Who we are
ChatSocket is a hosted chat service. A room owner signs up, configures a room in the control panel and places it on a website. This policy covers the ChatSocket website, the control panel, the hosting console and every room we host. Questions about anything below go to support@cybercafestore.com.
What we collect
Your account
The name and email address you register with, your password in hashed form, and the plan you are on.
Your room
Its name, address, theme, ranks, filters and the other settings you choose in the control panel.
What is said
Messages, nicknames, registrations and any files a room accepts, stored in the room they belong to.
Technical detail
IP address, browser and device, recorded when a session starts so a room can be secured and a problem can be traced.
Payment details are never sent to us. Card numbers are handled by our payment processors, and we are told only whether a payment succeeded, the amount and the plan it bought.
How it is used
- To run the room you signed up for: delivering messages, keeping presence accurate and showing history.
- To let a room owner moderate it. Ranks, filters, ban lists and the moderation log exist so a room can be policed by the people who run it.
- To bill a paid plan, apply a trial, and keep a record of what was invoiced.
- To keep the service safe: a session is tied to a connection so abuse can be traced back and stopped.
- To answer support requests. When you write to us, we read what you sent and any room detail needed to answer it.
Cookies
Three things are kept in your browser. A session cookie remembers that you are signed in. A preference stores whether you chose the dark theme, so the site stops asking. A third flag remembers that you have seen the welcome message. There is no advertising cookie and nothing is sold to anybody.
Who can see your messages
The people running the room. A room owner and the ranks they trust can read, delete and restrict what happens inside that room, and their actions are written to a moderation log. Messages do not travel outside the room they were sent in. We do not read conversations as a matter of routine, but we may look when a report is made or the law requires it.
Connection screening
A room owner may switch on connection screening, which checks where a connection comes from before it joins and can kick or ban the ones their room should not have. It is off unless the owner turns it on, it applies inside their room only, and the address a connection comes from is not published anywhere.
How long we keep it
For as long as the room is active. When a room is deleted, its messages and settings go with it. Account records are kept while the account exists, and for a short period afterwards where a payment has to be reconciled or a dispute settled. Records tied to a ban stay while the ban does.
Who we share it with
The processors that make the service work: the company taking payment, the service sending email, and the infrastructure hosting the application. Each of them gets only what their part needs. Beyond that, we share a record when a lawful request requires it, and never sell personal data.
Your rights
- Ask for a copy of the data we hold about you.
- Correct anything inaccurate in your account, which you can do yourself in the control panel.
- Have your account and its rooms deleted.
- Withdraw a consent you previously gave.
Write to support@cybercafestore.com and we will act on it. A room owner can export or remove their own room from the control panel without asking us.
Security
The whole service runs over HTTPS. Passwords are stored hashed. The control panel and the hosting console sit behind their own sign in, and access to the underlying systems is limited to the people who maintain them. A system with a connected chat is never going to be risk free, so report anything that looks wrong and we will treat it as urgent.
Children
ChatSocket is not aimed at children, and accounts are for people aged 13 and over. If you believe a room is being used by someone under that age, tell us and we will remove it.
Changes to this policy
When something material changes, this page is rewritten and the date at the top moves. Keep an eye on it if you run a room that people depend on.
Anything unclear?
Ask us and you will get a plain answer from a person.