Privacy Policy

Last Updated: October 5, 2025

Welcome to CommunityCrime.Watch. We are committed to protecting your privacy and ensuring the security of your personal information. This Privacy Policy outlines the types of data we collect, why we collect it, and how we manage, use, and protect it, in accordance with local data protection laws and principles, such as the Australian Privacy Principles (APPs).

1. Information We Collect

To ensure the integrity and safety of our platform, we collect the following Personally Identifiable Information (PII) during the mandatory verification process on our regional app instances:

• Full Name, Residential Address, and Mobile Phone Number: Used exclusively for a one-time manual verification process to confirm you are a genuine resident of a community we serve.
• Email Address: Used for account login, password resets, and essential service communications.

When you use our service, we also collect:

• User-Generated Content: This includes the incident reports you submit, your comments, and forum posts.
• Payment Information (for Subscribers): If you choose to upgrade to a paid subscription, your payment details are collected and processed directly by our payment partner, Stripe. We **do not** store your credit card number on our servers. We only store a reference ID provided by Stripe to manage your subscription status.

2. How We Use Your Information

• To Verify Your Account: To ensure our user base consists of genuine local residents, which is critical to the platform's integrity.
• To Operate and Maintain the Service: To allow you to log in, submit reports, and access features corresponding to your membership level.
• For Abuse Prevention: Your verified identity is a key deterrent against false or malicious content.
• To Comply with Legal Obligations: In the rare event we are compelled by a legal warrant from a recognized law enforcement agency, we may be required to provide your verified information.

3. Data Security and Protection

We take the security of your data extremely seriously:

• Encryption: Your most sensitive information—your residential address and phone number—are encrypted in our database using a strong AES-256-CBC encryption standard. All communication with our websites is protected by SSL/TLS (HTTPS).
• Anonymity by Design: Your private verification details are **NEVER** displayed publicly. All your public activity is associated only with your auto-generated, anonymous username (e.g., "Observer-1234").

4. Data Sharing and Disclosure

We will not sell, rent, or trade your personal information. We only share data with trusted third parties for essential service delivery (like Stripe for payments) or if compelled by a legal warrant from relevant law enforcement.

5. Contact Us

If you have any questions about this Privacy Policy, please contact us using our secure form, or follow us on Facebook for general updates.