Privacy Policy

Who we are
The Malinois Collective (“we”, “our”, “us”) is a community-driven platform for Belgian Malinois, Dutch Shepherds, and working-dog owners. We operate as a not-for-profit organisation in the UK, in the process of becoming a Company Limited by Guarantee (CLG).

What data we collect

Account information: When you register, we store your username, email address, and encrypted password.
Two-Factor Authentication (2FA): If enabled, we store encrypted authentication data.
Profile data: If you choose to add profile details (e.g. bio, photo), these are stored on our servers.
Comments and posts: Content you submit to the site is stored and publicly displayed according to your account settings.
Cookies: Technical cookies for login sessions, preferences, and security. See our Cookie Policy for details.
Analytics: We may collect anonymised visitor statistics to improve site performance.

How we use your data

To provide member access to restricted content.
To secure accounts with login and 2FA.
To allow you to comment, post, and interact with the community.
To maintain site performance and security.
To comply with UK law and GDPR obligations.

How we share data
We do not sell or trade your personal data. Data is only shared when:

Required by law or regulation.
Necessary for technical services (e.g. hosting provider, security plugin).

How long we keep data

Account data is stored as long as your account remains active.
You can request deletion of your account at any time.
Legal and security logs may be retained where required by law.

Your rights under GDPR
You have the right to:

Access your personal data.
Correct inaccuracies in your data.
Request deletion of your data.
Restrict or object to certain processing.
Data portability (request a copy of your data in electronic format).

To exercise these rights, contact us at: [insert your chosen contact email].

Data security
We take appropriate measures to protect your data, including SSL encryption, secure password hashing, and 2FA support.

Changes to this policy
We may update this Privacy Policy as laws or site features change. The date of the last update will always be shown here.

Last updated: September 20, 2025