privacy policy
1. Introduction
Welcome to Online Penpal (“we,” “us,” or “our”). We are committed to protecting your privacy and handling your personal information with transparency and care. This Privacy Policy explains what data we collect, how we use it, who we share it with, and what rights you have over your information.
By using Online Penpal at https://onlinepenpal.blogspot.com (“the Platform”), you agree to the collection and use of information as described in this policy. If you do not agree, please discontinue use of the Platform.
Because the Platform is hosted on Google’s Blogger service and uses Google Sign-In, Google’s own Privacy Policy (https://policies.google.com/privacy) also applies alongside this policy. We encourage you to read it.
2. Who We Are
Online Penpal is a community-run penpal platform designed to connect people around the world through letters, shared interests, and cultural exchange. The Platform is operated independently and hosted on Google Blogger.
For any privacy-related enquiries, you can contact us at:
Email: coscasts04@gmail.com
Website: https://onlinepenpal.blogspot.com
3. Information We Collect
We collect the following categories of information when you use the Platform:
| Data Category | Examples | Purpose |
|---|---|---|
| Account & Identity | Google account name, email address | Authentication and account creation |
| Profile Information | Display name, age, country, languages, interests, about me | Matching you with compatible pen pals; public profile display |
| Messages & Letters | Content of letters sent and received; message-in-a-bottle posts | Enabling correspondence between users |
| Moderation Records | Reports submitted, warnings issued, appeals, ban history | Community safety and enforcement of our Terms of Service |
| Usage Data | Pages visited, features used, interactions (via Google Analytics / Blogger) | Platform improvement and performance monitoring |
| Technical Data | Browser type, device type, IP address (collected by Blogger/Google) | Security, fraud prevention, and platform operation |
3.1 Information You Provide Directly
When you sign up and use the Platform, you provide us with:
- Your Google account details (name and email) via Google Sign-In.
- Your profile information: display name, age, country, languages spoken, interests, and an optional “About Me” section.
- The content of letters, replies, and messages in a bottle you write.
- Reports you submit about other users’ content or behaviour.
- Appeal submissions if you contest a moderation decision.
3.2 Information Collected Automatically
When you visit the Platform, certain technical information is collected automatically by Google Blogger and Google Analytics, including:
- Your approximate IP address and general location.
- Browser type and version.
- Device type (desktop, mobile, tablet).
- Pages visited and time spent on the Platform.
- Referring URLs (the page you came from before visiting ours).
This data is collected in anonymised or aggregated form where possible and is used solely to understand how the Platform is being used.
3.3 Information We Do Not Collect
We do not collect:
- Payment or financial information (the Platform is free to use).
- Precise GPS location data.
- Biometric data of any kind.
- Data from third-party social networks beyond what Google provides at sign-in.
4. How We Use Your Information
We use the information we collect for the following purposes:
- Account creation and authentication — to create and manage your account using Google Sign-In.
- Profile display — to show your profile to other users so they can discover and connect with you.
- Correspondence — to deliver letters and messages between you and your pen pals.
- Matching — to suggest compatible pen pals based on shared interests, languages, and location.
- Community safety — to review reports, issue warnings, process appeals, and enforce our Terms of Service.
- Platform improvement — to understand how users interact with the Platform and make it better.
- Communication — to contact you if we need to notify you of significant changes to the Platform or your account status.
We do not use your information for advertising purposes, and we do not sell your personal data to any third party.
5. Legal Basis for Processing
Where data protection law requires us to have a legal basis for processing your personal information, we rely on the following:
- Contractual necessity — processing your profile and correspondence data is necessary to provide the Platform’s services.
- Legitimate interests — moderation, safety monitoring, and platform improvement serve our legitimate interest in maintaining a safe and functional community.
- Legal obligation — we may process or retain data where required by law.
- Consent — for non-essential analytics cookies (see our Cookie Policy).
6. How We Share Your Information
6.1 With Other Users
Your profile information — including your display name, country, languages, interests, and “About Me” — is visible to other registered users of the Platform. Letters and messages are shared only between the sender and recipient(s).
