This Privacy Policy explains how information about visitors is collected, used and disclosed by us. This Privacy Policy applies to information we collect when you use our services, or when you otherwise interact with us. This website is hosted on wordpress.com (Automattic Inc.) and below you’ll find out how Automattic and we collect, use, and share information about visitors.

Information We Collect About Visitors

We collect information about visitors in a few different ways–we collect certain information that the visitors provide to the Site, we collect some information automatically, and we collect any information that our wordpress.com users provide to  about their visitors.

Information a Visitor Provides to a Site

We’ll start with information that visitors provide directly to a Site, which primarily happens when visitors type into a text field on a Site, like a comment field or a sign-up form. Our Users may also implement other ways to allow Site visitors to provide information directly through their Sites.

Here are the most common ways in which a visitor directly provides information to a Site:

• Follower and Subscriber Information: When a visitor signs up to follow or subscribe to a Site using Jetpack or WordPress.com, we collect the sign-up information requested by the Site, which typically includes an email address.
• Site Comments: When a visitor leaves a comment on a Site, we collect that comment, and other information that the visitor provides along with the comment, such as the visitor’s name and email address.
• PollDaddy Survey Responses: When a visitor completes a poll, quiz, or other type of survey prepared by a User via Polldaddy.com, we collect the visitor’s responses to those surveys, and other information that the survey owner requires for a poll/quiz/survey response, like an e-mail address.
• Order and Shipment Information: If a visitor orders something (hooray!) from a Site using our store and ecommerce features available through WordPress.com or Jetpack (including WooCommerce Services), we may collect information to process that order, such as credit card and billing information, and an address for shipping the package along to the recipient and calculating applicable taxes. We may also use this information for other purposes on behalf of our Users–for example, to send marketing and other communications from our Users to their customers, and to provide our User with analytics information about their ecommerce site (e.g., the number of orders from particular geographic areas).
• Other Information Entered on the Site: We may also collect other information that a visitor enters on the Site–such as a contact form submission, a search query, or Site registration.

Information We Automatically Collect from the Site

We also automatically collect some information about visitors to a Site. The information we automatically collect depends on which of our services the Site uses. We’ve listed examples below:

• Technical Data from a Visitor’s Computer and Etcetera: We collect the information that web browsers, mobile devices, and servers typically make available about visitors to a Site, such as the IP address, browser type, unique device identifiers, language preference, referring site, the date and time of access, operating system, and mobile network information.
• Visitor Interactions: We collect information about a visitor’s interactions with a Site, including the “likes” and “ratings” left by visitors to a Site using WordPress.com or Jetpack.
• Location Information: We may determine the approximate location of a visitor’s device from the IP address. We collect and use this information to, for example, tally for our Users how many people visit their Sites from certain geographic regions. If you’d like, you can read more about our Site Stats feature for WordPress.com sites and Jetpack sites.
• Akismet Commenter Information: We collect information about visitors who comment on Sites that use our Akismet anti-spam service. The information we collect depends on how the User sets up Akismet for the Site, but typically includes the commenter’s IP address, user agent, referrer, and Site URL (along with other information directly provided by the commenter such as their name, username, email address…oh, and the comment itself, of course).
• Polldaddy Response Information: We collect information about visitors who respond to a Polldaddy survey. The information that we collect typically includes IP address, browser type, operating system, user agent, and the web page last visited.
• Intense Debate Commenter Information: We collect information about visitors who comment on Sites that use our Intense Debate service. The information that we collect depends on how the User sets up Intense Debate for the Site, but typically includes the IP address and account information on the Site, along with the comment.
• Information from Cookies and Other Technologies: A cookie is a string of information that a Site stores on a visitor’s computer, and that the visitor’s browser provides to the Site each time the visitor returns. Pixel tags (also called web beacons) are small blocks of code placed on Sites. Automattic uses cookies and other technologies like pixel tags to help identify and track visitors and Site usage, and to deliver targeted ads when ads are enabled for free WordPress.com sites or when ads are enabled on a Site through WordAds or Jetpack Ads (see the “Other Tools” section below for more details). For more information about our use of cookies and other technologies for tracking, including how visitors can control the use of cookies, please see our Cookie Policy.

Other Information Provided by Our Users

We also collect any other information that our Users provide to us about visitors to their Sites. For example, a User may upload a directory or other information about Site visitors and customers to the “backend” administrative platform for managing the Site.

