I just want to drink coffee and make stuff!

In order to comply with the GDPR (General Data Protection Regulation), the DPA (Data Protection Act) and the PECR (Privacy and Electronic Communications Regulations) I have to make this not-so-interesting page of legal mumbo jumbo. Does anyone really read these things??

The short version:

If you want to buy something from me, I need to get some basic information. That information gets stored in sales records.
I am one person, (although I may use “we” or “us” as we go along because the grammar sounds better). I have a family, a business, dogs to care for, a yard to mow, laundry to do… you get the picture. Trust me when I tell you I have no time to plot a world takeover with the data that is stored when you purchase a bar of soap or a bath bomb. I have never lost my phone, my tablet, or my computer, and my dogs lack the ability to read English or type. They have no interest in your data either. (The exception to this might be if you have food…the dogs will sell me and everyone else out for food!)

The LONG version…you might want to run to the restroom first.

COOKIES
Cookies are delicious! Oh wait, we aren’t talking about the edible kind. So, I can’t begin to tell you how a digital cookie works, nor do I really need to know, I just know that is how the internet works. Yes, sometimes our sites use cookies depending on which platform you are finding us on. If you don’t want to share your cookies with us we won’t take offense, promise! Block cookies in your browser, but please don’t be upset when things don’t work properly because you didn’t share your cookies, I don’t have any control over that one.

WEBSITE VISITOR TRACKING (aka internet stalking)
So yes, I might be following you. I use things like Google Analytics, Etsy Rank, and other tools because I need statistics. I mean, how am I supposed to make the things you want if I don’t know you are looking for them? I hated statistics in high school, and guess what? I still don’t care for them; but I do understand that they are a necessary evil.

Oh, and that reminds me, I am a business, and my end goal is to sell stuff to you! Come on now, you knew that right? No surprise. But I do make amazing stuff and I want you to have my stuff because it is awesome, and you will feel all fantastic after you use my stuff. The point I am getting at is that I also use Facebook Pixel; this means that I can see how you are interacting with my site and what stuff you are looking at. This shows me what to make more of, and what sort of things you like. I don’t know of a way to specifically block Facebook Pixel but there is an app called Freedom that you can use to block social media so you can, well, have a life outside of it, and it does block Facebook Pixel.
None of these things grab any super personal data, and frankly, all these analytical tools give me brain pain, and I look at them as infrequently as I can. They might grab your IP address but even if they do, I have no clue where to find it or what I would do with it if I did. What I see is that you were at the website, what things you looked at, if you signed up for a mailing list or something else.

DATA STORAGE
So, what do I do with your data? Well, I keep some of it as I said earlier, but I am kind of busy and don’t have time for plotting and villainous intent. But since the “powers that be” (whoever they are} want full disclosure, here it is.

• This website: If you buy something from me, I will store your name, email address, mailing address, and of course the things you bought in a sales record. I do NOT have access to your payment details so this is not stored. I use secure and reputable payment processors (Square, Etsy, PayPal) that have their own policies and security. What I know is that you paid via one of those methods and that the money was put into my bank account by the processor. If for some reason you run into a technical problem with your payment I can help direct you to the right people to sort it out, but it isn’t me.

Honestly, I do nothing interesting with your data. If I need to contact you about your order I will use the email you provided and I use your postal address to ship the things that you purchase. I don’t even know how to use your information for a targeted ad campaign, and if I did I wouldn’t anyhow, ads are expensive, and I would rather spend money on dog treats.

• Etsy, USPS, Stamps.Com: All these things help me to stay organized and on top of orders. They will pull your postal address, email, orders numbers, and even a phone number from our website or Etsy so they can send you tracking updates and of course deliver your package. All of these services are GDPR compliant (or so I am told, all this legal stuff is making my head hurt!)

• Mailchimp! This one is pretty easy. If you signed up for our newsletter/announcements, Mailchimp uses your email to send those things. They are also GDPR compliant (again, so I am told, seriously, this makes my head hurt, I might need an aspirin). You have to sign up for these emails, and you also have to confirm that you signed up. However, if you are tired of hearing from me (which I hope you are not because I try not to send much) you can unsubscribe just by hitting the unsubscribe link which is usually at the bottom of the email.

• In real life! I do keep paper copies of things. Your order details make sure I pull the great stuff you bought from me so I can package it up and mail it to you at the postal address you gave me. It also gives me your email address so I can make sure the above mentioned shippers can send you tracking updates. I also get your name because I would feel bad about sending something to “NO NAME”. I also have records of when you ordered something and how much you paid for it.

