Privacy Policy

Your privacy is critically important to us.

At Creative Blogger, we have a few fundamental principles:

We are thoughtful about the personal information we ask you to provide and the personal information that we collect about you through the operation of our services.
We store personal information for only as long as we have a reason to keep it.
We aim to make it as simple as possible for you to control what information on your website is shared publicly (or kept private), indexed by search engines, and permanently deleted.
We help protect you from overreaching government demands for your personal information.
We aim for full transparency on how we gather, use, and share your personal information.

Below is our Privacy Policy, which incorporates and clarifies these principles.

Who We Are and What This Policy Covers

We are the folks behind a variety of products and services designed to allow anyone — from bloggers, to photographers, small business owners, and enterprises — to take full advantage of the power and promise of the open web. This Privacy Policy applies to information that we collect about you when you use our Services. Please note that this Privacy Policy does not apply to any of our products or services that have a separate privacy policy.

Creative Commons Sharealike License

This Privacy Policy is available under a Creative Commons Sharealike license. You’re more than welcome to copy it, adapt it, and repurpose it for your own use. Just make sure to revise the language so that your policy reflects your actual practices. If you do use it, we’d appreciate a credit and link to Creative Blogger somewhere on your site.

Information We Collect

We only collect information about you if we have a reason to do so — for example, to provide our Services, to communicate with you, or to make our Services better. We collect information from three sources: if and when you provide information to us, automatically through operating our Services, and from outside sources.

Information You Provide to Us

Basic account information: Email address, password, username or name, and any other information you voluntarily provide.
Public profile information: Username, public profile data, profile photo, “About Me” description, etc.
Payment and contact information: Name, address, payment details, purchase history, revenue information, Stripe or PayPal email, bank account info, tax ID for payments, etc.
Business Profile: For products like Jetpack CRM and Happy Tools, info like employer, job title, contact info, team/company info, and communication history.
Content information: Blog posts, comments, files/media you upload, and any biographical info contained within.
Credentials: Credentials for your self-hosted website (e.g., SSH, FTP, SFTP) when relevant for services like Jetpack and VaultPress.
Communications with us: Support communications, survey responses, newsletter sign-ups, forum questions, and any form/email/call contact with us.
Job applicant information: Name, contact info, resume/CV, references, background checks, work authorization, demographic info (where allowed), and any other info provided during the application process.

Information We Collect Automatically

Log information: Browser type, IP address, device IDs, language, referring site, date/time, OS, network info, etc.
Transactional information: Purchase details, products, prices, date, and location of transactions.
Usage information: Actions on sites, feature usage, interactions, device info, admin bar usage, order/customer counts, and more.
Location information: Approximate via IP address; precise location if enabled in mobile app.
Stored information: Access to photos/files on device if you permit mobile app access.
Interactions with other users’ sites: Likes, comments, and other tracked activity on sites while logged in.
Information from cookies & other technologies: Cookies, pixel tags/web beacons for tracking usage, email campaign effectiveness, and ad delivery. See Cookie Policy.

Information We Collect from Other Sources

Third Party Login: Info from Google, Facebook, etc., when you sign in via other services.
Social Sharing Services: If connected, we may get username/profile info/friends lists from services like Twitter.
Financial Account Info: Stripe/WooPay info for payments, including email/phone.
Google Account Information: If connecting Google to Newspack, we may access Google Ad Manager and Analytics data.
Mailing Lists: Postal info for marketing purposes.

How and Why We Use Information

To provide and maintain our Services (account setup, customer service, backups, payments, verification)
To ensure quality, maintain safety, and improve Services (upgrades, new features, usage analysis, troubleshooting)
To place/manage ads (on user and company sites)
To market our Services (targeted messaging, campaign measurement, forecasting, retention analysis)
To protect Services, users, and the public (security, fraud/spam detection, legal compliance, enforcement, emergency protection)
To fix problems (debugging, support)
To customize user experience (notifications, content recommendations, stories, etc.)
To communicate (feedback, updates, tips, offers, verification, promotions; marketing opt-out available)
To recruit and hire (evaluate and communicate with job applicants, verify info, interviews, background checks, legal compliance)

Legal Bases for Collecting and Using Information

For users in the EU, we process your data based on one or more of these grounds:

To fulfill our commitments to you (terms of service, agreements, account admin, etc.)
To comply with legal obligations
To protect your vital interests or those of another person
For our legitimate interests (providing/updating/improving Services, marketing, analytics, etc.)
With your consent (e.g. for placing cookies)

We share your info in limited circumstances and with appropriate safeguards:

With subsidiaries and independent contractors helping provide Services (they must follow this policy)
With third-party vendors providing services to us or to you (e.g., Stripe, hosting, marketing, analytics, support, registrars, etc.)
To comply with law, court order, or government request
To protect rights/property/others in emergency situations
In business transfers (merger, sale, acquisition, bankruptcy)
With your consent or direction (e.g., social media connection)
Aggregated/de-identified info (for stats or hashed ads)
With site owners if you interact with their site (comments, payments, follows/subscriptions, etc.)
Published support requests for transparency or help

Information Shared Publicly

Any content you make public (profile, posts, comments, likes) is visible to others and search engines, and may appear in public feeds or on Gravatar-enabled sites. Public info may be indexed by search engines or used by third parties.

How Long We Keep Information

We keep your info only as long as needed and as required by law:

Web server logs (e.g., IP, browser) kept ~30 days for analysis/troubleshooting
Deleted content (posts/comments/pages) stays in Trash 30 days, then may persist in backups/caches until purged
Job applicant data kept as required for legal/business reasons

Security

No online service is 100% secure, but we work hard to protect your info and encourage use of security features like two-step authentication.

Choices

Limit what information you provide
Limit access on your mobile device (may limit features)
Opt out of marketing communications (except important account/legal notices)
Set browser to reject cookies (some features may not work properly)
Opt out of internal analytics via user settings
Close your account (some info may be retained as required or for legitimate business reasons)

Your Rights

If you are in the EU, EEA, or US states with privacy laws, you may have rights to access, correct, delete, object, or limit processing of your personal data, and request data portability.

Request access to your personal data
Request correction or deletion of your personal data
Object to our use and processing of your personal data
Request we limit our use and processing
Request portability
Right to lodge a complaint with your data protection authority

US Privacy Laws

Some US states provide rights to:

Request a copy of the specific pieces of information we collect about you
Request deletion or correction of your personal information
Opt out of sale or sharing of personal information
Receive data in a portable format
Not receive discriminatory treatment for exercising your rights

We never directly sell your personal info in the conventional sense, but some ad and analytics sharing may be considered a “sale” or “share” under state laws. You can opt out via the site footer or your app settings.

Contacting Us About These Rights

You can usually access, correct, or delete your personal data using your account settings. For other rights, contact us via our web form or by email. Verification of your identity may be required.

Appeals Process for Rights Requests Denials

If a request is denied, you can appeal in writing. Appeals are reviewed by a different expert. If still denied, you may contact your state attorney general.

Controllers and Responsible Companies

Depending on your location and which services you use, the controller may be Creative Blogger or our affiliates. See our website for address details.

How to Reach Us

Questions? Contact us via our contact form, by email, or phone (see our website for current contact information).

Other Things You Should Know (Keep Reading!)

Transferring Information

Because our services are offered worldwide, info may be processed outside the EEA. We use safeguards like EU Standard Contractual Clauses when transferring data internationally.

Ads and Analytics Services Provided by Others

Ads may be delivered by ad networks and analytics providers using cookies and tracking technologies. This policy covers only our practices, not third parties. See our Cookie Policy for more.

Third-Party Software and Services

Interacting with third-party plugins or services may mean sharing info with those parties, governed by their own policies. Review third-party privacy policies before using their services.

Visitors to Our Users’ Websites

We process information about visitors to our users’ sites on their behalf. This is not covered by this Privacy Policy. Please review each site’s privacy policy for details.

Privacy Policy Changes

We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time. Changes will be posted with a revised change log, and you may receive additional notice if appropriate. Continuing to use our services after changes means you accept the updated policy.

Other Information and Resources

Additional resources:
Jetpack Privacy Center
Woo and the GDPR