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Effective Date: May 17, 2026
Last Updated: May 17, 2026

This Privacy Policy explains how EdgeGamers® Forums ("EdgeGamers, LLC", "EdgeGamers", "we", "us", or "our") collects, uses, retains, and shares information from users of our website, our game servers, our Discord server, and any related services (collectively, the "Services").

By using the Services, you agree to this Privacy Policy. If you do not agree, please do not use the Services.

1. Who We Are

EdgeGamers, LLC is the operator of the Services. EdgeGamers is an online gaming community operating gaming-related forums, game servers, voice and chat services, and related online services. For privacy-related inquiries, email us at [email protected] or post in our Contact Leadership forum at https://www.edgegamers.com/forums/contact-leadership/.

2. Information We Collect

We collect the following categories of information:

Information you provide when you register or use the Services:

  • Username
  • Email address
  • Password (stored only as a salted hash; we cannot recover plaintext passwords)
  • Date of birth or age confirmation (used to confirm you meet our minimum age requirement)
  • Profile information you choose to provide (avatar, signature, location, biography, social links, gaming platform IDs, etc.)
  • Private messages and forum posts you author
  • Account preferences and settings

Information collected automatically:

  • IP address
  • Browser type, operating system, and device information
  • Pages visited, time and date of visits, referring URLs
  • Cookies and similar technologies (see Section 6)

Information from gameplay on our game servers:

  • Steam ID, gaming platform identifiers, and in-game name
  • IP address used to connect
  • In-game activity, statistics, chat logs, and voice metadata
  • Administrative actions taken against your account (warnings, mutes, kicks, bans)

Information from linked services:

  • If you link a Discord, Steam, or other third-party account, we receive the identifiers and profile data those services make available.
  • We do not receive your password for any linked service.

Information from purchases, donations, and Dedicated Supporter subscriptions:

  • Store purchases and one-time donations are processed by Tebex Limited. Tebex provides us with confirmation of completed transactions, the username or identifier the purchase was associated with, and the items purchased. Tebex's handling of your payment data is governed by Tebex's Privacy Policy.
  • Dedicated Supporter subscriptions and recurring contributions are processed by Stripe, Inc. Stripe provides us with confirmation of completed transactions, subscription status, the username or identifier the subscription is associated with, and limited billing metadata (such as the last four digits of a payment card and country of issue) for fraud prevention and customer support purposes. Stripe's handling of your payment data is governed by Stripe's Privacy Policy.
  • We do not collect or store full payment card numbers, bank account numbers, or other complete financial credentials on our own systems.

3. How We Use Your Information

We use the information we collect to:

  • Create and maintain your account
  • Operate, secure, and improve the Services
  • Communicate with you about your account, community announcements, and service updates
  • Enforce our Terms of Service and community rules (the Code of Conduct)
  • Investigate, prevent, and respond to fraud, abuse, harassment, ban evasion, and security incidents
  • Maintain moderation, administrative, and ban records to keep the community safe
  • Comply with legal obligations and respond to lawful requests
  • Aggregate, anonymize, and analyze usage to understand and improve the Services

We do not sell your personal information. We do not share your personal information with third parties for their own marketing purposes.

4. How We Share Your Information

We share information only in these circumstances:

  • Publicly on the Services: Information you post in public areas (forum posts, public profile fields, in-game activity, leaderboards) is visible to other users and may be indexed by search engines.
  • Service providers: We use third-party providers to operate the Services, including hosting, content delivery, analytics, anti-spam services, payment processing (Tebex and Stripe), and similar functions. These providers receive only the information they need to perform their services and are contractually restricted from using it for other purposes.
  • Linked platforms: Information shared with third-party platforms you connect (Discord, Steam, etc.) is subject to those platforms' privacy policies.
  • Legal compliance: We may disclose information when required by law, court order, subpoena, or other valid legal process, or where we believe disclosure is necessary to investigate, prevent, or respond to suspected illegal activity, threats to safety, or violations of our Terms of Service.
  • Business transfers: If EdgeGamers is involved in a merger, acquisition, or sale of assets, information may be transferred as part of that transaction. We will notify users of any such change in ownership.

5. International Users and Data Transfers

EdgeGamers operates from the United States. If you access the Services from outside the United States, your information will be transferred to and processed in the United States. By using the Services, you consent to this transfer.

6. Cookies and Similar Technologies

We use cookies and similar technologies to:

  • Keep you logged in
  • Remember your preferences
  • Analyze how the Services are used
  • Detect and prevent fraud and abuse
  • Serve and measure advertising where applicable

You can control cookies through your browser settings, but disabling cookies may affect functionality, including the ability to stay logged in. For more details on the cookies we use, see our cookie policy. You can update your cookie and advertising consent preferences at any time using the button at the bottom of this page.

