Privacy Policy
Welcome to Glasgow Furs – Scotland’s friendly, community‑run hub for furry meets and events in Glasgow. This Privacy Policy outlines how we, as a volunteer-run organization, collect, use, and protect your personal data in accordance with the UK General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) and the Data Protection Act 2018. It is crucial to read this policy to understand how your personal information is handled and your rights regarding that data.
We are committed to transparency and safeguarding your privacy. This policy explains what data we collect, why we collect it, how it’s used, and your rights regarding your personal information. By using our website and services, you agree to the terms of this policy.
Last updated: 04/11/2025
Who We Are (Data Controller)
The data controller responsible for your information is the Glasgow Furs Admins. If you have any questions about this policy or your data, please contact us via our contact page.
Information We Collect and How We Use It
We adhere to the principle of data minimisation, ensuring that we only collect personal data that is adequate, relevant, and limited to what is necessary for the specified purposes. Below is an outline of the information we collect and how we use it:
1. Website Usage Data (Website Logs)
When you visit our website, our server automatically collects certain technical information for security, troubleshooting, and ensuring optimal site functionality. Our site's servers are hosted in the UK and are PCI compliant, ensuring a secure environment for your data.
| Data Collected | Purpose of Processing |
|---|---|
| Referrer | To understand how users arrive at our site (e.g., from search engines or other websites). |
| Your IP address | For security purposes (e.g., identifying potential malicious activity) and to determine general geographic location. |
| User Agent | To understand your browser and device information for compatibility, troubleshooting, and improving user experience. |
| Your Internet Service Provider (ISP) name and country location | For aggregated statistical analysis of website traffic and security. |
| Session duration on our website | To understand user engagement and optimize site performance. |
This information is used to maintain the security and stability of our website, diagnose technical issues, and improve your browsing experience. It is not used to identify individual users without additional information.
2. Cookies and Similar Technologies
We use cookies solely for necessary purposes to ensure the site runs smoothly. We do not use tracking or advertising cookies. For comprehensive details on the cookies we use, their purposes, and how to manage them, please refer to our dedicated Cookie Policy page.
3. Contact Form Submissions
If you choose to contact us via our website’s contact form, we collect and process information to respond to your enquiry:
| Data Collected | Purpose of Processing |
|---|---|
| Your Name | To address you personally in our response. |
| Your Email Address | To send you a direct response to your enquiry. |
| Your Telegram handle (optional) | To contact you via Telegram if you provide it and consent to this method. |
| The content of your message | To understand and address your specific enquiry. |
This information is used exclusively to address your query and improve our services. We retain this data as outlined in our Data Retention section.
4. Event Booking Details
For individuals who book to attend our events, we collect and process the following details to facilitate your participation and manage the event:
| Data Collected | Purpose of Processing |
|---|---|
| Your Name | To identify you as an event attendee and for communication. |
| Your Email Address | To send you booking confirmations, event updates, and essential information. Accessible only to verified management team members. |
| Your Telegram handle (optional) | To contact you via Telegram for event-related communications if you provide it and consent to this method. |
| Special Assistance Requirements/Safety-Relevant Information (optional) | Collected with your explicit consent to ensure your safety and provide necessary assistance during events. This sensitive data is processed confidentially and deleted promptly after the event. |
These details are stored securely on our website and are accessible only to the Glasgow Furs Management Team for the purpose of event administration and communication. We retain this data as outlined in our Data Retention section.
5. Payments for Paid Events
For paid events, all payments are processed securely by our trusted payment provider, SquareUp. While we do not directly store your full payment card details on our website, certain payment information is accessible to verified members of our staff via our Square account for administrative purposes related to event management, such as reviewing transaction statuses, issuing refunds, and managing bookings. This accessible information primarily includes your email address, the name on the card, the card brand, the last 4 digits of the card number, and its expiration date. We do not have access to the full card number or CVV.
