Chess Com
- The documents do not say whether your data trains AI.
- Your data is used for ads and shared with data brokers.
- Data is shared with partners and affiliates; you can opt out.
- Staff may review your content; the policy does not describe an opt-out.
Broad tracking and ad sales, a lasting license on your games, auto-renew with no refunds.
Agent Trust Hub uses AI and may make mistakes. Review reports and confirm their contents before relying on them.
- Shares data with data brokers
Collected
Account info, games, device and ads IDs, approximate location, and extra ID/face data for prize events.
Read the exact line
Privacy policy
“Internet or other electronic activity information: information that your browser sends to us whenever you visit our Service or information we receive when you access the Service through a mobile device”
Training
They run the site, personalize it, market to you, and use your data for targeted ads.
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Privacy policy
“Advertising and Marketing: To deliver advertising to you based on your visits to the Services and other information. To provide you with marketing communications”
Sharing
Service vendors see a lot; ad networks and data brokers get IDs and browsing for ads unless you opt out.
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Privacy policy
“These categories of Personal Information are sold to or shared for cross-context behavioral advertising or targeted advertising with advertising networks, data brokers and other companies that facilitate or engage in digital advertising.”
Kept
Canceling does not erase you; permanent delete is a separate step and some public game data can stay.
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Privacy policy
“Please bear in mind that after an Account is canceled, the PI and other Account information is not deleted permanently. We store the User information to allow the User to reopen their Account at any time.”
Controls
You can edit your profile, use My Data to access or delete, and click to opt out of ad sales.
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Privacy policy
“You can request to permanently delete your PI by clicking on “Delete” on the “My Data” section of the Services.”
Fine print
Subscriptions auto-renew with no refunds; they can close you anytime.
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Terms of service
“Please note that we do not provide full or partial refunds for prepaid sums.”
Expand “Read the exact line” to see the source alongside the explanation.
What you can turn off
The controls and opt-outs their own documents describe, and where they say to find them.
Opt out of ad sales and targeted ads
Privacy Policy Notice at Collection: “please click here” (and cookie settings / Your ad choices links)
Permanently delete your personal information
Settings → My Data → Delete
Cancel a subscription before renewal
Account area on the Home Page, or Member Support; App Store/Google Play if you bought there
If a switch is not where they say, the deletion request above still applies.
Line by line
The lines that matter most, worst first.
They treat some of your IDs and browsing as a sale to ad companies and data brokers so ads can follow you.
Read the exact line
Privacy policy
“These categories of Personal Information are sold to or shared for cross-context behavioral advertising or targeted advertising with advertising networks, data brokers and other companies that facilitate or engage in digital advertising.”
For example, an ad network could use your mobile ads ID from Chess.com to show you chess ads on other apps.
They can keep using, changing, and what you post even after you delete your account.
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Terms of service
“you grant us a worldwide, , , , transferable, non-exclusive license, with right of , to use, distribute, reproduce, modify, adapt, publish, translate, transmit, publicly perform and publicly display any Content”
For example, a comment or profile photo you posted could still be reused or licensed after you leave.
Your games and some profile bits are public and anyone can copy or even sell them.
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Terms of service
“This record of your UGA is publicly available and can be accessed, used, and monetized by anyone for any number of purposes, including, but not limited to, publishing images of your UGA in for example, blogs, videos, social media posts, game collections, or creating NFTs.”
For example, someone could put your username and a game GIF into a YouTube video or an NFT.
They can shut your account at any time for any reason and do not have to warn you first.
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Terms of service
“We may, with or without cause, and without prior notice, immediately terminate, suspend, disable or delete your account, any associated email address, and access to the Service.”
For example, you could lose access overnight and not get a chance to export your games first.
If you cancel a paid plan, they keep the money you already paid for that period.
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Terms of service
“Please note that we do not provide full or partial refunds for prepaid sums.”
For example, canceling a yearly membership the day after renewal still costs you the full year.
If they get sued because of how you used the site, you may have to pay their legal bills.
Read the exact line
Terms of service
“you agree to , defend, and hold Chess.com harmless from and against all losses, expenses, damages, and costs, including reasonable attorneys' fees, resulting from: (a) your breach or alleged breach of these Terms; (b) your use of the Services”
For example, a fight over something you posted could leave you covering Chess.com’s lawyer costs.
Prize or monitored events can involve your face and ID photos, which they keep until you ask to delete them.
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Privacy policy
“We collect facial images and fingerprints that may be on ID cards in order to identify Users who participate in competitions we host.”
For example, a webcam check during a tournament can store your face with their identity vendor.
