logs, and reviews — will be permanently deleted within 30 days.

Aggregate, anonymised analytics data (which cannot be used to identify you) may be retained for longer periods to improve the platform.

To request manual deletion of your data or to exercise your additional rights under GDPR / KVKK (access, rectification, portability, restriction of processing), please contact us at [email protected].

6 Cookies

Tickrates uses a minimal set of cookies — only those strictly necessary for the platform to function correctly. We do not use tracking, profiling, or advertising cookies.

• Session cookie: Keeps you logged in during your browsing session.
• Auth token (HTTP-only): Stores your JWT securely to authenticate API requests.
• CSRF token: Protects form submissions against cross-site request forgery attacks.

Because these cookies are strictly necessary, they do not require your prior consent under applicable law. You can disable cookies in your browser settings, but doing so may prevent you from logging in or using core features.

7 Contact & Data Controller

Tickrates Limited is the data controller for personal data processed through this platform. If you have any questions, concerns, or requests regarding this Privacy Policy or your data, please contact us: