Privacy Policy — Rupa Garden

Rupa Garden ("we", "us", "our") operates rupa.garden. This Privacy Policy explains what information we collect when you visit our site, how we use it, and your rights regarding that information. We are committed to handling your data responsibly and transparently.

1. Information We Collect

Account Information

When you create an account you provide your name and email address. We use these solely to manage your account, authenticate you, and send transactional messages (email verification, password reset). We do not sell or share this information with third parties for marketing.

Comments and Submissions

If you post a comment, your display name and the comment text are stored and shown publicly on the article. If you submit a story or article to publish@rupa.garden, the email and any personal details included in your submission are used only for editorial correspondence.

Reactions

Article reactions (like, love, wow, sad) are stored against your session using your browser's local storage. Reaction counts are aggregated and public; individual reactions are not attributed to your identity.

Usage and Analytics Data

We use Google Analytics 4 to understand how readers find and use the site. Google Analytics collects anonymised data including pages visited, time on site, approximate location (country/region), browser type, and device type. This data is processed by Google under their own privacy policy. You can opt out using the Google Analytics Opt-out Browser Add-on.

Server and Infrastructure Logs

Our site is hosted on Cloudflare. Cloudflare may log IP addresses, request headers, and timestamps as part of normal CDN and security operations. These logs are retained according to Cloudflare's data retention policies and are used for security, abuse prevention, and performance monitoring.

Cookies

We use a small number of essential cookies to keep you signed in across sessions (managed by Supabase Auth). Google Analytics uses its own cookies to distinguish users and sessions. We do not use advertising cookies or track you across other websites.

2. How We Use Your Information

To create and manage your account
To verify your email address and enable secure sign-in
To display your comments on articles
To send transactional emails you have requested (verification, password reset)
To understand reader behaviour and improve editorial content through aggregate analytics
To protect the site against spam, abuse, and security threats

We do not use your data for targeted advertising, profiling, or automated decision-making that affects you.

3. Data Storage and Processors

Your account data, comments, and article content are stored in a Supabase database (PostgreSQL). Supabase is a data processor acting on our behalf and is bound by appropriate data processing agreements. Data may be stored in data centres outside Sri Lanka, including in the European Union or United States, in accordance with applicable data protection standards.

4. Data Retention

Account data is retained for as long as your account is active. If you request account deletion, we will remove your personal information within 30 days, except where retention is required by law or to resolve disputes. Comments you have posted may remain if they are part of a published discussion, but can be disassociated from your name on request.

5. Your Rights

You have the right to:

Access — request a copy of the personal data we hold about you
Correction — ask us to correct inaccurate information
Deletion — request erasure of your personal data
Objection — object to processing of your data in certain circumstances
Portability — receive your data in a structured, machine-readable format

To exercise any of these rights, email us at info@rupa.garden. We will respond within 30 days.

6. Children's Privacy

Rupa Garden is not directed at children under 13. We do not knowingly collect personal information from anyone under 13. If you believe a child has provided us with personal data, please contact us and we will delete it promptly.

7. External Links

Our articles may contain links to third-party websites. We are not responsible for the privacy practices or content of those sites. We encourage you to review the privacy policy of any site you visit.

8. Changes to This Policy

We may update this policy from time to time. When we do, the "Last updated" date at the top of this page will change. Continued use of the site after any changes constitutes acceptance of the revised policy. For material changes we will post a notice on the homepage.

9. Contact

For any questions or concerns about this Privacy Policy or your personal data, please contact us at info@rupa.garden.