Privacy notice

Last updated 30 October 2026

What we do with your data

For each situation, we say:

what we collect
why we use it
the lawful basis we rely on
how long we keep it
who sees it

Lawful bases

The law only lets us use your data if we have a reason it accepts. These reasons are called "lawful bases". We mainly use 4 of them.

Lawful basis	What it means
Contract	we need your data to give you what you asked for
Consent	you said yes, and you can change your mind at any time
Legitimate interests	we have a fair business reason that your rights do not outweigh – we name the reason each time
Legal obligation	the law says we must

In an emergency, we may also use your data to protect someone's life.

In every situation, we also use your data to prevent fraud and abuse, and to deal with legal claims, insurance and professional advice. We rely on legitimate interests: keeping our services safe and protecting our business. We keep accounts and tax records because the law says we must.

When we rely on legitimate interests, you can object. Tell us and we will stop, unless we have a strong reason that outweighs yours.

How long we keep your data

We only keep your data for as long as we need it. Each situation below says how long.

Some data is kept "as long as we keep the event's record". We keep a record of each event for as long as it is useful as a public record of the programme, and review it every 5 years.

When we delete your data, copies can stay in our backups until they are overwritten, which takes up to 90 days. We only use backups to restore our systems if something goes wrong. We do not search them or use them for anything else. We may keep data longer if the law requires it, or if we need it for a legal claim.

Our full list is on its own page. How long we keep your data

Sensitive information

Some booking questions ask about dietary or access needs. Your answers can show something about your health or religion. We ask only when the event needs to know.

We use your dietary or access needs only with your explicit consent. This means you clearly say yes. We use them only to look after you at that event, and we delete them as soon as the event has taken place.

Data we get from others

We also get data about you from:

a colleague who books a place for you
a client or partner we run an event with
public sources, such as official websites, when we plan which public officials to invite
LinkedIn, when you fill in one of our forms there
RocketReach and Apollo, 2 services that collect people's work contact details from public sources

We use RocketReach and Apollo when we look for the right person to invite or contact.

We tell you where we got your details the first time we contact you.

If you give us someone else's details, such as when you book for a colleague, tell them about this notice.

If you do not give us your data

You do not have to give us your data. But we need your name and email to take a booking, and some events need more, such as your organisation. We mark the questions you can skip.

Tell us if your details change. You can update many of them yourself in Manage my booking or your Forum Connect profile, or email us.

Booking and attending an event

Part	Booking and attending an event
What we collect	your name, email, organisation, job title, country and answers to the event's booking questions your billing details, if you pay your check-in, your badge and, at some events, the sessions you go to your colleagues' names and contact details, if you book for them a scrambled code made from your device's settings, when you book
Why	to take your booking and payment, send your ticket and reminders, and let you manage your booking to decide whether we can offer you a place, if your booking needs our approval to print your badge, check you in, count how many people came and send you follow-up such as recordings or slides to spot fraudulent or duplicate bookings
Lawful basis	contract, for your own booking legitimate interests, if a colleague booked you – our interest is running the event you were booked onto consent, for dietary or access needs legal obligation, for invoices and tax records legitimate interests, for the device check when you book – our interest is preventing fraud
How long	a booking you did not complete: 24 hours your dietary and access needs: deleted as soon as the event has taken place your delegate record and booking history: 3 years after your last booking or activity with us invoices and payments: 6 years, because tax law requires it the device check when you book: 12 months after the event you booked for ends
Who sees it	our team, and the companies that run our systems Stripe, for card payments the venue, for its security checks, and printers, for badges and delegate lists the client, if we run the event for a client – see Events we run for clients other delegates, only if you agree to appear on the delegate list

If you book for colleagues, we email each of them about their place.

Paying

Stripe, a payment company, takes card payments for us. It checks payments for fraud, and may decline a payment it thinks is risky. We never see your full card number.

For some events we run for clients, we send invoices using Xero, our accounting software.

Your ticket and badge

We email your ticket and, if you choose, add it to Apple Wallet or Google Wallet. Your badge shows your name, job title and organisation. Its code lets us check you in.

If you add your ticket to Apple Wallet or Google Wallet, the pass shows your name, organisation, the event's name, place and dates, and the code we use to check you in. Google receives these details to create a Google Wallet pass.

