This privacy policy describes how FairFareFinder GmbH collects and uses personal data in connection with the Internet forum at https://discourse.fairfarefinder.com (the “forum”).
This privacy policy applies specifically to the forum. Other FairFareFinder GmbH websites, products, and services may be subject to separate privacy policies.
Who is responsible for my personal data?
The controller responsible for processing personal data through the forum is:
FairFareFinder GmbH
Kolonnenstr. 8
10827 Berlin
Germany
E-mail: discourse@fairfarefinder.com
What information do we collect?
We collect information from you when you register on the forum and gather data when you participate in the forum by reading, writing, messaging, reacting to, flagging, bookmarking, or otherwise interacting with content.
When registering on the forum, you may be asked to provide information such as a user name, name, and e-mail address. Your e-mail address may be verified by an e-mail containing a unique link. If that link is visited, we know that you control the e-mail address.
You may provide additional information in your account or profile, such as a profile picture, biography, location, or other information. Providing this additional information is optional unless the forum specifically indicates otherwise.
When you use the forum, we may collect:
- account and profile information;
- posts, replies, uploads, and other content you submit;
- private messages sent through the forum;
- reactions, likes, bookmarks, flags, and other forum activity;
- information about topics and pages you visit;
- your IP address;
- browser, device, and operating-system information;
- dates and times of access;
- referring pages and requested URLs; and
- technical and security information recorded in server logs.
When you post or otherwise use the forum, we may record the IP address associated with that activity. We may also retain server logs containing IP addresses and other technical information relating to requests made to the forum.
Private messages are intended for their senders and recipients, but authorized forum administrators may be able to access them where necessary for administration, security, enforcement of forum rules, legal compliance, or technical support.
What do we use your information for?
We may use information collected through the forum for the following purposes:
- To provide and operate the forum.
- To create, maintain, authenticate, and secure user accounts.
- To display your profile, posts, replies, and other forum activity as appropriate for the forum’s settings.
- To personalize your forum experience and remember your preferences.
- To send account-related messages and notifications, including notifications that you request about topics, replies, mentions, private messages, or other forum activity.
- To respond to inquiries, support requests, privacy requests, and other communications.
- To administer, moderate, and enforce the forum’s Terms of Service and content standards.
- To identify and prevent spam, abuse, fraud, security threats, and other misuse.
- To diagnose technical problems and maintain the security, availability, and performance of the forum.
- To understand how the forum is used and improve its operation and functionality.
- To establish, exercise, or defend legal claims.
- To comply with legal obligations and lawful requests from authorities.
What are the legal bases for processing your information?
Where the General Data Protection Regulation (“GDPR”) applies, we process personal data only where we have a legal basis to do so.
We may process personal data because processing is necessary to provide the forum and perform our agreement with you under Article 6(1)(b) GDPR. This includes processing necessary to create and operate your account, publish and deliver forum content, provide requested forum functionality, and send service-related communications.
We may process personal data where necessary for our legitimate interests under Article 6(1)(f) GDPR. These interests include operating and improving the forum, maintaining security, preventing spam and abuse, enforcing our rules, protecting users and the company, diagnosing technical problems, and establishing, exercising, or defending legal claims. Where we rely on legitimate interests, we consider those interests against your rights and interests.
We may process personal data where necessary to comply with a legal obligation under Article 6(1)(c) GDPR.
Where processing is based on your consent, the legal basis is Article 6(1)(a) GDPR. You may withdraw your consent at any time with effect for the future. Withdrawal does not affect the lawfulness of processing carried out before consent was withdrawn.
Where is the forum hosted?
The forum is self-hosted by FairFareFinder GmbH using infrastructure provided by DigitalOcean.
The forum’s primary server is located in DigitalOcean’s Frankfurt, Germany region.
DigitalOcean processes technical and hosting-related personal data on behalf of FairFareFinder GmbH as an infrastructure service provider. DigitalOcean’s processing on behalf of customers is governed by its Data Processing Agreement.
FairFareFinder GmbH administers the Discourse installation and determines the purposes and means of processing personal data through the forum.
Does the forum use automated processing?
The Discourse software used by the forum may automatically process information about posts and forum activity to assist with functions such as spam detection, abuse prevention, trust levels, badges, community flags, rate limits, and moderation.
For example, the forum may automatically flag suspected spam, adjust account capabilities based on trust levels, or temporarily hide content following community flags.
These automated features may affect how you can participate in the forum. Where appropriate, authorized forum administrators can review or override moderation and account actions.
We do not use automated decision-making that produces legal effects concerning you or similarly significantly affects you within the meaning of Article 22 GDPR unless we specifically inform you otherwise.
How do we protect your information?
We implement appropriate technical and organizational measures designed to protect personal data against accidental or unlawful destruction, loss, alteration, unauthorized disclosure, unauthorized access, and other unlawful processing.
The forum’s primary server is located in Frankfurt, Germany. Backups are additionally transferred securely via SCP to hardware operated by FairFareFinder GmbH for redundancy.
No Internet service can guarantee absolute security. You are responsible for choosing a secure password, keeping your account credentials confidential, and notifying us if you believe your account has been compromised.
What is your data retention policy?
We retain personal data only for as long as reasonably necessary for the purposes for which it was collected, unless applicable law requires or permits a longer retention period.
Account information is generally retained while your account remains active. If your account is closed, information associated with the account may be deleted or anonymized, subject to technical requirements, legitimate retention needs, and applicable law.
Posts and other contributions may remain on the forum after an account is closed or anonymized where this is necessary to preserve the continuity and integrity of forum discussions, subject to your rights under applicable data-protection law.
Web-server and application logs are generally retained for approximately seven days, unless longer retention is necessary to investigate a security incident, abuse, technical problem, legal claim, or other matter requiring further investigation or retention.
Forum backups are created daily and retained for up to approximately 14 days.
Backups are stored on the forum server hosted by DigitalOcean in Frankfurt, Germany. A backup copy is also transferred securely each day via SCP to hardware operated by FairFareFinder GmbH for redundancy.
Both the server-side backups and the backup copies stored on FairFareFinder GmbH hardware are subject to a 14-day backup rotation. Older backups are automatically deleted as part of that rotation.
Information that has been deleted from the active forum may therefore remain in backups for up to approximately 14 days before being removed through the normal backup rotation. Backups may be retained for longer only where necessary to comply with a legal obligation, investigate a security incident, or establish, exercise, or defend legal claims.
Do we use cookies?
Yes.
Cookies and similar technologies are small pieces of information stored on or accessed from your device. The forum uses cookies and similar technologies where necessary to provide requested functionality, maintain login sessions, authenticate users, protect accounts, remember preferences, and maintain the security of the forum.
Discourse may use cookies for purposes including:
- remembering information during account creation;
- returning you to a requested page after login;
- authentication and single sign-on flows;
- maintaining your logged-in session;
- maintaining security-related session information;
- remembering forum themes, colour schemes, text size, and other preferences;
- preventing abuse and denial-of-service attacks; and
- checking whether cookies are enabled.
Under § 25(2) TDDDG, consent is not required for storing or accessing information on your device where this is strictly necessary to provide a digital service expressly requested by you or solely necessary for transmission of a communication.
If the forum uses cookies or similar technologies that are not strictly necessary and for which consent is legally required, those technologies will be used only after the required consent has been obtained. You may withdraw that consent through the available cookie settings with effect for the future.
Your browser may also allow you to delete or block cookies. Blocking cookies that are necessary for the forum may prevent login or other forum features from working correctly.
Do we disclose information to outside parties?
We do not sell your personal data.
We use DigitalOcean as the infrastructure provider for the forum. The forum’s primary server is located in Frankfurt, Germany.
We also use the following service provider in connection with the forum:
- Mailgun (Sinch Email) — transactional e-mail delivery, including account notifications, password resets, and digest e-mails. Mailgun is configured to use its EU region (Frankfurt). Personal data associated with email delivery is processed within the European Economic Area and is not transferred outside it.
We may also disclose personal data to other service providers where necessary to operate, maintain, secure, or support the forum. Depending on the service concerned, these may include categories of providers such as:
- network and infrastructure providers;
- security and anti-abuse providers; and
- technical support or maintenance providers.
These providers may process personal data only for the purposes for which they have been engaged and subject to applicable contractual and legal requirements.
The forum uses the standard functionality and plugins supplied with the Discourse installation. We do not use additional third-party Discourse plugins merely for advertising or behavioural tracking.
