Privacy Policy

In this section, we detail the types of information that may be involved when you visit and interact with FlexDifferently.com. This includes data gathered automatically through tools like Google Site Kit, information you voluntarily provide (for instance, when leaving a comment or contacting us), how cookies are used, and information related to potential future donation processing. Our aim is to be transparent about what data is involved and why.

a) Information Collected via Google Site Kit by Google:

This Site uses Google Site Kit, a service provided by Google. Google Site Kit helps us understand how visitors engage with our Site by integrating various Google services, most notably Google Analytics.

Through Google Site Kit, Google Analytics may collect information such as:

• Your IP address (often anonymized or truncated)
• The type of browser and device you are using
• The pages you visit on our Site
• The time and date of your visit
• How long you spend on pages
• The website you came from before visiting our Site
• Your general geographic location (e.g., city, country)

This data is collected by Google and is subject to Google’s Privacy Policy. We use this information in an aggregated and anonymized form to understand our Site traffic, improve user experience, and see which content is most popular. We do not have direct access to personally identifiable information through our standard Google Analytics setup via Site Kit beyond what Google provides in its aggregated reports.

For more information on how Google collects and processes data, please visit Google’s Privacy & Terms site. You can also learn about Google Analytics’ currently available opt-outs.

b) Information You May Voluntarily Provide:

• Comments on Blog Posts: If you choose to leave a comment on a blog post, WordPress (the platform this Site may be built on) typically collects the name, email address, and website (optional) you provide, as well as your IP address. This information is used to display your comment and to help with spam detection. This information is displayed publicly as part of your comment (except for your email and IP address, which are not typically shown publicly with the comment itself). We do not use this information for any other purpose.
• Contacting Us: If you contact us directly (e.g., via an email address provided on the Site), we will have the information you provide in that communication (such as your name, email address, and the content of your message). We only use this information to respond to your inquiry.

c) Information Related to Potential Future Donation Processing:

While FlexDifferently.com does not currently process donations directly or through active integrations with Stripe.com or GoFundMe.com for this project, we want to be transparent about how information might be handled if such services were to be used in the future to support our mission.

If you were to make a donation through a third-party platform like Stripe (if integrated directly on our site for payment processing) or GoFundMe (if we were to run a campaign there):

• These platforms would collect information necessary to process your donation, such as your name, email address, billing information, and donation amount.
• The collection, use, and storage of your information by these third-party platforms would be governed by their respective privacy policies (Stripe’s Privacy Policy, GoFundMe’s Privacy Policy). We encourage you to review their policies if you choose to use such services in the future.
• FlexDifferently.com might receive information from these platforms about your donation (e.g., your name, email, donation amount, date) for acknowledgment and record-keeping purposes, but we would not receive or store your full payment card details.

Currently, any support for the FlexDifferently.com project is managed as outlined in our “Personal Guidelines for Accepting Support,” which does not involve these specific platforms for direct payment processing at this time.

d) Cookies and Tracking Technologies:

This part explains how “cookies” and similar technologies are used on FlexDifferently.com, primarily through services like Google Analytics (via Site Kit) and standard WordPress features such as comments. Understanding cookies helps you know how your browsing experience might be personalized or analyzed.

Our Site, primarily through Google Site Kit (and Google Analytics) and WordPress functionality (like comments), uses “cookies” and similar tracking technologies.

• Cookies are small files placed on your device that help the Site function, remember your preferences (if any), and gather analytics data.
• Google Analytics uses cookies to collect data about Site usage.
• WordPress may use cookies to remember your details if you leave a comment, so you don’t have to fill them in again.

You can instruct your browser to refuse all cookies or to indicate when a cookie is being sent. However, if you do not accept cookies, some portions of our Site may not function properly.

This section outlines the specific purposes for which information related to your use of FlexDifferently.com is used. As an individual project, our focus is on site operation and improvement, not on using your data for unrelated commercial purposes. We also explicitly state what we will NOT do with your information.

