Privacy Policy

Effective Date: 08-30-2026

  1. Introduction

At Neurospike FRO, accessible from https://neurospike.org/, your privacy is one of our primary concerns. This Privacy Policy sets out what information we collect and record, how we use it, and what you can ask us to do about it. By using this website you agree to the terms of this policy.

This policy covers Neurospike FRO and this website only. Section 2 explains how the site is provided and what that means for the commitments made here.

  1. Who We Are, and How This Site Is Provided

Neurospike FRO is the organization responsible for this website and for the personal data described in this policy. Our contact details are in the Contact section below.

Neurospike FRO participates in the free website program run by Free For Charity, a US 501(c)(3) nonprofit that provides websites, domain management and related infrastructure to charitable organizations at no cost. This site is built from a template Free For Charity maintains and is published as a set of static files — there is no application server, database or user account system behind it.

We are setting this out because it changes what we can and cannot do with your data, and a privacy policy that did not mention it would overstate our control.

What Neurospike FRO is responsible for

  • The content of this website, and the decisions about what it publishes and collects.
  • Answering you about your personal data. Requests described in this policy come to Neurospike FRO at the address in the Contact section — not to Free For Charity. If a request reaches Free For Charity first, they pass it to us.

What Free For Charity and its providers handle on our behalf

  • Hosting and delivery. The site's files are served by third-party hosting and content-delivery infrastructure arranged by Free For Charity. Like any web server, those providers record the requests they serve — typically IP address, timestamp, the page requested, and browser user-agent — as part of operating and securing the service.
  • Domain and network security. DNS and the protective proxy in front of the site are managed by Free For Charity, which includes filtering abusive traffic.
  • Analytics. No analytics or advertising tag is currently configured for this site, so none is loaded. If that changes, it will be consent-gated as described in our Cookie Policy, and this policy will be updated first.

The limits of what we can do

  • Server and security logs held by the hosting, DNS and CDN providers are kept under those providers' own retention schedules. Neurospike FRO does not receive them as identifiable records and cannot delete an individual entry from them on request.
  • Where we cannot act on a request ourselves, we will tell you so plainly, explain who holds the data, and help you direct the request to them. We will not let a request go unanswered on the grounds that a provider holds the data.
  • We do not sell or rent personal information, and neither Free For Charity nor its providers are permitted to use data from this site for their own marketing.

Free For Charity's own policies govern its separate services, including the supporter and volunteer accounts on its hub. Those are linked in the footer of this site and are distinct from this policy, which covers Neurospike FRO and this website only.

  1. Information We Collect

3.1. Comments

When visitors leave comments on the site, we collect:

  • Data from the comments form: This includes your name, email address, website, and the comment itself.
  • IP Address and Browser User Agent String: To assist with spam detection and enhance security.
  • Gravatar Service: An anonymized string created from your email address (also called a hash) may be provided to the Gravatar service to see if you are using it. After approval of your comment, your profile picture (if available) is visible to the public in the context of your comment. The Gravatar service privacy policy is available here: Gravatar Privacy Policy

3.2. Media

If you upload images to the website:

  • Embedded Location Data: Please avoid uploading images with embedded location data (EXIF GPS) included. Visitors can download and extract any location data from images on the website.

3.3. Cookies

Our website uses cookies to enhance your browsing experience:

  • Comments Cookies: When you leave a comment, you may opt-in to saving your name, email address, and website in cookies. These are for your convenience for future comments and last for one year.
  • Login Cookies: When you log in, we set up cookies to save your login information and screen display choices.
    • Login cookies last for two days.
    • Screen options cookies last for one year.
    • Selecting “Remember Me” extends login retention to two weeks.
    • Logging out removes login cookies.
  • Temporary Cookies: Visiting our login page sets a temporary cookie to determine if your browser accepts cookies. It contains no personal data and is discarded when you close your browser.
  • Editing or Publishing Articles: This sets an additional cookie in your browser, indicating the post ID of the article you just edited. It expires after one day.

