Legal
Privacy policy
What PearlNook collects, why, and for how long: no reader cookies, no analytics, no ads, and short retention for everything else.
On this page
Last updated: 19 October 2026
PearlNook collects as little as it can. This page lists every kind of information the site handles, what it is used for and when it is deleted.
In short
- You can read everything without an account, and readers get no cookies.
- There are no analytics, ads, tracking pixels or third-party scripts.
- Replies store the name and text you enter, never an email address.
- Contact messages are deleted after 90 days and server logs after about two weeks.
When you read
Reading does not require an account and does not create a profile of you. The only record of a visit is the standard web server log described below.
When you reply to a post
We store the name you enter, your reply and the time it was sent. Replies are held for review; once approved, the name and reply are shown publicly in the post’s thread. Replies that are never approved are deleted automatically after 30 days.
When you contact us
The contact form collects your name, email address, the topic you choose and your message. We use them only to read your message, reply and handle your request. Messages are deleted automatically 90 days after they arrive.
If you write here
Writers’ profiles (name, portrait, short bio and an optional website link) are public and appear alongside their posts. Writers keep ownership of what they publish.
Spam protection
To stop floods of replies or messages, the site briefly keeps IP addresses in memory to limit how often one address can post. These addresses are not written to the site’s database.
Server logs
Like most websites, our web server keeps standard access logs: IP address, the page requested, the browser’s user agent and the time. We use them for security and to keep the site running, and they are rotated and deleted after about two weeks.
Cookies
Readers, repliers and people using the contact form receive no cookies. The only cookie PearlNook sets is a session cookie for the site’s administrators when they sign in.
Third-party services
Two outside services deliver files our pages use:
- Google Fonts (fonts.googleapis.com and fonts.gstatic.com) serves the typefaces.
- Unsplash (images.unsplash.com) serves the photos on our home page.
When your browser fetches those files, the provider receives your IP address and browser information, as with any web request, under its own privacy policy. We share nothing else with them. PearlNook is served over HTTPS with certificates from Let’s Encrypt, so pages and forms travel encrypted.
What we never do
- Sell or rent personal information.
- Show advertising or run analytics.
- Share contact messages with writers or other visitors.
- Send newsletters or marketing email.
How long things are kept
| Information | Kept for |
|---|---|
| Approved replies | Until removed by a moderator or on request |
| Replies awaiting review | Deleted after 30 days if not approved |
| Contact messages | Deleted 90 days after they arrive |
| Server access logs | About two weeks |
| IP addresses for spam limits | In memory only, never stored in the database |
Seeing, correcting or deleting your information
You can ask us to show, correct or delete information about you, such as a reply you posted or a message you sent. Use the contact page, choose “Privacy request”, and give us enough detail to find it (for a reply: the post link and the name you used). Writers can also ask for individual posts or their whole blog to be removed.
Changes to this policy
If this policy changes, we will update this page and the date at the top.