As stated, FlexDifferently.com, as an individual project, does not directly store or process your personal data for its own independent purposes beyond what is outlined above. The information collected is primarily used as follows:

• To Operate and Maintain Our Site: Including displaying blog comments if you leave them.
• To Analyze and Improve Our Site: Through aggregated and anonymized data provided by Google Analytics via Site Kit, to understand user engagement and enhance content and user experience.
• To Respond to You: If you contact us directly.
• To Prevent Spam: WordPress and other tools may use certain data to prevent spam comments.

We will NOT:

• Sell your personal information to third parties.
• Share your personal information with third parties for their direct marketing purposes.
• Use information collected for any purpose other than those stated in this policy.

Here, we clarify where the data associated with your interaction with FlexDifferently.com is stored. As the project lead, I do not maintain separate servers for this data; instead, it resides with the third-party services we utilize for site functionality and analytics.

We, as the Flex Differently project lead, do not directly store the personal data collected automatically by services like Google Analytics or WordPress comments on our own servers.

• Data collected by Google Site Kit (Google Analytics) is stored by Google on its servers.
• Data related to WordPress comments (name, email, IP, comment text) is stored within the WordPress database hosted by our web hosting provider.
• Should we utilize donation platforms like Stripe or GoFundMe in the future, any data you provide to them would be stored on their servers according to their policies.

This part of our policy explains the limited circumstances under which any information might be shared. Our commitment is to not sell or rent your personal information. Any sharing is typically with essential service providers or due to legal obligations.

We do not sell or rent your personal information. We may disclose information in the following limited circumstances:

• Service Providers: Information collected by Google Site Kit is processed by Google. Our website hosting provider also processes data necessary for the site to function. If, in the future, we were to use services like Stripe for payment processing or GoFundMe for campaigns, information you provide to them would be processed by them according to their terms and privacy policies. These providers have their own privacy policies.
• Legal Requirements: We may disclose your information if required to do so by law or in response to valid requests by public authorities (e.g., a court or a government agency).

We take the security of any information related to our site seriously. This section describes the measures we take and acknowledges the inherent limitations of online data security. Your trust is important, and we strive to protect information within commercially acceptable means.

We take reasonable steps to help protect the information we handle. However, no internet transmission or electronic storage is 100% secure. While we strive to use commercially acceptable means to protect your information, we cannot guarantee its absolute security. Data collected by third-party services like Google, and potential future services like Stripe or GoFundMe, is secured according to their respective security practices.

FlexDifferently.com may include links to external websites for your convenience or further information, including potential links to GoFundMe campaigns or information about Stripe. This section clarifies our responsibility regarding these third-party sites and encourages you to review their own privacy policies.

Our Site may contain links to other websites that are not operated by us (such as Google, Stripe.com, GoFundMe.com, or other informational resources). If you click on a third-party link, you will be directed to that third party’s site. We strongly advise you to review the Privacy Policy of every site you visit. We have no control over and assume no responsibility for the content, privacy policies, or practices of any third-party sites or services.

Protecting the privacy of children is important. This section outlines our policy regarding the collection of information from children, stating that our site is not intended for users below a certain age and the steps we take if such information is inadvertently collected.

Our Site is not intended for use by children under the age of 13 (or a higher age threshold if applicable in your jurisdiction). We do not knowingly collect personally identifiable information from children. If you are a parent or guardian and you are aware that your child has provided us with personal information, please contact us. If we become aware that we have collected personal information from children without verification of parental consent, we take steps to remove that information.

Our Privacy Policy may be updated periodically to reflect changes in our practices or for other operational, legal, or regulatory reasons. This section explains how we will notify you of such changes and when they become effective.

We may update our Privacy Policy from time to time. We will notify you of any changes by posting the new Privacy Policy on this page and updating the “Last Updated” date at the top. You are advised to review this Privacy Policy periodically for any changes. Changes to this Privacy Policy are effective when they are posted on this page.