Privacy policy

01Who we are

This website is operated by WalktheChat Limited (“WalktheChat”, “we”, “us”). We are a digital agency that helps brands understand, plan and operate in the Chinese market, with offices in Shanghai, Beijing and Chengdu.

WalktheChat Limited is the controller of the personal information described in this policy. For any question about it, or to exercise your rights, write to info@walkthechat.com.

This policy covers walkthechat.com. It does not cover the work we do for clients, which is governed by our agreements with them, or the websites and platforms we link to.

02Information we collect

Information you give us

• Contact form. Your name, professional email address, company name, website and, if you write one, your message.
• Newsletter. Your email address when you subscribe.
• Job applications. Whatever you send to our recruitment address: usually your name, contact details, CV and cover letter.
• Correspondence. The content of emails and messages you exchange with us.

Information collected automatically

• Server logs. Like most websites, our hosting provider records your IP address, browser type, the page requested, the referring page and the date and time of each request.
• Usage data. Our analytics tools record how the site is used: pages viewed, approximate location derived from your IP address (country or city), device and browser type, and interactions such as clicks and scrolling. See Cookies and analytics.

We do not ask for, and ask you not to send us, sensitive information such as health data, government identifiers or payment card details through this website.

03How we use it

We use personal information for the purposes below. Where the law requires a legal basis, such as the GDPR in the European Economic Area and the United Kingdom, we rely on the basis shown.

Answering enquiries and preparing proposals

Our legitimate interest in responding to you, or steps taken at your request before entering a contract.

Sending the newsletter

Your consent, which you can withdraw at any time with the unsubscribe link in every email.

Reviewing job applications

Steps taken at your request before entering a contract, and our legitimate interest in recruiting.

Understanding and improving the website

Our legitimate interest in knowing which pages are useful and fixing what does not work.

Keeping the website secure

Our legitimate interest in preventing abuse, spam and attacks.

Meeting legal obligations

Compliance with laws that apply to us.

We do not use your information for automated decisions that have legal or similarly significant effects on you, and we do not sell personal information.

04Cookies and analytics

Cookies are small files a website stores in your browser. This website does not use advertising cookies, and we do not need a cookie for you to read it.

• Google Analytics 4 measures visits. We run it with analytics and advertising storage switched off, so it does not set analytics cookies in your browser; it sends Google limited, cookieless signals about page views.
• Microsoft Clarity shows us how pages are used through aggregated heatmaps and replays of clicks, scrolling and navigation. Text typed into forms is masked. Depending on your region and settings, Clarity may store a cookie or similar identifier to recognise a returning browser.
• Cloudflare Turnstile protects the contact form from automated submissions. When a page with the form loads, Cloudflare receives your IP address and technical details about your browser and device, and uses them only to tell people from bots. It does not use them for advertising.
• Embedded content. Some articles include videos or images served by other companies, for example YouTube or WeChat. Those companies may receive your IP address and set their own cookies when the content loads.

You can block or delete cookies in your browser settings, and you can prevent analytics scripts from running with a content blocker. The website reads the same without them; the contact form needs Turnstile to send, so if you block it, write to us by email instead.

05Who we share it with

We share personal information only with companies that help us run this website and our business, and only as far as they need it to do so:

Hostinger

Hosts the website and keeps its server logs.

Brevo

Stores newsletter subscribers and sends the newsletter.

Google

Provides Google Analytics.

Microsoft

Provides Clarity.

Cloudflare

Provides Turnstile, the spam check on the contact form.

Email and office software providers

Deliver and store the messages you send us.

We may also disclose information to professional advisers, to authorities when the law requires it, to protect our rights or the safety of others, and to a buyer or successor if our business is merged, sold or reorganised. Our group offices may access enquiries in order to answer them.

06International transfers

We work from China and use service providers in other countries, including in the European Union and the United States. Your information may therefore be processed in a country other than your own, where data protection rules may differ.

When we transfer personal information out of the European Economic Area, the United Kingdom or another region that restricts transfers, we rely on a recognised safeguard, such as an adequacy decision or standard contractual clauses. You can ask us for details.

07How long we keep it

We keep personal information only as long as we need it for the purpose it was collected for:

• Enquiries for as long as the conversation or the resulting relationship lasts, and a reasonable period afterwards. The contact form sends your message to us by email; it is not stored in the website’s database.
• Newsletter subscriptions until you unsubscribe.
• Job applications for the length of the hiring process and a reasonable period afterwards, unless you ask us to delete them sooner or agree that we keep them for future roles.
• Logs and analytics data for the retention periods set by the providers above.

We may keep information longer where the law requires it or to establish, exercise or defend legal claims.

08Your rights

Depending on where you live, you may have the right to:

• ask for a copy of the personal information we hold about you;
• ask us to correct or delete it;
• ask us to restrict how we use it, or object to our use of it;
• receive it in a portable format;
• withdraw consent you have given, without affecting what was done before;
• complain to the data protection authority where you live or work.

To exercise any of these rights, write to info@walkthechat.com. We may need to confirm your identity first, and we answer within the time the applicable law sets. To stop receiving the newsletter, use the unsubscribe link at the foot of any issue.

09Security

We take reasonable technical and organisational measures to protect personal information against loss, misuse and unauthorised access. The website is served over an encrypted connection (HTTPS). No method of transmission or storage is completely secure, so we cannot guarantee absolute security.

10Children

This website is intended for businesses and professionals. It is not directed at children, and we do not knowingly collect personal information from anyone under 16. If you believe a child has given us information, contact us and we will delete it.

11Links to other websites

Our articles and pages link to websites and platforms we do not operate. This policy does not apply to them; read their own privacy policies before giving them information.

12Changes to this policy

We may update this policy as the website or the law changes. The date at the top of the page shows when it was last revised. If a change is significant, we will say so prominently on this page.

13Contact

WalktheChat Limited
Email: info@walkthechat.com