Search Engine Basics

Privacy policy

Short version: this site does not ask you for anything, and collects the minimum needed to keep it running.

Last updated: 8 September 2026

What this site collects

Reading the site requires no account and no personal information. Two things are recorded automatically:

  • Server request logs. Our hosting provider records the standard details of each request: IP address, timestamp, requested URL, referring URL, user-agent string and the status code returned. These are used for security and for diagnosing technical problems, and are retained for a limited period.
  • Aggregate analytics. Where analytics are enabled, they are configured to measure page-level traffic rather than to identify individuals. If a specific analytics provider is added, this page will name it before it goes live.

What you choose to send us

If you use the contact form, the name, email address and message you enter are transmitted to a third-party form service and forwarded to us by email. That data is used to reply to you and for nothing else. It is not added to a mailing list.

If you subscribe to the newsletter, your email address is stored by the newsletter provider for the purpose of sending you notifications of new articles. You can unsubscribe from any email, and doing so removes the address.

Cookies

This site sets no advertising or tracking cookies of its own. If a future feature requires storing anything in your browser, this page will describe it and the feature will not be enabled before it does.

Third parties

The site is served by a hosting provider, which necessarily processes requests on our behalf. Fonts are self-hosted, so no font provider sees your requests. Where an article links out to a third-party site, that site's own policy applies once you follow the link.

Advertising

There is currently no advertising on this site. If an advertising network is added, this page will be updated to name it and describe the data it receives before any advertisement is served.

Your rights

Depending on where you live, you may have the right to ask what personal data we hold about you, to have it corrected, or to have it deleted. Given that this site collects almost none, the answer is usually short — but ask and we will tell you.

Contact

Privacy questions and requests go to hello@searchenginebasics.dev, or through the contact page.