Privacy Policy

Please read this Privacy Policy, Terms Of Service, and my disclaimer carefully before using this Web site.

This privacy statement is subject to change at any time without notification.

1. Privacy Matters
   1. HTTPS by Default
   2. Hosting
   3. Analytics
   4. Newsletter & Emails
   5. Donations
   6. Communications
   7. Information Usage
      1. Legal Basis for Collection of Information
   8. Who We Are
   9. Comments
   10. Media
   11. Cookies
   12. Embedded Content From Other Websites
   13. With Whom We Share Your Data
   14. How Long We Retain Your Data
   15. What Rights You Have Over Your Data
   16. Where Your Data Is Sent

Privacy Matters

At least, mine does to me. For those who live in European Union, it also happens to be the law.

To that end, I have worked in my own small way to reduce the amount of online tracking and increase the level of privacy in my own life. I also try to ensure these steps are embodied in the code and systems of all winter.ink websites.

I accept this is not an exact process. Systems which are today given a clean bill of health by security experts, are found to be security flawed tomorrow. This means that while the notion of security is fairly consistent, what constitutes secure online practice is ever changing. In that context, I am constantly working to evolve my own practices and winter.ink websites will also continue to evolve to implement best practices where possible.

HTTPS by Default

This ensures that your connection to this website is always encrypted. Though not a crucial issue for many, given all information on this website is accessible to the public, it does mean that any data you input while here only goes to the places it should with no spying eyes intercepting the connection.

Hosting

Hosting is provided by Ghost.

Analytics

Plausible has been implemented as the analytics platform for this website. This is because even though the purpose of Plausible Analytics is to track usage, it can and is done:

"without collecting any personal data or personally identifiable information (PII), without using cookies and while respecting the privacy of the website visitors."

Plausible is GDPR, CCPA and cookie law compliant. You can read their full Data Policy.

Newsletter & Emails

If you have subscribed to our newsletter or if you are a member of our website (you can log in) or if you have purchased on our website, there is a good chance you will receive emails from us.

We will only send you emails which you have signed up to receive, or which pertain to the services we provided to you, and you will have the option to unsubscribe.

To send you emails, we use the name and email address you provide us. Our site also logs the IP address you used when you signed up for the service to prevent abuse of the system.

Donations

If you are one of the kind people to donate — thank you! — you provide your name, donation amount, and payment card information. Depending on the donation option you choose, the transaction is handled by Stripe, Liberapay or you can buy me a book.

Communications

If you contact me via email, either by writing to me directly or by replying to an email newsletter, I will receive your email address and any other information you choose to provide.

Emails are processed by ProtonMail — an end-to-end encrypted and zero access platform. This means they cannot decrypt and read your emails.

Information Usage

Any information you provide will only be used to communicate with you, if you have opted to receive a newsletter, to facilitate donations, and to better understand how you use the site in order to continue its development.

• Collection of your name and email address. If you may subscribe to receive email updates from this site by submitting your email address. We will never sell your email address or name.
• Use of third-party vendors to process payment. We never see, hold, or store your payment details. That is handled by Stripe. Other payment vendors include Liberapay and Buy Me A Coffee.
• The internet comes with a footprint. Web servers may automatically capture the following information from visitors to the Site, including the name of the domain and host from which you access the internet, the internet address of the Site from which you enter the Site, the pages you visit on the Site and the amount of time you spend on the Site. This visitor information may be used to improve the Site.
• This information is used to deliver services, personalize the website for you, enabling your access, sending you a newsletter, sending you statements and invoices, collecting and process payments, sending you marketing and other emails.

Legal Basis for Collection of Information

The following legal grounds are asserted for the collection of data:

• Explicit Consent — When you sign up for the newsletter (either free or paid) or any other account at this site, you provide explicit consent for the collection of the above listed personal information.
• Contract — If you enter an agreement with this site for the provision of services in exchange for payment, this site will be required to collect the above listed personal information.
• Legitimate Interests — Finally, this site may have additional legitimate interests, including account maintenance and administrative purposes, for the collection of the above listed personal information.

Who We Are

Our website address is: https://robert.winter.ink.

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.

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.

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.

With Whom We Share Your Data

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 recognize 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.