Researcher Responsibilities: Special Category Data and Child Participants

You are the data controller for the personal data you collect in your surveys. This page describes your responsibilities in two particularly sensitive areas (special category personal data and participants under 18) and how the tools on the platform can help you meet them. The full description of roles: Data Processing Agreement.

1. What is special category data?

Under Article 6 of the KVKK, the following data is special category (sensitive):

race and ethnic origin,
political opinion,
philosophical belief, religion, sect or other beliefs,
appearance and dress,
membership of an association, foundation or trade union,
health data and sexual life,
criminal convictions and security measures,
biometric and genetic data.

Even if a question does not ask for this information directly, data from which it can be inferred (for example "which medication do you use") counts as health data.

2. When and on what basis may you collect it?

Special category data may be processed only if one of the conditions in Article 6 of the KVKK applies. In survey work the most common route in practice is explicit consent. For consent to be valid it must:

relate to a specific matter (which data, for which purpose),
be based on information (the privacy notice must be shown first),
be given freely (do not build a structure that makes participation compulsory),
not be obtained through a pre-ticked box,
be withdrawable, and the way to withdraw it must be stated to the participant.

For health data, the additional conditions in the relevant legislation must also be met. If you work on behalf of an institution, follow your internal data governance rules as well.

3. Ethics committee approval

In academic research, and particularly in studies collecting data from human participants, you need approval from your institution's ethics committee. The scope of that approval and the scope of your survey (the data asked, the participant group, the retention period) must match. YouReply does not check ethics approval; this responsibility rests with the researcher.

4. Data minimization and anonymous mode

Do not ask for data your research question does not require. Questions asked because the data "might be useful later" are contrary to data minimization.
If you do not need to know who the respondent is, turn on "Anonymous responses" in the settings: while it is on, the IP address and location are not stored.
Ask for direct identifiers such as name, email or phone only if they are genuinely needed (for example a prize draw or a follow-up interview), and collect them with a separate consent.

5. Warning about the "Meta information" question

The "Meta information" field in the question palette records technical data such as browser (user agent), platform, language and screen size within the response. Because it is an answer field, it also works in anonymous response mode: even if your survey is anonymous, this information is collected and appears in exports. On its own or combined with other data it can contribute to distinguishing a respondent. If you use it, say so in your privacy notice; if you do not need it, do not add the field to your survey.

6. Warning about file upload and signature questions

Answers to file upload and signature questions are stored in a way that lets anyone who knows the link view them without signing in. Therefore:

do not collect sensitive documents such as identity papers, passports, medical reports or prescriptions with this question type;
tell participants clearly which files they should upload and do not ask for unnecessary documents;
do not share file links with third parties or paste them into presentations and reports.

7. Pseudonymization

If you need to follow a participant (for example matching a pre-test and a post-test), use a participant code specific to the study instead of direct identity data. You can carry the code in the survey link with a "Hidden Field". Keep the list matching codes to identities outside the survey, in a separate place with restricted access, and destroy it when the study ends.

8. Notice and consent tools

The "Consent text" setting: when this field in the settings is filled in, a "Participation Consent" screen is shown before the survey starts. The participant chooses "I have read and accept" or "I decline". You can put your privacy notice here.
The "Consent checkbox" preset: this field in the question palette can be used to add a separate explicit consent or notice acknowledgement box. Do not pre-tick the box.
Your privacy notice should contain at least: the identity of the controller, the purposes of processing, who the data is transferred to, the retention period and how rights under Article 11 of the KVKK can be exercised.

9. Retention and deletion

Do not keep data longer than your research purpose requires; set a retention period and write it down.
You can export your responses as Excel (.xlsx) or CSV. Exported files are your responsibility: limit how they are shared.
The application has no delete function for surveys or responses; deletion is requested in writing from the email address registered in your account to kvkk@youreply.com.tr. See Account and Data Deletion.

10. Child participants

You must be 18 or over to open a YouReply account. Respondents to your survey, however, may be under 18, and that brings additional responsibilities.

Parent or guardian consent: when collecting data from participants under 18, you must obtain the consent of a parent or guardian where this is required. The scope of that consent must be limited to the data asked of the child.
Institutional permissions: if you reach participants through a school, a course or a similar institution, obtain the permission of that institution and, where required, of authorities such as the provincial directorate of national education. Ethics committee approval is also needed.
There is no age verification: the platform has no mechanism that verifies a participant's age. Limiting the participant group depends on your own design.
Suggested pattern: put a screening question on the first page (for example an age range), attach a logic rule carrying the "Disqualify" action to it, and do not let an unsuitable participant start the survey at all. If you are targeting child participants, address the "Consent text" screen to the parent and add a checkbox confirming that consent is given by the parent.
Minimum data: in surveys aimed at children, keep the questions and the data collected to the lowest possible level and prefer anonymous response mode.