3.4. Microsoft Forms - Application Forms

We use Microsoft Forms (forms.office.com) for our charity application process. When you submit an application through our website:

  • Data Collected: Information you provide in the application form (name, email, organization details, etc.)
  • Third-Party Processing: Microsoft Forms is a service provided by Microsoft Corporation. Your form submissions are processed according to Microsoft's privacy policies.
  • Additional Third-Party Services: Microsoft Forms may use additional services (including HubSpot) for form analytics and feedback collection. These are controlled by Microsoft, not Neurospike FRO.
  • Privacy Policy: Review Microsoft's privacy practices at https://privacy.microsoft.com/

3.5. Embedded Content from Other Websites

Articles on this site may include embedded content (e.g., videos, images, articles). Embedded content from other websites behaves as if you have visited the other website directly. These websites may:

  • Collect data about you.
  • Use cookies.
  • Embed additional third-party tracking.
  • Monitor your interaction with the embedded content, including tracking your interaction if you have an account and are logged in to that website.

  1. How We Use Your Information

We use the collected information for various purposes:

  • To Operate and Maintain Our Website: Ensuring smooth functionality and user experience.
  • To Improve Customer Service: Your information helps us respond to your requests and support needs more efficiently.
  • To Personalize User Experience: Understanding how our users utilize the services and resources provided.
  • To Process Transactions: Information provided during transactions is used strictly for order processing.
  • To Send Periodic Emails: Using the email address to send information and updates pertaining to your interests.

  1. Who We Share Your Data With

We respect your privacy and do not sell, trade, or rent your personal identification information to others. However:

  • Service Providers: We may share your information with third-party service providers to help us operate our website or administer activities on our behalf, such as sending out newsletters or surveys.
  • Spam Detection Services: Visitor comments may be checked through automated spam detection services.
  • Legal Obligations: We may disclose your information if required to do so by law or in response to valid requests by public authorities.

  1. Data Retention

6.1. Comments

  • Retention Period: Comments and their metadata are retained indefinitely. This allows us to recognize and approve any follow-up comments automatically.

6.2. Registered Users

  • User Profiles: For users that register on our website, we store the personal information provided in their user profile.
  • User Rights: All users can see, edit, or delete their personal information at any time (except for changing their username). Website administrators can also view and edit this information.

  1. Your Rights Over Your Data

You have the following data protection rights:

  • Access and Portability: Request a copy of the personal data we hold about you.
  • Correction: Request that we correct any personal information if it is inaccurate or incomplete.
  • Erasure: Request that we erase your personal data, under certain conditions.
  • Restrict Processing: Object to our processing of your personal data, under certain conditions.
  • Withdraw Consent: Withdraw your consent at any time where we relied on your consent to process your personal information.

To exercise these rights, please contact us using the details in the Contact section below.

  1. Your Rights in the European Union, United Kingdom, and EEA (GDPR)

If you visit from the European Union, the United Kingdom, or the wider European Economic Area, the EU General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) or the UK GDPR applies to our handling of your personal data, and this section supplements the rest of this policy.

Legal bases. We process personal data only on these bases:

  • Consent: In the EEA, the UK, and Switzerland, Google's tags (Google Tag Manager and Google Analytics) set no cookies and read no identifiers until you accept through the cookie consent banner — until then your visit is counted only in an aggregate, cookie-free way that cannot be tied back to you. Session recording (Microsoft Clarity) and marketing tags (Meta Pixel) load only after you explicitly opt in. You can withdraw consent at any time via the Cookie Preferences link in the footer; this site then deletes the tracking cookies it set, Google's tags return to that cookie-free state, and Clarity and the Meta Pixel stop loading from your next page view.
  • Legitimate interests: Operating, securing, and improving this website (for example, essential cookies and server logs), balanced against your rights.
  • Legal obligation: Where processing is required to comply with applicable law.

How the regional model works. We use Google Consent Mode. Whether the permissive or the opt-in default applies is determined by Google from your IP address at the time of your visit; IP geolocation is approximate. In the EEA, the UK, and Switzerland, analytics runs cookie-free until you accept. (Switzerland is included because Google's consent defaults cover it; the data of visitors in Switzerland is protected by Switzerland's Federal Act on Data Protection (FADP) rather than the GDPR.) Everywhere else, including the United States, analytics cookies are set from your first pageview, and you can turn them off at any time via the Cookie Preferences link in the footer. See our Cookie Policy for the full details.

