Privacy Policy

The data controller responsible for your personal data within the meaning of the GDPR and applicable data protection law is:

IQVerse Research LLC
75 E 3rd St, Ste 7, Sheridan, WY 82801, United States
German business address: Hermann-Ritter-Str. 112, 28197 Bremen, Germany
Email: privacy@iqverse.org

IQVerse Research LLC operates the platform and is responsible for all data processing activities.

Data Protection Contact: privacy@iqverse.org

This Privacy Policy applies to all personal data processed through the IQVerse platform ("Platform"), including the website, user accounts, community forum, experience reports, articles, and any related services. It applies to all users, whether registered or unregistered.

We collect different categories of personal data depending on how you interact with the Platform:

3.1 Registration Data

• Required: First name, last name (real name policy), email address, password (securely encrypted — never stored in plaintext)
• Optional: User role selection (e.g. Expert applicant)
• Your email address is verified via a confirmation link before full account activation
• We block registration from known disposable or temporary email providers

3.2 Expert Verification Data

• If you apply for Expert status, you submit a free-text description of your qualifications, professional background, academic credentials, publications, or relevant experience (20–1,500 characters)
• This information is reviewed by our administrative team and stored in your account record

3.3 Profile Data

• Avatar image (uploaded to our servers)
• Biography, social-media links, research interests, display-name preferences

3.4 User-Generated Content

• Forum posts, thread replies, comments, and uploaded images
• Experience reports (including structured data such as age at time of experience, geographic context, experience type)
• Article contributions (for expert/staff authors)

3.5 Technical & Usage Data

• IP address — collected at login, registration, and during browsing; encrypted at rest
• Browser user-agent and HTTP referrer
• Page views — article and page view counts logged for analytics
• Search queries — search terms entered on the Platform are logged for quality improvement
• Timestamps — account creation, login, content creation, last activity

3.6 Communication Data

• Contact-form submissions and email correspondence
• Moderation-related communications (e.g. content appeals)

We process your personal data on the following legal bases under Art. 6(1) GDPR (for EU/EEA users) or equivalent principles under applicable US privacy law:

We use your personal data for the following purposes:

• Account management: Creating, maintaining, and securing your account
• Platform operation: Displaying your content, enabling forum participation, and publishing experience reports
• Communication: Sending email verification links, password resets, and essential service notifications
• Content moderation: Reviewing user-generated content for compliance with Community Guidelines and Terms of Use, including via automated (AI) systems
• Security: Detecting and preventing unauthorized access, abuse, rate-limit enforcement, and disposable-email blocking
• Analytics: Aggregated view counts, search trends, and usage patterns for platform improvement (no individual profiling)
• Research: Anonymized, aggregated analysis of experience reports for scientific purposes
• Legal compliance: Responding to lawful requests from public authorities

IQVerse uses artificial-intelligence systems, including third-party large-language-model APIs, to assist with:

• Content moderation and compliance screening of user-generated content
• Quality assurance of forum posts, comments, and experience reports

When content is submitted for AI review, the text of the content is transmitted to the third-party API provider. No personally identifiable information (such as your name, email, or IP address) is included in these transmissions — only the content text itself.

AI moderation is supplementary; final decisions are made by human administrators. No automated decision-making with legal or similarly significant effects (Art. 22 GDPR) is performed without human oversight.

We implement robust technical and organizational measures to protect your personal data:

• Encryption at rest: All personally identifiable information (PII) — including names, email addresses, and IP addresses — is protected using military-grade encryption before storage in the database
• Password security: Passwords are irreversibly encrypted using industry-standard one-way hashing and are never stored in plaintext
• Transport encryption: All data transmitted between your browser and our servers is secured via encrypted connections (HTTPS)
• Access controls: Administrative access to personal data is restricted to authorized personnel only
• Rate limiting: Login attempts, registration, and content posting are rate-limited to prevent automated abuse

IQVerse uses only strictly necessary cookies. We do not use any advertising, analytics, or third-party tracking cookies.

Because these cookies are strictly necessary for the Platform's operation, no separate consent banner is required under EU ePrivacy rules (Art. 5(3) ePrivacy Directive).

We share personal data with third parties only to the minimum extent necessary:

International transfers: Where personal data is transferred outside the EU/EEA, we ensure appropriate safeguards are in place, such as Standard Contractual Clauses (SCCs) pursuant to Art. 46(2)(c) GDPR, or the transfer is based on an adequacy decision (Art. 45 GDPR).

We do not sell, rent, or trade your personal data to any third party.

We retain personal data only as long as necessary for the purposes described in this policy:

Depending on your location, you have the following rights regarding your personal data:

Rights under GDPR (EU/EEA users)

• Right of access (Art. 15) — Obtain a copy of your personal data
• Right to rectification (Art. 16) — Correct inaccurate or incomplete data
• Right to erasure (Art. 17) — Request deletion of your personal data ("right to be forgotten")
• Right to restrict processing (Art. 18) — Limit how we process your data
• Right to data portability (Art. 20) — Receive your data in a structured, machine-readable format (JSON export)
• Right to object (Art. 21) — Object to processing based on legitimate interest
• Right to withdraw consent (Art. 7(3)) — Withdraw consent at any time where processing is based on consent
• Right to lodge a complaint — You may file a complaint with your local data-protection supervisory authority (in Germany: the competent Landesdatenschutzbeauftragte, or the BfDI)

Rights under US privacy law (including CCPA for California residents)

• Right to know — What personal data we collect, use, and disclose
• Right to delete — Request deletion of your personal data
• Right to non-discrimination — We will not treat you differently for exercising your rights

How to exercise your rights: Use the data-rights tools available in your account profile (data export, account deletion), or contact us at privacy@iqverse.org. We will respond within 30 days (or within the period required by applicable law).

You may request the deletion of your account at any time through your profile settings. The process works as follows:

1. Soft delete: Your account is immediately deactivated and your data is removed from public view
2. Administrative review: An administrator reviews the deletion request to ensure legal and compliance requirements are met
3. Permanent purge: After review, all personal data is permanently deleted from our systems

Content you posted in the forum may be anonymized (e.g. replaced with "deleted user") rather than fully removed, to preserve the integrity of existing discussion threads.

IQVerse is not directed at children under 16 years of age. We do not knowingly collect personal data from anyone under 16. If you are under 16, you may not create an account or use the Platform.

If we become aware that we have inadvertently collected personal data from a child under 16, we will take steps to delete such data promptly. If you believe a child under 16 has provided us with personal data, please contact us at privacy@iqverse.org.

For security monitoring and aggregate geographic analytics, IP addresses may be submitted to a third-party geolocation service to determine approximate location (country, region, city). This data is used solely for:

• Detecting suspicious login patterns and potential unauthorized access
• Generating aggregate geographic statistics (no individual tracking)

No personal data beyond the IP address itself is transmitted to the geolocation provider. IP addresses are encrypted at rest in our database.

If you make a donation to IQVerse via bank transfer, we may receive your name, bank details, and the donation amount from our banking provider. This data is processed solely for accounting, tax compliance, and transparency purposes.

Donation amounts may be disclosed in aggregate in transparency reports. Individual donor identities are never published without explicit consent.

We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time to reflect changes in our practices, technology, or legal requirements. The "Last updated" date at the top of this page indicates the most recent revision.

For material changes, we will use reasonable efforts to notify registered users (e.g. via an on-platform notice or email). Your continued use of the Platform after any update constitutes acceptance of the revised Privacy Policy.

If you are located in the EU/EEA and believe that our processing of your personal data violates the GDPR, you have the right to lodge a complaint with a supervisory authority, in particular in the Member State of your habitual residence, place of work, or place of the alleged infringement.

The lead supervisory authority for IQVerse Research LLC is:
Berliner Beauftragte für Datenschutz und Informationsfreiheit
Friedrichstr. 219, 10969 Berlin, Germany
Website: www.datenschutz-berlin.de