Privacy Policy

Effective: January 1, 2026  ·  Last updated: March 2026

Your privacy matters. This policy explains exactly what data we collect, why we collect it, and how you can control it.

1. Who We Are

carlriedel.com is operated by Carl Riedel, web developer, SEO specialist, and creator of CARL (Content Automation Ranking Launchpad). When this policy says "we," "us," or "our," it refers to Carl Riedel and carlriedel.com.

We are based in the United Kingdom. Our primary audience is located in the United States, and this policy is written to comply with applicable US laws, including the California Consumer Privacy Act (CCPA) and the CAN-SPAM Act, as well as general international best practices.

2. Information We Collect

Information you give us directly

• Email address — when you subscribe to our newsletter or create a free member account.
• Name — if you provide it when signing up (optional for subscribers, required for member accounts).
• Username and password — if you create a member account. Passwords are stored as a bcrypt hash and are never readable by us.
• Messages — if you contact us directly by email.

Information collected automatically

• IP address — collected automatically by our web server and analytics tools. Stored as a one-way hash for security purposes.
• Browser and device type — operating system, browser version, and screen size.
• Pages visited and time spent — which pages you view and for how long.
• Referring URL — the page or search engine that sent you to our site.
• Link clicks — we track clicks on outbound and affiliate links within our site to understand which content performs best. This data is aggregated and not linked to individual identities.
• Cookies — small data files stored in your browser. See Section 4 for full details.

Information we do not collect

• We do not collect credit card or payment information directly. Any purchases are handled by third-party payment processors.
• We do not sell your personal information to any third parties.

3. How We Use Your Information

We use the information we collect to:

• Create and manage your member account and provide access to member-only content.
• Send you email communications you opted into, including product updates and content.
• Improve our website content, navigation, and user experience based on aggregated analytics data.
• Understand which links and pages perform best so we can create more useful content.
• Respond to your questions or messages.
• Comply with legal obligations.

We do not use your information for automated decision-making, profiling for advertising, or any purpose beyond what is listed above.

4. Cookies & Tracking Technologies

We use cookies to make our site work correctly and to understand how visitors use it.

Strictly necessary cookies

These are required for the site to function. Member login sessions use a secure cookie to keep you logged in. You cannot opt out of these without disabling member functionality entirely.

Analytics cookies

Set by Google Analytics to collect aggregated, anonymized data on page views, session duration, and traffic sources. You can opt out via your browser settings or by using the Google Analytics Opt-Out Browser Add-On.

Link tracking

We track clicks on outbound and affiliate links to understand which content drives the most value. This data is stored in aggregated form and is not linked to your name, email address, or any other identifying information.

Managing cookies: You can control and delete cookies through your browser settings. Visit aboutcookies.org for browser-specific instructions.

5. Analytics

We use Google Analytics to collect aggregated, anonymized information about how visitors use our site. We have enabled IP anonymization, which means your full IP address is never stored. Google's privacy policy is available at policies.google.com/privacy.

6. Email Communications

We collect email addresses only when you voluntarily provide them, for example to create a free member account or subscribe to our newsletter.

Unsubscribing: Every email we send includes a visible one-click unsubscribe link. We comply fully with the US CAN-SPAM Act:

• We never use deceptive subject lines.
• We clearly identify ourselves as the sender in every email.
• We honor unsubscribe requests within 10 business days.
• We include valid contact information in every email.

Your email address may be synced to our email service provider (Kit, formerly ConvertKit) in accordance with their own privacy policy. We do not share your email address with any other third parties.

7. Member Accounts

carlriedel.com offers a free membership tier that gives you access to the full CARL documentation and member-only content. When you create an account, we store your email address, username, and a bcrypt hash of your password. Your plain-text password is never stored or accessible.

Member sessions are managed via a secure, httponly cookie. Sessions expire automatically after 30 days of inactivity. You can log out at any time to clear your session immediately.

To delete your member account and all associated data, contact us at the address in Section 14.

8. Affiliate Disclosure

FTC Required Disclosure: carlriedel.com may contain affiliate links to third-party products and services. If you click on one of these links and make a purchase, we may earn a small commission at no additional cost to you.

We only recommend products and tools we genuinely use or believe are useful. Our editorial opinions and content are not influenced by affiliate relationships.

9. Third-Party Services

Our site interacts with the following third-party services, each governed by its own privacy policy:

• Google Analytics — policies.google.com/privacy
• Kit (ConvertKit) — kit.com/privacy-policy
• Stability AI — used for AI image generation in our admin tools. No visitor data is transmitted to Stability AI.

We are not responsible for the privacy practices of third-party websites. Links to external sites are provided for convenience and visiting them is governed by their own policies.

10. Data Retention

• Member accounts: We retain your account data for as long as your account is active. You may request deletion at any time.
• Email subscribers: We retain your email address for as long as your subscription is active. When you unsubscribe, you are removed from our active list.
• Analytics data: Aggregated, anonymized analytics are retained to understand long-term traffic trends.
• Server logs: Web server logs containing IP addresses are retained for up to 30 days for security purposes, then automatically deleted.

11. Your Rights

All users

• Access: You may request a copy of the personal data we hold about you.
• Correction: You may ask us to correct inaccurate data.
• Deletion: You may request that we delete your personal data. We will comply unless legally required to retain it.
• Opt-out of email: Unsubscribe at any time via the link in any email or by contacting us directly.

California residents (CCPA)

If you are a California resident, you have the following additional rights under the California Consumer Privacy Act:

• Right to Know: You may request details about the categories and specific pieces of personal information we have collected about you.
• Right to Delete: You may request that we delete personal information we have collected from you, subject to certain exceptions.
• Right to Opt-Out of Sale: We do not sell your personal information.
• Right to Non-Discrimination: We will not discriminate against you for exercising any of your CCPA rights.

To exercise any of these rights, contact us at [email protected]. We will respond within 45 days as required by California law.

12. Children's Privacy

carlriedel.com is not directed at children under the age of 13. We do not knowingly collect personal information from children under 13. If you believe we have collected data from a child under 13, please contact us immediately and we will delete it promptly.

13. Changes to This Policy

We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time as our site evolves. When we make material changes, we will update the "Last updated" date at the top of this page. Your continued use of the site after changes are posted constitutes your acceptance of the updated policy.

14. Contact Us

If you have any questions, concerns, or requests regarding this Privacy Policy, please contact us:

We aim to respond to all privacy-related enquiries within 5 business days.