Privacy policy

The short version

• No account needed. We never ask for your name, phone number or email to use the site.
• Messages you check are processed by Google services. We keep the claim text for 180 days, without your IP address.
• Photos and videos stay on your device. Only a few small still images are sent, and they are deleted within minutes.
• Google Analytics runs only if you accept cookies.
• Please don’t enter personal details or upload private family photos.

Who is responsible

Bharat Fact Check, an independent project, is the data fiduciary under the DPDP Act for the personal data described here. Contact: support@giveawayworld.online.

What we collect and why

Checking a message

The text you paste is sent to Google Gemini (an AI service) to find the claim, to Google Fact Check Tools to search published fact-checks, and any links are checked with Google Safe Browsing. We store a short version of the claim and the verdict for 180 days to see which rumours are spreading. We do not store your IP address or any identifier with it.

Checking a photo or video

Your original file is never uploaded. Your browser reads the labels inside the file (such as a camera date or an AI label) and makes up to three small still images. Those stills are sent to Google Gemini, and kept on our server for at most five minutes so Google’s image search can look them up; then they are deleted. We store only a one-line description and the result for 180 days.

Reporting a rumour (Rumour radar)

What you write is screened by Google Gemini and rewritten as one short, neutral sentence. Only that sentence, the platform you chose and the category are shown publicly; your own words and any link stay private and are deleted after 90 days (rejected reports after 30 days). Reports about sensitive topics are read by our team before anything is published. If Cloudflare Turnstile is used to stop bots, Cloudflare processes technical data about your browser for that check. The “I’ve seen this too” and “Report card” buttons store a list of the cards you pressed in your own browser so you can’t press them twice.

Reporting a mistake

We store your message and, only if you give it, your email or phone number, so we can reply. Reports are deleted after at most 12 months.

Technical data

Our hosting provider keeps standard server logs, including IP addresses, for security and to keep the site running. To stop abuse, our server keeps IP addresses in memory for up to an hour to count requests; they are not written to our database.

Analytics (only with your consent)

If you click “Accept” in the cookie banner, we load Google Analytics 4, which sets cookies (such as _ga) to count visits, pages viewed, device type and approximate location, and whether a check was completed. It never receives the text, photos or videos you check. If you click “Reject”, Google Analytics is not loaded. You can change your choice at any time with “Cookie settings” in the footer. Without consent, the site sets no cookies.

Admin accounts

Our editors sign in with an email and password. A strictly necessary session cookie keeps them signed in; it is only used on admin pages.

A note about Google Gemini

We use the free tier of Google’s Gemini API. Under Google’s terms for unpaid services, Google may use the content sent to it to improve its products, and human reviewers may read it. This is one more reason not to enter personal information, phone numbers, addresses or private photos.

Legal basis

• Running the checker: you voluntarily give us the message or picture for this specific purpose (DPDP Act, section 7(a)).
• Analytics cookies: your consent (DPDP Act, section 6), which you can withdraw at any time.
• Security logs: needed to keep the service safe and to meet obligations under the Information Technology Act, 2000.

Who we share data with

Only with these service providers, for the purposes above:

• Google (Gemini API, Fact Check Tools API, Safe Browsing, Google Analytics)
• Cloudflare (Turnstile bot check on the Rumour radar form)
• Hostinger (website hosting)
• Neon (database hosting)

Their servers may be outside India, including in the United States and Europe, as the DPDP Act allows. We rely on their standard data-protection terms. We do not sell personal data or use it for advertising. We disclose information to authorities only when the law requires it.

How long we keep it

• Claim text and results of checks: 180 days
• Photo and video stills: at most 5 minutes
• Mistake reports: at most 12 months
• Rumour radar: your own words 90 days, rejected reports 30 days; the public neutral sentence stays on the board for up to 60 days
• Google Analytics data: 14 months (Google’s setting)
• Your cookie choice: stored in your browser for 12 months

Your rights

Under the DPDP Act, 2023 you can ask for a summary of your personal data we hold, ask us to correct or erase it, withdraw consent, have your grievance addressed, and nominate someone to exercise these rights on your behalf.

Because we don’t link most data to a person, include enough detail (such as the text you checked and the date) for us to find it. Write to support@giveawayworld.online. We reply within 30 days.

If you are not satisfied with our reply, you can complain to the Data Protection Board of India.

Security

The site uses HTTPS, admin passwords are stored as strong one-way hashes, and the database is accessed over encrypted connections. No system is perfectly secure; if a breach affects your personal data, we will inform you and the authorities as the law requires.

Children

The service is not directed at children under 18, and we do not knowingly collect their personal data. If you believe a child has sent us personal data, contact us and we will delete it.

Changes to this policy

If we change this policy, we will update it here and change the effective date at the top. Significant changes will be announced on the home page.

Contact and grievance officer

Questions, requests and complaints about privacy: support@giveawayworld.online (Grievance Officer, Bharat Fact Check). See also our grievance process.