Your rights. You have the right to: access the personal data we hold about you; have inaccurate data rectified; have your data erased; restrict or object to processing; receive your data in a portable format; and withdraw any consent you have given, at any time, without affecting the lawfulness of processing before withdrawal.

Exercising your rights and complaints. Contact us at robert at codex.stanford.edu to exercise any of these rights; we will respond within the time limits the GDPR sets. You also have the right to lodge a complaint with your national data protection supervisory authority (in the UK, the Information Commissioner's Office).

  1. Your California Privacy Rights (CCPA/CPRA)

If you are a California resident, the California Consumer Privacy Act, as amended by the California Privacy Rights Act (CCPA/CPRA), gives you specific rights, and this section supplements the rest of this policy.

We do not sell or share your personal information. Neurospike FROdoes not sell personal information, and does not share it for cross-context behavioral advertising, as those terms are defined by California law — and has not done so in the preceding 12 months. We do not knowingly collect or sell the personal information of anyone under 16. We do not collect sensitive personal information beyond what is necessary to provide this website and our services, and we do not use it to infer characteristics about you.

Your rights. You have the right to: know what personal information we collect, use, and disclose, and to access it; delete personal information we collected from you; correct inaccurate personal information; opt out of any sale or sharing of personal information (not applicable, since we do neither); limit the use of sensitive personal information; and not be discriminated against for exercising any of these rights.

Opt-out preference signals (Global Privacy Control / Do Not Track). We do not sell or share personal information as defined by California law, so there is nothing for a Global Privacy Control or Do Not Track signal to opt out of, and this site does not read those browser signals. Analytics cookies are set automatically outside the EEA, the UK, and Switzerland — including in the United States — under Google Consent Mode, and any visitor can turn them off at any time via the Cookie Preferences link in the footer; we delete the cookies this site set when you do. Session recording (Microsoft Clarity) and marketing tags (Meta Pixel) never load without your explicit opt-in, anywhere in the world.

Exercising your rights. Submit a request to robert at codex.stanford.edu. We will verify your request using information associated with your interactions with us, and you may use an authorized agent to submit a request on your behalf. We will respond within the timeframes California law requires.

  1. Security Measures

We implement a variety of security measures to maintain the safety of your personal information:

  • Secure Socket Layer (SSL) Technology: To encrypt sensitive information transmitted online.
  • Access Controls: Limited access to your personal data to those employees, agents, contractors, and other third parties who have a business need to know.
  • Regular Security Audits: To identify and address potential vulnerabilities.

However, please note that no method of transmission over the Internet or method of electronic storage is 100% secure.

  1. Third-Party Links

Our website may contain links to external sites that are not operated by us. We have no control over and assume no responsibility for the content, privacy policies, or practices of any third-party sites or services. We encourage you to review the Privacy Policy of every site you visit.

  1. Children’s Privacy

Protecting the privacy of young children is especially important:

  • Age Restrictions: Our services are not intended for individuals under the age of 13.
  • Parental Consent: We do not knowingly collect personal information from children under 13 without parental consent. If you believe we might have any information from or about a child under 13, please contact us immediately.

  1. International Data Transfers

Your information may be transferred to—and maintained on—computers located outside of your state, province, country, or other governmental jurisdiction where data protection laws may differ:

  • Consent to Transfer: Your consent to this Privacy Policy followed by your submission of such information represents your agreement to that transfer.
  • Compliance with Laws: We will take all steps reasonably necessary to ensure that your data is treated securely and in accordance with this Privacy Policy.

  1. Changes to This Privacy Policy

We may update our Privacy Policy from time to time:

  • Notification of Changes: Any changes will be posted on this page with an updated effective date.
  • Review Periodically: We encourage users to frequently check this page for any changes to stay informed about how we are helping to protect the personal information we collect.

  1. Contact Us

If you have any questions about this Privacy Policy, please contact us:

  1. Additional Information

16.1. Who handles privacy questions

Questions and requests about this policy are handled by Neurospike FRO at the contact address above. We have not designated a statutory Data Protection Officer; if your enquiry is one that requires an escalation route, write to us and we will tell you how it will be handled and by whom.

Your trust matters to us, and we are committed to protecting your personal information and using it responsibly.