How We Use Visitor Information

We use information about Site visitors in order to provide our Services to our Users and their Sites. Our users may use our Services to, for example, create and manage their Site, sell products and services on their Site, flag and fight comments from spammers, and collect information through polls, quizzes and other surveys.

In addition to the above, we use some information about Site visitors who are also our Users as described in our Privacy Policy.

We may also use and share information that has been aggregated or reasonably de-identified, so that the information could not reasonably be used to identify any individual. For instance, we may publish aggregate statistics about the use of our services.

We may also use information about you for various purposes, including to:

• Provide, maintain, improve and promote our products and services;
• Provide and deliver the information, products and services you request, process transactions and send you related information, including confirmations and receipts;
• Send you technical notices, updates, security alerts, and support and administrative messages;
• Respond to your comments, questions and requests, and provide customer service;
• Communicate with you about products, services, surveys, offers, promotions, rewards and events offered by Company and others, and provide news and information we think will be of interest to you;
• Monitor and analyze trends, usage and activities in connection with our Services;
• Personalize and improve the Services and provide advertisements, content or features that match user profiles or interests;
• Facilitate contests, sweepstakes and promotions, and process and deliver entries and rewards;
• Link or combine with information we get from others to help understand your needs and provide you with better service; and
• Carry out any other purpose for which the information was collected

How We Share Visitor Information

We may share information collected about Site visitors in the limited circumstances spelled out below:

• Subsidiaries, Employees, and Independent Contractors: We may disclose Site visitor information to our subsidiaries, our employees, and individuals who are our independent contractors that need to know the information in order to help us provide our services to our Users and their Sites, or to process the information on our behalf. We require our subsidiaries, employees, and independent contractors to follow this Privacy Notice for information about visitors that we share with them.
• Third Party Vendors: We may share Site visitor information with third party vendors who need to know this information in order to provide their services to us. This group includes vendors that help us provide our services to our Users and their Sites. We require vendors to agree to privacy commitments in order to share information with them.
• Legal Requests: We may disclose Site visitor information in response to a subpoena, court order, or other governmental request. For more information on how we respond to requests for information, please see our Legal Guidelines.
• To Protect Rights, Property, and Others: We may disclose Site visitor information when we believe in good faith that disclosure is reasonably necessary to protect the property or rights of Automattic, our Users, third parties, or the public at large. For example, if we have a good faith belief that there is an imminent danger of death or serious physical injury, we may disclose information related to the emergency without delay.
• Business Transfers: In connection with any merger, sale of company assets, or acquisition of all or a portion of our business by another company, or in the unlikely event that Automattic goes out of business or enters bankruptcy, Site visitor information would likely be one of the assets that is transferred or acquired by a third party. If any of these events were to happen, this Privacy Notice would continue to apply to Site visitor information and the party receiving this information may continue to use this information, but only consistent with this Privacy Notice.
• Information Shared Publicly: Information that visitors choose to make public is–you guessed it–disclosed publicly. That means, of course, that information like visitor comments and “likes” are all available to others, including information about the visitor that is displayed in connection with a comment or “like” (such as a visitor’s WordPress.com username and Gravatar). We provide a “firehose” stream of public data (including comments) from Sites to provide that data to firehose subscribers, who may view and analyze the content, but do not have rights to re-publish it publicly. Public information may also be indexed by search engines or used by third parties.

Other Tools

Our Users’ Sites may contain ads from third party ad networks and advertisers, and our Users may integrate other tools and services on their Sites (such as Google Analytics and third party plugins). Please note that this Privacy Notice only covers the collection of information by Automattic, and does not cover the collection by any third party.

Ad networks and analytics providers may set tracking technologies (like cookies) to collect information about visitors’ use of a Site and across other websites and online services, such as a visitor’s IP address, web browser, mobile network information, pages viewed, time spent on pages, links clicked, and conversion information. This information may be used by those companies to, among other things, analyze and track usage, determine the popularity of certain content, and deliver advertisements that may be more targeted to visitor interests. For more information about how to manage and delete cookies, visit aboutcookies.org, and for more information on interest-based ads, including information about how visitors may be able to opt out of having their web browsing information used for behavioral advertising purposes, please visit aboutads.info/choices (US based) and youronlinechoices.eu (EU based).

Cookie Policy

What are cookies?

