Privacy Policy

Website Name: THSST | The High School Sports Today

Website URL: https://www.thehsstoday.com/

Last Updated: August 1, 2026

Welcome to THSST | The High School Sports Today (“we,” “us,” “our,” or “the Website”). We are committed to protecting your personal information and your right to privacy. This Privacy Policy explains what information we collect, how we use it, who we share it with, and what rights you have in relation to it when you visit our website at https://www.thehsstoday.com/.

THSST | The High School Sports Today is a news and content platform dedicated to covering high school sports across the United States. We provide original reporting, schedules, scores, athlete features, and community-driven sports coverage for students, parents, coaches, and fans.

By accessing or using our website, you acknowledge that you have read and understood this Privacy Policy. If you do not agree with the terms described here, please discontinue use of our website. We encourage you to review this policy periodically, as it may be updated from time to time to reflect changes in our practices or applicable law.

This Privacy Policy is intended to be transparent and straightforward. We have made every effort to write it in plain language so that you can clearly understand how your data is handled. Nothing in this policy constitutes legal advice or creates a legally binding compliance certification of any kind.

Information We Collect

We collect information about you in several ways when you visit our website. The types of information we may collect include the following:

Information You Provide Voluntarily: If you contact us through a contact form, submit a news tip, subscribe to a newsletter, or otherwise interact with features that require your input, you may provide us with your name, email address, and any other information you choose to share.
Automatically Collected Information: When you visit our website, certain technical information is collected automatically by our servers and third-party services. This includes your IP address, browser type and version, operating system, referring URLs, pages visited, time spent on pages, and the date and time of your visit.
Device Information: We may collect information about the device you use to access our website, including device type, screen resolution, and connection type.
Cookie and Tracking Data: We and our third-party partners collect data through cookies, web beacons, pixel tags, and similar tracking technologies. This data helps us understand user behavior, serve relevant advertisements, and improve the overall user experience.
Aggregated and Non-Identifiable Data: We may collect and use aggregated, anonymized data that does not identify any individual user. This type of data is used for statistical analysis, reporting, and website improvement purposes.

We do not intentionally collect sensitive personal information such as Social Security numbers, financial account details, or health-related data through our website.

How We Use Your Information

We use the information we collect for a variety of purposes that are consistent with operating a professional news website. Specifically, we may use your information to:

Operate, maintain, and improve our website and its content.
Respond to your inquiries, comments, feedback, or questions if you contact us.
Send you newsletters or updates if you have opted in to receive them.
Monitor and analyze usage patterns, trends, and website performance through analytics tools.
Serve relevant advertising through Google AdSense and other advertising partners.
Detect, prevent, and address technical issues, errors, or fraudulent activity.
Comply with applicable laws, regulations, and legal obligations.
Protect the rights, property, and safety of our website, our users, and the public.

We process your information only for legitimate purposes and to the extent necessary to provide you with a functional, informative, and safe browsing experience. We do not sell your personal information to third parties for monetary compensation.

Cookies and Tracking Technologies

Cookies are small text files that are placed on your device by a website when you visit it. They help websites remember your preferences, understand how you navigate the site, and serve you relevant content and advertisements. Our website uses both first-party cookies (set by us) and third-party cookies (set by our partners).

The types of cookies we and our partners use include:

Essential Cookies: These cookies are necessary for the basic functioning of our website. Without them, certain features may not work properly.
Analytics Cookies: These cookies collect data about how visitors use our site, such as which pages are visited most often and how users move through the site. This information helps us improve our website.
Advertising Cookies: These cookies are used by advertising networks, including Google AdSense, to deliver ads that are relevant to your interests based on your browsing behavior across websites.
Functional Cookies: These cookies allow our website to remember choices you make and provide enhanced, more personalized features.
Performance Cookies: These cookies help us assess the performance of our website and identify areas for improvement.

You have the right to control and manage cookies through your browser settings. Most browsers allow you to refuse or delete cookies. However, please be aware that disabling certain cookies may affect the functionality of our website and your overall browsing experience. To learn how to manage cookies in your browser, please refer to your browser’s help documentation.

You may also opt out of interest-based advertising by visiting the Digital Advertising Alliance opt-out page or the Network Advertising Initiative opt-out page.

Google AdSense and Advertising Cookies

Our website uses Google AdSense, an advertising service provided by Google LLC, to display advertisements. Google AdSense uses cookies and other tracking technologies to serve ads based on your prior visits to our website and other websites on the internet.

Google’s use of advertising cookies enables it and its partners to serve ads to you based on your visit to our site and other sites across the internet. This is known as interest-based or personalized advertising. The data collected through these cookies may include your browsing history, search history, location data, and other online activity.

Google AdSense may also use cookies to measure the effectiveness of advertisements, prevent fraudulent activity, and improve the advertising experience. These cookies are set by Google and governed by Google’s own Privacy Policy, which you can review at https://policies.google.com/privacy.

You can opt out of personalized advertising by visiting Google’s Ads Settings. Alternatively, you can visit www.aboutads.info/choices/ to opt out of interest-based advertising from participating third-party advertisers.

Please note that opting out of personalized ads does not mean you will stop seeing advertisements on our website. You will still see ads, but they may be less relevant to your interests. We do not have control over the specific ads served by Google or the data Google collects through its advertising cookies.

Google Analytics

We use Google Analytics, a web analytics service provided by Google LLC, to help us understand how visitors engage with our website. Google Analytics collects information such as how users arrive at our site, which pages they visit, how long they stay, and what actions they take. This information is used in aggregate to help us improve our content and user experience.

Google Analytics uses cookies to collect this data. The information generated by these cookies about your use of our website is transmitted to and stored by Google on servers in the United States and other countries. Google may use this information to evaluate your use of our website, compile reports on website activity, and provide other services relating to website activity and internet usage.

We have enabled features such as demographic and interest reporting in Google Analytics to better understand our audience as a whole. This data is reviewed in aggregated, non-identifiable form and is not used to personally identify any individual visitor.

You can opt out of Google Analytics tracking by installing the Google Analytics Opt-out Browser Add-on, which prevents the Google Analytics JavaScript from sharing information about your visits with Google Analytics. Google’s use of data collected through Analytics is also subject to Google’s Privacy Policy.

Third-Party Services

We may integrate third-party services and tools into our website to enhance its functionality and user experience. These third parties may independently collect information about you when you interact with their features embedded on our site. Such services may include, but are not limited to:

Social media sharing buttons and embedded feeds (e.g., Twitter/X, Facebook, Instagram, YouTube)
Video hosting platforms for embedded sports video content
Newsletter or email marketing platforms if applicable
Content delivery networks (CDNs) for faster page loading
Comment or community engagement tools

Each third-party service operates under its own privacy policy and data practices. We encourage you to review the privacy policies of any third-party services you interact with through our website. We are not responsible for the privacy practices or content of third-party services.

Third-Party Links

Our website may contain links to other websites, including news sources, sports organizations, schools, leagues, and other external platforms. These links are provided for your convenience and informational purposes only. When you click on a third-party link, you will be directed to a website that is not operated by us.

We have no control over the content, privacy practices, or data collection activities of third-party websites. We strongly encourage you to review the privacy policy of every website you visit. The inclusion of a link on our website does not imply our endorsement of the linked site or any association with its operators.

We are not responsible for any information you submit to or any privacy practices of third-party websites accessed through links on our site.

Data Sharing and Disclosure

We do not sell, rent, or trade your personal information to third parties for their marketing purposes. However, we may share your information in the following limited circumstances:

With Service Providers: We may share information with trusted third-party vendors and service providers who assist us in operating our website, analyzing data, serving advertisements, or providing other services on our behalf. These parties are required to handle your information in a manner consistent with this Privacy Policy.
With Advertising Partners: We share data with advertising partners such as Google AdSense as described in Section 5 of this policy. These partners may use cookies and tracking technologies to serve personalized ads.
For Legal Compliance: We may disclose your information if required to do so by law, court order, or governmental authority, or if we believe in good faith that such disclosure is necessary to protect our legal rights, prevent fraud, or ensure the safety of our users or the public.
In Business Transfers: In the event of a merger, acquisition, sale of assets, or other business transition, your information may be transferred as part of that transaction. We will notify you of any such change through a prominent notice on our website.
With Your Consent: We may share your information with other parties with your explicit consent.

Data Retention

We retain the personal information we collect for as long as is reasonably necessary to fulfill the purposes outlined in this Privacy Policy, unless a longer retention period is required or permitted by law. Automatically collected data such as server logs and analytics data is typically retained for a limited period as determined by the applicable service provider.

