This Twitch Privacy Notice applies to your use of www.twitch.tv, and any other websites, applications, services, or live (in-person) events provided, owned, or operated by Twitch Interactive, Inc. (with its affiliates, “Twitch”) that link to this Privacy Notice (collectively, the “Twitch Services”). Twitch values the privacy of users, subscribers, publishers, members, and others who visit and use the Twitch Services (collectively or individually, “you” or “users”) and wants you to be familiar with how we collect, use, and disclose personal information from and about you. By visiting www.twitch.tv, setting up your Twitch account, or using the Twitch Services, you are accepting the practices described in this Privacy Notice, to the extent permitted by law.
For purposes of data protection laws, Twitch Interactive, Inc. located at 350 Bush Street, 2nd Floor, San Francisco, CA 94104, is the “data controller” of your information collected in connection with the Twitch Services.
You may share personal information when using the Twitch Services. One example is when you provide information about yourself as part of the Twitch account creation process. Another is when you take certain actions on the Twitch Services that are public or intended to be public in nature, such as when you broadcast content, participate in a chat room, post profile information, follow a channel, or subscribe to a channel. Given the social nature of some of the Twitch Services, that information may be collected, used, or disclosed by others who are part of that social interaction. In addition, some features of the Twitch Services are designed to provide others with information about user activity, such as identifying the user who created a particular Clip or the subscription status of users for a given channel. We encourage you to be mindful of this when considering your activity on the Twitch Services.
Storage and access to cookies that may be set in connection with the Twitch Services are governed by the Twitch Cookie Notice (“Cookie Notice”).
We obtain information about you through the means discussed below when we provide the Twitch Services. Please note that we need certain types of information so that we can provide the Twitch Services to you. If you do not provide us with such information, or ask us to delete it, you may no longer be able to access or use the Twitch Services.
User-provided Information: When you register for Twitch Services; upload, purchase, view, or download certain content or products from the Twitch Services; enter contests or sweepstakes; register for or attend a live (in-person) event; or otherwise use the features and functionality of the Twitch Services, you may provide a variety of information about yourself to us, such as your name, voice, or image (in any content you upload, stream, or participate in), Twitch username, email address, postal mailing address, telephone number, credit card number, and billing information.
Automatically Collected Information: When you access the Twitch Services or open one of our emails, we automatically record and store certain information about your system by using cookies and other types of technologies. Cookies are small text files containing a string of alphanumeric characters that are sent to your browser. For information about what cookies are, how they work, how Twitch uses them, and how to remove them, please see our Cookie Notice . Examples of such information we automatically collect include Internet Protocol address (“IP Address”), a unique user ID, device and browser types and identifiers, referring and exit page addresses, software and system type, and information about your usage of Twitch Services. Examples of how Twitch uses automatically collected information include to: (a) automatically update the Twitch application on your system; (b) remember your information so that you will not have to re-enter it during your visit or the next time you access the Twitch Services; (c) provide customized advertisements, content, and information; (d) monitor the effectiveness of marketing campaigns; (e) monitor and store aggregate site usage metrics such as total number of visitors and pages accessed; and (f) track your entries, submissions, and status in any promotions or other activities.
Twitch Live (in-person) Events: Twitch holds live (in-person) events that may include creators, speakers, and exhibitors. These events will be photographed, recorded, and streamed, both by Twitch and by others, and these materials may be used for promotional purposes. In addition, attendees’ badges may be scanned with their permission. There will be various places where you may be given the option to, or experiences for which you may be required to, scan your badge. If you scan your badge or agree to have your badge scanned by Twitch events staff, the data will be used for various purposes such as analytics, promotional products, or prize fulfillment consistent with this Notice. Exhibitors may offer to scan your badge when you visit their area or events. By allowing exhibitors to scan your badge, you understand that Twitch may transfer your personal information to the exhibitor and that, once transferred, your personal information is subject to the exhibitor’s privacy notice and the exhibitor may contact you directly afterwards.
Information from Other Sources: We may obtain additional information from third parties and sources other than the Twitch Services. For example, we may obtain additional information from advertisers, games or services you use, or social media networks (such as Discord, Steam, or YouTube) for which you have approved our access. When you access the Twitch Services through social media networks or when you connect the Twitch Services to social media networks, you are authorizing Twitch to collect, store, and use such additional information and content in accordance with this Privacy Notice. We may also obtain information from third-party services (such as Riot or Steam) regarding your use of such services, including about your use of the content you choose to broadcast through the Twitch Services. We use this information to supplement the information we collect about you in order to provide more relevant, safer experiences for you with the Twitch Services and improve the Twitch Services, analytics, and advertising. If we combine or associate information from other sources with information that we collect through the Twitch Services, we will treat the combined information in accordance with this Privacy Notice.
