Privacy Policy

1. Responsible Person:

Michael Adams

As a private individual operating this website as a hobby project in Germany, I am subject to the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) and the German Federal Data Protection Act (BDSG) regarding any personal data processing.

2. What Data Is Collected

2.1 Automatically Collected Data

Like most websites, this site automatically collects certain technical information when you visit:

• IP address (anonymized - see Google Analytics section below)
• Browser type and version
• Operating system
• Date and time of access
• Pages visited on this website
• Referring website (if you clicked a link to get here)

This data is collected through your browser's standard communication with web servers and through Google Analytics (see section 3 below).

2.2 Data You Provide

This website does not currently collect any personal data directly from users. There are no:

• Registration or login systems
• Contact forms
• Newsletter subscriptions
• Comment sections
• User accounts

All content is freely accessible without providing any personal information.

3. Google Analytics 4

3.1 What Is Google Analytics?

This website uses Google Analytics 4 (GA4), a web analytics service provided by Google LLC ("Google"). Google Analytics helps me understand how visitors use this website so I can improve the content and user experience.

3.2 What Data Does Google Analytics Collect?

Google Analytics collects information about your website usage, including:

• Pages viewed: Which pages you visit and how long you stay
• User journey: How you navigate through the website
• Device information: Type of device, browser, screen resolution
• Geographic location: Approximate location based on IP address (country/region level)
• Traffic source: How you found the website (search engine, direct visit, referral)
• User engagement: Bounce rate, session duration, interactions

3.3 How Does It Work?

Google Analytics uses cookies and similar technologies to collect this information. A cookie is a small text file stored on your device that allows the website to recognize your browser on return visits.

The Google Analytics cookies used on this website include:

• _ga: Distinguishes unique users (expires after 2 years)
• _ga_[container-id]: Maintains session state (expires after 2 years)

3.4 IP Anonymization

Google Analytics 4 automatically anonymizes IP addresses. Your full IP address is not stored or visible to me. This means the data cannot be traced back to individual users.

3.5 Why Do I Use Google Analytics?

As a hobby project created by a financial markets enthusiast, I use Google Analytics to:

• Understand which central banks and topics are most interesting to visitors
• Identify technical issues or broken pages
• Improve the website structure and navigation
• See which content is most valuable to visitors
• Make data-driven decisions about which features to develop next

This helps me invest my limited time in the areas that provide the most value to visitors.

3.6 Legal Basis

Google Analytics is used based on your consent (Art. 6(1)(a) GDPR). When you first visit this website, you will see a cookie consent banner asking for your permission. Google Analytics will only be activated if you accept.

3.7 Your Rights Regarding Google Analytics

You can control Google Analytics in several ways:

• Cookie Consent Banner: Accept or decline when you first visit the site
• Change Your Mind: Withdraw consent at any time using the cookie settings available in the footer
• Browser Settings: Configure your browser to block or delete cookies
• Google Analytics Opt-out: Install the Google Analytics Opt-out Browser Add-on
• Do Not Track: Enable Do Not Track in your browser settings (though not all services honor this)

3.8 Data Transfer to Google

Google Analytics processes data on servers that may be located in the United States and other countries. Google LLC is certified under the EU-US Data Privacy Framework, providing adequate protection for data transfers to the US.

The data collected is subject to Google's privacy policy, available at: https://policies.google.com/privacy

3.9 Data Retention

Google Analytics data is automatically deleted after 14 months of inactivity. I do not extend this retention period beyond Google's default settings.

4. Server Log Files

The web hosting provider automatically collects and stores information in server log files, which your browser automatically transmits. This includes:

• IP address
• Browser type and version
• Operating system
• Referrer URL (the page you visited before coming here)
• Hostname of the accessing computer
• Time of the server request

This data is not combined with other data sources and is used only for ensuring the technical operation and security of the website. The legal basis is legitimate interest (Art. 6(1)(f) GDPR) in maintaining a secure and functional website.

Server logs are typically retained for a limited period (usually 7-30 days) for security and troubleshooting purposes, then automatically deleted.

5. Third-Party Services & Links to Other Websites

Apart from Google Analytics (described in section 3), this website does not use any other third-party tracking services, advertising networks, social media plugins, or external content that would collect your personal data.

The website does load some resources from Content Delivery Networks (CDNs) for performance optimization:

• Bootstrap (CSS framework)
• Bootstrap Icons
• Google Fonts

Loading these resources may transmit your IP address to these services. This is technically necessary for displaying the website correctly and is based on legitimate interest (Art. 6(1)(f) GDPR).

This website contains links to external websites (such as central bank websites, news sources, and financial data providers). I am not responsible for the privacy practices or content of these external sites. When you leave this website, I encourage you to read the privacy policy of every website you visit.

6. Your Rights Under GDPR

Under the General Data Protection Regulation, you have the following rights:

• Right of Access (Art. 15 GDPR): You can request information about whether and what personal data I process about you
• Right to Rectification (Art. 16 GDPR): You can request correction of inaccurate data
• Right to Erasure (Art. 17 GDPR): You can request deletion of your data under certain circumstances
• Right to Restriction (Art. 18 GDPR): You can request restriction of processing in certain cases
• Right to Data Portability (Art. 20 GDPR): You can request your data in a structured, commonly used format
• Right to Object (Art. 21 GDPR): You can object to processing based on legitimate interest
• Right to Withdraw Consent (Art. 7(3) GDPR): You can withdraw your consent to Google Analytics at any time

To exercise any of these rights, please contact me using the contact information provided in section 1.

Right to Lodge a Complaint: If you believe your data protection rights have been violated, you have the right to lodge a complaint with a supervisory authority. The competent authority in Germany is your state data protection commissioner, or the Federal Commissioner for Data Protection and Freedom of Information (BfDI).