Access to this information via our Square account is strictly limited to verified management team members who have a legitimate requirement to access it. Our website also implements security measures suchas cross-site scripting (XSS) protection, daily malware scans, and HTTPS enforcement to protect your data during transmission.
| Data Collected by SquareUp | Purpose of Processing by SquareUp |
|---|---|
| Your Email Address | For payment confirmation, receipts, and SquareUp's account management. |
| Name on the card | To verify the cardholder and prevent fraud. |
| Last 4 digits of the card number | For transaction identification and customer support; we do not have access to full card details. |
| Card Brand, Expiration Month/Year | To identify the payment method and manage any saved card details for future convenience (if you choose to save them). |
Our engagement with SquareUp is governed by their Data Processing Terms, which ensures your data is handled in compliance with GDPR standards. You can review SquareUp's full privacy policy at their Privacy Policy for more information on how they handle your data, including potential international data transfers based on Standard Contractual Clauses.
No Automated Decision-Making
Glasgow Furs does not use any automated decision-making processes, including profiling, that would produce legal effects concerning you or similarly significantly affect you. All decisions related to your data and our services involve human intervention.
Legal Basis for Processing
We only process your data where we have a legal reason to do so:
- Legitimate interest – website logs, cookies (site security and functionality).
- Consent – optional Telegram handle.
- Contract – event bookings and payments (so we can provide the service you signed up for).
Data Retention
We retain your personal data only for as long as necessary to fulfill the purposes for which it was collected, including for the purposes of satisfying any legal, accounting, or reporting requirements. To determine the appropriate retention period for personal data, we consider the amount, nature, and sensitivity of the personal data, the potential risk of harm from unauthorised use or disclosure of your personal data, the purposes for which we process your personal data and whether we can achieve those purposes through other means, and the applicable legal requirements.
While we strive for data minimisation and adhere to retention limits for data we directly control, our hosting provider, BlackFox IT, and its upstream providers retain certain website log data for longer periods (potentially indefinitely) as part of their service. This retention is beyond our direct control.
| Data Type | Retention Period |
|---|---|
| Website logs | Retained by our hosting provider for longer periods (potentially indefinitely). We are currently investigating options for stricter control over this data. |
| Contact form submissions | Kept for up to 6 months, then securely deleted. |
| Event booking details | In most cases we retain this information for no more than 1 month after the event date, however we shall not retain this information for any longer than1 year under exceptional circumstances. |
| Payment details (handled by SquareUp) | Securely handled and stored by SquareUp in line with their own policies; we do not store full payment details. |
Who Has Access
Access to your personal data is strictly controlled and limited to personnel who require it to perform their duties. Different roles within Glasgow Furs have access to specific categories of data, as outlined below, and all staff handling personal data are subject to confidentiality obligations and relevant training.
| Role/Group | Data Accessible | Reason/Safeguards |
|---|---|---|
| Event Volunteers (e.g., Door Staff) | Booking IDs, Attendee Names, Special Assistance Requirements/Safety-Relevant Information | To verify entry to paid events and manage attendance. To ensure necessary arrangements for safety and enjoyment. Limited to essential identification and assistance data. |
| Verified Staff (Ticketing/Contact System) | Emails, Sender Names (from contact form), Event Booking Details (Name, Email, Telegram handle) | To respond to enquiries and manage event bookings. All staff in this role undergo GDPR training for handling personal data. |
| Glasgow Furs Management Team | Full access to the Square account (limited payment details as outlined in Section 5), Emails used for paid event sign-ups, All other personal data collected (as outlined in Sections 1-4) | For overall event administration, financial oversight, strategic planning, and comprehensive data management. Access is controlled by strong authentication and internal protocols. |
We do not sell or share your data with third parties, except where necessary for processing payments via SquareUp, as detailed in Section 5, and always under strict data protection terms.
Children’s Data
Glasgow Furs events are 18+ only. We do not knowingly collect or store information from anyone under 18 years of age.
Your Rights
Under the UK GDPR, you have the right to:
- Access the data we hold about you
- Ask us to correct inaccurate data
- Request deletion of your data
- Object to certain processing
- Ask us to restrict processing
- Request a copy of your data in a portable format
To exercise any of these rights, please use our contact page. We will respond within one month.
Changes to this Policy
We may update this policy from time to time. The latest version will always be available on our website.
Contact Us
For any questions about this policy or your data: Use our contact page.
If you are unhappy with how we handle your data, you also have the right to complain to the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) at their website.