Twitch uses such information to operate, maintain, enhance, provide, create, and develop all of the features, functionality, and services (new or existing) found on the Twitch Services; provide security for our websites, products, software, applications, or live (in-person) events; manage relationships with Twitch account holders (e.g., Partners, Affiliates), including making or receiving payment; improve users’ experience with Twitch by providing content recommendations and by delivering content that we hope users will find relevant and interesting, including advertising and marketing messages; allow you to comment on content, and participate in online games, contests, or rewards programs; prevent fraud and abuse; and understand the usage trends of our users.
We use your email address and/or telephone number to communicate with you, including to notify you of major Twitch Services updates, for customer service purposes, or to contact you regarding any content that you have posted to or downloaded from the Twitch Services. If you want to stop receiving notifications by telephone, reply STOP to any text message from us. Note that we may still send you additional informational or transactional notifications.
Twitch may periodically send promotional materials or notifications to you related to the Twitch Services. If you want to stop receiving promotional materials, you can go to your account settings once you have logged in to the Twitch Services or follow the unsubscribe instructions at the bottom of any email from us. If you have installed a mobile app and you wish to stop receiving push notifications, you can change the settings either on your mobile device or through the app.
In order to meet legal obligations, Twitch may collect and process user information if we believe in good faith that such collection and processing is necessary to comply with U.S. state and federal laws or other applicable laws around the world (for example, in the country of your residence), or respond to a court order, judicial, or other government request, subpoena, or warrant in the manner legally required.
We may also ask for your consent to process your personal information for a specific purpose that we communicate to you. When you consent to our processing your personal information for a specified purpose, you may withdraw your consent at any time and we will stop the processing of your data for that purpose.
Twitch will rely on legal grounds to process your personal information to the extent permitted by applicable law, which may include, without limitation: to honor contractual commitments, to take steps in anticipation of entering into contract, to fulfill legal obligations, to document your consent, and to support Twitch’s legitimate interests. Some examples of these legitimate interests include: monitoring and analyzing the use of Twitch services, communicating with registered users through notifications or emails regarding Twitch products and services, advertising, responding to inquiries or complaints from potential or actual Twitch users, taking appropriate or necessary actions to protect Twitch from potential liability or from fraudulent, abusive, or unlawful uses; investigating and defending ourselves against third-party claims, or allegations; protecting the security or integrity of the Twitch Services; or protecting the rights, property, or safety of Twitch, our users, or others.
We share such information as described below:
We disclose such information to service providers working on our behalf, such as, to: provide website hosting, maintenance, and security services; fulfill orders; conduct data analysis and create reports; offer certain functionality; provide live (in-person) event hosting; or assist Twitch in improving the Twitch Services and creating new services and features. We require that these parties process such information in compliance with this Privacy Notice, we authorize them to use the information only for the purposes for which it is provided to them, and we require them to use reasonable confidentiality measures.
Twitch may make information available to our affiliates (meaning entities controlled by, controlling, or under common control with Twitch), including Amazon.com, Inc. and its subsidiaries that are either subject to this Privacy Notice or follow practices at least as protective as those described in this Privacy Notice.
Twitch may disclose user information if we believe in good faith that such disclosure is necessary to comply with U.S. state and federal laws or other applicable laws around the world (for example, in the country of your residence), or respond to a court order, judicial or other government request, subpoena, or warrant in the manner legally required.
Twitch also reserves the right to disclose information that we believe, in good faith, is appropriate or necessary to protect Twitch from potential liability or from fraudulent, abusive, or unlawful uses; investigate and defend ourselves against third-party claims, or allegations; protect the security or integrity of the Twitch Services; or protect the rights, property, or safety of Twitch, our users, or others.
Other than as set out in this Privacy Notice, you will receive notice when personal information about you might be shared with third parties and you will have an opportunity to choose not to share the information.
Twitch’s Privacy Choices page describes your privacy options with respect to the Twitch services, including information about how you may be able to review, update, or delete information that Twitch may have about you. You may decline to share certain information with Twitch, in which case Twitch may not be able to provide to you some of the features and functionality found on the Twitch Services. If you have created a Twitch Services account, depending on the service, you may be able to update your profile information and preferences or disable your account by logging in and going to the settings page – for example, www.twitch.tv.
