Privacy Policy
This policy explains what personal information NRI Affairs collects when you read the site, subscribe to our newsletter, write to us, leave a comment or download our Media Literacy Toolkit; why we collect it; who we share it with; and how you can ask about it. It applies to www.nriaffairs.com and to the emails we send.
Effective date: 4 October 2026.
Who we are
NRI Affairs is an independent news publication based in Australia. Our website address is https://www.nriaffairs.com. Questions about this policy go to the Editor at contact@nriaffairs.com with Privacy in the subject line.
We handle personal information in line with the Australian Privacy Principles in the Privacy Act 1988 (Cth), whether or not the Act requires it of us. The Act treats acts done in the course of journalism differently. This policy covers the information we collect from you as a reader and user of the site, not our newsgathering.
What we collect, and why
Reading the site
Like most websites, our servers record each request: your IP address, the page requested, the time, the browser and device you use, and the page you came from. Our host, Hostinger, keeps these logs for a limited period for security and troubleshooting. Images are delivered through Optimole, an image delivery network, which sees the same details when your browser fetches an image.
We use Google Analytics, set up through Google’s Site Kit, to see which pages are read, how readers arrive, and the approximate location, device and browser they use. What we see is aggregated. We do not use analytics data to identify individuals.
Advertising
We carry advertising served by Google (AdSense). Google and its partners use cookies to serve ads based on your prior visits to this site and to other sites. These ads are personalised unless you opt out. You can opt out of personalised advertising at Google’s Ads Settings, and from many other vendors’ advertising cookies at aboutads.info or youronlinechoices.com.au. Google explains how it uses data from sites that use its services at policies.google.com/technologies/partner-sites. Advertisers do not receive personal information from us.
The Friday Brief newsletter
When you subscribe we store your email address, the date you signed up and your subscription status. We use it to send the newsletter and for nothing else. Our newsletter system records whether an email was opened and which links were clicked; we use this for statistics. Every email carries an unsubscribe link. When you unsubscribe, your address is marked unsubscribed so that we do not email you again.
Contact and advertising forms
The forms on the Contact and Advertise pages ask for your name, email address, a subject and a message. Messages sent through our forms are emailed to the desk; they are not stored on the website. We use what you send to answer you, to act on a tip or correction, or to respond to an advertising enquiry.
Comments
If you leave a comment we collect what you type into the form, your IP address and your browser details, which help us identify spam. Comments are held for moderation before publication. If avatars are shown beside comments, a hashed version of your email address is sent to the Gravatar service to check for a profile picture. Your name and comment are public once approved. Your email address is not.
Media Literacy Toolkit
To download the toolkit from our Media Literacy page you enter an email address. We store it in the website’s own database so the desk can see who has requested the toolkit. Those addresses are not added to the newsletter list and are not used for any other mailing. The Media Literacy page also remembers the language you chose, in your browser’s local storage, so the page opens in that language next time.
Embedded content
Articles may embed videos or posts from third-party sites such as YouTube and X. Embedded content behaves as if you had visited that site, which may set its own cookies and collect data under its own policy.
Who we share information with
We do not sell personal information. We share it only with the service providers who run parts of the site for us, and only for that purpose:
- Hosting — Hostinger, which stores the site and its server logs.
- Analytics — Google (Google Analytics, via Site Kit).
- Advertising — Google (AdSense).
- Image delivery — Optimole.
The Friday Brief and the site’s other email are sent from our own website, not through an outside email service. We may also disclose information where the law requires it.
Cookies and local storage
Cookies are small files stored by your browser; local storage works in a similar way. This site sets, or allows, the following.
| Cookie or storage | Set by | Purpose | Lasts |
|---|---|---|---|
| comment_author_*, comment_author_email_*, comment_author_url_* | WordPress | Remembers your name, email and website if you tick the box when commenting | About one year |
| wordpress_*, wp-settings-* | WordPress | Used only by people who log in to publish or edit | Session, up to two weeks |
| _ga, _ga_* | Google Analytics | Distinguishes visitors and sessions for aggregate statistics | Up to two years |
| IDE, __gads, __gpi and others listed by Google | Google advertising | Serves and measures advertising, including personalised ads | Set by Google; see Google’s cookie list |
| Media Literacy language choice (browser local storage) | NRI Affairs | Remembers the language you chose on the Media Literacy page | No expiry; cleared when you clear your browser data |
You can block or delete cookies and local storage in your browser settings. If you block them, parts of the site, such as commenting, may not work as intended.
How long we keep information
- Server logs — kept by our host for a limited period, for security and troubleshooting.
- Analytics — we use the retention period set in our Google Analytics account.
- Newsletter — until you unsubscribe. Unsubscribed addresses are marked unsubscribed so that we do not email you again.
- Contact and advertising messages — in the desk’s mailbox for as long as needed to deal with them.
- Comments — kept with the article indefinitely, so the discussion around a piece stays intact.
- Media Literacy Toolkit emails — until you ask us to delete yours.
Your rights
You can ask us what personal information we hold about you, ask us to correct it, or ask us to delete it. Write to contact@nriaffairs.com with Privacy in the subject line. We will respond within 30 days and may need to check that you are the person concerned. A comment you made can be deleted on request. You can leave the newsletter at any time using the link in any issue.
If you are not satisfied with our response, you can complain to the Office of the Australian Information Commissioner (OAIC) at oaic.gov.au.
Overseas disclosure
Some of our service providers store or process information outside Australia, in the United States and the European Union. When information goes overseas we rely on the provider’s own privacy commitments and take reasonable steps to make sure it is handled in a way consistent with the Australian Privacy Principles.
Children
This site is not directed at children and we do not knowingly collect personal information from them. If you believe a child has given us information, write to us and we will delete it.
Security and data breaches
The site is served over HTTPS and administrative access is restricted to the people who run it. No system is perfectly secure. If a breach is likely to cause serious harm, we will tell the people affected and the OAIC, in line with the Notifiable Data Breaches scheme.
Changes to this policy
We will update this page when our practices change, and change the effective date at the top when we do.
Contact
Privacy questions, access requests and complaints go to the Editor at contact@nriaffairs.com, subject line Privacy.