Privacy policy
This privacy policy outlines the ways in which I or this website collect data about you, how and where that data is stored, how that data is used, and what your rights are relating to that data. This includes both personally identifiable information (PII) and anonymous data.
The policy covers two main areas:
Who I am
This business and its website (https://www.simondcoll.com) are owned by Simon Coll. You can get in touch with me at: contact@simondcoll.com.
The website is hosted in the United States by Netlify. You can find their privacy policy at https://www.netlify.com/privacy/ and their data-protection information at https://www.netlify.com/gdpr-ccpa/.
Use of this website
What personal data this site collects and why
Cookies
This website uses cookies to provide some of its functionality. Cookies are small text files that websites store on visitors' web browsers to make their experience more efficient. You can find out more about cookies here: https://cookies.insites.com/about-cookies/.
The site uses a small number of cookies that are necessary for it to function correctly, and I ask that you accept these in order to continue using the site. These include cookies used by the web server to preserve a user’s session state across page requests, and those used by my content delivery network (CDN) to identify trusted web traffic.
None of the necessary cookies used by this site contains any PII.
Contact form
When you use the contact form on this site, your name, your contact email address and the contents of your message will be collected and sent to the site owner. The contact form sends an automated email to the site owner; no information from the form is stored on the website.
Your email address will be used to communicate with you about the editing job for which you would like to engage me, and, if you choose to engage me, for any follow-up communication necessary to completing the work and returning it to you. Your information will not be used for any other purpose.
None of this information can be collected without your explicit consent. You will be required to accept this privacy policy before sending a message using the contact form. You can revoke your consent at any time by contacting the site owner, and can request to see any and all data collected about you and ask for it to be erased.
Embedded content from other websites
Blog posts on this site may include embedded content (such as videos or images). Embedded content from other websites behaves in the exact same way as if you had 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 tracing your interaction with the embedded content if you have an account and are logged in to that website.
How your data will be shared
Your data will not be shared with any third-party organizations.
How long your data is retained
Any information you provide via the contact form will be retained for as long as is necessary to complete our discussion of the editing work in question, or, if you engage my services, until the work is complete and payment has been received. After that, I will ask you if you would like your emails and contact details deleted.
What rights you have over your data
You can request to receive an exported file of the personal data held about you on this site, including any data you have provided. You can also request that any or all of this data be erased. You can do this by emailing the site owner.
This does not include any data I am obliged to keep for administrative, legal or security purposes.
Use of my services
What personal data I collect and why
Correspondence
Emails that you send me relating to an editing job will, naturally, include your personal details, including your name and email address.
Invoicing
In order to invoice you at the end of a job, I will need to collect your contact information. This may include your name (or business name), your email address, and your business address and telephone number (if applicable).
Documents you send me for editing
In most cases, documents that you send me for editing should not include any PII, unless such information is part of the main body of the text you wish me to edit. Nonetheless, the documents may contain some personal details, such as your name and institutional affiliation.
The documents may also contain metadata with additional information. Metadata is information about the contents of a document, such as its title or author. The metadata of a document may contain information such as the dates and times at which it was created and modified, the names of those who have edited it, and any comments they may have made. This depends on the file format of the document, as well as the program used to create it.
I do not require any such information to complete editing work for you, and will not seek to collect it. It would be preferable if you removed any personal details or metadata from the documents before sending them to me, although this is not always practical.
You can find out more about removing metadata from Microsoft Office documents here: https://support.office.com/en-us/article/remove-hidden-data-and-personal-information-by-inspecting-documents-presentations-or-workbooks-356b7b5d-77af-44fe-a07f-9aa4d085966f.
How I share your data
My editing files are routinely backed up to two online services: Dropbox and MEGA. You can read Dropbox’s privacy policy at https://www.dropbox.com/privacy and MEGA’s policy at https://mega.nz/gdpr.
Your data will not be shared with any other third-party organizations, aside from those with whom I have a legal obligation to share it. This includes the UK tax authorities (HMRC), to whom I may need to send copies of my invoices and financial records in the event of an audit. These may contain your contact details and payment information. You can find out more about this requirement here: https://www.gov.uk/self-employed-records/what-records-to-keep.
How long your data is retained
Once a job is completed, I will securely delete all files relating to it from my computer and my online backup solutions.
Under UK tax legislation, I am obliged to retain invoices and financial records for five years. These records may include your contact details and payment information (such as your bank account details or online payment system email address). You can find out more about this requirement here: https://www.gov.uk/self-employed-records/how-long-to-keep-your-records.
How I protect your data
I take every effort to ensure that your documents and data are secure on my computer, by keeping my operating system and other software up-to-date, using anti-virus software and doing everything possible (for example, by practising safe web browsing habits) to limit the risk of malware infection.
As mentioned above, I also routinely back up my editing files to two online services: Dropbox and MEGA. You can find out more about Dropbox’s data security measures here: https://www.dropbox.com/help/sign-in/how-security-works and MEGA’s here: https://mega.nz/help/client/webclient/security-and-privacy/why-should-i-entrust-my-data-to-you-5767393c886688740d8b4593.
What rights you have over your data
You can request to receive a summary of the personal data held about you in my records, including any data you have provided. You can also request that any or all of this data be erased. You can do this by emailing me at the address at the top of this policy.
This does not include any data I am obliged to keep for administrative, legal or security purposes.
