The General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) represents a significant shift in the landscape of data privacy. This regulation, effective May 25, 2018, enforces strict rules for handling personal data in the EU.

As a visitor, know that GDPR grants you control over your data on our site, especially in the EU. You have rights to access, correct, erase, restrict, and transfer your data. Our GDPR compliance reflects our commitment to your privacy and data rights. We responsibly handle your data, ensuring transparency and GDPR adherence. We’ll explain our data collection, usage, and protection methods, and your data rights on our website.

Data Collection and Use

At Recipes By Charlotte, we are committed to transparency and respect for your privacy. This section explains the types of personal data we collect and how we use this information.

Types of Data Collected:

1. Personal Identification Information: We may collect personal data such as your name, email address, and contact details. We typically gather this information when you sign up for our newsletter, create an account on our site, or engage in transactions requiring personal identification.
2. Cookies and Usage Data: Our website uses cookies to enhance your browsing experience. Cookies, small data files stored on your device, help us enhance our website’s functionality and understand site usage. This data may include information such as your computer’s Internet Protocol (IP) address, browser type, browser version, the pages of our site that you visit, the time and date of your visit, the time spent on those pages, and other diagnostic data.
3. Analytics Data: We use analytics tools to track the way visitors interact with our website. This helps us understand user preferences, improve user experience, and optimize our website’s performance.

How We Use Your Data:

• To Personalize Your Experience: Your information helps us to better respond to your individual needs and offer a more personalized experience.
• To Improve Our Website: We continually strive to improve our website offerings based on the information and feedback we receive from you.
• For Customer Service: Your information helps us to more effectively respond to your customer service requests and support needs.
• To Send Periodic Emails: If you opt-in to our mailing list, you will receive emails that may include company news, updates, related product or service information, etc. Note that you can unsubscribe at any time.
• For Marketing Purposes: If you have given your consent, we may use your information to send you promotional messages and marketing material about products, services, and offers that might interest you.

Please note that we process your personal data in compliance with GDPR and other relevant privacy laws. We use your data only for its intended purpose, unless we find a compatible reason that aligns with the original purpose.

User Consent

At Recipes By Charlotte, we place great importance on obtaining clear and unambiguous consent from our users, especially in relation to the collection and processing of personal data.

Obtaining Consent for Cookies:

• Cookie Consent Banner: When you first visit our website, you will encounter a cookie consent banner. This banner is designed to inform you about our use of cookies and similar tracking technologies. It provides you with the choice to accept or decline the use of these cookies, except for those that are strictly necessary for the website’s functionality.
• Customizable Settings: We understand that our users have different preferences regarding their privacy. Therefore, our cookie consent banner allows you to customize your settings, choosing which types of cookies you consent to. You can opt-in or opt-out of different categories of cookies, such as analytics cookies, advertising cookies, and social media cookies.
• Transparent Information: Alongside the cookie consent banner, we provide detailed information about the types of cookies we use, their purpose, and how they impact your browsing experience. This information is accessible in our Privacy Policy, which is linked within the banner.

Consent for Personal Data Collection:

• Explicit Consent for Data Collection: For data collection like newsletter sign-ups or account creation, we ask for your clear consent, obtained through actions like ticking a checkbox, with the purpose stated alongside.
• Right to Withdraw Consent: You have the right to withdraw your consent at any time. We provide easy and accessible ways for you to withdraw your consent and adjust your preferences, be it for email subscriptions or cookie settings.
• Age Restriction: We do not knowingly collect personal data from children under the age of 16 without parental consent. If we learn that we have collected personal data from a child under 16 without verification of parental consent, we will take steps to remove that information from our servers.

Your consent is crucial for us. We respect your choices and ensure we obtain your consent freely, specifically, informedly, and unambiguously, as the GDPR requires.

