Privacy & Data Protection

Libya Herald respects the privacy of its customers and readers. Libya Herald is an online news and media service. This Privacy & Data Protection Policy explains how we collect, use, store, share and protect personal data when you visit our website, create an account, subscribe, take part in interactive features (such as comments), or contact us.

For the purpose of  this policy:

“Libya Herald”, “we”, “us”, or “our” refers to Libya Herald and its legal owner/operator, Sharikat M’arafat Libya (Know Libya), registered in Libya, with its principal address at Hay Demashque, Al Hadba Al Khadra, Tripoli.

“Personal data” means information that identifies you (directly or indirectly).

“Aggregate data” is combined information about site usage that does not identify you as an individual.

Libya Herald is a news and media platform. We are committed to handling personal data responsibly, transparently, and in a manner that protects the trust of our readers and the integrity of our platform.

For the purposes of applicable data protection laws, Libya Herald is generally the data controller of personal data collected through our website and related services. This means we determine how and why personal data is processed.

Where we use third-party service providers to support our website, analytics, email delivery, hosting, payment processing, advertising, or other services, those providers may process personal data on our behalf or, in some cases, as independent controllers under their own privacy policies.

1. Personal data we may collect

  • Account and subscription details: name, email address, login credentials, subscription status, and preferences.

  • Enquiries and correspondence: information you provide when you contact us (for example via a contact form), including message content and any attachments you send.

  • Interactive features: information you provide when you comment, post, respond to surveys, or otherwise participate in community features.

  • Corporate licences: information required to administer organisational access and to report usage to the licence holder in line with the licence terms.

  • Technical and usage data: IP address, device identifiers, operating system, browser type, referral source, pages viewed, and time spent on the site.

2. How we use your personal data

  • Provide the website and its features, including registrations, subscriptions and account administration.

  • Respond to enquiries and provide customer support.

  • Enable participation in interactive features (for example comments) where you choose to use them.

  • Send service messages (for example account or subscription notices) and, where you have opted in, marketing communications about our products and services.

  • Monitor and enforce compliance with our Terms and Conditions and Copyright Policy, and help keep our services safe and secure.

  • Prepare usage reporting for corporate licence holders, where applicable.

3. Cookies, analytics and aggregate information

We use cookies and similar technologies to collect technical and usage information to operate the site, understand how it is used, improve performance and content, and measure the effectiveness of our advertising and marketing. Where we use information in aggregate form, it is combined so that individual users are not identified.

Cookies may be used for the following purposes:

  • Essential Cookies: These are required for the website to function properly, such as security, page loading, account login, and basic site operation.

  • Analytics Cookies: These help us understand how visitors use LibyaHerald, including which pages are viewed, how long users spend on the site, and how readers find our content.

  • Advertising and Measurement Cookies: These may be used to measure advertising performance, manage ad delivery, understand campaign reach, and provide aggregated reporting to advertisers.

  • Preference Cookies: These may remember user settings, preferences, or consent choices.

Where required by applicable law, we will request your consent before using non-essential cookies or similar technologies. You may also manage cookies through your browser settings or any cookie preference tool provided on our website.

4. Lawful bases for processing

We process personal data only where we have a lawful basis. Depending on the context, this may include: (a) contract (to provide subscriptions, accounts or services you request), (b) consent (for example for certain marketing), (c) legitimate interests (to run and improve our news service, keep it secure, and understand how it is used), and (d) legal obligation (to comply with applicable laws and lawful requests).

5. Who we share personal data with

We do not disclose personal data to third parties except as described below:

  • Service providers (processors) we use to operate the site and deliver services (for example hosting, analytics, customer support systems, email delivery, payment processing). They process personal data on our instructions and only as needed to provide their services.

  • Advertisers and measurement partners (where applicable) who may receive aggregated reporting, and may receive limited technical identifiers through cookies or similar technologies to measure performance.

  • Corporate licence holders where your access is provided through an organisation, in which case we may share usage information as required by the corporate licence agreement.

  • Legal and regulatory disclosures where required by law, court order, or where necessary to protect our rights, users, or the public.

  • Business transfers: if we sell or reorganise our business, personal data may be shared with prospective or actual buyers and their advisers, subject to appropriate safeguards.

6. International transfers

Your personal data may be processed in countries other than where you live. Where personal data is transferred internationally, we take appropriate steps to protect it. These may include using reputable service providers, contractual safeguards, standard data protection clauses, data processing agreements, or other lawful transfer mechanisms required by applicable law.

7. Data retention

We keep personal data only for as long as necessary for the purposes described in this policy, including to provide the service, meet legal or accounting obligations, resolve disputes, and enforce agreements. When data is no longer needed, we delete it or anonymise it.

8. Security

We use appropriate technical and organisational measures designed to protect personal data against unauthorised access, alteration, disclosure or destruction. No online service can be completely secure, but we work to maintain safeguards appropriate to the nature of the data and the risks involved.

9. Your privacy rights 

Depending on where you live, you may have the right to request access to your personal data, correction of inaccurate data, deletion of your data, restriction of processing, objection to processing, data portability, and withdrawal of consent where processing is based on consent.

Some rights may be limited by law, including where processing is necessary for legal compliance, security, dispute resolution, journalistic purposes, freedom of expression, source protection, or the rights of others.

If you wish to request access, correct inaccurate data, request deletion, restrict or object to the processing, data portability, and/or withdraw consent, please use our Contact Us form. You can also opt out of marketing at any time by using an unsubscribe option in emails or newsletters or Contact Us form. We may need to verify your identity before responding.

EU GDPR rights include the rights to be informed, access, rectification, erasure, and other rights over personal data; California privacy rights may include rights to know, delete, correct, opt out of certain sale/sharing practices, and non-discrimination for exercising privacy rights.

10. Complaints

If you have concerns about how we handle personal data, please Contact us so we can try to resolve the issue. If you are located in the UK or EEA, you may also have the right to lodge a complaint with your local data protection authority.

11. Children’s policy

Libya Herald is a general news and media service and is not directed at children under the age of 13.

We do not knowingly collect personal data from children under 13. If we become aware that we have collected personal data from a child under 13 without appropriate consent, we will take steps to delete it. If you believe a child has provided personal data to us, please contact us.

The US Children’s Online Privacy Protection Rule applies to operators of websites or online services directed to children under 13, or operators with actual knowledge that they collect personal information from children under 13.

12. Third-Party Links and Services

Our website may contain links to third-party websites, services, videos, social media platforms, advertisers, or embedded content.

We are not responsible for the privacy practices, security, or content of third-party websites or services. If you interact with third-party content or leave our website, your information may be governed by the privacy policy of that third party.

We encourage you to review third-party privacy policies before providing personal data.

13. Editorial and Journalistic Activities

As a news organisation, Libya Herald may process personal data for journalistic, editorial, public interest, archival, research, or freedom of expression purposes.

This may include information contained in news reports, interviews, public statements, official records, press releases, public sources, submitted materials, or communications with sources.

Where applicable law provides exemptions or special rules for journalistic purposes, Libya Herald may rely on those provisions to protect editorial independence, freedom of expression, source confidentiality, legal rights, and the public interest.

14. Changes to this policy

We may update this policy from time to time to reflect changes to our practices, technology or legal requirements. The “Last updated” date at the top of this policy shows when it was most recently revised.

15. Contact us

If you have questions about this policy or our data practices, please contact us using the Contact Us form on our website.