The taxman says I need to keep this information for about seven years. I hope I never get audited because wow, seven years of paper is a lot and it would take a long LONG time to find your information in the piles of paper. I do use recycled paper and at the end of the seven years, I will use that paper as firestarter. The winters get cold and I don’t like cold! My doors are locked. If someone can manage to break in and get past the dogs then they might see your sales information, (no payment details) but my dogs are big and scary looking so I don’t think you need to worry about that.

YOUR PAYMENT DETAILS
We already talked a little about this. When you place an order for my amazing stuff you will pay through Etsy, Paypal, or Square. The only thing I know is how much money you spend and which of those methods you paid with. You can’t email me and say, “hey can you charge my card for this extra thing”. Well, you can email me to add more items, but I can’t process a charge for that extra thing because I don’t have access to your card number or bank details at all.

Etsy and Square are GDPR compliant. PayPal says they aren’t worried about it, but will they have to be GDPR compliant or everyone in Europe will have to stop using them and they probably don’t want that. PayPal is entirely optional as a payment method for me though. I prefer Etsy and Square but it’s entirely up to you how you choose to pay.

EMAIL MARKETING
If you sign up to our newsletter, we will send you a newsletter – generally around once every three months. I am lazy about newsletters. I would rather make soap, but if I have something really exciting to tell you about, I may send out an extra email or newsletter.
You can unsubscribe at any time by clicking the unsubscribe button in every email. Your name and email address are stored securely in Mailchimp. They are GDPR compliant. Mailchimp automatically adds tracking things to links so if you click on a link, I will know that you did. If you open an email I know and love you for it. If you ignore me then I know and I will probably lose sleep wondering why. (Not really, I like sleep). Again, I don’t have the time or the interest to look at at the statistics and information collected

SOCIAL MEDIA
Bah, social media. I have a love hate relationship with it. I love the fuzzy kitten pictures and gorgeous coffee art, and hate the politics and religion.

If you talk to me on Social Media, I will usually answer back. If you use my hashtags I might repost your pictures and things (with appropriate credits). I might retweet your tweets if you have tagged me, unless you are being mean of course. I don’t like meanies and I don’t like trolls unless they are under a bridge. If you don’t want me to share your photos or retweet you just let me know, I won’t take offense.

You don’t have to follow me on social media to know what I am up to. My page is public so you can see all the fantastic things I am creating. I might occasionally do a giveaway or something where I will ask you to post or tweet and that will give me your name/social media profile, but I promise I won’t bother you unless you win of course, then I will let you know!

Still with me?

OTHER THIRD PARTIES
Sometimes, in the course of doing business, I have to work with other businesses to get your lovely bath products to you in a timely manner. Unbelievable right? So here is the scoop in what those companies have on you, provided by me.

Shipping: I am not Santa Claus; no reindeer, no sleigh, no coming down your chimney or whatever. I ship most things via the US Postal Service or UPS, who may in turn pass along to Royal Mail or whatever shipping service is in your country. I have to provide them with your name, postal address, sometimes a telephone number and email. They need this information to deliver to you in a timely manner. All of these companies are big and have amazing lawyers who write great GDPR policies so they are compliant.

WooCommerce, Square, Etsy; My sites are hosted by these companies, so your orders are processed through them. Therefore, they have your name, address, order info and amount and email address.

Email: Our email accounts are hosted by HostGator and Gmail - both GDPR compliant. Our emails are monitored by me and me alone on this end. The dogs might occasionally steal my office chair while an email is open but they can’t read and unless you are sending a photo of food, they really don’t care what you have to say. I use encrypted passwords and security software to ensure your details don’t fall into bad hands. That said, common sense should be applied to emails from us too - if you see something that looks suspicious, like a weird external link please don’t click on it and contact us to let us know what’s up.

Your Right To Be Deleted:
So if you are really paranoid, in witness protection, or just really don’t want me to keep the info I have on you, just email me at taimi@blacksheepbath.com and I will delete all the info I have on you from my computer. I have no way to delete date from PayPal, Etsy, and Square. If you want to delete those account details, you have to do that yourself via their websites. I also can’t delete your purchase history because the IRS and state taxpersons will be most upset with me. Sorry!

~Taimi – May 25, 2018