Privacy Policy

This is an English translation for convenience. The German version is legally authoritative.

1. Controller

Marcel Pauly
c/o SPIEGEL-Verlag Rudolf Augstein GmbH & Co. KG
Ericusspitze 1
20457 Hamburg
Germany
Email: marcel.pauly@spiegel.de

2. This website does not use cookies

No cookies are set, neither strictly necessary nor tracking-related. The language switch (German/English) works purely through the URL you visit (/de/ or /en/), not through cookies or session data. No cookie-consent banner is required.

3. Hosting and server log files

This website is operated by an external hosting provider. TODO: add the hosting provider's name/address and, if applicable, a reference to a data-processing agreement. When you visit the site, the hosting provider automatically processes technical access data (including IP address, date and time, page requested, browser used) in server log files. This serves the technical provision and security of the website (attack detection, error analysis). Legal basis: Art. 6(1)(f) GDPR (legitimate interest in secure, functional operation of the website). Retention follows the hosting provider's standard policy.

4. Traffic measurement (self-hosted)

Site statistics are collected with the open-source software Puls, which runs on a separate subdomain (stats.marcelpauly.de) with the same hosting provider. No cookies are set and no data is shared with third parties. On each page view, a script transmits:

  • the page viewed and the domain of the referring page (including campaign parameters from the address, if any),
  • browser, device type (derived from the window width) and language, from which the country is derived,
  • clicks on links to other websites (target and link text).

To count visitors per day, a hash is computed from the IP address and browser identifier together with a random value that is newly generated each day, and stored with each page view. The random value is deleted at the end of the day, so visits on different days cannot be linked. The IP address itself is not stored. The data is stored without a fixed retention period.

Legal basis: Art. 6(1)(f) GDPR (legitimate interest in traffic measurement to improve the site).

5. Contact by email

If you contact me by email, the data you provide (e.g. email address, message content) is processed solely to handle your request. Legal basis: Art. 6(1)(f) GDPR, or Art. 6(1)(b) GDPR where the request relates to entering into a contract.

For confidential tips, you can also use the secure channels listed in the contact section (e.g. Signal, PGP encryption).

6. External links and profiles

This site links to articles on spiegel.de and to profiles on LinkedIn, Bluesky, and GitHub. Clicking such a link takes you to that provider's own site, where their privacy policy applies. No content or scripts from these platforms are embedded or loaded automatically.

7. Your rights

Under the GDPR, you have the right to:

  • access the data processed about you (Art. 15 GDPR)
  • rectification of inaccurate data (Art. 16 GDPR)
  • erasure (Art. 17 GDPR)
  • restriction of processing (Art. 18 GDPR)
  • data portability (Art. 20 GDPR)
  • object to processing (Art. 21 GDPR)
  • lodge a complaint with a supervisory authority (Art. 77 GDPR)

No data protection officer has been appointed, as none is legally required. TODO: review/adjust if circumstances change.