Device check when you book

When you book, we make a code from your device's settings. We keep only a scrambled version of it (a salted hash), never the code itself. We use it to spot fraudulent or duplicate bookings, and to stop people we have banned from booking again. We rely on legitimate interests – our interest is preventing fraud. We delete it 12 months after the event you booked for ends. Our cookie policy explains this and our other device checks. Cookie policy

Events we run for clients

We run some events for other organisations, such as businesses, trade associations and public bodies. The booking page tells you when an event is run for a client, and links to the client's own privacy notice.

At these events, who is responsible for your data depends on what is being done with it.

The client is responsible when it decides how your details are used. We act on its instructions. This covers:

who can book, and what the booking form asks
who gets the list of bookings, and what the client does with it
the delegate list, if the event has one – your name only appears if you agree

We are responsible for the systems and services we provide, and for anything we do for our own reasons. This covers:

taking your payment, if you pay us – see Paying
running and securing our booking system and Forum Connect, including dealing with reports
keeping our accounts and dealing with legal claims
our own marketing, which we only send if you agree

Contact the client about how it uses your details. Contact us about payments, Forum Connect or our systems. If you are not sure, contact us and we will point you to the right place.

Filming and photos

We may film, stream and photograph public sessions. We may publish them on our websites and social media. Signs at the event tell you where this happens.

Tell a member of staff before or during the session if you do not want to appear. To have a published photo or video of you removed, email dpo@forum-europe.com. We will remove it from our websites and social media where we can.

We keep published photos and video as long as we keep the event's record.

Live captions

Some sessions have live captions and a transcript you can read in Forum Connect. Deepgram makes them automatically as people speak. They are not checked, so they can contain mistakes. A line names the speaker only when they are a speaker in the programme. At some events, AI can translate the transcript. We keep captions, transcripts and translations of public sessions as long as we keep the event's record.

Chatham House sessions

Some sessions follow the Chatham House Rule: you may use what you hear, but must not say who said it or where they work. No recording is kept. If we write a summary, speech is turned into text only to write it, then deleted.

Any summary names no one. The room is told when this is happening.

Forum Connect

Forum Connect is our app and website for delegates. Not every event uses it – the event's website tells you if it does.

Part	Forum Connect
What we collect	your profile and photo your questions, poll answers and messages your meetings and the people you connect with how you use the app, if you allow analytics whether you attend in person or online which sponsor pages you open, and your messages with a sponsor's team which Proceedings files you open, and when, with a scrambled code for your device a code for your phone, so we can send you notifications crash reports from the app, which do not include your name or account
Why	to run the features you use and help you meet people to keep Forum Connect safe and deal with reports to report what an audience thought, in totals only to improve the app, if you allow analytics
Lawful basis	contract, for the features you use legitimate interests, for showing your profile and suggesting people to meet – our interest is helping delegates meet, a main reason people come to our events legitimate interests, for safety checks and reports – our interest is keeping Forum Connect safe legitimate interests, for audience totals – our interest is reporting on our events consent, for suggestions from your questions and votes, and for analytics legitimate interests, for crash reports and checking the app at sign-in – our interest is keeping Forum Connect working and secure legitimate interests, for the Proceedings reading record – our interest is protecting Proceedings from being shared without permission
How long	your profile, messages and connections, who asked a question and how you voted, and messages someone reported: 30 days after the event ends your name on a meeting record, and reports of abuse: 12 months questions and poll totals without names: as long as we keep the event's record which Proceedings files you opened, and when, with a scrambled code for your device: 12 months crash reports from iPhones: 90 days
Who sees it	other delegates, speakers and sponsors at the event see your profile the people you message or meet a small number of our staff – see Questions and polls everyone working on a sponsor's stand, if you message its team

You sign in with the email you booked with. We email you a link or a code.

Your profile

At most events, your profile is shown to other delegates at the event by default. It shows your name, organisation and job title, and anything else you add, such as a photo or your interests. You can hide your profile or stop meeting requests at any time.

Your profile also shows whether you are attending in person or online. People attending online cannot ask to meet, or be asked. In the app, this setting is called Show me on the attendee list. It is separate from the delegate list you can agree to when you book. If you hide your profile, you cannot see other delegates' profiles either. Other delegates' apps keep a copy of the list so it works offline, and your profile is removed from it when you hide it.

