This Privacy Policy applies to the website filmindustrywatch.org (hereinafter “the website,” “we,” “us,” or “our”) and explains how we collect, use, store, and protect your personal data. This policy applies to all visitors, users, and contributors from the European Economic Area (EEA), Switzerland, and beyond.
We are committed to protecting your privacy and handling your data in an open and transparent manner, in compliance with the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) and other applicable data protection laws.
1. Who We Are
FilmIndustryWatch 1106 Forum Ln, 2nd Floor, Camana Bay Grand Cayman, KY1-9006, Cayman Islands
Email: contact@filmindustrywatch.org Website: https://filmindustrywatch.org
For any privacy-related questions or requests, please contact us at the email address above.
2. What Data We Collect and Why
2.1 Data You Provide Directly
Newsletter Subscription When you subscribe to our newsletter, we collect your email address. This data is processed via Mailchimp (The Rocket Science Group LLC). We use it solely to send you updates about our publications and activities related to misconduct and transparency in the film industry.
- Legal basis: Consent (Article 6(1)(a) GDPR)
- Retention: Until you unsubscribe or request deletion
Contact and Tip Submissions When you contact us via our contact form (powered by Contact Form 7), we collect the information you voluntarily provide, which may include your name, email address, and message content. If you submit a tip or report, you may do so anonymously — we actively encourage the use of anonymous email services (such as Proton Mail) for sensitive submissions.
- Legal basis: Consent / Legitimate Interest (Article 6(1)(a) and (f) GDPR)
- Retention: As long as necessary to follow up on your submission, then deleted
Whistleblower Reports We take the confidentiality of whistleblowers extremely seriously. Information submitted as part of a report is handled with the highest level of discretion. We do not publish identifying information about sources without explicit consent. We recommend submitting sensitive reports through anonymous channels.
2.2 Data Collected Automatically
Usage Data and Log Files When you visit our website, our server may automatically collect standard technical data including your IP address, browser type, operating system, referring URLs, and pages visited. This data is used solely for security and operational purposes.
- Legal basis: Legitimate Interest (Article 6(1)(f) GDPR)
Cookies and Tracking Technologies We use cookies and similar technologies on our website. For detailed information about which cookies we use and for what purposes, please refer to our Cookie Policy.
In summary, we use:
- Functional cookies — to ensure the website operates correctly
- Statistics cookies — to understand how visitors use our website (requires your consent)
- Marketing cookies — placed by third-party services such as YouTube and Google Fonts (requires your consent)
You can manage or withdraw your cookie consent at any time via the cookie preference tool on our website.
3. Third-Party Services We Use
We work with the following third-party services that may process your personal data. We encourage you to review their privacy policies.
| Service | Purpose | Privacy Policy |
|---|---|---|
| Google Analytics (via MonsterInsights) | Website traffic analysis | google.com/privacy |
| Google Fonts | Display of web fonts (IP address sent to Google) | google.com/privacy |
| YouTube | Embedding video content | google.com/privacy |
| Mailchimp | Newsletter delivery | mailchimp.com/privacy |
| Complianz | Cookie consent management | complianz.io/privacy |
| Popup Maker | On-site subscription popups | No third-party data sharing |
| Elementor | Website page building | No third-party data sharing |
Important: Google Analytics is only loaded after you provide consent for statistics cookies. Google Fonts and YouTube are only activated after you consent to marketing cookies.
4. Social Media Sharing
Our website includes social sharing buttons for Facebook, X (Twitter), WhatsApp, and LinkedIn, powered by the Sassy Social Share plugin. These buttons only connect to social networks when you actively click them. Until that point, no data is transmitted to those platforms.
When you click a sharing button, the respective social network’s privacy policy governs the data collected. We are not responsible for the data practices of those third parties.
5. Google Analytics and Data Anonymization
We use Google Analytics to understand how our website is used. Google Analytics collects data such as pages visited, time spent on the site, and general geographic location. We have configured Google Analytics with privacy-preserving settings and it is only activated upon your consent.
We do not use Google Analytics to collect or process any personally identifiable information beyond what is described above. You may opt out of Google Analytics tracking at any time using the Google Analytics Opt-out Browser Add-on.
6. Anonymous Reporting and Source Protection
We strongly believe in the protection of sources and whistleblowers. If you contact us with information about misconduct in the film industry:
- You are not required to identify yourself
- We recommend using anonymous email services such as Proton Mail
- We will never publish information that could identify a source without their explicit written consent
- We store submitted tips only as long as necessary for editorial review
We treat all submitted information as strictly confidential.
7. Data Retention
We retain personal data only for as long as necessary to fulfill the purpose for which it was collected, or as required by law:
- Newsletter subscribers: Until unsubscription or deletion request
- Contact form submissions: Up to 12 months, or as long as needed to address your inquiry
- Website analytics data: Up to 26 months (standard Google Analytics retention)
- Cookie consent records: 365 days (as configured in Complianz)
8. Data Security
We take appropriate technical and organizational measures to protect your personal data against unauthorized access, loss, or misuse. These include:
- HTTPS encryption across the entire website
- Access controls limiting who can view submitted data
- Use of reputable third-party processors with their own security commitments
Despite our best efforts, no method of internet transmission or electronic storage is completely secure. We cannot guarantee absolute security.
9. Your Rights Under GDPR
If you are located in the EEA or Switzerland, you have the following rights regarding your personal data:
- Right of access — You may request a copy of the personal data we hold about you
- Right to rectification — You may ask us to correct inaccurate or incomplete data
- Right to erasure — You may request that we delete your personal data (“right to be forgotten”)
- Right to restrict processing — You may ask us to limit how we use your data
- Right to data portability — You may request your data in a machine-readable format
- Right to object — You may object to processing based on legitimate interest
- Right to withdraw consent — Where processing is based on consent, you may withdraw it at any time without affecting the lawfulness of prior processing
To exercise any of these rights, please contact us at: contact@filmindustrywatch.org
We will respond to your request within 30 days. If you are unsatisfied with our response, you have the right to lodge a complaint with your local data protection supervisory authority.
10. Children’s Privacy
Our website is not directed at children under the age of 16. We do not knowingly collect personal data from minors. If you believe a child has provided us with personal data, please contact us and we will promptly delete it.
11. Links to Third-Party Websites
Our articles and reports frequently contain links to external websites, court documents, news sources, and other publicly available materials. We are not responsible for the privacy practices or content of those third-party websites. We encourage you to review the privacy policy of any external site you visit.
12. Changes to This Privacy Policy
We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time to reflect changes in our practices, technology, or legal requirements. When we make changes, we will update the “Last updated” date at the top of this page. We encourage you to review this policy periodically.
Your continued use of the website after any changes constitutes your acceptance of the updated policy.
13. Contact Us
If you have any questions, concerns, or requests regarding this Privacy Policy or how we handle your personal data, please contact us:
FilmIndustryWatch Email: contact@filmindustrywatch.org Website: https://filmindustrywatch.org
For anonymous communications, please use Proton Mail or a similar privacy-preserving service.
This Privacy Policy was prepared based on the operational practices of filmindustrywatch.org and is intended to comply with the EU General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) and related legislation.