User Rights Under GDPR

Under the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR), you, as a user of our website, have specific rights regarding your personal data. We are committed to not only complying with these regulations but also to facilitating your ability to exercise these rights:

Your Data, Your Rights: Understanding and Exercising Your GDPR Protections

1. Right to Access: You have the right to request access to your personal data that we hold. This allows you to receive a copy of the personal data we have about you and to check that we are lawfully processing it.
2. Right to Correction: You have the right to request the correction of your personal data if it is inaccurate. You also have the right to have incomplete personal data completed, including by means of providing a supplementary statement.
3. Right to Erasure: Also known as the ‘right to be forgotten,’ this right enables you to request the deletion or removal of your personal data when no compelling reason justifies its continued processing.
4. Right to Restrict Processing: You have the right to request the restriction of processing of your personal data. This means that we can store your data, but not use it further if certain conditions apply.
5. Right to Data Portability: This right allows you to request the transfer of your personal data to you or to a third party. We will provide your personal data in a structured, commonly used, machine-readable format.
6. Right to Withdraw Consent: You have the right to withdraw your consent at any time where we are relying on consent to process your personal data. This will not affect the lawfulness of any processing carried out before you withdraw your consent.
7. Right to Object: You have the right to object to the processing of your personal data where we are relying on a legitimate interest (or those of a third party) and there is something about your particular situation which makes you want to object to processing on this ground.

Exercise Your Data Protection Rights: Simple Steps and Prompt Response:

To exercise any of these rights, please contact us at the provided form. We will respond to your request in accordance with GDPR guidelines. Please note that there may be conditions or limitations on these rights. We must inform you of our action on your request promptly, within one month of receiving it.

Data Security

At Recipes By Charlotte, we understand the importance of safeguarding your personal data. We are committed to protecting your information from unauthorized access, alteration, disclosure, or destruction. Here are some of the measures we have implemented to ensure data security:

1. Secure Data Storage: We store your personal data on secure servers. Access to this data is restricted and controlled.
2. Encryption: Sensitive data, such as payment information and personal identifiers, is encrypted during transmission. This ensures that your data remains private and secure.
3. Regular Security Audits: Our systems undergo regular security audits to identify and rectify any vulnerabilities. This proactive approach helps in safeguarding your data against potential threats.
4. Access Control: We implement strict access controls to ensure that only authorized personnel have access to your personal data. Our staff are trained in data protection and understand the importance of maintaining confidentiality and security.
5. Data Breach Procedures: In case of a data breach, we’ll quickly notify affected individuals and authorities as legally required.
6. Compliance with Standards: We adhere to established security standards and regulations to ensure that our data protection measures are up to date and effective.
7. Partners and Third Parties: We carefully choose third-party service providers, ensuring they meet our data protection standards. When sharing data with them, we comply with GDPR and confirm they take appropriate measures for data security.

Your data security is our priority. We are continually updating and refining our security practices to protect your personal data against unauthorized access or disclosure.

Third-Party Data Sharing

At Recipes By Charlotte, we sometimes share certain aspects of your personal data with trusted third parties. This section aims to clarify why we share this data, who we share it with, and how these third parties comply with GDPR regulations.

Who We Share Data With and Why:

1. Analytics Providers (e.g., Google Analytics): We use third-party analytics providers to help us understand how our website is being used. This helps us improve user experience and optimize our service. These providers may collect data such as your IP address, web browser type, pages visited, and time spent on pages.
2. Social Media Platforms: If you use social media features on our website, such as the ‘Share’ or ‘Like’ buttons, the corresponding social media platform may collect information about your interaction. This helps us in social media marketing and analysis.
3. Advertising Partners: We may share data with advertising partners to deliver targeted advertising to you both on and off our website. This data sharing helps us to provide you with promotional content that is more relevant to your interests.

GDPR Compliance of Third Parties:

• Data Processing Agreements: We ensure that all third-party service providers with whom we share data are compliant with GDPR. We have data processing agreements in place with these providers, which obligate them to protect the data they receive and to use it only for the purposes we have specified.
• Privacy Policies: These third parties have their own privacy policies which detail their data protection measures. We encourage you to read these policies to understand how they process your data.
• Limited Data Sharing: We only share the data that is necessary for the third party to provide their service. We limit the data we share to only what is necessary for the intended purpose of the processing.

We prioritize your privacy, only working with third parties that can ensure GDPR-compliant processing and protect your rights.

