Creator Gear collects as little personal information as it can get away with. We do not sell your data, we do not run a mailing list you have to escape from, and we do not require an account to read anything on this site. The main circumstances in which we hold information about you are: you emailed us, you used the contact form, or your browser was recorded in ordinary server logs and analytics.
This policy sets out the detail. If anything here is unclear, please
ask us — we would rather explain it than leave you guessing.
Creator Gear is an independent online publication operating at creatorgearinsider.com. For the purposes of UK data protection law we act as the data controller for personal information collected through this website.
You can reach us about anything in this policy at
hello@creatorgearinsider.com. We aim to respond to all data enquiries within five working days, and in any event within the timescales set out in law.
What information we collect
We collect information in three ways, and only these three.
Information you give us directly
Your name and email address when you contact us by email or through the contact form; the content of your message, including anything you choose to include in it; and optionally a page address if you tell us which guide your message relates to. Please do not send us payment details, passwords or sensitive personal information. We have no reason to need any of it.
Information collected automatically
Standard server log data, which typically includes your IP address, browser type, the pages you requested and the time of the request. This is generated by the hosting infrastructure rather than by us, and is used for security and to diagnose faults. We also collect analytics data about how the site is used — which pages are read, roughly how long for, and which links are followed. We use this to decide what to write next, not to build a profile of you.
Information from cookies and similar technologies
Cookies set by this site, and by third parties including analytics providers and affiliate networks. Affiliate cookies are how a retailer knows a purchase originated here. Full detail of what is set, why, and how to control it is in our
cookie policy.
Why we use it, and our lawful basis
Under UK GDPR we must have a lawful basis for processing personal data.
To reply to you: where you contact us, we process your name, email address and message on the basis of our legitimate interest in responding to correspondence, and your consent where you tick the consent box.
To keep the site working and secure: server logs are processed on the basis of our legitimate interest in operating a functioning, secure website.
To understand what is useful: analytics are processed on the basis of consent where required, and are used to decide which guides to write, update or retire.
To operate affiliate links: affiliate tracking is operated by third-party networks on the basis of consent where required. This is how the site is funded — see our
affiliate disclosure.
Who we share information with
We do not sell personal information, and we do not share it for anyone else’s marketing. Information may be handled by hosting and infrastructure providers, who necessarily process server logs in order to serve pages to you; analytics providers, who process usage data on our behalf; affiliate networks and retailers, who set their own cookies and process data under their own privacy policies when you follow an affiliate link; and email providers, who transmit and store correspondence sent to us.
Once you leave this site, the third party’s policy governs, not ours. We may also disclose information where we are legally required to do so, or where it is necessary to protect our rights or the safety of others.
Some of the providers described above operate outside the United Kingdom. Where personal data is transferred internationally, it is done on the basis of appropriate safeguards recognised under UK data protection law, such as adequacy regulations or standard contractual clauses. If you would like detail on a specific provider, please ask.
Correspondence is kept for as long as is useful to maintain a record of the conversation, and reviewed periodically. Corrections correspondence may be kept longer as part of the editorial record of a change. Server logs are retained for a short period by the hosting provider for security and diagnostic purposes. Analytics are retained in aggregate, and we do not attempt to re-identify individuals from analytics data. If you ask us to delete your correspondence, we will do so unless we are required to keep it.
Under UK data protection law you have the right to access a copy of the personal information we hold about you; rectification of inaccurate information; erasure, where there is no overriding reason to keep it; restriction of how we use your information; objection to processing carried out on the basis of legitimate interests; portability of certain information in a portable format; and withdrawal of consent at any time where processing relies on it.
To exercise any of these, email
hello@creatorgearinsider.com with “Data request” in the subject line. We will not charge you for a reasonable request and we will not make it difficult.
This site is written for a general adult audience and is not directed at children. We do not knowingly collect personal information from anyone under the age of 13. If you believe a child has provided us with personal information, please contact us and we will delete it.
We may update this policy from time to time, for example if we change analytics provider or join a new affiliate programme. The date at the top of this page shows when it was last revised. Material changes will be summarised at the top of the page rather than made quietly.
If you are unhappy with how we have handled your personal information, please tell us first — we would like the chance to put it right. You also have the right to complain to the Information Commissioner’s Office, the UK’s independent authority for data protection, at ico.org.uk.
A note on this policy
This policy describes how Creator Gear currently operates and is written to be read rather than to be impressive. It is not a substitute for legal advice, and if your circumstances are unusual you may want your own. If something here does not match your experience of using the site, that is a bug — please tell us.