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Privacy policy

Last updated: 8 October 2026

PubHubs is built to know as little about you as possible. This policy explains which data we do process, why, how long we keep it and what your rights are.

Who we are

PubHubs is provided by the Privacy by Design Foundation (Stichting Privacy by Design). We are responsible for the processing of personal data described in this policy.

Stichting Privacy by Design
Toernooiveld 212
6525 EC Nijmegen
The Netherlands
Chamber of Commerce (KvK) 67144128

Questions about privacy, or a request about your data? Email contact@pubhubs.net.

What this policy covers

This policy applies to:

  • this website, www.pubhubs.net;
  • the PubHubs central login: the web app at app.pubhubs.net and the central servers behind it;
  • the PubHubs apps for Android and iOS.

This policy does not apply to:

  • Hubs. Each Hub is run by its own organisation, such as a municipality, school or association. That organisation is responsible for what happens in its Hub: messages, files, Rooms and who is a member of them. Before you enter a Hub, you are shown that Hub’s rules. Questions about your data in a Hub go to the organisation that runs it.
  • Yivi. You log in with the Yivi app. Yivi is a separate service with its own privacy policy.

How PubHubs handles your identity

When you register, you use Yivi to show your email address and mobile phone number. This tells us that every account belongs to a real, unique person. You then receive a PubHubs card in your Yivi app, which you use to log in from then on.

Your email address and phone number are not shared with Hubs. Each Hub knows you only by a pseudonym of its own, which is different for every Hub. This means Hubs cannot recognise you across Hubs. The central servers are designed so that no single server knows both who you are and which Hubs you visit.

What data we process

On this website

  • The website sets no cookies and uses no analytics or tracking services. All scripts and fonts are served from our own server.
  • Like any web server, the server receives your IP address, the time and the page requested. This is needed to show you the page and is only kept in server logs (see Retention).
  • The Discover Hubs page fetches the list of Hubs from our central server, and the icons and banners of Hubs from those Hubs’ own servers. Those Hubs therefore see your IP address.

When you register and log in

For each account we keep:

  • a random account number and the date you registered;
  • the number of your PubHubs card. This is a random number that we generate ourselves;
  • your email address and phone number, only as an encrypted fingerprint (a so-called keyed hash). This lets us see that an account exists and prevent one person from creating several accounts, but the address or number itself is not stored;
  • an encrypted pseudonym, from which your pseudonym for each Hub is derived;
  • your account key, encrypted once for each way you can log in, so that each of them gives you access again. These copies are stored under a hash of your email address or card number, not under the address itself;
  • your settings (such as language, theme and your pinned Hubs). These are encrypted on your device with your account key. We cannot read them;
  • whether your account has been excluded, should that ever be necessary.

We do not use your email address or phone number to contact you.

On your device

The web app and the apps keep data on your own device, so that you stay logged in and PubHubs works quickly: your login session, your account key, an encrypted copy of your settings, and for each Hub the messages and Rooms you have already loaded. When you log out, your session and account key are removed. PubHubs does not use cookies.

In the apps

  • The apps contain no third-party analytics, advertising or crash reporting services.
  • The apps do not use push notifications through Google or Apple. Notifications only appear while the app is open.
  • On iOS the app asks permission for the camera, microphone, photos and the local network. These are only used when you choose to, for example to share a photo or join a video call.

When you email us

When you email us, we use your email address and the content of your message to answer your question.

What Hubs and other participants can see

When you enter a Hub, that Hub only receives your pseudonym for that Hub. What you then do in the Hub, such as sending messages, sharing files and choosing a nickname or profile picture, is the responsibility of the organisation that runs the Hub. Please keep in mind that:

  • messages in a Hub are not end-to-end encrypted, so the Hub’s administrator can technically read them;
  • other participants in a Hub can see your nickname and profile picture and can look you up;
  • data you show with Yivi inside a Hub may become visible to others. This happens, for example, when you enter a secured Room that requires an attribute, when you sign a message, or when a moderator asks you to show something. Yivi always shows you first which data you are about to share, and you can decline.
  • Creating your account, logging you in and giving you access to Hubs: this is needed to provide the service you register for (performance of a contract, Article 6(1)(b) GDPR).
  • Making sure each account belongs to a unique person, and preventing abuse: legitimate interest (Article 6(1)(f) GDPR). A network where people can be held accountable for their behaviour is at the core of PubHubs.
  • Security and troubleshooting through server logs: legitimate interest (Article 6(1)(f) GDPR).
  • Answering your questions: legitimate interest (Article 6(1)(f) GDPR).

We do not use your data for advertising or profiling, and we do not sell it.

Who receives your data

  • Radboud University manages the servers in Nijmegen on which the central login and this website run. It only processes data on our behalf.
  • Hubs only receive your pseudonym for that Hub, plus whatever you share there yourself.
  • Vimeo plays the introduction video in the web app. The video is only loaded when you click play. Vimeo is a US company and then sees your IP address.

We do not give your data to anyone else, unless the law requires us to.

How long we keep your data

  • We keep account data for as long as your account exists. If you ask us to delete your account, we erase it.
  • We keep server logs no longer than needed for security and troubleshooting.
  • We keep emails for as long as needed to handle your question.

Security

Connections to PubHubs are always encrypted. Your settings are encrypted on your own device before they reach us, and we only keep your email address and phone number as an encrypted fingerprint. The PubHubs source code is public, so anyone can check how it works.

Your rights

You have the right to access your data, to have it corrected or deleted, to restrict its processing, to object, and to take your data with you. To do so, email contact@pubhubs.net. We respond within one month. Because we keep so little about you, we may ask you to log in or use Yivi to show that the account is yours.

For your data in a Hub, contact the organisation that runs the Hub.

If you disagree with how we handle your data, you can file a complaint with the Dutch Data Protection Authority (Autoriteit Persoonsgegevens).

Changes

We may update this policy, for example when PubHubs changes. The date at the top shows when it was last changed.