1. Introduction

This Privacy Policy explains how UK Ghostbusters (theukghostbusters.co.uk) collects, uses, stores, and protects your personal data when you visit our website or use our forum. It applies to both the main website and the community forum at theukghostbusters.co.uk/forum/.

We are committed to protecting your privacy and complying with the UK General Data Protection Regulation (UK GDPR) and the Data Protection Act 2018. Please read this policy carefully before registering or using our services.

2. Who We Are

As the operator of this website and forum, UK Ghostbusters is the data controller responsible for your personal data.

3. Data We Collect

We collect different types of data depending on how you use our site:

3.1 Account Registration

• Username — your chosen display name (public)
• Email address — used for account verification and notifications
• Password — stored as a one-way hash; we never see your plain-text password
• Date of registration
• IP address at registration

3.2 Profile Information

You may optionally provide:

• Avatar / profile photo
• Location (e.g. city or region)
• Biography / personal text
• Post signature
• Website URL
• Social media handles

Profile information (except your email address) is visible to other registered members and may be visible to guests depending on forum settings.

3.3 Posts, Content & Activity

• Forum posts, replies, and thread content
• News article comments
• Images uploaded to the Gallery
• Franchise (Social Group) membership and posts
• Calendar events you create or subscribe to
• Poll votes
• Search queries (not linked to your identity by default)
• IP address associated with each post

3.4 Private Messages

Private messages (PMs) sent between members are stored on our server. They are not read by staff unless required for a moderation investigation following a report. PMs are deleted when either party deletes their copy, or when an account is deleted.

3.5 Technical & Usage Data

• IP address and approximate geographic location
• Browser type and version
• Operating system
• Pages visited and time spent
• Referring website
• Device type

3.6 Email Communications

We may send you emails for:

• Account verification and password resets
• Forum notifications (replies to subscribed threads, mentions)
• Calendar event reminders
• Administrative messages regarding your account
• Community newsletters or announcements (only if you opt in)

4. How We Use Your Data

Purpose	Data Used
Creating and managing your account	Username, email, password
Displaying your posts and profile	Username, avatar, posts, profile info
Sending account emails	Email address
Moderation and abuse prevention	Posts, IP addresses, private messages (reported)
Delivering forum notifications	Email address, subscription preferences
Calendar event reminders	Email address, event subscriptions
Improving site performance	Usage data, technical data
Displaying advertisements (non-subscribers)	Browsing data via Google AdSense
Legal compliance	Any data necessary

5. Lawful Basis for Processing (UK GDPR)

Under UK GDPR, we must have a valid lawful basis for processing personal data. Our bases are:

• Contract — processing necessary to provide you with the forum service you've registered for (account management, posting, notifications)
• Legitimate Interests — security, moderation, fraud prevention, and improving the site (we balance these against your rights)
• Consent — optional features such as newsletters, marketing emails, and third-party advertising cookies
• Legal Obligation — retaining certain data where required by law

6. Cookies

We use cookies to make the forum function correctly and to remember your preferences. Here is what we use:

Cookie	Purpose	Type
vbsessionhash	Maintains your login session while browsing	Essential
vbulletin_*	Remembers your forum preferences (layout, timezone etc.)	Functional
Remember Me cookie	Keeps you logged in between visits if you tick "Remember Me"	Functional
Google AdSense / DoubleClick	Serves targeted advertising to non-subscribers	Advertising
Google Analytics (if active)	Anonymous site usage statistics	Analytics

Essential cookies are required for the forum to work and cannot be disabled. You may control non-essential cookies through your browser settings. Blocking advertising cookies means you will see non-targeted ads rather than no ads.

Ad-Free Subscribers: If you hold an active ad-free subscription, advertising cookies are suppressed for your account.

7. Advertising

We display advertisements from Google AdSense to non-subscriber members and guests. Google uses cookies and device identifiers to serve ads that may be personalised based on your browsing behaviour. Google's data practices are governed by Google's Privacy Policy.

You can opt out of personalised advertising by visiting Google's Ad Settings or Your Online Choices.

Members who purchase an ad-free subscription will have advertising suppressed across the forum.

8. Third Parties

We share data with the following third parties in the course of operating this site:

• vBulletin (MH Sub I, LLC) — our forum software provider. The forum is self-hosted; vBulletin does not have ongoing access to your data.
• Google LLC — Google AdSense advertising and potentially Google Analytics. Data may be processed in the USA (see section 10).
• Our hosting provider — the server infrastructure on which your data is stored. UK/EU-based hosting is preferred wherever possible.
• GhostbustersNews.com — we display a news RSS feed from this site. No personal data is shared with them.

We do not sell, trade, or rent your personal data to any third party.

9. Data Retention

Data	Retention Period
Active account data	Retained for the lifetime of your account
Forum posts	Retained indefinitely (community archive); username may be anonymised on account deletion
IP address logs (posts)	Retained for 12 months, then purged
IP address logs (registration)	Retained for 24 months
Private messages	Deleted when all parties delete their copies, or on account deletion
Gallery images	Retained until you delete them or your account is deleted
Email logs	Up to 90 days for delivery verification
Deleted account data	Core account data removed within 30 days of deletion request; posts may be retained in anonymised form

10. International Data Transfers

Our forum is hosted within the United Kingdom. However, some third-party services (notably Google) process data in the United States and other countries. Where data is transferred outside the UK, we ensure appropriate safeguards are in place, including reliance on UK adequacy decisions or Standard Contractual Clauses approved by the Information Commissioner's Office (ICO).

11. Your Rights Under UK GDPR

As a UK resident, you have the following rights regarding your personal data:

• Right of Access — request a copy of the personal data we hold about you
• Right to Rectification — request correction of inaccurate data
• Right to Erasure — request deletion of your data in certain circumstances ("right to be forgotten")
• Right to Restrict Processing — request we limit how we use your data
• Right to Data Portability — receive your data in a commonly used, machine-readable format
• Right to Object — object to processing based on legitimate interests
• Right to Withdraw Consent — where processing is based on consent, withdraw it at any time

Note: Some data (such as forum posts) may be retained in anonymised form even after account deletion, as it forms part of the community archive. We will discuss this with you when you make a deletion request.

12. Children and Minors

This forum is intended for users aged 16 and over. We do not knowingly collect personal data from anyone under 16. If you believe a child under 16 has registered, please contact us at web@theukghostbusters.co.uk and we will remove the account promptly.

13. Changes to This Policy

We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time. When we make significant changes, we will notify registered members by posting a notice on the forum. The "Last Updated" date at the top of this page indicates when it was last revised. Continued use of the forum following any changes constitutes your acceptance of the revised policy.

14. Contact Us & Complaints

If you have any questions about this policy or how we handle your data, please contact:

If you are unhappy with how we have handled your data, you have the right to lodge a complaint with the Information Commissioner's Office (ICO):