Privacy Policy.

FakeTraffic is an independent, reader-supported publication. We ask for as little as we can get away with, we don't sell what we collect, and we take no supplier money, ever. This page explains, in plain language, what we do with the information you give us and what we collect automatically when you visit the site.

Information we collect.

We collect two categories of information, and nothing more than we need to operate the site and the newsletter:

Information you give us. Primarily your email address when you subscribe to FakeTraffic Daily, plus anything you include when you contact us (tip-line submissions, press inquiries, corrections).
Information collected automatically. Standard web-server request metadata — IP address, user-agent string, referrer, the URL you requested, and a timestamp — for the limited purposes described below.

We do not collect precise geolocation. We do not fingerprint your device. We do not sell, rent, or swap your information with third parties.

How we use it.

We use the information we collect to:

Send you the newsletter you asked for and nothing else.
Operate, secure, and debug the site (rate-limiting, abuse mitigation, error diagnosis).
Measure aggregate readership in a way that does not identify individual readers.
Respond to your inquiries, corrections, and tips.
Comply with legal obligations where we have to.

We do not use your information to build advertising profiles. We do not run retargeting pixels. We never share subscriber lists with suppliers, vendors, or anyone else outside our own operations.

Cookies & local storage.

FakeTraffic uses a small number of cookies and browser-local storage entries. They fall into two buckets:

Strictly necessary

These keep the site usable and remember decisions you've made, like your cookie-consent choice. They are set whether or not you accept non-essential cookies.

ft_consent — records whether you accepted or rejected non-essential cookies, and when. Stored in your browser's localStorage, not sent to our servers.

Analytics (non-essential)

If you accept, we may set a first-party analytics identifier used solely to measure aggregate readership. You can reject these at any time via the banner at the bottom of the page or by clearing localStorage in your browser.

● You can change your decision any time: scroll to the footer & choose "Cookie preferences".

Analytics & third parties.

We keep the third-party surface as small as we reasonably can:

Form submissions. Newsletter signups are posted to a processing endpoint operated on our behalf to queue the subscription. Only the fields you submit (email and a timestamp) are sent.
Fonts. Typography is loaded from Google Fonts over HTTPS. Google receives the request metadata inherent to any web-font fetch; we do not share any additional information with them.
Hosting & logs. Our hosting provider records standard server logs for operational and security purposes.

We never sell your data. We do not permit any third party to use information collected through this site for their own advertising purposes.

Email & the newsletter.

When you subscribe:

We store your email address, the timestamp of your signup, and the page you signed up from.
We send you FakeTraffic Daily and occasional editorial announcements. We do not send supplier-sponsored content; there isn't any.
Every email includes a one-click unsubscribe link. Unsubscribing removes your email from the active list immediately.

Your rights.

Depending on where you live, you may have the right to:

Access the information we hold about you.
Correct inaccurate information.
Delete your information (subject to limited legal exceptions).
Port your information to another service.
Object to, or restrict, certain processing.
Withdraw consent where processing is based on consent.

To exercise any of these rights, email us (see Contact) and we'll respond within a reasonable time, typically 30 days.

Retention & security.

We keep subscriber information for as long as you remain subscribed, and for a short archival window afterwards to honor unsubscribes and comply with our records obligations. Server logs are rotated on a rolling basis, typically within 90 days. We apply reasonable technical and organizational safeguards, but no system is perfectly secure — if something goes wrong that affects you, we'll tell you.

Children.

FakeTraffic is written for adults working in advertising, measurement, and media. The site is not directed to children under 16 and we do not knowingly collect information from them.

Changes to this policy.

We update this policy when our practices change. Material changes will be noted at the top of the page and, where appropriate, emailed to active subscribers. The "Effective" date above always reflects the current version.

Contact.

Questions, requests, or concerns? Reach us at privacy@faketraffic.press. Postal mail and our encrypted tip line are listed in the newsroom contact page.