7. Data Retention

We retain personal information for as long as your account is active or as needed to operate the Services. Specific retention practices include:

  • Active account data: retained while your account is active.
  • Public forum content (threads, posts, public comments): retained indefinitely as part of the community record, even after account anonymization (see Section 8). Public content authored by users is preserved to maintain the integrity of community discussions and the contributions of other users who participated in those discussions.
  • Moderation records, ban records, and administrative actions: retained indefinitely for community safety, ban evasion prevention, and fair enforcement of our rules. This includes the Steam ID, IP address, and any identifiers necessary to enforce a ban.
  • Server logs and security logs: retained for up to 24 months for security, abuse detection, and debugging purposes.
  • Backups: personal information may persist in encrypted backups for a limited period after deletion or anonymization, after which it is overwritten in the normal backup rotation.
  • Records required by law: retained for the period required by applicable law (for example, tax and financial records).

8. Your Rights and How to Exercise Them

You have the following rights with respect to your personal information:

  • Access: You may request a copy of the personal information we hold about you.
  • Correction: You may request that we correct inaccurate or incomplete information.
  • Anonymization / "Erasure": You may request that we anonymize your account and remove your personal identifiers (see "How Account Anonymization Works" below).
  • Withdrawal of consent: Where we rely on your consent to process information, you may withdraw that consent at any time.
  • Objection / restriction: You may object to or request restriction of certain processing.

How Account Anonymization Works

EdgeGamers does not fully delete user accounts. When we receive a verified erasure request, we anonymize the account, which means:

We remove:

  • Email address
  • Profile fields (avatar, signature, location, biography, social links, etc.)
  • Private messages you sent (where technically feasible without affecting the recipient's record)
  • Date of birth and other personal profile details

We replace:

  • Your username with a generic identifier (e.g., "Former Member 12345")

We retain (and these are not deleted):

  • Public forum posts and threads you authored, attributed to the anonymized identifier
  • Moderation records, warnings, and bans, including any Steam ID, IP address, or other identifier necessary to enforce a ban or prevent ban evasion
  • Aggregate or anonymized statistics
  • Records required for legal, tax, accounting, security, or fraud-prevention purposes

This approach protects the integrity of community discussions, the contributions of other users, and the safety of the community while removing the personal identifiers that link the account to you as an individual.

How to Submit a Request

To submit a request to anonymize your account, exercise any of your rights described above, or otherwise contact us about your personal information, please create a thread in our Contact Leadership forum: https://www.edgegamers.com/forums/contact-leadership/.

You must be logged into the account you wish to have anonymized (or otherwise act upon) at the time you submit the request. Posting from the logged-in account is how we verify that the request is coming from the account holder. We will not act on requests we cannot reasonably verify, and we will not process anonymization requests submitted on behalf of another user's account.

If you cannot log into the account (for example, you have lost access to the email address on file and cannot recover the password), you may instead email us at [email protected], and we will work with you to verify your identity through alternative means before proceeding.

Our Response

We will acknowledge your request within 10 days and complete it within 45 days. If we need additional time, we will notify you and may extend the response period by an additional 45 days as permitted by law.

We may decline a request, in whole or in part, where:

  • We cannot verify your identity
  • The request is manifestly unfounded, excessive, or repetitive
  • An exception applies under applicable law (for example, retention required to comply with a legal obligation, for security, to prevent fraud, to defend legal claims, or to exercise the rights of free expression of EdgeGamers or other users)

We will explain the reason for any partial or full denial.

9. Children Under 13

The Services are not directed at, and may not be used by, anyone under 13 years of age. We do not knowingly collect personal information from children under 13. If we learn that we have collected personal information from a child under 13, we will delete or anonymize that information promptly.

If you are a parent or legal guardian and you believe your child under 13 has registered an account or otherwise provided personal information to us, please email us at [email protected]. We will work with you to verify your identity and your relationship to the child before taking action.

10. Security

We take reasonable administrative, technical, and physical measures to protect your information, including encryption in transit, hashed password storage, access controls, and monitoring for unauthorized access. No system is perfectly secure, however, and we cannot guarantee absolute security. If you have reason to believe your account or our security has been compromised, contact us through the Contact Leadership forum at https://www.edgegamers.com/forums/contact-leadership/.

11. Third-Party Links and Services

The Services may contain links to third-party websites and services we do not control, including Tebex, Stripe, Discord, Steam, game publishers, and others. We are not responsible for the privacy practices of those third parties. We encourage you to review their privacy policies before providing information.

12. Changes to This Policy

We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time. When we do, we will update the "Last Updated" date at the top of this page. For material changes, we will provide additional notice (such as a forum announcement or, where required by law, direct notice). Your continued use of the Services after the effective date of the updated policy constitutes your acceptance of the changes.

13. Contact Us

For questions or concerns about this Privacy Policy or our handling of your information, you may post in our Contact Leadership forum at https://www.edgegamers.com/forums/contact-leadership/ or email us at [email protected].

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