For other requests to review, update, delete, or otherwise limit Twitch’s use of information that you have provided directly to Twitch, contact us here under the ‘Privacy Questions’ category. To protect your privacy and security, we may take steps to verify your identity before granting you access or making corrections to your information. You are responsible for maintaining the secrecy of your unique password and account information at all times.
We will comply with valid requests to exercise your data subject rights in accordance with the applicable laws in your region. Please note that in some circumstances, we may need to keep processing your information for certain legitimate interests or to comply with a legal obligation. If these rights apply to you, they may permit you to request that we:
For more information on how to exercise these rights, click here. If applicable, you may make a complaint to the data protection supervisory authority in the country where you are based. Alternatively, you may seek a remedy through local courts if you believe your rights have been breached.
If you would like to close your account and delete your profile information on www.twitch.tv go to https://www.twitch.tv/user/delete_account. For Twitch Services other than twitch.tv, you may update or delete information tied to your account, or close an account, Contact Support under the ‘Privacy Questions’ category. If you close your account, Twitch may retain certain information about you for the activities described in this Privacy Notice, or as permitted or required by applicable law.
The Twitch Services may link to third-party websites or services. The privacy practices of those third parties are not governed by this Privacy Notice. We encourage you to review the privacy policies of these third-party websites and services to understand their practices.
If you connect to a third-party service (such as Discord, Riot Games, or Xbox) through the Twitch Services or otherwise link your Twitch account with a third-party service, you are requesting and authorizing us to share or grant access to information on your behalf (such as your username, the fact that your connection originated from the Twitch Services, and other relevant usage and diagnostic information) with such third party. We may also send information about the content you watch or your activities on the Twitch Services to such third parties. For example, we may make information available to app developers, game developers, and game publishers to facilitate purchases and awards of digital goods, such as games and in-game items.
The Twitch Extensions program allows creators to embed interactive, custom, third-party content and applications on their channel pages. You can find out more about the specific Extension(s) operating on a given channel by clicking on the attribution links or icons that Twitch will make available on the channel page, for example, on the Twitch video player or at the bottom of an Extension’s panel.
Interaction by a viewer with an Extension or with the channel on which the Extension is activated will provide the developer that operates the Extension with viewer information of the nature described above in “Automatically Collected Information.” Twitch does not provide access to your user name or ID to third-party Extension developers as part of the Twitch Extensions program unless you click “Grant Access” within the Extension or you install an Extension on your channel. You are responsible for any information you provide to the developer independently, for example, through a web form on the Extension or visiting that developer’s website.
Developers may also create Applications that are not located on channel pages or on Twitch. We require Extension and Application developers to process data about you only for the purposes set forth in our Developer Services Agreement. We encourage you to visit an Application’s website or Extension’s detail page to review any privacy policy posted by the developer, which may include additional information on their privacy practices.
Twitch may use third-party Web analytics services in connection with the Twitch Services. These service providers use a variety of tracking technologies such as cookies to analyze how users use the Twitch Services. The information collected (described above in “Automatically Collected Information”) may be shared with or collected directly by these services and processed to evaluate your use of the Twitch Services.
Twitch may also work with third-party ad networks, advertisers, and advertising analytics providers to target (and measure the performance of) ads to you both on and off the Twitch Services. We may share with these third parties (or they may directly collect) data such as cookie and mobile ad identifiers in order to engage in advertising activity (including to understand how you respond to advertisements and to serve relevant ads). Twitch also works with third parties to serve ads to you off Twitch’s Services. When we do so, we may share information such as your email address or resettable device identifier for that advertising partner to “match” to other information that may have about you.
Advertisers on Twitch, or representatives or service providers working on their behalf (“Twitch Advertisers”), sometimes use technology to serve ads that appear on our services directly to your device. They automatically receive certain data, such as your IP address, when this happens. They may also use cookies (or similar technologies) to measure the effectiveness of their ads and to personalize ad content. This Privacy Notice does not apply to, and we cannot control the tracking technologies and activities of Twitch Advertisers and you should consult their respective privacy policies. For more information about Twitch Advertisers and similar entities that use these technologies, and to opt-out of their advertising practices, go to our Privacy Choices page.