If you have subscribed to our newsletter or contacted us through a form, we retain your contact information until you unsubscribe or request its deletion. When we no longer have a legitimate need to retain your information, we will delete or anonymize it in a secure manner.

Data Security

We take the security of your personal information seriously and implement reasonable administrative, technical, and physical measures to protect it from unauthorized access, disclosure, alteration, or destruction. Our website uses HTTPS encryption to help secure data transmitted between your browser and our servers.

However, no method of transmission over the internet or electronic storage is completely secure. While we strive to use commercially acceptable means to protect your information, we cannot guarantee absolute security. You provide your information at your own risk, and we encourage you to take precautions to protect your personal data online.

Children’s Privacy (COPPA)

Our website is a general-audience news and sports coverage platform. While we cover high school sports and our content may be of interest to minors, our website is not directed to children under the age of 13, and we do not knowingly collect personal information from children under 13 years of age.

We comply with the Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA) and take reasonable steps to ensure that our website does not collect personal information from children without verifiable parental consent. If you are a parent or guardian and believe that your child under the age of 13 has provided us with personal information without your consent, please contact us immediately using the contact information provided in Section 17 of this policy.

Upon receiving such a request, we will take prompt steps to investigate and delete the information from our records to the extent possible. We encourage parents and guardians to monitor their children’s online activity and to have open conversations about internet safety.

Your Privacy Rights (GDPR & CCPA)

Depending on where you live, you may have certain rights regarding your personal information. We respect these rights and will make reasonable efforts to honor them, though we do not make specific legal certification claims regarding our compliance status.

For Residents of the European Union (GDPR): If you are located in the European Economic Area (EEA), you may have the following rights under the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR):

The right to access the personal data we hold about you.
The right to request correction of inaccurate or incomplete personal data.
The right to request deletion of your personal data (“right to be forgotten”).
The right to restrict or object to the processing of your personal data.
The right to data portability.
The right to withdraw consent at any time where processing is based on consent.
The right to lodge a complaint with a supervisory authority.

For Residents of California (CCPA): If you are a California resident, you may have certain rights under the California Consumer Privacy Act (CCPA), including:

The right to know what personal information we collect, use, disclose, and sell.
The right to request deletion of personal information we have collected about you.
The right to opt out of the sale of your personal information. As noted above, we do not sell your personal information.
The right to non-discrimination for exercising your CCPA rights.

To exercise any of these rights, please contact us using the information provided in Section 17. We will respond to verifiable requests within the timeframes required by applicable law. We may need to verify your identity before processing your request.

Do Not Track (DNT) Signals

Some browsers include a “Do Not Track” (DNT) feature that signals to websites that you do not want your online activity tracked. At this time, our website does not respond to DNT signals, as there is no universally accepted standard for how websites should interpret and respond to these signals.

However, you can still exercise control over data collection through your browser’s cookie settings and by using the opt-out mechanisms described in this policy, including the Google Analytics opt-out add-on and the advertising opt-out tools referenced in the AdSense section above.

International Data Transfers

Our website is operated from within the United States. If you are visiting our website from outside the United States, please be aware that your information may be transferred to, stored, and processed in the United States, where data protection laws may differ from those in your country of residence.

By using our website, you acknowledge that your information may be transferred to and processed in the United States. We take steps to ensure that your data is handled in a manner consistent with this Privacy Policy, regardless of where it is stored or processed. Third-party services such as Google may also transfer data internationally in accordance with their own privacy policies and applicable legal frameworks such as the EU-U.S. Data Privacy Framework.

Changes to This Privacy Policy

We reserve the right to update or modify this Privacy Policy at any time. When we make material changes to this policy, we will update the “Last Updated” date at the top of this page and, where appropriate, notify users through a prominent notice on our website. We encourage you to review this Privacy Policy periodically to stay informed about how we are protecting your information.

Your continued use of our website following the posting of any changes to this Privacy Policy constitutes your acknowledgment of the updated terms. If you do not agree with the revised policy, you should discontinue your use of the website.

Contact Information

If you have any questions, concerns, or requests regarding this Privacy Policy or our data practices, please do not hesitate to contact us. We are committed to addressing your inquiries in a timely and transparent manner.

By visiting this page on our website: https://www.thehsstoday.com/contact-us/

You may reach us through the contact form available on our website. We will do our best to respond to all privacy-related inquiries within a reasonable timeframe. If you are a resident of the European Economic Area and believe we have not adequately addressed your privacy concerns, you have the right to contact your local data protection authority.