Who we are
Created in 1999, the Secrets of Paris website (https://www.secretsofparis.com) and Secrets of Paris newsletter are owned and managed by Paris-based journalist Heather Stimmler (French-registered micro-entreprise, siren #442448437).
What personal data we collect and why we collect it
Comments
When visitors leave comments on the site we collect the data shown in the comments form, and also the visitor’s IP address and browser user agent string to help spam detection.
An anonymized string created from your email address (also called a hash) may be provided to the Gravatar service to see if you are using it. The Gravatar service privacy policy is available here: https://automattic.com/privacy/. After approval of your comment, your profile is visible to the public in the context of your comment.
Contact Forms
If you send us a message on our contact form, we will only use your email and name to reply to your message, and will not use it to send you any other information unless requested. Your information is never sold or shared with third-parties.
Cookies
If you leave a comment on our site you may opt-in to saving your name, email address and website in cookies. These are for your convenience so that you do not have to fill in your details again when you leave another comment. These cookies will last for one year.
If you visit our login page, we will set a temporary cookie to determine if your browser accepts cookies. This cookie contains no personal data and is discarded when you close your browser.
When you log in, we will also set up several cookies to save your login information 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 persist for two weeks. If you log out of your account, the login cookies will be removed.
Embedded content from other websites
Articles on this site may include embedded content (e.g. videos, images, etc.). Embedded content from other websites behaves in the exact same way as if the visitor has visited the other website.
These websites may collect data about you, use cookies, embed additional third-party tracking, and monitor your interaction with that embedded content, including tracking your interaction with the embedded content if you have an account and are logged in to that website.
Analytics
This website uses Google Analytics to collect anonymous information about who is visiting the website (such as your country, browser, and which pages you visit). This information is used solely to see which content on our site is most popular, and us not used for marketing purposes.
Newsletter Subscriptions
If you fill out the form to sign up for the Secrets of Paris Newsletter, we will use your name and email to send you the newsletter as requested. It is a double opt-in newsletter, meaning you will not receive the newsletter until you confirm your subscription request by email. You can unsubscribe at any time by using the link at the bottom of each newsletter or by sending us a request to remove you. We use the third-party email service SendInBlue to send our newsletters.
Who we share your data with
Secrets of Paris does not share or sell your data – neither your name, nor email, nor IP address – with anyone unless compelled by law.
How long we retain your data
If you leave a comment, the comment and its metadata are retained indefinitely. This is so we can recognize and approve any follow-up comments automatically instead of holding them in a moderation queue.
For users that register on our website (if any), we also store the personal information they provide in their user profile. All users can see, edit, or delete their personal information at any time (except they cannot change their username). Website administrators can also see and edit that information.
Newsletter subscribers will have their email in our database until the moment they unsubscribe.
What rights you have over your data
If you have left comments, you can request to receive an exported file of the personal data we hold about you, including any data you have provided to us. You can also request that we erase any personal data we hold about you. This does not include any data we are obliged to keep for administrative, legal, or security purposes.
Where we send your data
Visitor comments may be checked through an automated spam detection service. Secrets of Paris only uses third-party services — such as WordPress.com, SendInBlue and Google Analytics — which adhere to European GDPR requirements.
GDPR Contact
Questions related to GDPR or our privacy policy can be sent to inquiry@secretsofparis.com