Privacy Policy

Privacy Policy

Last updated: 26 March 2026

World-Tension Watch (“we,” “us,” or “our”) is committed to protecting your privacy and handling your personal data with transparency, care, and respect. This Privacy Policy explains what personal data we collect when you visit www.world-tension.com (the “Site”), how we use it, with whom we may share it, and what rights you have in relation to it.

This policy applies to all visitors to the Site and to anyone who contacts us. Please read it carefully. By using the Site, you acknowledge that you have read and understood this Privacy Policy.

1. Who We Are

World-Tension Watch is an independent international news publication covering global geopolitical tensions and armed conflict. For the purposes of data protection law, World-Tension Watch is the data controller in respect of the personal data described in this policy.

If you have any questions about this policy or our data practices, please contact us at [email protected].

2. Information We Collect

Information You Provide to Us

We may collect personal data that you voluntarily provide when you:

  • Contact us via email or our contact form (name, email address, and the content of your message)
  • Subscribe to newsletters or alerts (email address)
  • Submit tips, story pitches, or press enquiries (name, email address, and any information you include)
  • Apply for a press credential or contributor relationship

Information Collected Automatically

When you visit the Site, our servers and analytics services automatically collect certain technical information, including:

  • Your IP address (stored in anonymised or truncated form where possible)
  • Browser type and version
  • Device type and operating system
  • Pages visited on the Site and time spent on each page
  • Referring URL (the page you visited before arriving at our Site)
  • Date and time of your visit
  • General geographic region (derived from IP address, not precise location)

This information is used in aggregate to understand how our Site is used and to improve it. It is not used to identify individual visitors.

Cookies and Tracking Technologies

We use cookies and similar technologies to support the operation of the Site and to gather analytics data. For full details, please see our Cookies Policy.

3. How We Use Your Information

We use the personal data we collect for the following purposes:

To Deliver and Operate the Site

  • Serve website content to your device
  • Maintain the security and technical performance of the Site
  • Respond to your enquiries, tips, or correspondence

To Understand and Improve Our Service

  • Analyse how readers engage with our content
  • Identify the most-read topics and improve editorial coverage
  • Detect and fix technical issues

To Communicate with You

  • Respond to emails and messages you send us
  • Send newsletters or editorial alerts (only where you have opted in)
  • Notify you of changes to our policies or services where required

To Comply with Legal Obligations

  • Retain records as required by applicable law
  • Respond to lawful requests from authorities
  • Enforce our Terms of Use

4. Legal Basis for Processing (GDPR)

If you are located in the European Economic Area (EEA), United Kingdom, or Switzerland, we process your personal data on the following legal grounds:

  • Legitimate interests — We process automatically collected technical data (such as IP addresses and page views) on the basis of our legitimate interest in operating and improving a publicly accessible news publication, provided that interest is not overridden by your rights and freedoms.
  • Consent — Where we place non-essential cookies on your device or send you newsletters, we do so on the basis of your explicit consent. You may withdraw consent at any time.
  • Legal obligation — We may process your data where we are required to do so by applicable law.
  • Contract — Where you have entered into an arrangement with us (such as a contributor agreement), we process relevant data to fulfil that arrangement.

5. Cookies

We use cookies to support the core functionality of the Site and to gather anonymised analytics. We do not use cookies for personalised advertising or to build individual behavioural profiles for commercial purposes.

For a detailed explanation of the cookies we use and how to manage them, please see our Cookies Policy.

6. Third-Party Services

We use a limited number of third-party services to operate and improve the Site. Each third party processes data in accordance with their own privacy policies.

  • Google Analytics — Used to analyse aggregate site traffic and readership patterns. Data is anonymised where technically possible. See Google’s Privacy Policy.
  • Cloud Hosting (AWS / cloud infrastructure) — Our Site is hosted on cloud infrastructure. Server logs may temporarily store IP addresses as part of standard web server operation.
  • Social Media Platforms — Our pages on X (Twitter), Facebook, YouTube, and TikTok are subject to those platforms’ own data practices when you interact with our content on their platforms.
  • Content Delivery Networks — We may use CDN services to deliver content efficiently. These services may log request metadata.

We do not sell, rent, or trade your personal data to any third party for commercial purposes.

7. Data Retention

We retain personal data only for as long as necessary for the purposes described in this policy:

  • Contact and correspondence data — Retained for up to 2 years from the date of last contact, or longer if required by law or ongoing correspondence.
  • Newsletter subscription data — Retained until you unsubscribe or withdraw consent.
  • Analytics data — Aggregated and anonymised data is retained in accordance with the retention settings of our analytics provider (typically 14 months for Google Analytics).
  • Server logs — Retained for up to 90 days for security and diagnostic purposes.

8. Your Rights

Rights Under GDPR (EEA, UK, Switzerland)

If you are located in the EEA, United Kingdom, or Switzerland, you have the following rights under applicable data protection law:

  • Right of access — You may request a copy of the personal data we hold about you.
  • Right to rectification — You may request that we correct any inaccurate or incomplete data.
  • Right to erasure — You may request that we delete your personal data, subject to certain legal exceptions.
  • Right to restriction — You may request that we restrict the processing of your data in certain circumstances.
  • Right to data portability — You may request your data in a structured, machine-readable format where processing is based on consent or contract.
  • Right to object — You may object to processing based on our legitimate interests.
  • 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 [email protected]. We will respond to all valid requests within 30 days. We may need to verify your identity before processing your request.

You also have the right to lodge a complaint with your local data protection authority if you believe your rights have been infringed.

California Residents — CCPA Rights

If you are a California resident, you have rights under the California Consumer Privacy Act (CCPA), including:

  • The right to know what personal information we collect, use, disclose, and sell
  • The right to delete personal information we have collected from you
  • The right to opt out of the sale of your personal information (we do not sell personal information)
  • The right to non-discrimination for exercising your CCPA rights

To exercise your CCPA rights, contact us at [email protected].

9. International Data Transfers

World-Tension Watch operates internationally and may process your data in countries outside your country of residence, including countries that may have different data protection standards. Where we transfer personal data outside the EEA or UK, we take appropriate safeguards to ensure that your data receives an equivalent level of protection, including relying on adequacy decisions, standard contractual clauses, or other lawful transfer mechanisms.

10. Security

We implement appropriate technical and organisational measures to protect personal data against unauthorised access, loss, alteration, or destruction. These measures include encrypted HTTPS connections, restricted access to personal data, and regular security reviews. However, no internet transmission is completely secure, and we cannot guarantee the absolute security of data transmitted to or from the Site.

11. Children’s Privacy

The Site is not directed at children under the age of 16, and we do not knowingly collect personal data from children under 16. If you believe we have inadvertently collected personal data from a child under 16, please contact us immediately at [email protected] and we will take prompt steps to delete such data.

12. Links to Third-Party Sites

The Site may contain links to external websites and sources. This Privacy Policy applies only to World-Tension Watch. We are not responsible for the privacy practices of any third-party site. We encourage you to review the privacy policy of any external site you visit.

13. Changes to This Policy

We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time. When we do, we will revise the “Last updated” date at the top of this page. For significant changes, we will take reasonable steps to notify you, such as by posting a notice on the Site. We encourage you to review this policy periodically to stay informed about how we protect your data.

14. Contact Us

If you have any questions, concerns, or requests relating to this Privacy Policy or our data practices, please contact us: