# How privacy and consent work with zero-party data Genuin collects zero-party data only from explicit user actions and OS-level consent, activates it by context instead of identity, and keeps it brand-owned and never sold. Genuin follows privacy by design: the safeguards are built into the system, not added afterward. From SDK architecture to ad activation, four principles hold across the whole zero-party data lifecycle: - People decide what to share. - You control how the data is used. - Advertisers work from context, not identity. - Genuin acts as a processor, not a data owner. These principles keep you compliant and trusted as you scale across regions and regulations. For what zero-party data is, see [Zero-party data for brands](https://begenuin.com/developers/browse-by-products/control/what-is-zero-party-data-for-brands). For where privacy rules sit among Genuin's products, see [Control: what it does and where to start](https://begenuin.com/developers/browse-by-products/control/control-what-it-does-and-where-to-start). ## How Genuin collects zero-party data ### Explicit user actions only Zero-party data comes only from what people choose to do: - Selecting interests or topics - Joining communities or groups - Posting, sparking (liking), sharing, or searching content - Completing profile details voluntarily There's no background surveillance and no cross-site tracking. ### OS-level consent for sensitive permissions For sensitive access, Genuin requires explicit consent at the operating system level: - Camera - Microphone - Photo gallery - Location data - Contacts - Speech recognition If a person denies a permission, Genuin doesn't collect that data, with no fallbacks and no workarounds. For how the SDK requests each permission, see [Request camera, microphone, and photo library permissions](https://begenuin.com/developers/developer-resources/sdk/request-camera-microphone-and-photo-library-permissions). ### Clear permission boundaries People always know: - Why the data is requested - What experience it enables - Where it's used: community, feed, content, or ads This transparency prevents consent fatigue and builds confidence. ## What Genuin doesn't do Genuin doesn't rely on: - Third-party cookies - Fingerprinting - Probabilistic identity graphs - Cross-platform user stitching People aren't followed across the open web, and Genuin builds no shadow profiles. Zero-party data collected in your ecosystem is never sold, never pooled across brands, and never shared with advertisers at the user level. Your data stays brand-owned. For how Genuin keeps viewing history and identity apart, see [Privacy and VPPA: the two-channel data flow](https://begenuin.com/developers/get-started/any-business/privacy-and-vppa-the-two-channel-data-flow). ## Contextual activation instead of personal targeting Genuin doesn't target people. Advertisers align with where content appears, not who the user is: - Communities - Groups - Content categories - Engagement environments When ads run through ad exchanges, Genuin passes IAB-defined contextual macros, such as: - Content category - Keywords - Language - Media rating - Content type and length - Producer or community context These signals describe the environment, not the individual, so ads stay relevant and people stay private. For every macro and its values, see [how zero-party data powers your social experience and media revenue](https://begenuin.com/developers/browse-by-products/control/how-zero-party-data-powers-brand-communities-and-media-revenue-without-compromising-consumer-trust#contextual-programmatic-advertising). ## Feed personalization without profiling Genuin personalizes feeds from non-intrusive signals: - Recency of content - Declared user interests - Engagement patterns - Collective popularity signals Genuin doesn't predict behavior across unrelated contexts or score individuals opaquely. For how contextual feeds rank videos, see [How contextual feeds choose videos](https://begenuin.com/developers/developer-resources/guides/how-do-i-configure-and-display-contextual-feeds-as-onsite-embeds). ## Brand control and human oversight You keep full control over: - What data is collected - Where it's used - How long it's retained - Which placements activate monetization That lines up with your internal data governance, legal review, and regional compliance needs. AI supports moderation, ranking, and relevance, but people stay in control of: - Editorial approvals - Community governance - Brand safety rules - Placement configurations AI operates within the guardrails you define. Learn more about [moderation and brand safety for publishers](https://begenuin.com/developers/browse-by-products/control/how-are-moderation-and-brand-safety-applied-for-destination-brands-publishers-and-the-genuin-ecosystem) and [Supervised Intelligence Autonomy and Approvals](https://begenuin.com/developers/browse-by-products/supervised-intelligence/supervised-intelligence-autonomy-and-approvals). ## Compliance principles Genuin's zero-party data framework follows these principles: - Consent-first data collection - Purpose limitation - Data minimization - User transparency - Brand ownership of data Because people share data voluntarily and Genuin activates it by context, you reduce your regulatory and reputational risk. For account isolation, encryption, and regional storage, see [Security, data residency, and compliance](https://begenuin.com/developers/get-started/any-business/security-data-residency-and-compliance). ## See also - [Privacy and VPPA: the two-channel data flow](https://begenuin.com/developers/get-started/any-business/privacy-and-vppa-the-two-channel-data-flow) - [Zero-party data for brands](https://begenuin.com/developers/browse-by-products/control/what-is-zero-party-data-for-brands) - [How zero-party data powers your social experience and media revenue](https://begenuin.com/developers/browse-by-products/control/how-zero-party-data-powers-brand-communities-and-media-revenue-without-compromising-consumer-trust) - [Request camera, microphone, and photo library permissions](https://begenuin.com/developers/developer-resources/sdk/request-camera-microphone-and-photo-library-permissions) - [Security, data residency, and compliance](https://begenuin.com/developers/get-started/any-business/security-data-residency-and-compliance)