Badge-only events

Some events use badge-only networking. At these events:

no one can browse or search the list of delegates, and we do not suggest people to meet
before you connect, other delegates only see your name and organisation, where you appear in the app
when someone scans your badge, or you scan theirs, you are connected straight away, and we tell you who scanned you
once you are connected, you both see each other's profile, and can message and ask to meet each other
if you hide your profile, scanning your badge does not connect you
you can remove a connection or block someone at any time

Anyone who sees your badge can read what is printed on it.

Questions and polls

The room cannot see who asked a question, unless you choose to show your name. We keep a private record of who asked. Only a small number of our staff can see it, and only to deal with abuse or a legal request.

Poll answers are counted together. We only show results for a group when it has at least 5 people.

Messages

Someone you are not connected with can send you one message with a request to connect. You can accept or ignore it. You can also message a sponsor's team from its page in Forum Connect. Everyone working on that sponsor's stand can see the conversation. You can block or report anyone. AI does not check your messages.

We do not routinely read your messages. Our team only looks at them when someone reports one, to deal with a security problem, or when the law requires it. If someone reports a message, we see that message and the 5 before it.

Do not put sensitive information in a question or message, such as details about your health, religion or political views.

Notifications

Notifications show names, times and places, such as a table or meeting point. They never show the words of a message or a question. You choose which ones you get in Notifications. On iPhone, you can also turn on a Live Activity on the Lock Screen for event days. When you sign out, we stop sending notifications to that phone.

On your phone

Forum Connect keeps an encrypted copy of your event on your phone, including the programme, people, your meetings and your messages, so it works without a connection. The evening before your event, it downloads the latest version over Wi-Fi. On iPhone, you can find sessions, speakers, sponsors and your meetings in your phone's search. All of this stays on your phone, and is removed when you sign out.

Crash reports and checks at sign-in

If the app crashes or freezes, it sends a report about the app and your phone's model. It uses a random code made for the app on your phone, not your name or account. On iPhone, reports come to our own systems, and we keep them for 90 days. On Android, Google's Firebase Crashlytics collects them for us. When you sign in, the app checks with Apple, or on Android may check with Google, that it is our real app.

Proceedings

Proceedings are the slides, papers and other files for an event. When you open one, we record which file you opened and when, with a scrambled code for your device. We do not keep your IP address, country or browser with it. We keep this record for 12 months. Each copy has a hidden code that links it to that record, so we can trace a copy shared without permission. Your name is not printed on the pages. Organisers see how many people opened each file, not who.

Speakers

Part	Speakers
What we collect	your name, job title, organisation, biography and photo your contact details what we need for your travel, hotel and session
Why	to publish your profile on the event's website, agenda and app, and in event materials to plan your session, and book your travel or hotel if we do this for you to film, stream and publish your session, unless it follows the Chatham House Rule
Lawful basis	contract, for arranging your session, travel and hotel legitimate interests, for publishing your profile and session – our interest is promoting the event and keeping a public record of its programme explicit consent, for dietary or access needs – we use them only to look after you at the event
How long	your speaker profile: as long as we keep the event's record your contact details: 3 years after your last event or contact with us your travel and hotel details: 6 months after the event your dietary and access needs: deleted as soon as the event has taken place your passport details: deleted once the trip is booked and paid for receipts and invoices for travel we paid for: 6 years, because tax law requires it, kept as finance records
Who sees it	anyone who visits the event's website or uses its app airlines, rail companies and hotels, only what they need

We ask you to check these details before we publish them. You can ask us to remove your photo or biography from future use at any time.

Sponsors and exhibitors

This section covers delegates whose badges a sponsor scans, and people who work for a sponsor or exhibitor.

Part	Sponsors and exhibitors
What we collect	if you are a delegate: which sponsor scanned your badge, and whether you shared your details if you are a delegate: which sponsor pages you open, and your messages with a sponsor's team if you work for a sponsor: your name and organisation, the badges you scan and the notes you add in Forum Connect
Why	to let sponsors meet delegates at the event to share a delegate's email address and job title with a sponsor only when the delegate agrees
Lawful basis	consent, for sharing your email address and job title with a sponsor legitimate interests, for recording which sponsor staff scanned a badge – our interest is running the sponsorship we agreed with the sponsor
How long	your yes to a sponsor: until you change your mind badge scans and notes: 30 days after the event ends, like other Forum Connect data our records of sponsors: as long as we work with you, then 3 years
Who sees it	the sponsor sees what is printed on your badge sponsors see totals of visitors, never names, unless you share your details the sponsor gets your email address and job title only if you agree on your phone, in Forum Connect, when they scan your badge

A sponsor can download the details of people who agreed to share them, with its own notes about them.

