Your privacy is important to me. This policy explains how I collect, use, disclose, and safeguard your information when you visit this website (Andy Bennison). I am committed to protecting your personal data and ensuring transparency about the practices applied on this website.
By using my website, I may collect certain information about your data, such as:
- Information about your device, including its type, operating system, browser type and version, and viewport size;
- Information about your interaction with my website, such as which resources you access, when you access them, and the last page you visited;
- Behavioral data such as your responses, playing audio or video content, adding or removing data, and using share features.
These practices are common across most websites today. Even if I do not personally collect some of this data, third-party services—such as Cloudflare—may log certain technical details for security and performance purposes.
This information is used solely to improve the website’s functionality and enhance the user experience. For example, collecting viewport size helps me identify cases where users are accessing the site with screen dimensions that are not well supported by my current media query breakpoints (max-width: 896px and min-width: 897px), which may cause layout issues. Understanding this allows me to improve compatibility and visual consistency across different devices.
This website uses certain APIs to enhance user experience and optimize content delivery. One such service is BigDataCloud, which provides city-level geolocation data based on the visitor’s IP address.
IP-based geolocation is not as precise as GPS, but it is generally accurate enough to determine your city or region. This method is commonly used by many major websites to tailor content, services, or user interfaces based on approximate location.
I use this geolocation information for several purposes, including but not limited to:
- Displaying current weather information via OpenWeatherMap, tailored to your approximate location;
- Implementing technical restrictions, where certain content may not be displayed in specific countries or regions due to applicable laws or content regulations;
- Supporting the website’s automatic theme system, which adjusts the theme based on your local environment. This includes calculating day length, local time, and solar movement to ensure the theme adapts accurately to your region.
This location data is not used for tracking individuals, and is only processed to improve functionality, accuracy, and accessibility of the website’s features.
I do not use this information for any other purposes.
What Are Cookies?
A cookie is a small data file that your browser stores on your device when you visit a website. It allows certain websites to remember actions, preferences, or sessions over time. Most modern browsers—including Chrome, Firefox, and Safari—support cookies.
Do I Use Cookies?
While this website includes a cookies consent banner to comply with legal and regulatory standards, I do not actively use or take advantage of cookies in any significant or functional way. The presence of the cookie banner is primarily a formality to meet compliance obligations (such as GDPR or similar frameworks), rather than an indicator of active tracking or data collection.
First-Party and Third-Party Cookies
I do not deliberately issue or manage any first-party cookies from this website. However, certain third-party services that I integrate—such as Cloudflare (for CDN/security), or embedded media from platforms like VKontakte or YouTube—may issue their own cookies for performance, analytics, or content delivery purposes.
How Do I Handle Third-Party Cookies?
If you access content that relies on external services (such as embedded videos from YouTube or VKontakte), those third-party providers may store cookies on your device. I do not control these cookies directly, and I recommend reviewing their respective privacy policies for detailed information about how they handle user data.
How To Refuse Or Delete Cookies?
You can choose to refuse or block all types of cookies, or specific types, at any time by adjusting your cookie preferences on the website or through your browser settings. Please note that most internet browsers automatically accept cookies without prompting for consent. Therefore, if you do not wish to use cookies, you may need to actively delete or block them. Refusing cookies will not prevent you from accessing this website, but the Cookies Consent banner may continue to be displayed. For more information on how to delete or refuse cookies, and to learn more about cookies in general, you can visit www.allaboutcookies.org.
Third-Party Services
This website integrates several third-party services to enhance functionality, provide user interaction features, and improve overall performance. These services may collect data according to their respective privacy policies, and their inclusion is intended to provide convenience and engagement tools for visitors.
