Privacy Policy
This Privacy Policy explains what personal information renewedbelief.com collects, how we use it, and the choices you have. It covers this website and its optional reader accounts. If you have any questions, contact us.
Information we collect
We collect only what we need to run the site and the reading plan:
- Reader account — if you create an optional account, your email address, and your name if you choose to give one.
- Reading progress and journal — the weeks you mark complete and any journal entries you write in the reading plan.
- Newsletter — if you subscribe, your email address (and name if provided).
- Comments — if you comment on a post, the name, email address, and website you enter, plus your IP address and browser user-agent string (standard WordPress comment data). This information may be checked by an automated spam-detection service.
- Automatically collected — like most websites, our host records standard server-log data such as your IP address, browser type, and the pages you visit, for security and troubleshooting.
- Analytics — if website analytics are enabled, limited usage data (such as pages viewed and approximate location) may be collected; see “Cookies, local storage, and embedded content” below. [Remove this line if you do not use analytics.]
How we use your information, and our lawful bases
We use your information to:
- Provide and operate the website and the reading plan.
- Save your reading progress and journal to your account and sync them across your devices when you are signed in.
- Send the passwordless sign-in links you request.
- Send newsletters you have subscribed to, and let you unsubscribe at any time.
- Respond to your comments and messages.
- Keep the site secure and prevent abuse (for example, limiting repeated sign-up attempts).
For visitors in the UK and EU, our lawful bases under the GDPR are: consent (newsletter subscription, and creating a reader account, which you agree to at sign-up); performance of a service you request (operating your account, saving your progress, sending sign-in links); and our legitimate interests (keeping the site secure, moderating comments, and understanding basic site usage). You can withdraw consent at any time, as described below. We do not sell your personal information, and we do not use it for third-party advertising.
Reader accounts, progress, and journal
A reader account is optional. The reading plan works fully without one — your progress and journal are then saved only in your own browser.
- If you create an account, we store your email address and your reading progress and journal entries, so they follow you across devices when you are signed in.
- Sign-in is passwordless: you request a one-time link by email, and clicking it signs you in. These links can be used once and expire within an hour.
- Your journal entries are private to your account. They are not published and are not shared with other readers.
- You can download a copy of your journal at any time from the plan page, and clear the browser-stored copy whenever you like.
- You can ask us to export or permanently delete the information held in your account — see “Your privacy rights” below.
Email, newsletters, and sign-in links
We send two kinds of email:
- Sign-in links are sent only when you request one, so you can sign in without a password.
- Newsletters are sent only to people who have subscribed. Every newsletter includes an unsubscribe link, and you can unsubscribe at any time; you can also ask us to remove your address.
Email is delivered through our domain’s email provider (currently Titan), and newsletter subscriptions are managed with Icegram. These providers process your email address only to deliver our messages on our behalf.
Cookies, local storage, and embedded content
- Cookies. WordPress sets functional cookies — for example, to keep you signed in, or to remember your details if you choose that option when leaving a comment. These are not used for advertising.
- Local storage. The reading plan saves your progress and journal in your own browser’s local storage, so it works even without an account. This stays on your device; you can clear it at any time by clearing your browser data or using the “Reset progress” control on the plan page.
- Embedded and linked content. Some pages embed videos from YouTube (using youtube-nocookie.com, which limits tracking) and link out to ESV.org for Scripture reading. Embedded providers may receive data about your interaction with their content as though you had visited their site, and linked sites are governed by their own privacy policies, not ours.
How we share information, retention, and security
Sharing. We do not sell your personal information or share it for advertising. We share data only with the service providers that help us run the site, and only as far as needed to provide the service: our web host (Hostinger), our email and newsletter providers (Titan and Icegram), and an automated spam-filtering service for comments. We may also disclose information if required by law.
International transfers. Some of these providers are based in, or store data in, the United States and other countries. Where data is transferred out of the UK or EU, it is protected by appropriate safeguards (such as the providers’ standard contractual clauses or equivalent terms).
How long we keep it. Comments and their metadata are kept until you ask us to remove them. Reader-account data (email, progress, journal) is kept until you delete your account or ask us to erase it. Newsletter data is kept until you unsubscribe. Server logs are kept according to our host’s standard retention periods.
Security. Sign-in links are single-use, time-limited, and stored only in hashed form. We take reasonable measures to protect your information, but no method of transmission or storage is completely secure.
Your privacy rights
You can ask us at any time to:
- Access a copy of the personal data we hold about you.
- Correct data that is inaccurate.
- Delete your data (“right to be forgotten”).
- Export your data in a portable form.
- Restrict or object to certain uses, and withdraw consent (for example, unsubscribe from the newsletter or close your reader account).
Signed-in readers can download their journal themselves from the plan page at any time. For any other request, message us through our contact page. Account data (progress and journal) can also be retrieved or erased through this site’s built-in Export and Erase personal-data tools.
These rights apply to everyone; readers in the UK and EU have them under the GDPR, and California residents have comparable rights under the CCPA/CPRA, including the right not to receive discriminatory treatment for exercising them. If you are in the UK or EU and believe we have not handled your data properly, you may also lodge a complaint with your local data-protection authority.
Children, changes, and contact
Children. This site is intended for a general audience and is not directed to children under 13 (or the minimum age in your country). We do not knowingly collect personal information from children. If you believe a child has provided us information, contact us and we will remove it.
Changes to this policy. We may update this policy from time to time. The date at the top reflects the latest version, and we will note significant changes on this page.
Contact us. For any question or request about your privacy or this policy, reach us through our contact page.
