Privacy Policy

At a Glance

Legal Basis: Compliance with India's Digital Personal Data Protection (DPDP) Act, 2023; IT Act 2000 & IT Rules 2011; Consumer Protection Act 2019. EU/UK users also benefit from GDPR-aligned rights.

1. Who We Are and How to Contact Us

Chessox.com is operated by Phoenix Brothers, Tamil Nadu, India. We are the Data Fiduciary under DPDP Act 2023.

Data Protection Contact: For all privacy requests (access, correction, deletion, complaints): contact@chessox.com. Acknowledged within 48h, full response within 30 days. Escalate to Grievance Officer at help@chessox.com if unresolved.

2. What Personal Data We Collect

2.1 Account Registration Data

Username, email address, hashed password, country (optional), date of birth (age verification).

2.2 Profile and Gameplay Data

Chess rating & history, games played, tournament participation, puzzle scores, friends/clan memberships, in-platform messages, chat history, profile picture/bio. Game records (PGN) stored permanently.

2.3 Financial and Transaction Data

Transaction IDs, billing history, payment dates. We do NOT store full card numbers, CVV, or bank account details.

2.4 Technical and Device Data

IP address, browser/OS, device type, screen resolution, referring URL, pages visited, timestamps.

2.5 Communications Data

Support emails, survey responses, feedback — retained up to 2 years for quality assurance.

Data we do NOT collect: precise location, biometrics, health data, racial/ethnic origin, political/religious beliefs. No facial recognition. No data selling.

3. Why We Use Your Data (Legal Bases)

4. Cookies and Tracking Technologies

Managing preferences: Cookie consent banner on first visit; update via Cookie Settings in footer or browser settings. Consent stored for 12 months.

4.1 Google AdSense and Third-Party Advertising Disclosures

ChessOx partners with Google AdSense and third-party advertising networks to display advertisements to visitors and monetise educational chess content.

• Google AdSense Partner: We use Google AdSense to serve advertisements on select public pages. Google is a third-party vendor that uses cookies to serve ads based on prior visits to ChessOx or other websites across the Internet.
• DoubleClick DART Cookie: Google's use of the DoubleClick DART cookie and related advertising cookies enables Google and its partners to serve targeted ads based on your visit to ChessOx and/or other sites on the web.
• Personalised Advertising Opt-Out: You may opt out of personalised advertising at any time by visiting Google Ad Settings or the Google Ad Safety Page.
• Network Advertising & DAA Opt-Out: You can also opt out of third-party vendor use of cookies for interest-based advertising across dozens of participating ad networks by visiting AboutAds.info Choices or the Network Advertising Initiative Opt-Out.
• European & UK Visitors (GDPR): In accordance with the EU User Consent Policy and GDPR, non-personalized advertising is served where consent has not been granted, and cookies for measurement/frequency capping operate under legitimate interest or standard user consent mechanisms.
• Third-Party Vendors: Other certified advertising partners and ad servers may display ads on ChessOx. Each partner maintains its own privacy policy regarding data collection and tracking.

5. How Long We Keep Your Data

Account Deletion: Within 90 days, identifiable data removed from active systems. Transaction/tax records retained for 7 years as required by law, but not used for marketing.

6. Who We Share Your Data With

6.1 International Data Transfers

Operated from India. If accessing outside India, data may be transferred to India. Appropriate safeguards (standard contractual clauses) applied for cross-border transfers.

7. Children's Privacy

• Minimum age: 13 years. Users under 13 not permitted; accounts discovered will be suspended and data deleted within 48h.
• Ages 13–17: Require verifiable parental consent. Restricted from cash prize tournaments. No marketing profiling without explicit parental consent.
• Parental access: Parents/guardians may request access/correction/deletion of child's data via contact@chessox.com with proof of relationship.

8. How We Protect Your Data

• Encryption: TLS 1.2+ in transit; bcrypt hashing for passwords.
• Access controls: Need-to-know basis, confidentiality obligations.
• Payment security: PCI-DSS compliant providers; Chess OX never stores card details.
• Incident response: Data breach notification within 72 hours to affected users and authority.
• Your responsibility: Use strong unique password; enable 2FA; contact help@chessox.com if compromised.

9. Your Data Rights (PDPP Act & GDPR Aligned)

• Access: Request summary of data, purposes, third-party recipients. Free of charge within 30 days.
• Correction: Update inaccurate/incomplete data via Account Settings or contact@chessox.com.
• Erasure: Request deletion of personal data; processed within 90 days (subject to legal retention).
• Restrict processing: While accuracy or lawfulness is disputed.
• Data portability: Receive your data in structured machine-readable format (JSON/CSV).
• Withdraw consent: Unsubscribe from marketing, update cookie settings, or email.
• Object: Object to processing based on legitimate interests.
• Complain: To Grievance Officer first, then Data Protection Board of India or CDRC.

10. Marketing Communications

• Consent-based marketing: Only send promotional emails with explicit opt-in. Opt out anytime via Unsubscribe link, Account Settings, or email contact@chessox.com (subject "Unsubscribe").
• Transactional communications: (cannot opt out while active): registration, payment receipts, security alerts, policy updates.

11. Third-Party Links and Services

Links to external sites (social media, payment portals) are subject to their own privacy policies; Chess OX is not responsible.

12. India PDPP Act 2023 Compliance Statement

• Data Fiduciary: Phoenix Brothers ensures lawfulness, fairness, transparency.
• Consent management: Free, specific, informed consent for marketing/cookies.
• Data Principal rights: Fully facilitated.
• Grievance redressal: Grievance Officer at help@chessox.com (ack 48h, resolution 30d).
• Data processor obligations: Contractually enforced security measures.

13. Changes to This Privacy Policy

• Material changes: Email notification + platform notice 14 days in advance.
• Minor changes: Website update without advance notice. Previous versions available on request.

14. Contact Us and How to Complain

Escalation Path

• Step 1: contact@chessox.com (48h response, 30d resolution)
• Step 2: Grievance Officer at help@chessox.com
• Step 3: Data Protection Board of India, National Consumer Helpline 1800-11-4000, or CDRC under Consumer Protection Act 2019.