Hello! So you want to know about privacy and all that. I get it. You might have noticed a lack of warnings and pop-ups?
So here’s the deal. I’ve removed all the tracking type analytics from the site. You’re not being stalked across the internet by the analytics I use, which is now Simple Analytics which is a privacy first service. Imperfect, but seems to be improving by the day. And that means no tracking cookies, no clever little images served by advertisers which can do their own stalking. Nothing, basically, that results in your data being harvested and resold.
What data can you leave that can be tied to you in some way? Well, if you comment – that leaves a cookie for you so you can have pre-filled comment details. It’s not used for anything else. If you log in (which you shouldn’t – that’s just for me) then there’s a log in cookie. Aaaand that’s about it. There’s also Akismet, which is used to check comments for spam. Without it, open comments would be a nightmare. It’s pretty much impossible to filter for spam without using ip addresses and email addresses and storing them. They have a privacy statement.
Or at least, I hope so. Ultimately, there are services the site relies on. It’s not possible to know exactly what they’re up to. But I use a UK based host with a good reputation, and all data that you do leave is going to be treated with respect. This is, of course, a personal blog, and not a very busy or actively updated one at that. Nor does it make me a penny of money. When I write things for public consumption it’s mostly an exercise in making sure my thoughts on a subject are in properly worked out. Often I end up never posting. But if I think I have something useful for others, I’ll share it. Why not? Of course, with SEO and rankings the way they are, most people will likely never find my content. But that’s fine. If you matter, you’ll find it.
Privacy does matter. But a lot of websites will track you to death. So don’t forget to set your do not track settings in your browser of choice, and use an ad blocker. It’ll help a lot. Because trust me – for some people that leaky data could get them imprisoned or killed.
And now to the official bit, which covers the detail:
Who we are
Our website address is: https://davidcoveney.com.
Comments
When visitors leave comments on the site we collect the data shown in the comments form, and also the visitor’s IP address and browser user agent string to help spam detection.
An anonymised string created from your email address (also called a hash) may be provided to the Gravatar service to see if you are using it. The Gravatar service Privacy Policy is available here: https://automattic.com/privacy/. After approval of your comment, your profile picture is visible to the public in the context of your comment.
Media
If you upload images to the website, you should avoid uploading images with embedded location data (EXIF GPS) included. Visitors to the website can download and extract any location data from images on the website.
Cookies
If you leave a comment on our site you may opt in to saving your name, email address and website in cookies. These are for your convenience so that you do not have to fill in your details again when you leave another comment. These cookies will last for one year.
If you visit our login page, we will set a temporary cookie to determine if your browser accepts cookies. This cookie contains no personal data and is discarded when you close your browser.
When you log in, we will also set up several cookies to save your login information and your screen display choices. Login cookies last for two days, and screen options cookies last for a year. If you select “Remember Me”, your login will persist for two weeks. If you log out of your account, the login cookies will be removed.
If you edit or publish an article, an additional cookie will be saved in your browser. This cookie includes no personal data and simply indicates the post ID of the article you just edited. It expires after 1 day.
Analytics
Analytics for the site which measures traffic, uses Simple Analytics which is a privacy first tool. To read about their tracking and find other information, please visit: https://dashboard.simpleanalytics.com/no-tracking
Embedded content from other websites
Articles on this site may include embedded content (e.g. videos, images, articles, etc.). Embedded content from other websites behaves in the exact same way as if the visitor has visited the other website.
These websites may collect data about you, use cookies, embed additional third-party tracking, and monitor your interaction with that embedded content, including tracking your interaction with the embedded content if you have an account and are logged in to that website.
Who we share your data with
If you request a password reset, your IP address will be included in the reset email.
How long we retain your data
If you leave a comment, the comment and its metadata are retained indefinitely. This is so we can recognise and approve any follow-up comments automatically instead of holding them in a moderation queue.
For users that register on our website (if any), we also store the personal information they provide in their user profile. All users can see, edit, or delete their personal information at any time (except they cannot change their username). Website administrators can also see and edit that information.
What rights you have over your data
If you have an account on this site, or have left comments, you can request to receive an exported file of the personal data we hold about you, including any data you have provided to us. You can also request that we erase any personal data we hold about you. This does not include any data we are obliged to keep for administrative, legal, or security purposes.
Where your data is sent
Visitor comments may be checked through an automated spam detection service.