Privacy
The title image is from The Guardian's coverage of protests in Hong Kong in 2022.
I worked in tech for 30 years and over that time I witnessed an enclosure of the commons by corporate interests. Open technologies, developed to allow people to share information easily and freely, have been supplanted by "walled gardens" where large corporations control the platform and what can be published on it (while avoiding the oversight and accountability that comes with being a publisher in the traditional sense). As of early 2026, the most popular social media apps are essentially megaphones for the ultra-wealthy, who use algorithmic content-boosting to launder their self-interested worldview to the general public.
One reason I am hosting this content independently is that I am deeply concerned about the chilling effect of surveillance capitalism on our ability to express ourselves and organise freely. Consistent with this, user privacy and data security are my top priorities.
In plain language, only the bare minimum data required to manage this website is collected from visitors. Third party tracking cookies are not used; not even for "standard" tracking technologies like Google Analytics. This site makes use of the ghost.io platform which has a cookie-free mechanism for gathering data on which pages are most visited, etc.
The privacy notice below follows the GDPR guidelines. I tried to make it as short and simple as possible.
GDPR Privacy Notice
What data do we collect / how do we collect it?
This site collects the names and email addresses of people who sign up for the newsletter. It automatically records generic visitor data, i.e. IP address / web browser / operating system data for each visitor.
How will we use and store your data?
Names and email addresses are stored in a secure encrypted database and are used to create newsletters. Generic visitor data is used to calculate metrics about site usage, most popular posts etc.
What are your data protection rights?
Every user is entitled to the following:
The right to access – You have the right to request copies of your personal data. We may charge a fee for this service.
The right to rectification – You have the right to request correction any information you believe is inaccurate. You also have the right to request we complete information you believe is incomplete.
The right to erasure – You have the right to request that deletion of your personal data, under certain conditions.
The right to restrict processing – You have the right to request that we restrict the processing of your personal data, under certain conditions.
The right to object to processing – You have the right to object to the processing of your personal data, under certain conditions.
The right to data portability – You have the right to request that wetransfer the data that we have collected to another organisation, or directly to you, under certain conditions.
About cookies
Cookies are text files placed on your computer to collect standard Internet log information and visitor behavior information. When you visit our websites, we may collect information from you automatically through cookies or similar technology.
For further information, visit allaboutcookies.org.
Privacy policies of other websites
This website contains links to other sites. Our privacy policy only applies to this website. Please check the privacy policies of any linked websites as they may be different.
Changes to our privacy policy
This policy is under regular review and any updates will be published here. This policy was last updated on 28th January 2026.
How to contact us
If you make a request, we have one month to respond to you. If you would like to exercise any of these rights, please contact us at gdpr@karlstanley.ie