Privacy Policy for Explore Nepal

Effective Date: 2025-07-16

At Explore Nepal, accessible from https://explorenepal.org/, we are committed to protecting and respecting your privacy. This Privacy Policy outlines the types of information we collect, how we use it, and your rights in relation to your personal data, in accordance with the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR), Nepal's Data Privacy Law, and other applicable data protection laws.

We are an individual based in Nepal providing services through this website, and we take your privacy seriously. Please read this policy carefully to understand how we handle your personal data.

1. Types of Data We Collect

We collect the following types of personal data:

• Personal Identification Information: Name, email address, phone number, and other contact details you provide via forms or interactions on the website.
• Usage Data: Information about how you interact with our website, including IP address, browser type, device type, pages visited, and time spent on the site.
• Cookies and Tracking Technologies: We use cookies to track and store information regarding user preferences, browsing activity, and interactions with our website.
• Analytics Data: Data collected for advertising and analytical purposes, including interactions with ads and use of the site for targeted marketing.

2. How We Collect Your Data

We collect data in the following ways:

• Forms: When you submit information via contact forms or other submission forms on the website.
• Cookies and Tracking Technologies: We use cookies to track user activity and preferences.
• Cloudflare Turnstile CAPTCHA: We use the Cloudflare Turnstile CAPTCHA feature to prevent spam and ensure that interactions on our website are from humans.

3. How We Use Your Data

We use your data for the following purposes:

• To provide, maintain, and improve our services and website.
• To enhance user experience by personalizing content and ads.
• To analyze user behavior and improve our website’s functionality.
• To communicate with you regarding inquiries, services, and marketing offers.
• To comply with legal obligations, enforce our terms of service, and prevent fraud.

4. Legal Basis for Data Processing (GDPR)

Under the GDPR, we rely on the following legal bases to process your personal data:

• Consent: You have provided consent to process your data for specific purposes, such as subscribing to newsletters or contacting us.
• Contractual Necessity: We process your data to fulfill our contract with you, such as providing services through our website.
• Legitimate Interests: We may process your data for legitimate business interests, including website analytics, advertising, and improving our services.
• Legal Obligation: We process data as necessary to comply with legal obligations.

5. Your Rights Under GDPR and Nepal's Data Privacy Law

As a user in the EU or Nepal, you have the following rights regarding your personal data:

• Right of Access: You can request access to the personal data we hold about you.
• Right to Rectification: You can request the correction of inaccurate or incomplete personal data.
• Right to Erasure (Right to be Forgotten): You can request that we delete your personal data, subject to certain exceptions.
• Right to Restrict Processing: You can request that we limit the processing of your personal data.
• Right to Data Portability: You can request a copy of your personal data in a structured, commonly used, and machine-readable format.
• Right to Object: You can object to the processing of your personal data, particularly for direct marketing purposes.
• Right to Withdraw Consent: If you have given us consent to process your data, you can withdraw it at any time.

To exercise any of these rights, please contact us via the Contact Page.

6. Data Sharing and Disclosure

We do not sell your personal data. We may share your personal data with third parties under the following circumstances:

• Service Providers: We share data with third-party service providers who assist us in operating our website and delivering services. These may include advertising and analytics providers.
• Legal Requirements: We may disclose your data if required by law or in response to valid legal requests by public authorities (e.g., a court or government agency).
• Business Transfers: In the event of a merger, acquisition, or asset sale, your personal data may be transferred as part of the transaction.

7. Google AdSense and Third-Party Advertisers

We use Google AdSense and other third-party advertising partners to serve ads on our website. These third-party vendors may use cookies to serve ads based on your previous visits to our website or other sites on the internet. These cookies help Google and its partners serve ads to users based on their interests and browsing behavior.

Google's use of the DART cookie:
Google may use the DART cookie to serve ads to our users based on their visit to our website and other websites on the internet. Users can opt out of the use of the DART cookie by visiting Google’s Ad and Content Network Privacy Policy.

8. Your Choices Regarding Ads

You can control and customize your ad preferences through Google Ads Settings. Additionally, most browsers allow you to manage cookie preferences, including blocking or deleting cookies.

You can also choose to opt out of personalized advertising by visiting the Network Advertising Initiative (NAI) opt-out page.

9. Cookies and Tracking for Advertising

As part of our advertising services, we use cookies to enhance your user experience and serve relevant ads. Cookies may track your behavior on our website and across other sites. The types of cookies used include:

• Google Analytics Cookies: These cookies help us understand how visitors interact with our site, including metrics such as page views and time spent on the site.
• Advertising Cookies: These are used to display personalized ads based on your previous interactions with our website and other sites you visit.

You can control cookies through your browser settings, but please note that disabling cookies may limit your experience on our website, particularly in terms of ad personalization.

10. Data Security

We implement robust security measures to protect your personal data, including encryption, secure servers, and access controls. However, please note that no method of data transmission over the internet or electronic storage is 100% secure, and we cannot guarantee absolute security.

11. Data Retention

We retain personal data only as long as necessary to fulfill the purposes outlined in this Privacy Policy or as required by law. If you request the deletion of your data, we will comply, subject to any legal obligations that may require us to retain certain information.

12. Children’s Privacy

Our website is not intended for children under the age of 16, and we do not knowingly collect personal data from children. If we discover that we have inadvertently collected personal data from a child under 16, we will take steps to delete that data as soon as possible.

13. Changes to This Privacy Policy

We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time to reflect changes in our practices or legal requirements. Any updates will be posted on this page with an updated “Effective Date.” Please review this policy periodically.

14. Contact Information

If you have any questions or concerns about this Privacy Policy, or if you wish to exercise your rights under the GDPR or Nepal's Data Privacy Law, please contact us via our Contact Page.