It bothers me that so few companies take the necessary steps to protect your personal information online. I strive to be better. Here’s how:
I don’t track you
I don’t use Google Analytics or any other metadata collection tool or tracker. Those things are useful, but creepy. I can manage without them.
I collect as little data as possible
I only collect the information I need to invoice, ship and refund orders as necessary. You don’t even need to create an account in order to buy from me. Incomplete transactions and inactive accounts are purged regularly, and if you delete your account, it will be deleted for real. That’s actually a rare thing, believe it or not!
I’m picky with third-parties
I’m using WordPress to power this website, but I keep it on a tight leash. I use the minimum amount of plugins necessary to keep this website functional. This includes the components needed to keep this shopping cart working, a cache plugin to prevent my server from getting overwhelmed, and font and language support. I use the strictest possible settings to limit these plugins’ abilities to access and retain your information. I also do my best to keep them up-to-date to prevent security exploits, and take steps to keep my WordPress tough to hack. It pays to date a systems administrator! 😉
I encrypt everything
Even if my website ever got hacked, everything on it is encrypted from start to finish. You will never be asked to login in order to activate encryption, or be made to bounce between encrypted and non-encrypted sections. The services I use to process your transactions, which are WooCommerce and Paypal, also encrypt everything on their end. Any local backups I keep are encrypted as well.
I don’t force you to go through social media
I hate when sites do that! I do have a Facebook page and an Instagram account, because a lot of people prefer to contact me through there, and they allow me to share pictures easily and keep in touch with other breeders across the country. That being said, you absolutely do not need to use these services in order to contact me or buy from me.
If you do choose to use Facebook or Instagram, know that any information that transits through their services is subject to their ever-changing, morally dubious privacy policy. I go over the privacy settings often and select the most restrictive permissions possible, but using your personal information for profit is Facebook’s entire business model. If you have a problem with that, I do too. That’s why I made this website!
I don’t target you for advertising purposes
I’ve worked in advertising, so I’m acutely aware of how annoying, pervasive and potentially damaging it is. Beyond updating my Facebook and Instagram pages once in a while, I don’t really advertise at all. I trust that my reputation will be enough to do the job. If you need me, you’ll find me. It may seem like a weird business model in this day and age, but it works for me so far.
I will never spam you
Ever! I don’t even have a newsletter. Your inbox is safe with me : )
Any questions?
I aim for transparency. If there’s anything you’d like to know that isn’t covered here, feel free to drop me a line.
