Privacy Policy

China Factory List (“we”, “us”, “the platform”) operates a B2B directory of Chinese manufacturers at chinafactorylist.com. We are the data controller for personal information described in this policy, unless we state otherwise.

We are not a trading company, sourcing agent or payment intermediary. We do not buy, sell or broker goods, and we do not take commission on orders placed between buyers and suppliers.

We collect the following categories of information:

• Account data — name, business email, hashed password, company name and role (buyer or supplier).
• Verification data — business licence images, registration numbers and contact details submitted by factory owners for review.
• Listing and inquiry content — product descriptions, images, specifications and the messages you send through inquiry or RFQ forms.
• Billing data — order records, invoice details and payment status. Card numbers are processed by our payment provider and never stored on our servers.
• Usage data — pages viewed, search terms, device type, browser, approximate location derived from IP address, and cookie identifiers.

You are never required to provide personal information, but some features — verification, featured plans, inquiries — cannot work without it.

• To operate the directory, publish listings and route inquiries to the correct factory.
• To review business licences and mark a listing as verified, claimed or featured.
• To prevent fraud, impersonation and misuse of the platform.
• To process featured-plan payments and issue invoices or receipts.
• To respond to support requests and legal obligations.
• To improve search relevance, page performance and the overall buying experience.

We do not sell personal information to third parties, and we do not use supplier contact details for unrelated marketing.

Where the GDPR or comparable law applies, we rely on the following legal bases:

• Contract — to provide the directory, accounts, listings and paid plans you request.
• Legitimate interests — to prevent fraud, secure the platform and improve our services.
• Legal obligation — to keep billing and tax records or respond to lawful requests.
• Consent — for optional cookies or marketing emails, which you can withdraw at any time.

We use essential cookies to keep sessions and preferences working. Analytics cookies help us understand which pages and searches are useful; they are aggregated and are not used for advertising. You can block or delete cookies in your browser settings — essential features such as login may stop working if you do.

• Service providers — hosting, email delivery, payment processing and analytics vendors acting on our instructions.
• Verification partners — audit or translation partners reviewing submitted documents where required.
• Inquiry recipients — when you submit an inquiry, the selected factory receives the message and the contact details you include.
• Legal and safety — when required by law, court order, or to protect rights and prevent fraud.
• Business transfers — in a merger or acquisition, under equivalent confidentiality obligations.

The platform serves buyers worldwide and operates from China. Information may be processed in China, the European Union or the United States. Where personal data leaves the EEA or UK, we use appropriate safeguards such as standard contractual clauses.

Account and listing data are kept while the account is active. Verification documents are retained for as long as the listing is verified, plus the period required by audit and tax rules. Billing records are kept for the statutory accounting period. Inquiries are kept for 24 months unless a longer period is needed to resolve a dispute. Deleted data may persist briefly in backups.

Depending on your jurisdiction, you may request access, correction, deletion, restriction, portability or object to processing, and withdraw consent for optional cookies or emails. California residents may request disclosure or deletion and opt out of “sharing” as defined by the CCPA — we do not sell personal information.

To exercise a right, email privacy@chinafactorylist.com from the address linked to your account. We respond within 30 days and may ask for verification to protect your data.

We use encryption in transit, access controls, hashed passwords and restricted review queues for licence documents. No system is perfectly secure; if a breach affects your data, we will notify affected users and authorities as required by law.

The platform is intended for business users aged 18 or over. We do not knowingly collect personal information from children. If you believe a child has created an account, contact us and we will remove it.

We may update this policy as the platform evolves. Material changes will be announced on this page and, where appropriate, by email. The date at the top always reflects the current version.