Privacy Policy

Last updated: February 2026

1. Introduction

Welcome to EmuRank. This Privacy Policy explains what information we collect when you use our website, how we use it, and your rights regarding your data. EmuRank is a community-driven platform for sharing video game emulation compatibility reports.

2. Information We Collect

Account information: When you register, we collect your email address, username, and the password you choose (stored as a cryptographic hash — we never store your plaintext password).

Profile information: You may optionally provide a short bio (up to 500 characters). A pixel-art avatar is automatically generated from your username via the DiceBear API when you sign up.

Content you submit: Compatibility reports (emulator, version, operating system, hardware specs, notes), votes on other users' reports, and presets (saved hardware/software configurations).

Usage data: Standard web server logs (IP address, browser type, pages visited) for operational and security purposes. We do not use third-party analytics trackers.

3. Cookies and Sessions

We use a single session cookie to keep you signed in. This cookie is cryptographically signed, contains only a session identifier, is marked HttpOnly (not accessible to JavaScript), and has a fixed lifetime from the moment you sign in. No advertising or cross-site tracking cookies are used.

4. Third-Party Services

EmuRank integrates with two external services:

  • IGDB — used to fetch game metadata (title, cover art, release date, platform) when users add games to the database. No personal data is sent to IGDB.
  • DiceBear — used to generate a default pixel-art avatar at registration time, using your username as the generation seed. No account or personal data is stored by DiceBear.

These services have their own privacy policies. We encourage you to review them.

5. How We Use Your Information

  • To authenticate you and maintain your session.
  • To display your username, avatar, and contributions publicly on the site.
  • To calculate report scores and game compatibility data.
  • To enable community features (voting, presets, profile pages).
  • To ensure the security and integrity of the platform.

We do not sell, rent, or share your personal information with third parties for marketing purposes.

6. Public Content

Compatibility reports, votes, and profile information (username, avatar, bio) are publicly visible to all visitors, including unauthenticated users and search engine crawlers. Please do not include sensitive personal information in reports or your bio.

7. Data Security

Passwords are hashed using the Argon2 algorithm before storage — we cannot recover your password. Sessions are signed with a secret key. Connections to EmuRank are served over HTTPS. However, no internet-based service can guarantee absolute security.

8. Your Rights

  • Access & correction: You can update your username, email, and bio at any time from your Settings page.
  • Deletion: You can delete individual reports from their detail page. To request full account deletion, email us at contact.emurank@gmail.com.
  • Cookie control: You can clear the session cookie at any time by signing out or via your browser settings.

9. Children's Privacy

EmuRank is not directed at children under the age of 13. We do not knowingly collect personal information from children under 13. If you believe we have inadvertently collected such information, please contact us immediately.

10. Changes to This Policy

We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time. Material changes will be communicated by updating the "Last updated" date at the top of this page. Continued use of EmuRank after changes take effect constitutes your acceptance of the revised policy.

11. Contact

If you have questions about this Privacy Policy or wish to request data deletion, you can reach us through the following channels: