Competition Edition Privacy Statement

Who Should Read This?

This statement is intended for schools, competition organisers, event operators, adjudicators, officials, authorised technical teams, event partners and other people responsible for configuring or running the Competition Edition.

Participants and their parents or guardians should also read the sections dealing with registration information, event displays, photographs, recordings, broadcasts, retention and privacy requests.

Key Facts

1. Scope and roles

This Privacy Statement applies to the Competition Edition of the International Spelling Bee Ecosystem. It covers information handled when schools, organisers, officials, adjudicators, event partners or authorised operators configure and run a spelling bee competition.

The competition organiser or institution decides what participant information to enter, why it is used, who may access it, how long it is kept and whether it is displayed, recorded, exported or broadcast. The organiser is therefore responsible for appropriate notices, permissions and lawful processing.

2. Information handled by the Competition Edition

Participant and registration information

• Participant or speller name, registration number and profile photograph.
• School, grade, category, group, region, team or competition assignment.
• Participation status and information entered by an authorised organiser.

Competition and performance records

• Assigned words, attempts, scores, round outcomes and ranking information.
• Correct, incorrect, challenged, discredited, advanced or eliminated status where recorded.
• Round history, tie-breaker or Speed Round results and final competition reports.
• Event name, date, venue, rules, WordBanks, organiser settings and sponsor branding.

Audio, video and display information

• Announcer and speller audio when recording is enabled.
• Webcam or other selected video source when an organiser enables broadcast or livestream functions.
• Participant names, photographs, school details, scores, histories or other event information selected for the speller, audience, adjudicator or broadcast screens.

Information Typically Stored

Depending on the event configuration and features selected by the organiser, the Competition Edition may typically store the following information:

This summary does not require every event to collect every item. Organisers should configure the system to use only information appropriate and necessary for their competition.

3. Why competition information is used

• To register and manage participants, WordBanks, rounds and competition settings.
• To assign turns and words, record decisions, calculate scores and manage progression.
• To support adjudication, replay, dispute handling, event auditing and official result production.
• To display appropriate event information on adjudicator, speller, audience and broadcast screens.
• To create rankings, leaderboards, certificates, reports, exports and competition histories.
• To apply approved competition, organiser or sponsor branding without giving sponsors automatic access to participant records.

Organiser Responsibilities

The organiser controls the event records and is responsible for deciding what information is collected, who may access it, how it is used and when it is deleted.

4. Audience displays, recording and broadcasting

Competition information may be visible to an audience or online viewers when the organiser activates external displays, projectors, screen capture, webcam video, broadcast or livestream functions. Audio recording may capture the announcer and speller during a competition or Speed Round session.

The organiser should configure displays to show only information appropriate for the event and avoid exposing unnecessary contact details or sensitive personal information.

Live Event Considerations

Privacy controls should be reviewed before doors open and again before any recording, livestream or external display is activated.

• Confirm exactly which participant details will appear on adjudicator, speller, audience and broadcast screens.
• Use test profiles or non-sensitive sample data during rehearsals where practical.
• Position screens and operator workstations to prevent unintended viewing of administrative information.
• Brief announcers, adjudicators, camera operators and production teams on approved information and recording boundaries.
• Check that livestream, conferencing, cloud storage and production services use the intended accounts, access controls and privacy settings.
• Plan how corrections, withdrawal of permission, media handling and privacy incidents will be managed during the event.

5. Storage and offline operation

The Competition Edition is designed to operate primarily on Windows devices controlled by the organiser and can be used without continuous internet connectivity. Competition databases, settings, reports, media and exports are generally stored locally or in destinations selected by the organiser.

If the organiser saves files to cloud storage, shares them over a network, streams an event, emails reports or uses third-party production services, those services may process the information under their own privacy terms and settings.

6. Disclosure and recipients

Competition information may be shared with authorised organisers, adjudicators, schools, participants, parents or guardians, officials, event partners and recipients of official reports where necessary for the event. Public information may be shown on venue displays or broadcasts when the organiser enables those functions.

The software publisher does not sell participant information. Sponsor branding does not, by itself, provide a sponsor with access to participant databases, audio recordings or reports. Any separate disclosure by an organiser to a sponsor or partner must have an appropriate purpose and lawful basis.

7. Participants who are children

Many spelling bee participants may be children. Organisers should use age-appropriate privacy notices, collect only information needed to operate the competition, verify authority to register participants, obtain required parental or guardian permission, and apply heightened care to photographs, recordings and livestreams.

Identity numbers, home addresses, private contact details, health information and other sensitive information should not be entered or publicly displayed unless strictly necessary, properly protected and lawfully authorised.

8. Retention, archiving and deletion

The organiser determines how long participant records, results, reports and recordings are retained. Retention should be limited to the period needed for event administration, appeals, audit, certificates, legitimate historical records and applicable legal obligations.

When information is no longer required, organisers should securely remove it from the application, working folders, exports, backup media, shared drives and production systems. Uninstalling the application may not remove separately exported reports, recordings or backups.

9. Accuracy and participant requests

Authorised operators should keep registration and competition records accurate and correct errors promptly. Depending on applicable law, participants or their authorised representatives may request access, correction or deletion from the organiser responsible for the event. Requests relating directly to the publisher may be submitted through the contact details below.

10. Security and access control

Organisers should restrict administrative access, use protected Windows accounts, secure event devices and backups, control removable media, keep trusted software up to date, and limit access to reports and recordings to people with an event-related need.

No system can guarantee absolute security. Suspected loss, unauthorised disclosure or access should be managed under the organiser’s incident response process and applicable notification requirements.

11. Microsoft Store and third-party services

Microsoft Store and Windows may process installation, licensing, update, device or diagnostic information according to Microsoft’s privacy practices and user settings. Livestream, cloud storage, email, conferencing, text-to-speech, audio, video or other third-party services selected by an organiser are governed by those providers’ terms and privacy statements.

12. Changes to this statement

This statement may be updated when features, legal requirements or data practices change. The updated date at the top identifies the current version. Organisers should review the current statement before each event and update their participant notices where their own processing activities change.

13. Contact