Messages in a bottle are visible to all users whose interests match the tags you apply.
6.2 With Google / Blogger
Because the Platform is hosted on Blogger and uses Google services, Google processes certain data as part of providing those services. This includes hosting, authentication, and analytics. Google acts as a data processor on our behalf for these services, and its processing is governed by Google’s Privacy Policy.
6.3 With Moderation & Safety
Moderation records (reports, warnings, bans) are accessible to Platform administrators only. We do not share moderation data with other users except where required to notify them of decisions affecting their account.
6.4 Legal Disclosure
We may disclose your information if we believe in good faith that such disclosure is necessary to:
- Comply with a legal obligation or court order.
- Protect the rights, property, or safety of Online Penpal, our users, or the public.
- Report suspected illegal activity, including child exploitation, to the relevant authorities.
6.5 We Do Not Sell Your Data
We do not sell, rent, or trade your personal information to any third party for commercial purposes.
7. Data Retention
We retain your personal data only for as long as is necessary for the purposes set out in this policy:
- Profile information and letters are retained while your account is active.
- If you delete your account, your profile and letters will be removed from public view. Some data may be retained in our records for a reasonable period to comply with legal obligations or to resolve disputes.
- Moderation records (reports, warnings, bans) may be retained indefinitely to ensure community safety and prevent circumvention of bans.
- Analytics data collected by Google is subject to Google’s own retention periods.
8. Children’s Privacy
Online Penpal is available to users aged 13 and older. We do not knowingly collect personal information from children under 13. If we become aware that a child under 13 has created an account without verifiable parental consent, we will delete the account and associated data promptly.
Users between the ages of 13 and 17 are considered minors. We encourage parents and guardians to supervise their children’s use of the Platform. If you believe a child’s data has been collected without appropriate consent, please contact us immediately at coscasts04@gmail.com.
9. Data Security
We take the security of your personal information seriously. We rely on Google’s infrastructure (Blogger) which employs industry-standard security measures including HTTPS encryption, secure data centres, and access controls.
However, no method of transmission over the internet is 100% secure. While we strive to protect your data, we cannot guarantee absolute security. You are responsible for keeping your Google account credentials secure and should notify us if you suspect any unauthorised access to your account.
10. International Data Transfers
Online Penpal is a global platform. When you use the Platform, your data may be processed in countries other than your own, including the United States, where Google’s servers are located.
By using the Platform, you consent to the transfer of your information to other countries, which may have different data protection laws than your country of residence. Google implements appropriate safeguards for international data transfers in accordance with applicable law.
11. Your Rights
Depending on where you live, you may have the following rights regarding your personal information:
- Right of access — you can request a copy of the personal data we hold about you.
- Right to rectification — you can correct inaccurate profile information directly through your Profile settings.
- Right to erasure — you can delete your account through your Profile settings, which will remove your profile and letters from the Platform.
- Right to restriction — you may ask us to limit how we use your data in certain circumstances.
- Right to object — you may object to processing based on legitimate interests.
- Right to data portability — you may request a copy of your data in a structured, commonly used format.
To exercise any of these rights, please contact us at coscasts04@gmail.com. We will respond within a reasonable timeframe and no later than 30 days.
Please note that some rights may be limited where we have overriding legitimate interests or legal obligations (such as retaining moderation records for safety purposes).
12. Third-Party Links & Services
The Platform may contain links to external websites or services (for example, within letters written by other users). We are not responsible for the privacy practices of any third-party sites. We encourage you to review the privacy policy of any site you visit.
The following third-party services are integrated into the Platform and have their own privacy policies:
- Google Blogger — https://policies.google.com/privacy
- Google Sign-In — https://policies.google.com/privacy
- Google Analytics — https://policies.google.com/privacy
- Google Translate — https://policies.google.com/privacy
13. Changes to This Privacy Policy
We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time. When we make material changes, we will update the effective date at the top of this document. We encourage you to review this policy periodically. Your continued use of th
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