We may also disclose information:
- when required by applicable law, court order, or another legally binding request;
- where reasonably necessary to investigate unlawful activity, fraud, abuse, or security incidents;
- where necessary to establish, exercise, or defend legal claims;
- where necessary to protect the rights, property, security, or safety of FairFareFinder GmbH, forum users, or others; or
- in connection with a merger, restructuring, acquisition, or transfer of the relevant business, subject to applicable data-protection law.
Information that you intentionally make public through the forum, such as public posts and public profile information, can be viewed by other forum users and, where the forum is publicly accessible, by anyone on the Internet.
Is personal data transferred outside the European Economic Area?
The forum’s primary server and its locally stored backups are located in Frankfurt, Germany.
Additional backup copies are stored on hardware operated by FairFareFinder GmbH.
Mailgun is used to deliver transactional e-mails from the forum. Depending on the Mailgun service configuration and processing involved, personal data associated with e-mail delivery may be processed outside the European Economic Area.
Some other service providers used in connection with the forum may be established outside the European Economic Area or may permit access to personal data from outside the European Economic Area.
Where personal data is transferred to a country outside the European Economic Area and that country does not benefit from an applicable European Commission adequacy decision, we use an appropriate transfer mechanism required by applicable data-protection law, such as the European Commission’s Standard Contractual Clauses, together with supplementary safeguards where required. Where another lawful transfer mechanism, such as an applicable adequacy decision, applies, that mechanism may be relied upon instead.
Information about applicable safeguards may be requested by contacting us.
Third party links
The forum may contain links to websites, products, or services operated by third parties.
Those third parties are responsible for their own websites and processing of personal data and may have separate privacy policies. This privacy policy does not govern personal data processed independently by those third parties.
Children and minors
The forum is intended only for users who meet the minimum age requirements in the forum’s Terms of Service.
If you are under eighteen, you may use the forum only with the consent of a parent or legal guardian to the extent required by applicable law.
Where we rely on consent as the legal basis for processing personal data in relation to an information-society service offered directly to a child, we will obtain authorization from the holder of parental responsibility where required by Article 8 GDPR.
If you believe that a child has provided personal data through the forum in circumstances not permitted by applicable law, please contact us.
What rights do you have over your personal data?
Where the GDPR applies, you may have the right to:
- obtain confirmation as to whether we process personal data concerning you;
- request access to personal data concerning you;
- request correction of inaccurate or incomplete personal data;
- request deletion of personal data;
- request restriction of processing;
- receive personal data you provided to us in a structured, commonly used, and machine-readable format and, where applicable, have that data transmitted to another controller;
- object to processing based on legitimate interests;
- withdraw consent at any time where processing is based on consent; and
- lodge a complaint with a data-protection supervisory authority.
These rights may be subject to conditions, limitations, and exceptions under applicable law.
You can access and change some account and profile information directly through your forum account settings. Depending on the forum’s configuration, you may also be able to download information about your forum activity.
For other requests, contact us at discourse@fairfarefinder.com. We may ask for information reasonably necessary to verify your identity before acting on a request.
Your right to object
Where we process your personal data on the basis of legitimate interests under Article 6(1)(f) GDPR, you have the right to object to that processing on grounds relating to your particular situation.
If personal data is ever processed for direct marketing purposes, you have the right to object to that processing at any time.
How can you make a complaint?
If you have questions or concerns about how we process your personal data, you may contact us at:
You also have the right to lodge a complaint with a competent data-protection supervisory authority.
The supervisory authority responsible for FairFareFinder GmbH in Berlin is:
Berliner Beauftragte für Datenschutz und Informationsfreiheit
Alt-Moabit 59–61
10555 Berlin
Germany
You may also lodge a complaint with another competent supervisory authority, including the supervisory authority in the EU member state of your habitual residence, place of work, or place of the alleged infringement, where applicable.
Scope of this privacy policy
This privacy policy applies only to personal data processed in connection with the forum at https://discourse.fairfarefinder.com.
Other websites, products, and services operated by FairFareFinder GmbH may be governed by separate privacy notices.
Changes to our Privacy Policy
We may update this privacy policy from time to time, including when the forum, our processing practices, or applicable legal requirements change.
We will post the current version on the forum. Where required by applicable law, we will provide additional notice of material changes.
This document is CC-BY-SA. It was last updated 2026-08-25T22:00:00Z.