Do Not Track (“DNT”) is a privacy preference that users can set in certain web browsers. DNT is a way for users to inform websites and services that they do not want certain information about their webpage visits collected over time and across websites or online services. We are committed to providing you with meaningful choices about the information collected on our website for third-party purposes, and that is why we provide the Network Advertising Initiative, Your Online Choices and the Digital Advertising Alliance opt-out links above. However, Twitch does not recognize or respond to browser-initiated DNT signals.
Twitch uses a variety of managerial, technical, and physical measures to protect the integrity and security of your information. These measures may vary based on the sensitivity of your information. However, no security precautions or systems can be completely secure. We cannot ensure or warrant the security of any information you transmit to Twitch, and you do so at your own risk. We cannot guarantee that such information may not be accessed, disclosed, altered, or destroyed by breach of any of our physical, technical, or managerial safeguards.
Twitch maintains data related to your usage of Twitch for as long as it is required in order to fulfill the relevant purposes described in this Privacy Notice, as may be required (or permitted) by law such as for tax and accounting purposes, or as otherwise communicated to you. Once you have asked us to close your account and delete your profile information, we will delete all information that we are not required or permitted to retain by law.
IF YOU ARE UNDER 13 YEARS OF AGE, THEN YOU MAY NOT USE OR ACCESS THE TWITCH SERVICES AT ANY TIME OR IN ANY MANNER.
Protecting the privacy of young children is especially important. For that reason, Twitch does not knowingly collect or maintain personal information (as defined by the United States Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act) from persons under 13 years-of-age. If Twitch learns that personal information of persons under 13 has been collected on or through the Twitch Services, Twitch will take appropriate steps to delete this information.
If you are the parent or legal guardian of a child under 13 who has created an account on the Twitch Services, then please Contact Support under the ‘Privacy Questions’ category to have that child’s account terminated and personal information deleted.
For residents of countries and regions where the processing of personal information is based on consent, Twitch will not knowingly engage in that processing for users under the age of consent established by applicable data protection law. If we learn that we are engaged in that processing with such users, we will halt such processing and will take reasonable measures to promptly remove applicable information from our records
In the event that Twitch, or some or all assets related to the Twitch Services are acquired by or merged with a third-party entity or in connection with a contemplated change-of-ownership transaction, we reserve the right, in any of these circumstances, to transfer or assign the information that we have collected from users as part of that merger, acquisition, sale, or other change-of-control event, including in the course of diligence.
Information collected by Twitch may be stored and processed in your region, in the United States (for instance in our major data centers), or in any other country where Twitch or its affiliates, subsidiaries, partners, or service providers are located or maintain facilities. If we provide any information about you to any such entities, we will take appropriate measures to ensure such companies protect your information adequately in accordance with this Privacy Notice and applicable law.
Twitch reserves the right to change, modify, add, or remove portions of this Privacy Notice at any time (for example to reflect updates to the Twitch Services or to reflect changes in the law). Please check this Privacy Notice periodically for those changes. Your continued use of the Twitch Services after the posting of changes constitutes your binding acceptance of such changes.
We will not materially change our policies and practices to make them less protective of personal information collected in the past under a prior version of the Privacy Notice without the consent of affected individuals.
Please contact Twitch with any questions or comments about this Privacy Notice at 350 Bush Street, 2nd Floor, San Francisco, CA 94104, visit the Twitch Support Portal under the ‘Privacy Questions’ category, or send an email to privacy@twitch.tv. Our Data Protection Officer (DPO) can also be contacted at privacy@twitch.tv. We will respond to your inquiry within 30 days of its receipt. If you are a California resident, you may have information emailed to you by sending a letter to the foregoing address with your email address and your request for information.
Twitch UK Limited has been designated by Twitch Interactive, Inc. as its representative under the UK General Data Protection Regulation (UK GDPR) for residents of the UK. Please contact Twitch UK with any questions (including questions about your rights) or comments about this Privacy Notice at Twitch UK Limited, 1 New Oxford Street WC1A 1BA, UK, visit the Twitch Support Portal under the ‘Privacy Questions’ category, or send an email to privacy@twitch.tv.
Visit the California Privacy Disclosures page to read additional disclosures required under the California Consumer Privacy Act and other California laws.
Visit the Japan Privacy Disclosures page to read additional disclosures required under the Act on Protection of Personal Information.
Visit the Republic of Korea Privacy Disclosures page to read additional disclosures required under the Personal Information Protection Act.