Once you say yes, the sponsor can use your details under its own privacy notice. If you change your mind, we remove your details from our systems. You need to ask the sponsor to delete its own copy.

Public officials

We run events about public policy. To plan who to invite, we keep a record of public officials and policy-makers. These include members of parliament, government officials and staff of public bodies.

Part	Public officials
What we collect	your name, job title, organisation and official contact details views you have clearly made public yourself
Why	to invite people to our events and understand which topics matter to them
Lawful basis	legitimate interests – our interest is inviting the right people to our events on public policy
How long	2 years after we last contacted you, or 2 years after we added you if we have never contacted you
Who sees it	our team, and the companies that run our systems

We use information about your public role, mostly from public sources and from services that collect work contact details. The law lets us use views you have clearly made public yourself. These include official websites, public registers, the news, RocketReach and Apollo. We may use AI to find and summarise it.

We tell you where we got your details the first time we contact you. You can ask us to stop at any time, and we will.

Members' areas

Part	Members' areas
What we collect	your membership and payments, and your sign-in what you read and when, with a scrambled code for your device – we do not keep your internet protocol (IP) address, country or browser with it
Why	to give you access, run the membership and keep it secure to stop one membership being shared by many people, using a code linked to your device
Lawful basis	contract, if you subscribe yourself legitimate interests, if your organisation subscribes – our interest is running the membership it paid for legitimate interests, for stopping sharing – our interest is protecting our memberships
How long	your membership record: as long as your organisation is a member, then 3 years what you read and when: 12 months the code for your device: 12 months after you last use it, or straight away when you remove the device or we delete your account other security logs: 30 days
Who sees it	our team, and the companies that run our systems

When you sign in, we save a code linked to your device. We keep only a scrambled version of it. We delete it 12 months after you last use that device, or straight away when you remove the device or we delete your account. Our cookie policy explains it.

Clients and suppliers

Part	Clients and suppliers
What we collect	your name and work contact details our dealings with you
Why	to work with you, send and pay invoices, and keep our accounts
Lawful basis	contract, if you have a contract with us yourself legitimate interests, if you work for a client, sponsor or supplier – our interest is running our business with your organisation legal obligation, for invoices and tax records
How long	as long as we work with you, then 3 years invoices and payments: 6 years
Who sees it	our team HubSpot, our customer records system, and Xero, our accounting software

If we record a call with you, see Our own calls.

Our websites and newsletters

Part	Our websites and newsletters
What we collect	the pages you visit, your browser and device, and your IP address your message, contact details and our reply, if you send an enquiry your name, email and the topics you choose, if you sign up to a newsletter what you fill in on our forms on LinkedIn
Why	to run our websites and keep them secure to answer your enquiries to send you the newsletters you chose with your consent, to see how people use our websites and show you adverts for our events
Lawful basis	legitimate interests, for running our websites – our interest is keeping them working and safe legitimate interests, for enquiries – our interest is replying to people who contact us consent, for newsletters, our LinkedIn forms, and analytics, advertising and preferences cookies
How long	enquiries: 1 year after we reply newsletter subscriptions: until you unsubscribe security logs: 30 days
Who sees it	our team, and the companies that run our websites Google and Microsoft, only if you agree to analytics or advertising cookies

Cookies

We use some cookies because our websites need them to work, such as to keep you signed in.

We only use analytics, advertising and preferences cookies if you agree to them. You can change your choice at any time using the cookie settings link at the bottom of every page.

Our cookie policy lists every cookie we use, what it does and when it expires. Cookie policy

Our own calls

Part	Our own calls
What we collect	what was said on the call, including names, as a recording, transcript and notes
Why	to keep a record of the call for our team to find common themes across calls, and let our leadership team search the notes to understand our clients and events
Lawful basis	legitimate interests – our interest is keeping an accurate record of our work and understanding our clients and events
How long	the audio: until we have checked the notes the transcript and notes: 3 years after the call, or for sales calls, 3 years after our last call with you
Who sees it	our team Notion, the online workspace where our team keeps its notes

If we want to record a call with you, we ask you first. If you say no, we do not record it.

We use Notion AI to turn the recording into a transcript and notes for our team. Feedback to the wider team only shows themes and totals, not what one person said.

Questions about your data?

Use our contact form, or email dpo@forum-europe.com.