Privacy Policy

Last updated: 3 October 2026

This policy explains what NetizenSurvey (“we”, “us”) collects when you use netizensurvey.com, why, how long we keep it, and the choices you have. We try to collect as little as possible: you can vote without an account, and we never sell your data.

1. Who we are

NetizenSurvey runs this website. For anything about your data, email [email protected].

2. What we collect and why

When you vote (no account needed)

• Your choice on the poll and the time you voted — to count the result.
• A random voter ID stored in a cookie on your device (ns_vid). We save only a one-way hash of it with your vote, so we can stop the same browser voting twice and show you your own vote.
• A salted, one-way hash of your IP address — not the address itself — to stop ballot-stuffing (for example, limiting how many votes one network can cast on a poll).
• Your country, looked up from your IP address at the moment you vote with a database that runs on our own server (MaxMind GeoLite2; nothing is sent to MaxMind). We use it to apply region-limited polls and store it with the vote.

When you create an account

• Email address — to sign you in and, if you ask, send a password-reset link.
• Password — stored only as a salted bcrypt hash combined with a server-side secret. We cannot see or recover your password.
• Display name — taken from the part of your email before the “@”, or from your Google profile name.
• If you use “Continue with Google”: your Google account ID, email address and name, as shared by Google when you approve the sign-in. We do not get your Google password or contacts.
• Sign-in sessions: a random session token (we store only its hash), when it was created and last used, a hash of your IP address and your browser’s user-agent string — so you can see a session is yours and so we can end sessions (for example, after a password reset).

When you vote while signed in, the vote is also linked to your account so it shows in “Your votes” on any device. Votes you cast in this browser before signing in are linked to your account when you sign in.

What you post

• Polls you create (question, description, category, options, region, close date) — shown publicly, with your account ID kept privately as the creator.
• Answers you suggest on open polls, upvotes and reports — stored with the voter-ID hash, the IP hash and your account ID if you are signed in, to prevent abuse and to mark “Your suggestion”.
• Your watchlist — which polls you chose to watch.

Automatically

• Poll views: to count each visitor at most once a day, we keep a hash of your voter ID with the poll and the date for up to two days, then delete it.
• Server logs: like most websites, our web server records requests (IP address, browser user-agent, page and time) for security and to see overall traffic. These logs stay on servers we run and are not shared.

3. Public results stay anonymous

Results are shown only as totals and percentages. Other people cannot see how you voted, and your name or email is never shown next to a vote.

4. Cookies and browser storage

We use only cookies the site needs to work. We use no advertising or third-party tracking cookies.

• ns_vid — your anonymous voter ID (up to 2 years). Replaced with a new one when you log out.
• ns_session — keeps you signed in (up to 30 days; ends after 7 days without use or when you log out).
• ns_csrf — security token that protects forms from cross-site attacks (7 days).
• ns_oauth_state, ns_oauth_next — only during a Google sign-in (10 minutes).

Your browser also stores your light/dark theme and language choice (ns_theme, ns_lang) and, for a few minutes, an action you started before signing in (such as “Watch”). These never leave your device.

5. Services that help run the site

• Cloudflare delivers and protects the site, so your requests pass through its network.
• Google handles “Continue with Google” sign-in, if you choose it.
• Resend delivers password-reset emails (it receives your email address and the message).
• Google Fonts and jsDelivr serve the site’s fonts and flag images to your browser.

We do not sell, rent or trade your personal data, and we do not use it for advertising.

6. How long we keep data

• Account data: until you ask us to delete your account.
• Votes, polls and suggestions: for as long as the poll is on the site, because they make up the public results. If your account is deleted, they stay only in anonymous form.
• Sign-in sessions: until they expire (at most 30 days) or you log out.
• Password-reset links: valid for 1 hour and single-use.
• Daily view records: about one day.

7. Your choices and rights

You can vote and read results without an account. You can clear the ns_vid cookie at any time (you will then be treated as a new visitor). To see, correct, export or delete the data linked to your account, email [email protected] from your account’s address and we will respond within 30 days. Depending on where you live, you may also have the right to object to or restrict some uses, and to complain to your local data-protection authority.

8. Security

The site is served only over HTTPS. Passwords, session tokens, reset tokens and IP addresses are stored as one-way hashes, and access to our servers is restricted. No system is perfectly secure, but we work to protect your data and will tell affected users about a breach as the law requires.

9. Children

NetizenSurvey is not meant for children under 13, and we do not knowingly collect their data. If you believe a child has created an account, contact us and we will delete it.

10. Changes to this policy

If we change how we handle data, we will update this page and the date at the top. For significant changes, we will make it clear on the site.