Privacy Policy

Privacy Policy

Effective date: October 14, 2026

This policy explains what personal information forebranch.com collects, how it is used, and the choices you have. We have tried to keep it short and in plain English.

1. Who we are

forebranch.com is owned and operated by Joseph Cox, doing business as ForeBranch (“ForeBranch,” “we,” “us”). ForeBranch is a genealogy plugin for WordPress. The free version is distributed on WordPress.org. ForeBranch Pro is sold through Freemius, Inc., our authorized reseller and the merchant of record for Pro purchases.

Questions? Email josephlylecox@gmail.com.

2. What we collect

  • Forum account information. If you register for or use our community forum (powered by wpForo), we store your username, email address, password (stored in hashed form), profile details you choose to add, and the posts and replies you write.
  • IP addresses. The forum records the IP address used to create an account and to post, so we can fight spam and abuse.
  • Purchase-related information. When you buy ForeBranch Pro, Freemius handles payment. Freemius sends us your email address, name (if provided), and license and subscription details. We do not receive your full card or PayPal account details.
  • Support emails. If you email us, we keep your message and email address so we can reply.
  • Basic server logs. Like most websites, our web host may record standard technical information (such as IP address, browser type, and pages requested) in server logs for security and troubleshooting.

The website itself does not use analytics tools, advertising pixels, or social media widgets. Our fonts are hosted on our own server, so loading a page does not contact Google Fonts.

3. Cookies

forebranch.com sets only first-party cookies that are needed for the site to work. We do not use advertising or analytics cookies on forebranch.com.

Cookie Set by Purpose Duration
wpforo_browser_timezone forebranch.com (wpForo) Remembers your time zone so forum post times display correctly. Session or short-term
wordpress_test_cookie forebranch.com (WordPress) Checks that your browser accepts cookies before you log in. Session
wordpress_[hash], wordpress_sec_[hash] forebranch.com (WordPress) Keeps you securely logged in. Session, or up to 14 days if you choose “Remember Me”
wordpress_logged_in_[hash] forebranch.com (WordPress) Indicates that you are logged in. Session, or up to 14 days if you choose “Remember Me”
wp-settings-[id], wp-settings-time-[id] forebranch.com (WordPress) Remembers display preferences for logged-in users. Up to 1 year

Google reCAPTCHA on our login and registration forms, and the Freemius checkout, may set their own cookies. See the next section.

4. Third-party services

  • Google reCAPTCHA. We use reCAPTCHA on the login and registration forms only, to block bots. reCAPTCHA collects hardware and software information (such as device and browser data and your IP address) and sends it to Google. Its use is subject to the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service.
  • Freemius (checkout and licensing). Pro purchases happen on checkout.freemius.com, a page run by Freemius, Inc., our reseller and merchant of record. Freemius collects your billing and account details and is responsible for processing the sale, taxes, invoices, and licenses. See the Freemius Privacy Policy.
  • Stripe and PayPal (payments). The Freemius checkout uses Stripe and PayPal to process payments. They receive your payment details directly. See the Stripe Privacy Policy and the PayPal Privacy Statement.
  • Google Analytics and Google Ads (on the Freemius checkout only). The Freemius checkout page loads Google Analytics, Google Tag Manager, and Google Ads/DoubleClick tags, which may set cookies such as _ga and _gcl_au. These are controlled by Freemius under its own policies, not by us. See the Freemius Privacy Policy, the Google Privacy Policy, and How Google uses information from sites that use its services.

About the plugin (not this website). The ForeBranch plugin runs on our customers’ own WordPress sites, not on forebranch.com. If a site owner turns on certain optional features, the plugin on that site may contact Wikipedia (for reference lookups), MapLibre and OpenFreeMap (for maps), or an AI provider chosen by the site owner (for AI-generated biographies). Those requests come from the customer’s site, and the site owner is responsible for disclosing them to their own visitors. ForeBranch does not receive that data.

5. How we use your information

  • To run the forum and your account, including showing your posts.
  • To prevent spam, fraud, and abuse (for example, using IP addresses and reCAPTCHA).
  • To create your forum account after a Pro purchase and to grant or remove access to Pro-only forum areas based on your license status (see below).
  • To answer support requests and send important messages about your account or license.
  • To keep the website secure and working, and to meet legal obligations.

Automatic forum account for Pro buyers. When you buy ForeBranch Pro, Freemius notifies our site automatically. We use the email address from your purchase to create a forum account for you (if you do not already have one) and to grant Pro forum access. If your license is cancelled, refunded, or expires, the same process may remove Pro forum access.

6. Sharing

We do not sell your personal information. We share it only:

  • With service providers that help us run the site, such as our web host and Google reCAPTCHA;
  • With Freemius, as needed to handle purchases, licenses, and related support;
  • When required by law, or to protect the rights, safety, or security of ForeBranch, our users, or others;
  • As part of a sale or transfer of the ForeBranch business, in which case this policy will continue to apply to your information.

Forum posts and your username are public to other visitors.

7. Retention

  • Forum accounts and posts: kept until you ask us to delete your account. We may keep posts that others have quoted or replied to, but we can anonymize them.
  • IP addresses in the forum: kept with the related account or post for spam control.
  • Purchase and license records: kept for as long as needed to support your license and meet tax, accounting, and legal requirements. Freemius keeps its own records under its policy.
  • Support emails: kept as long as needed to help you and for a reasonable time afterward.

8. Your rights

California residents (CCPA/CPRA)

If you live in California, you have the right to:

  • Know what personal information we collect, use, and disclose;
  • Access a copy of your personal information;
  • Correct inaccurate personal information;
  • Delete your personal information, subject to legal exceptions;
  • Opt out of the sale or sharing of your personal information; and
  • Not be discriminated against for using these rights.

We do not sell or share personal information for cross-context behavioral advertising. We do not knowingly sell or share the personal information of consumers under 16. We do not use sensitive personal information for purposes that would require offering a right to limit its use.

In the past 12 months, we collected these categories: identifiers (such as name, email, username, and IP address), commercial information (license and purchase records), internet activity (forum posts and basic server logs), and sensitive information limited to account login credentials. We disclosed these for business purposes only to the service providers and partners listed above.

You or an authorized agent can make a request by emailing josephlylecox@gmail.com. We will verify your request, usually by confirming control of the email address on file.

EU, UK, and similar regions (GDPR)

If you are in the European Economic Area, the United Kingdom, or a region with similar laws, you have the right to access, correct, delete, restrict, or object to the use of your personal data, to data portability, and to withdraw consent at any time. You may also complain to your local data protection authority.

Our legal bases are: contract (running your forum account and Pro access), legitimate interests (security, spam prevention, and support), legal obligation (tax and accounting records), and consent where we ask for it. Your information is processed in the United States.

To use any of these rights, email josephlylecox@gmail.com. We will respond within the time required by law.

9. Children

forebranch.com is not directed to children under 13 (or under 16 in the EEA and UK), and we do not knowingly collect their personal information. If you believe a child has given us personal information, contact us and we will delete it.

10. Security

We use reasonable safeguards to protect your information, such as encrypted (HTTPS) connections, hashed passwords, and keeping software up to date. No method of transmission or storage is completely secure, so we cannot guarantee absolute security.

11. Changes to this policy

We may update this policy from time to time. When we do, we will change the effective date above, and for significant changes we may give additional notice on the site or by email.

12. Contact

Joseph Cox, ForeBranch
Email: josephlylecox@gmail.com

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