My Privacy Policy
Hey there! I’m Aebe, and this is my website, aebe.nl. Your privacy is super important to me, and I want to be really clear about how I handle your data when you visit. So, let’s get into it!
Who Am I?
My website address is https://aebe.nl, and like I said, I’m Aebe, the person behind all of this!
What I Collect and Why
When you interact with my site, I might collect some information. Here’s a breakdown:
Comments
If you leave a comment on my site, I collect the data you enter in the comment form. This includes your name, email, and the comment itself. I also grab your IP address and your browser’s user agent string. Why? To help me spot and stop any spam, of course!
You know how some websites show a little picture next to your name when you comment? That’s often Gravatar. An anonymized string created from your email address (it’s called a hash) might be sent to the Gravatar service to check if you’re using it. You can check out their privacy policy here: https://automattic.com/privacy/. Once your comment is approved, your profile picture will be visible to everyone right there with your comment.
Media
If you ever upload images to my website (though this isn’t a common feature for most visitors), please be mindful! Images can sometimes contain embedded location data (like EXIF GPS). If you upload such an image, visitors could potentially download it and extract that location data. So, it’s best to remove any sensitive location info before uploading.
Cookies
Yup, cookies! Like most websites, I use them. Here’s how:
- For your convenience: If you leave a comment, you can choose to save your name, email, and website in cookies. This just makes it easier for you next time you want to comment, so you don’t have to type everything again. These cookies stick around for a year.
- Login stuff: If you visit my login page (which is mainly for me and any potential contributors), I set a temporary cookie to see if your browser accepts cookies. This one’s pretty innocent, contains no personal data, and disappears when you close your browser. When you log in, I also set up a few cookies to remember your login info 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 stay active for two weeks. If you log out, those login cookies are removed.
- Editing articles: If I, or anyone else with editing rights, edits or publishes an article, an additional cookie is saved in the browser. This cookie contains no personal data; it simply points to the post ID of the article that was just edited and expires after one day.
Embedded Content from Other Websites
Sometimes, articles on my site might include embedded content from other websites, like videos, images, or articles. Think of it like this: when you interact with embedded content, it’s as if you’ve visited the original website directly.
These other websites might collect data about you, use their own cookies, embed additional third-party tracking, and keep an eye on how you interact with that embedded content. This includes tracking your interaction if you have an account and are logged into their website.
How I Use Your Data
The primary way I use your data is to make sure the site runs smoothly, prevent spam, and offer you a better experience.
Who I Share Your Data With
Generally, I don’t share your personal data with others. The main exceptions are:
- Password Resets: If you ever need a password reset (for registered users), your IP address will be included in the reset email.
- Spam Detection: Visitor comments might be checked through an automated spam detection service.
Affiliate Links & Advertising
To help keep aebe.nl up and running and to cover my costs, I participate in a couple of programs:
Amazon Affiliate Program
I am a participant in the Amazon EU Associates Programme, an affiliate advertising programme designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to Amazon.de. This means that when you click on certain links on my website that lead to Amazon.de, and you make a purchase, I may earn a small commission from Amazon, at no extra cost to you. Amazon uses cookies to track these purchases, which helps them know I sent you there.
Google AdSense
I also use Google AdSense to display advertisements on my website. Google, as a third-party vendor, uses cookies to serve ads on my site. Google’s use of advertising cookies enables it and its partners to serve ads to my users based on their visit to my site and/or other1 sites on the Internet. You may opt out of personalized advertising by visiting Ads Settings.2 You can also learn more about how Google uses data when you use their partners’ sites or apps here: https://policies.google.com/technologies/partner-sites.
How Long I Keep Your Data
- Comments: If you leave a comment, both the comment itself and its associated data are kept indefinitely. This allows me to automatically recognize and approve any follow-up comments from you instead of holding them in a moderation queue.
- Registered Users: If you register on my website, I store the personal information you provide in your user profile. You’ll always be able to see, edit, or delete your own personal information at any time (the only thing you can’t change is your username). Website administrators (that’s mostly just me!) can also see and edit that information.
Your Rights Over Your Data
You have control over your data!
- Access Your Data: If you have an account on this site, or have left comments, you can ask to receive an exported file of the personal data I hold about you, including any data you’ve provided to me.
- Erase Your Data: You can also request that I erase any personal data I hold about you. Just a heads up, this doesn’t include any data I’m legally or administratively obliged to keep for security or legal purposes.
To make any of these requests, just reach out to me!
Where Your Data Goes
As mentioned before, visitor comments might be checked through an automated spam detection service.