I take the protection of your data seriously. Sometimes I need to collect personal data to provide the service you expect, and when I do, I will explain clearly what I’m collecting and what I intend to do with it.
What personal information I collect
When you fill in my contact form, the site securely processes and stores what you enter, and emails it to me. I use it to respond accordingly, archiving correspondence just like you would expect any responsible company to do.
When you visit this site, the server and site security software may process and store your computer’s IP address (which contains approximate location information) within the scope of the law, to prevent unauthorised access and ensure the site works as intended. The server deletes these logs after 4 weeks.
When you leave comments on the site, I 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 (Gravatar privacy policy). After approval of your comment, your profile picture is visible to the public in the context of your comment.
When you contact me by phone, email or post, I will also use your contact details and personal information to respond appropriately and store and archive it securely. I keep correspondence for 2 years.
Cookies
This site uses cookies as detailed in the cookie policy.
How and where your data is stored
The site uses a securely encrypted connection to transfer any information you submit, and stores it in a database on the server, which is based in the UK. I take backups regularly which are stored, encrypted, on my Dropbox for up to 4 weeks. I use secure passwords to protect the data and do not share access with anyone except companies like my server host who are directly responsible for providing the services the site relies on.
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.
Disclosing your information
I do not sell personal data to anyone. I only share personal information when it’s necessary to do what you have asked me to do, or if I am legally obliged to.
Access to your personal information
You have the right to know what information I hold about you. If you contact me and ask, I will be happy to:
- tell you what information I hold;
- tell you why I am holding it;
- tell you who it could be disclosed to;
- update it if it’s inaccurate;
- remove it (unless there’s a legitimate reason why I need to keep it); and
- let you have a copy of the information in an intelligible form.
Links to other websites
This privacy notice does not cover other sites that this site may link to. Please read the privacy statements on the other websites you visit.
Changes to this policy
This policy was last updated on 15 June 2018. If I change this privacy policy in future, I will update this web page.
Making a complaint
If you feel that I have failed to meet these standards, please contact me first. If I don’t resolve things to your satisfaction, you can then complain directly to the Information Commissioner.