What personal data we collect and why we collect it?
Comments, Media, Cookies, and Embedded Content
Comments:
When visitors leave comments on the site, we collect the data shown in the comment form, along with the visitor’s IP address and browser user agent string for spam detection.
- An anonymized string (hash) created from your email address may be provided to Gravatar to check if you’re using it. After comment approval, your profile picture will be visible publicly with your comment.
- The Gravatar service privacy policy can be found here.
Media:
If you upload images, avoid including embedded location data (EXIF GPS). Visitors to the website can extract this data from images on the site.
Cookies:
- Comment Cookies: If you leave a comment, you may opt to save your name, email, and website in cookies for convenience in future comments. These cookies last for one year.
- Login Cookies: A temporary cookie will be set on the login page to check if your browser accepts cookies. It does not contain personal data and is discarded after closing your browser.
- After logging in, several cookies will save your login info and screen display choices. Login cookies last for two days, and screen options cookies last for a year.
- If “Remember Me” is selected, your login will persist for two weeks.
- Logout removes login cookies.
- Post Edit Cookies: If you edit or publish an article, a cookie with no personal data is saved to indicate the post ID of the article edited. This expires after 1 day.
Embedded Content:
Articles on this site may include embedded content (e.g., videos, images, etc.). Embedded content behaves as if the visitor is on the other website.
- These external websites may collect data about you, use cookies, embed additional third-party tracking, and monitor your interaction with the embedded content, especially if you have an account and are logged in.
Analytics, Data Sharing, Retention, and Rights
Analytics:
We may use analytics tools to gather and analyze data on the site’s usage, which helps us improve our services.
Who We Share Your Data With:
We do not share your data with third parties unless necessary for legal, administrative, or operational purposes.
How Long We Retain Your Data:
- Comments: If you leave a comment, the comment and its metadata are retained indefinitely to recognize and approve any follow-up comments automatically.
- User Registrations: For users who register on the website, their personal information is stored in their user profile. Users can see, edit, or delete their information at any time (except for the username). Website administrators can also access and modify this data.
What Rights You Have Over Your Data:
- If you have an account or have left comments, you can request an exported file of the personal data we hold about you, including any data you have provided.
- You can also request that we erase any personal data we hold, with the exception of data we are required to keep for administrative, legal, or security purposes.
Where We Send Your Data:
Visitor comments may be checked through an automated spam detection service to prevent unwanted content on the site.