Here are some of third-party services on this website:
Service | Information |
---|---|
Cloudflare | I use Cloudflare for general infrastructure support, including DNS management, analytics, content delivery (CDN), security enhancements, and DDoS mitigation. Cloudflare may process data such as IP addresses, browser details, and basic geolocation (GeoIP) to ensure the site remains fast, reliable, and secure. The Cloudflare service privacy policy is available here: https://www.cloudflare.com/privacypolicy/ |
BigDataCloud | I use BigDataCloud to obtain city-level geolocation data based on IP addresses. This data supports functionality such as automatic theming, regional content adjustments, and current weather display. The location data is approximate and not used for precise tracking. The BigDataCloud service privacy policy is available here: https://www.bigdatacloud.com/privacy-and-cookie-policy |
OpenWeatherMap | OpenWeatherMap is used in conjunction with BigDataCloud to display weather information tailored to the visitor’s general location. This helps enhance the contextual experience of the website. The OpenWeatherMap service privacy policy is available here: https://openweather.co.uk/privacy-policy |
OneSignal | This website uses OneSignal to offer push notifications. If you choose to subscribe, your browser and device will receive occasional updates or content alerts. You can opt out at any time through your browser settings or the OneSignal unsubscribe link. The OneSignal service privacy policy is available here: https://onesignal.com/privacy_policy |
follow.it | To deliver newsletters or update notifications via email, I use follow.it. This service handles email subscriptions and allows users to receive site updates conveniently. You can manage or cancel your subscription through follow.it’s user settings. The follow.it service privacy policy is available here: https://follow.it/info/privacy |
Google Services | Some features of this website may rely on Google Services, such as:
|
GitHub and jsDelivr | Parts of this website’s codebase and public assets are hosted on GitHub, and delivered efficiently using jsDelivr. This setup helps with performance and ensures the latest versions of resources are accessible globally. The GitHub and jsDelivr service privacy policy is available here: https://docs.github.com/en/site-policy/privacy-policies, https://www.jsdelivr.com/terms/privacy-policy |
Dropbox | I also use Dropbox to store and serve static assets like audio, video, images, fonts, and other media files. Dropbox acts as a storage backend and may log access metadata such as download counts or IP addresses, subject to their own policies. The Dropbox service privacy policy is available here: https://www.dropbox.com/privacy |
Sightengine | This website uses Sightengine, an AI-powered image analysis service, to validate images in articles. It helps determine in real-time whether an image may have been generated by AI. This feature is used to promote transparency and maintain content authenticity. The Sightengine service privacy policy is available here: https://sightengine.com/policies/privacy#:~:text=We%20take%20our%20obligation%20to,all%20applicable%20laws%20and%20regulations. |
For visitors who prefer using their Facebook account, this website offers a Facebook Comments plugin. This allows you to leave comments directly through your Facebook profile. Any data shared through this tool is subject to Facebook’s own data handling practices. The Meta service privacy policy is available here: https://www.facebook.com/privacy/policy/version/20220104 | |
VKontakte | Similarly, I provide VKontakte Comments integration to allow users with a VK account to leave comments. This feature is particularly useful for visitors from regions where VK is widely used, such as Russia and other CIS countries. The VKontakte service privacy policy is available here: https://m.vk.com/privacy?api_view=1&lang=en |
Disqus | This website also supports Disqus as a commenting system, giving users a flexible option to engage using their Disqus account or social logins. Disqus may collect information based on its own terms and policies. The Disqus service privacy policy is available here: https://help.disqus.com/en/articles/1717103-disqus-privacy-policy |
Telegram | In addition, I offer Telegram Comments integration for users who prefer to comment via their Telegram account. This is an alternative way to interact with content without needing traditional web logins. The Telegram service privacy policy is available here: https://telegram.org/privacy/en |
Log Files
I follow a standard procedure of using log files. These files record visitors’ activity when they visit websites. All hosting companies use log files as part of their hosting services’ analytics. The information collected by log files includes Internet Protocol (IP) addresses, browser type, Internet Service Provider (ISP), date and time stamps, referring/exit pages, and possibly the number of clicks. This information is not linked to any personally identifiable information.
In addition to server-level logging, third-party services such as Cloudflare may also collect log data for security, performance optimization, and diagnostics. These logs can include additional details such as request status codes, geographical location (at a general level), and the device or network type used to access the website.
The purpose of collecting this data is to analyze trends, administer the website, track users’ movement on the website, enhance security, and gather broad demographic information. This data is used solely for technical and analytical purposes and is not used to personally identify visitors.
Children’s Privacy
Protecting the privacy of children is especially important. I encourage parents and guardians to take an active role in their children’s online activities by observing, participating in, and/or supervising their internet use.
This website does not knowingly collect any personally identifiable information from individuals under the age of 18. If you believe that your child has provided such information on this website, please contact me immediately. I will take all reasonable steps to promptly remove such information from my records.
If you have additional questions or require more information about my policy, do not hesitate to contact me.
Policy Updates
I may update this policy from time to time to reflect changes in my practices, the technologies I use, or to comply with legal or regulatory requirements. I encourage you to review this policy periodically to stay informed about how I collect, use, and protect your information.
Consent
By using this website, you consent to this policy and agree to its terms.
This Policy was last updated on: April 16, 2025