Cookies are small pieces of data, stored in text files, that are stored on your computer or other device when websites are loaded in a browser. They are widely used to ‘remember’ you and your preferences, either for a single visit (through a ’session cookie’) or for multiple repeat visits (using a ‘persistent cookie’). They ensure a consistent and efficient experience for visitors, and perform essential functions such as allowing users to register and remain logged in. Cookies may be set by the site that you are visiting (known as ‘first party cookies’), or by other websites who serve up content on that site (‘third party cookies’).

Cookies and WordPress.com

Sites hosted on WordPress.com make use of cookies for a variety of different purposes. These include those that are ‘strictly necessary’ for technical reasons; those that enable a personalized experience for visitors and registered users; and those that allow the display of advertising from selected third party networks. Some of these cookies may be set when a page is loaded, or when a visitor takes a particular action, such as clicking the ‘like’ or ‘follow’ button on a post.

Many of the cookies we use are only set if a visitor is a registered WordPress.com user, whilst others are set for all visitors upon certain actions.

Examples of cookies set for both registered and non registered users:

ab – used for AB testing of new features.
akm_mobile – stores whether a user has chosen to view the mobile version of a site.

Examples of cookies set only for registered WordPress.com users:

twostep_auth – set when the user is logged in using two factor authentication. Only set for registered WordPress.com users.
wp-settings-{user_id} – used to persist a user’s wp-admin configuration. Only set for registered WordPress.com users.

Cookies we use

Below is a description of each category of cookies that are in use, along with specific examples (including both those used for registered and non-WordPress.com users).

Strictly Necessary

These are the cookies that are essential for websites on WordPress.com to perform their basic functions. These include those required to allow registered users to authenticate and perform account related functions, as well as to save the contents of virtual ‘carts’ on sites that have an e-commerce functionality.

cookietest – checks if cookies are enabled to provide appropriate user experience.
twostep_auth – set when the user is logged in using two factor authentication.

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Functionality

These cookies are used to store preferences set by users such as account name, language, and location. They are not used to track visitors on sites that are not hosted on WordPress.com.

Examples:

akm_mobile – stores whether a user has chosen to view the mobile version of a site.
botdlang – used to track the language a user has selected to view popular blogs in.
wordpress_logged_in* – used to check whether the current visitor is a logged in WordPress.com user.
wp-settings-{user_id} – used to persist a user’s wp-admin configuration.
wp_sharing_{id} – used to track whether or not a user has already performed an action.

Performance

Performance cookies collect information on how users interact with websites hosted on WordPress.com, including what pages are visited most, as well as other analytical data. These details are only used to improve how a website functions.

Examples:

ab – used for AB testing of new features.
nux_flow_name – identifies which user signup flow was shown to the user.
signup_partner_ref – tracks the source of new user signups.
signup_referrer – tracks the source of new user signups.
tk_ni|tk_ai|tk_qs – collection of internal metrics for user activity, used to improve user experience.

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Advertising/Tracking

These cookies are used to display relevant advertising to visitors on WordPress.com sites, as well as to track the volume of visitors to the WordPress.com network. They track details about visitors such as the number of unique visitors, number of times particular ads have been displayed, the number of clicks the ads have received, and are also used to measure the effectiveness of ad campaigns by building up user profiles. These are set by Automattic and trusted third party networks, and are generally persistent in nature.

Examples:

ads – tracks if a visitor has clicked an ad before.
wordpress_eli – reduces display of ads for repeat visitors.

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Third Party/Embedded Content

Sites hosted on WordPress.com make use of different third party applications and services to enhance the experience of website visitors. These include social media platforms such as Facebook and Twitter (through the use of sharing buttons), or embedded content from Youtube and Vimeo. As a result, cookies may be set by these third parties, and used by them to track your online activity. We have no direct control over the information that is collected by these cookies.

Controlling cookies

Visitors may wish to restrict the use of cookies, or completely prevent them from being set. Most browsers provide for ways to control cookie behaviour such as the length of time they are stored – either through built-in functionality or by utilizing third party plugins.

To find out more on how to manage and delete cookies, visit aboutcookies.org. For more details on advertising cookies, and how to manage them, visit youronlinechoices.eu (EU based), or aboutads.info (US based).

It’s important to note that restricting or disabling the use of cookies can limit the functionality of sites, or prevent them from working correctly at all.

Web beacons and other tracking technologies

Both websites and HTML e-mails may also contain other tracking technologies such as ‘web beacons’. These are typically small transparent images that provide us with statistics, for similar purposes as cookies. They are often used in conjunction with cookies, though they are not stored on your computer in the same way. As a result, if you disable cookies, the web beacons may still load, but their functionality will be restricted.