Hitting cancel does not wipe you; they keep your data so you can come back.
Read the exact line
Privacy policy
“Please bear in mind that after an Account is canceled, the PI and other Account information is not deleted permanently. We store the User information to allow the User to reopen their Account at any time.”
For example, your email and history can sit on their servers after you think you left.
They offer a click-through opt-out from selling or sharing data for targeted ads.
Read the exact line
Privacy policy
“To opt out of such sales and sharing and the use of your personal information for targeted advertising, please click here.”
For example, you can use that link so they stop sharing your ads ID with brokers.
Words to know
Legal words from the lines above, in plain English.
- personal data
- Any information that is about you or can be linked to you, from your name to your phone's ID. For example, your email, your IP address and the list of apps on your phone are all personal data.
- targeted advertising
- Ads chosen for you based on what you have done across other apps and websites, not just this one. For example, you look at shoes in one app and see shoe ads in a totally different app the next day.
- data broker
- A company that buys, collects and resells information about people, usually without ever meeting them. For example, your phone number and shopping habits can be sold as part of a list to a company you never heard of.
- worldwide license
- You let the company use your content anywhere on earth, usually for free and for as long as it likes. For example, a video you post can be shown in ads in any country without asking you again.
- royalty-free
- The company can use your content without ever paying you for it. For example, your photo can appear in the app's ads and you get nothing.
- perpetual
- Lasting forever, with no end date. For example, a perpetual licence means the company can keep using your video years after you leave.
- irrevocable
- Cannot be taken back or cancelled once given, even if you change your mind or delete your account. For example, an irrevocable licence to your photos means you cannot withdraw it later.
- sublicensable
- The company can pass its rights over your content on to other companies without asking you. For example, an app can let an advertiser or a partner reuse your video under the licence you gave.
- indemnify
- You promise to pay the company's legal costs and losses if your use of the service gets it sued. For example, if you post a song you do not own and the label sues the app, you owe the app's lawyer bills.
- biometric
- Measurements of your body that identify you, like your face, fingerprint or voice. For example, a selfie used to unlock the app or a voice recording matched to you.
- opt out
- Something is on by default and stays on until you find the setting and turn it off. For example, your chats may be used for training unless you go into settings and switch it off.
How we got here · grade F · score 26/100 · 15 of 15 policy answers backed by a verified quote · 1 not stated
What does the app collect beyond what it needs to work?
They collect account data plus usage, device and ads IDs, approximate location, inferences, and extra ID, face, and screen data for prize events.
Does it record your voice, face or body, and what happens to that?
For competitions they collect facial images and ID fingerprints, may use AI on images, and share them with identity and cloud vendors.
Are your chats and uploads used to train AI models, and is that off by default?
Not stated in the documents.
Can employees or contractors read your conversations, and when?
They may pre-screen content and read or disclose information for rules, fraud, support, and legal reasons, with no review opt-out.
Are you profiled or tracked for advertising?
They sell or share identifiers and activity with ad networks and data brokers for targeted ads, with an opt-out.
Do they sell or share your data, and can you opt out?
They say they may sell or share some data for ads and offer a click-to-opt-out; other sharing is with service providers.
What rights do they take over what you type and what the AI makes?
You keep ownership in name, but they take a perpetual sublicensable license and your game records are public by default.
How long do they keep your data after you delete it, and can you delete it in the app?
Cancel keeps your data for reopen; My Data delete is offered, but public stats and some fair-play usernames can remain.
Does it build a lasting memory or profile of you, and can you see, edit or turn it off?
They keep ratings, usage patterns, and inferences about you; the policy does not describe turning that profile off.
Do they commit to basic security, and have they leaked data?
They say they use reasonable physical, technical, and administrative security measures, without naming audits.
Is there a real age gate, and are teens protected?
You must be at least 13; they do not ask for birth date and rely on your statement, with parental consent if you are not of legal age.
Will they tell you when the rules change, and is the policy specific?
Both documents are dated. Privacy promises notice of material changes; terms can take effect on posting and continued use.
Can they close your account without warning, and can you get your data out first?
They can close you without notice, delete account files, keep some fair-play data, and say you get no refund.
If something goes wrong, who pays?
The service is as-is, liability is capped at what you paid in 12 months, and you must indemnify them for your use.
Do subscriptions renew on their own, and can you get a refund?
Paid memberships auto-renew unless you cancel first, and they do not give full or partial refunds on prepaid time.
The privacy policy is 5,840 words at a professional or legal expert level (Flesch reading ease 25.1); the terms are 11,921 words at a college graduate level.
