Your privacy, in plain language

What information does Secret Noël collect?

Only what a gift exchange needs. When a group is created and people join it, Secret Noël stores the information that the organizer and the participants enter:

• The group: its name, its type (family, office or friends), the optional exchange date, the budget, themes and options
• Participants' names, as the organizer types them
• Email addresses, only when someone provides one, since email is optional
• Households and exclusions set by the organizer
• Who has confirmed their participation, and the result of the draw
• Wish lists: ideas, photos, store links, prices and the short preference answers
• Anonymous messages exchanged between participants

Why is this information needed?

Each piece of data has one job. Names make the draw possible. Email addresses send invitations, reminders and lost links. Households and exclusions shape the draw. Wish lists and messages help people choose a good gift while staying anonymous.

There is no account, so there is no username or password to store. Email addresses are used only for your Secret Santa: the invitation, reminders before the exchange and recovering a lost personal link. Nothing is sold.

Where is the data stored?

Group data is stored on the Secret Noël server, and everything travelling between your phone or computer and the server goes through an encrypted HTTPS connection.

The draw itself runs on the server, not in your browser. That is precisely what lets the results stay hidden from everyone, including the organizer: no device ever receives the full list of pairs.

Who can see what?

Because the organizer never sees the pairs, the organizer can take part like everyone else. Here is how a blind draw keeps the organizer in the dark.

• The organizer sees the group setup: participants, households, exclusions, budget and options. The organizer never sees the result of the draw.
• Each participant sees who they drew, and only that.
• Nobody can see who drew them, ever.
• Anonymous messages travel between a participant and their giftee or their Secret Santa without revealing the sender, and a message is refused if it contains a name or signature, an email, a link, a phone number, a social media handle or a swear word.
• Wish lists are meant to be read by people in your group, starting with your Secret Santa, so do not put anything on them you would not want the group to see.

How long is data kept?

Not long. Each group is deleted automatically 30 days after its exchange date. If no date was set, it is deleted 120 days after it was created. The organizer can also delete the whole group, with all of its data, at any time, without waiting.

Deleting a group removes its participants, email addresses, wish lists, photos, messages and draw results.

Does Secret Noël use cookies or tracking?

There are no tracking cookies. Secret Noël keeps anonymous visit statistics, such as how many times a page was viewed. No names, email addresses or IP addresses are kept in those statistics, and they are not used to follow you from one site to another.

How can I delete my data or ask a question?

The organizer can delete the group at any time, which removes everything for everyone. If you are a participant and would like your information removed sooner, ask your organizer, or write to privacy@ludogenie.com and tell us which group it concerns.

Secret Noël is offered by Ludo Genie. You can learn more on our About page.