Privacy Policy
Last Updated: [Insert Date]
This Privacy Policy describes how Talking Politics Research ("we," "us," or "our") collects, uses, and discloses information when you use our survey research platform (the "Site").
1. Information We Collect
We collect information in two capacities: as a Data Controller (for our researcher users) and as a Data Processor (for the study participants recruited by researchers).
- Account Information: Name, email address, and institutional affiliation for researcher accounts. If and when paid subscription tiers become available, this will also include billing information processed through our payment provider, PayPal.
- Research Data: Survey questions, branching logic, and the responses collected from participants, as designed and uploaded by researchers.
- Interaction & Event Data: For studies using our information-board task interfaces, we log participant interaction events such as content items opened or closed, popups viewed, video engagement, and voting actions, along with associated timestamps. This data is used to support the research design and is made available to the researcher who created the study.
- Technical Data: IP addresses, browser type, and cookies used for site functionality and security.
2. How We Use Your Information
We use the collected data to:
- Provide, operate, and maintain our research platform.
- Manage researcher accounts and, where applicable in the future, process transactions.
- Ensure compliance with ethical research standards and prevent fraud or abuse of the platform.
- Improve Site functionality and reliability.
3. Data Sharing and Disclosure
We do not sell or share personal data for cross-context behavioral advertising, and we have not done so in the preceding 12 months. We may share information with:
- Service Providers: Our infrastructure runs on Amazon Web Services (AWS), including EC2, RDS, S3, CloudFront, ElastiCache, and related AWS services, for hosting, storage, and content delivery. If paid tiers are introduced, payment processing will be handled by PayPal.
- Participant Recruitment Platforms: If a study is configured to recruit participants through a third-party platform (such as Prolific or a similar service), limited identifiers (e.g., a platform-assigned participant ID) may be exchanged with that platform solely to administer participation and compensation. That platform's own privacy policy governs its handling of participant data outside of what is passed to us.
- Legal Requirements: If required by law, or to protect the safety, rights, or property of our users or the public.
- Researchers: Data collected from participants in a given study is shared directly with the researcher who created that study.
4. Your Rights (GDPR & CCPA)
Depending on your location, you may have the following rights:
- Access & Portability: Request a copy of your personal data.
- Correction & Deletion: Request that we correct or erase your personal information.
- Withdraw Consent: Opt out of data processing at any time, where processing is based on consent.
- Do Not Sell or Share: We do not sell or share personal information as those terms are defined under CCPA, so no opt-out mechanism for sale/sharing is required.
- Non-Discrimination: We will not discriminate against you for exercising your privacy rights.
Participants in a study should note that their responses and interaction data are collected on behalf of, and controlled by, the researcher who designed that study. Requests to access, correct, or delete participant-level research data should generally be directed to the researcher or their sponsoring institution in the first instance, consistent with the study's informed consent materials.
5. Cookie Disclosure
Our Site uses "strictly necessary" cookies to provide our research and survey services. These cookies are essential for the website to function and cannot be switched off in our systems. They are usually only set in response to actions made by you, such as logging in or filling out a research survey.
| Cookie Name | Purpose | Duration |
|---|---|---|
| Session ID | Maintains your login state and ensures survey progress is saved as you navigate between pages. | Session (Expires when browser closes) |
| XSRF-TOKEN | A security cookie used to prevent Cross-Site Request Forgery (CSRF) attacks. | Session |
| Survey Progress | If applicable, used to prevent participants from taking the same survey twice and to store temporary answers. | Session or up to 30 days |
| Auth Token | Used for researchers to remain logged into the dashboard securely. | Session / Persistent |
You can set your browser to block or alert you about these cookies, but some parts of the Site will not then work. These cookies do not store personally identifiable information themselves.
6. Data Security & Retention
We implement industry-standard security measures to protect research data, including encrypted connections to our database and secure cloud infrastructure. We retain researcher account information for as long as the account remains active.
When a researcher closes their account or requests deletion, we process removal of account information and associated study data on a rolling basis, typically completed within a reasonable period following the request. Researchers are responsible for exporting any data they wish to retain before initiating account closure. Research data may otherwise be retained according to the researcher's own settings and the retention period specified in their study's informed consent materials.
7. Data Breach Notification
In the event of a data breach affecting your personal information, we will notify affected users without undue delay and, where required by applicable law, notify relevant regulatory authorities within the timeframe required by that law.
8. Children's Privacy
The Site is intended for use by researchers who are adults and by study participants recruited through platforms that require participants to meet a minimum age threshold. The Site is not directed at children, and we do not knowingly collect personal information from children under 13 (or the relevant minimum age in your jurisdiction). Researchers designing studies involving minors as participants are responsible for obtaining appropriate consent and complying with applicable law independent of the Site.
9. International Data Transfers
The Site is hosted and operated in the United States. If you are accessing the Site from the EEA, UK, or elsewhere outside the United States, your information will be transferred to and processed in the United States. By using the Site, you acknowledge this transfer. We take reasonable steps to protect information consistent with this Policy regardless of where it is processed.
10. Contact Us
For any privacy-related inquiries or to exercise your data rights, please contact us at: talkingpoliticsresearch@gmail.com.