Our Privacy & Data Protection Policy

On this blog, born from the EU Horizon 2020 project, we discuss research with a personal touch, and protecting your privacy is fundamental to that conversation. This policy outlines how we collect, use, and protect your personal data in the context of our editorial focus on behavioural economics in casino settings and problem gambling research in Europe. We are committed to compliance with the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) and the UK Data Protection Act 2018.

What Data We Collect and Why

We collect data to support our mission of sharing high-quality research on decision-making at casino tables. This helps us understand what content resonates with our audience and improves the site’s functionality.

Information You Voluntarily Provide

This includes data you explicitly give us, such as when you subscribe to our newsletter. Typically, this is limited to your email address. We process this data based on your consent.

Automatically Collected Technical Data

When you visit our site, we automatically collect certain technical information. This includes your IP address, browser type, operating system, referring URLs, and pages you viewed. This data is collected via cookies and similar technologies, as explained in the next section.

Cookies and Tracking Technologies

We use cookies to remember your preferences and analyse site traffic via Google Analytics. You can manage these through the cookie consent banner on your first visit or via your browser settings.

Essential Cookies for Functionality

These cookies are necessary for the website to function and cannot be switched off. They are usually only set in response to actions made by you, such as setting your privacy preferences or accessing secure areas.

Analytics and Performance Cookies

These cookies allow us to count visits and traffic sources so we can measure and improve the performance of our site. They help us know which pages are the most and least popular. You can control these via our cookie banner.

How We Use Analytics

We use Google Analytics 4 (GA4) to understand audience engagement with our content on topics like problem gambling research, always respecting UK data protection standards. Analytics help us gauge the impact of our research communication.

Purpose of Analytics

We use analytics data to:

  • Understand how visitors navigate our site and which content on Horizon 2020 behaviour and EU research gambling is most engaging.
  • Analyse broad demographic and interest data (not at an individual level) to tailor our editorial focus.
  • Identify technical issues that may affect the user experience.

Your Control Over Analytics

You can control your participation in Google Analytics in two primary ways: by using our cookie banner to decline analytics cookies, or by installing the Google Analytics Opt-Out Browser Add-on. Our use of GA4 is configured to respect user privacy preferences.

Third-Party Services and Data Sharing

We use a limited number of third-party services to operate this blog. We only share data with trusted, compliant processors who act on our instructions and have adequate data protection measures.

Email Marketing (Mailchimp)

If you subscribe to our newsletter, your email address is stored and processed by Mailchimp for the purpose of sending you updates. You can unsubscribe at any time via the link in every email. Mailchimp’s practices comply with relevant data protection laws.

Embedded Media (YouTube, Vimeo)

Articles may include embedded video content from platforms like YouTube or Vimeo. Embedding this content is akin to you visiting those third-party sites. They may collect data about you, use cookies, and track your interaction with the embedded content.

Your Rights Under GDPR and UK Law

Under the GDPR and the UK Data Protection Act 2018, you have specific rights regarding your personal data. We respect and will facilitate the exercise of these rights.

Key Data Subject Rights

Your rights include:

  • The right to access the personal data we hold about you.
  • The right to rectification of inaccurate or incomplete data.
  • The right to erasure (‘the right to be forgotten’) in certain circumstances.
  • The right to restrict processing of your data.
  • The right to object to processing based on legitimate interests.
  • The right to data portability, where applicable.

How to Exercise Your Rights

To exercise any of these rights, please contact us using the details provided in the final section of this policy. We will respond to your request within one month, as required by law.

Our Data Retention Policy

We retain personal data only for as long as necessary to fulfil the purposes we collected it for, including satisfying any legal, accounting, or reporting requirements.

General Retention Principles

We determine retention periods based on the nature of the data and the purpose for processing. For example, we retain newsletter subscription data until you unsubscribe. We are also required to keep certain financial records, such as those for HMRC, for specified periods.

Examples of Retention Periods

  • Newsletter Data: Retained until you unsubscribe or request deletion.
  • Analytics Data: Google Analytics 4 data is set to be automatically deleted after 14 months.
  • Contact Emails: Correspondence is kept for a reasonable period to handle follow-up queries.

Contact Information for Privacy Concerns

We are committed to addressing any concerns you have about your data privacy. The following are your key contacts.

Our Data Contact

For any questions about this policy, or to exercise your data rights, please contact us at: [email protected]. We will handle your request promptly and in accordance with applicable law.

Supervisory Authority

In the United Kingdom, the supervisory authority for data protection matters is the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO). You have the right to lodge a complaint with the ICO if you believe our processing of your personal data violates the law. You can find their contact details at www.ico.org.uk.

We emphasise our ongoing commitment to protecting your privacy as we continue our informed discussions on European behavioural research, gambling, and decision-making. This policy may be updated periodically, and we encourage you to review it.