Privacy Policy
Last updated: 15 May 2026
HamroNeta.online ("we", "us", "HamroNeta") is a civic accountability platform operated under the Bhugol Park Initiative. This policy explains what information we collect, how we use it, and the choices you have.
If anything here is unclear or you have a specific concern, contact us at [email protected].
Quick summary
- You can browse HamroNeta without an account.
- Signing in (with Google) lets you sign petitions, file reports, ask questions, and create content.
- We collect only what we need to make the platform work for you.
- We never sell your data.
- You can delete your account and your data at any time.
What we collect
Information you provide directly
- Account information — when you sign in with Google, we receive your name, email address, and Google account ID. We do not receive your contacts, files, or other Google data.
- Profile information — when you tell us your district, language preference, topics you care about, or polling station, we save these to personalize your experience.
- Content you create — petitions you start, problems you report, town hall questions you submit, polls you vote in, and comments you post.
- Expert verification information — if you apply to become a verified expert, we collect your full legal name, government-issued ID number and image, district of residence, profession, education, languages, and professional affiliations. Verification data is reviewed by our admin team and stored securely.
Information we collect automatically
- Usage data — pages you visit, petitions you view, politicians you look up, and how long you spend on each. This helps us understand which features are useful and improve them.
- Device and connection data — your IP address, browser type, operating system, and screen size. Used for security, fraud prevention, and ensuring the platform works on your device.
- Inferred interests — based on your activity, we may identify topic areas you care about (such as education, healthcare, corruption). These inferences stay private and are used only to personalize what you see.
Information from third parties
- Google sign-in — basic profile information described above.
- Cloudflare — we use Cloudflare for security and performance. Cloudflare may receive and process your IP address and request data per their privacy policy.
How we use your information
We use your information to:
- Provide the core platform (sign petitions, file reports, view content, etc.)
- Personalize your experience (show petitions relevant to your district, suggest topics you care about, etc.)
- Verify expert applications and maintain the integrity of expert verification
- Send you notifications you've opted into (petition updates, town hall reminders, etc.)
- Prevent abuse, fraud, and platform misuse (rate limits, moderation, security monitoring)
- Improve the platform through aggregate analytics (which features get used, where users get confused, etc.)
- Comply with legal obligations
We do not:
- Sell your data to third parties
- Share your individual data with politicians, political parties, or government agencies except where legally required
- Use your data for advertising
- Profile you by caste, ethnicity, religion, or political affiliation
What information is public
- Your petitions, reports, town hall questions, polls, and comments are public by default. You can choose how your name appears (full name, first name with district, or anonymous) when you create content.
- Your expert verification badge (if approved) is shown publicly alongside content you create.
- Aggregate statistics ("78% of verified experts approve of this minister") are public, but never tied to individual votes.
What stays private:
- Your government ID image and number (visible only to verified admins for verification purposes, with each view audit-logged)
- Your demographic data (profession, education, etc. — used for expert verification only, not shown publicly)
- Your individual poll votes (only aggregate counts are public)
- Your inferred interests and usage patterns
- Your email address and Google account ID
- Conversations with Swakiya, our AI assistant (visible only to you and to admins for abuse prevention)
How we protect your data
- All connections to HamroNeta use HTTPS encryption
- Government ID images are stored outside the public web directory and encrypted at rest
- Access to sensitive data (ID images, demographics) is restricted to verified admin accounts
- Every admin access to sensitive data is logged with timestamp and admin identity
- Passwords are not stored — we use Google's authentication system, so your password never reaches us
- We monitor for unusual access patterns and rate-limit suspicious activity
We cannot guarantee absolute security. If a data breach occurs that affects you, we will notify you and the relevant authorities promptly.
Cookies and tracking
We use cookies for:
- Authentication — keeping you signed in
- Session management — remembering your language preference, theme, etc.
- CSRF protection — security against cross-site request forgery
- Cloudflare — bot detection and performance optimization
We do not use cookies for cross-site advertising, third-party analytics, or behavioral tracking by external services.
You can disable cookies in your browser, but some platform features (sign in, signing petitions, voting in polls) will not work without them.
Your rights and choices
You can, at any time:
- View your data — Profile → Settings shows everything we have linked to your account
- Edit your profile — change district, topic interests, language preference, content visibility settings
- Download your data — request a JSON export of everything tied to your account (contact [email protected]; we respond within 14 days)
- Delete your account — Profile → Settings → Delete Account. This permanently removes your account, your profile attributes, your conversations with Swakiya, and your demographic data. Content you created (petitions, reports, questions) remains for civic record-keeping but is anonymized (your name is removed).
- Opt out of inferred profiling — Profile → Settings → Disable interest inference. We will stop building inferred attributes for your account.
- Adjust notification preferences — Profile → Settings → Notifications
- Object to specific data uses — contact us at [email protected]
Children's privacy
HamroNeta is intended for users 18 years of age and older. We do not knowingly collect information from anyone under 18. If you believe a child has provided us with personal information, contact us and we will delete it.
Data retention
- Account data — kept as long as your account is active; deleted when you delete your account (anonymized for retained content)
- Conversations with Swakiya — kept for 12 months for abuse prevention, then deleted
- Inferred interest data — kept for 24 months from last activity, refreshed as you use the platform
- Government ID images (verified experts only) — kept as long as expert status is active; deleted when verification is revoked or account is deleted
- Server logs — kept for 90 days for security and debugging
- Aggregate analytics — kept indefinitely in anonymized form
Third-party services
We use these services to operate HamroNeta:
- Google (sign-in) — Google's privacy policy applies to information they collect during sign-in
- Cloudflare (CDN, security, captcha) — Cloudflare's privacy policy applies to traffic data
- Mailjet or equivalent (transactional email) — used only to send emails you've requested (account confirmations, notifications you've opted into)
- Hetzner (hosting) — server-level data is processed by our hosting provider
We are responsible for what these services do with HamroNeta data. Their handling of data outside our control is governed by their own policies.
Changes to this policy
When we change this policy, we will:
- Update the "Last updated" date at the top
- For significant changes, notify you by email if you have an account, or via a banner on the site
- Keep prior versions accessible for transparency
Your continued use of the platform after a policy update means you accept the new terms.
Contact
For questions, concerns, data requests, or complaints about this policy:
Email: [email protected] Address: Bhugol Park Initiative, Kathmandu, Nepal
For complaints you feel were not resolved adequately, you may also contact relevant Nepali data protection authorities.
Jurisdiction
This policy is governed by the laws of Nepal. Disputes will be resolved in Nepali courts.
A note from the team: HamroNeta exists to make Nepali government more accountable. We take seriously that this work requires citizens to trust us with their voices and their information. If you ever feel that trust has been broken, please reach out directly. We will respond.