Contact Information

If you have any questions regarding your personal data, our privacy practices, or if you wish to exercise any of your rights under the GDPR, please do not hesitate to contact us. We are actively working to address your concerns and make it easy for you to exercise your data protection rights.

You can reach us in the following ways:

• Email: For the fastest response, please email us at [email protected]. We aim to respond to all queries within 48 hours.
• Online Contact Form: Additionally, you can use our online contact form available on our website. Simply fill in your details and query, and we will get back to you as soon as possible.

We take your privacy concerns seriously and will do our best to resolve any issues promptly and transparently. Your trust and confidence in how we handle your personal data are paramount to us.

Policy Updates

We may update our GDPR policy from time to time to reflect changes in our practices, service offerings, or legal or regulatory requirements. We prioritize keeping you informed about how we protect your personal data and your privacy rights.

Notification of Changes:

• Website Notification: Any significant changes to our GDPR policy will be prominently posted on our website. We encourage you to periodically review this policy for the latest information on our privacy practices.
• Email Notification: If there are any material changes to the policy that directly affect the way we handle your personal data, we will endeavor to notify you via email, using the email address you have provided us.
• Access to the Updated Policy: The most current version of our GDPR policy will always be available on our website. This ensures that you can always access the latest version to understand how we are protecting your personal data.

Google DoubleClick DART Cookie

Google is one of a third-party vendor on our site. It also uses cookies, known as DART cookies, to serve ads to our site visitors based upon their visit to www.website.com and other sites on the internet. However, visitors may choose to decline the use of DART cookies by visiting the Google ad and content network Privacy Policy at the following URL – https://policies.google.com/technologies/ads

Our Advertising Partners
Some of advertisers on our site may use cookies and web beacons. Our advertising partners are listed below. Each of our advertising partners has their own Privacy Policy for their policies on user data. For easier access, we hyperlinked to their Privacy Policies below.

Google: https://policies.google.com/technologies/ads

Your Continued Use of Our Website:

• Acceptance of Changes: By continuing to use our website after we make changes, you are agreeing to accept those changes. We recommend that you check the policy periodically if you continue to use our website.

Feedback and Questions:

• Open to Feedback: We welcome your feedback on our GDPR policy. If you have suggestions or questions about our privacy practices, please contact us using the contact information provided in the Contact Page section of this policy.

We actively work to ensure that our GDPR policy remains consistent with the best standards in data protection and legal obligations. Your privacy and the security of your personal data are of utmost importance to us.

Compliance with Google’s Terms

In our commitment to transparency and privacy, we also ensure that our GDPR practices align with Google’s terms, particularly as we utilize various Google services, such as Google Analytics, on our website. Here’s how we align our practices with Google’s requirements:

Explicit Consent for Data Collection:

• Informed Consent: We obtain explicit consent from our users for the collection and processing of their data. This is particularly relevant for the data collected through Google Analytics and other Google services. Our cookie consent banner and privacy policy clearly inform users about the use of these services and the nature of data collection involved.

Transparent Information about Google Services:

• Detailed Disclosure: Our privacy policy and cookie policy provide detailed information about the Google services we use on our site. This includes how these services function, the type of data they collect, and the purpose of this data collection.
• Purpose of Using Google Services: We proactively utilize Google Analytics to gain insights into how our website is used, enabling us to enhance user experience and optimize our content.

Respecting User Preferences:

• User Control: Users have the option to opt-out of Google Analytics tracking. We offer clear guidance on how users can manage their browser settings or utilize Google’s dedicated opt-out options to prevent their data from being collected by Google Analytics.
• Adherence to User Choices: We respect the choices our users make regarding their data. If a user decides not to consent to the use of Google Analytics or other Google services, we ensure that their preference is honored and their data is not collected by these services.

Regular Policy Reviews:

• Staying Updated: We regularly review our policies and practices to ensure ongoing compliance with Google’s terms, as well as GDPR requirements. This includes staying informed about any updates or changes in Google’s policies that might affect how we use their services.

By aligning our GDPR practices with Google’s terms, we ensure a high standard of data privacy and security for our users, while also making the most of the functionalities offered by Google services.