Privacy Policy

Last updated: April 29, 2026

The Short Version

This site collects the minimum data necessary to deliver a newsletter and process optional paid memberships. It does not track you. It does not sell your data. It does not use your information for advertising. There are no third-party analytics scripts, no tracking pixels from ad networks, and no social media embeds monitoring your behavior.

The person who runs this site has written extensively about digital privacy and surveillance. This policy is not boilerplate — it’s a reflection of those convictions.

What Data Is Collected

Email address: Collected when you subscribe to the newsletter. This is used exclusively to send you the publication’s emails.

Name (optional):If you provide a name when subscribing, it is stored alongside your email for personalization of newsletter delivery.

Payment information (paid members only):If you choose to become a paid member, your payment details are collected and processed by Stripe. Ariadne Worldbuilding does not receive, store, or have access to your full credit card number or bank account details. Stripe provides us with limited information — such as the last four digits of your card, card brand, and expiration date — for the purpose of identifying your subscription. Stripe’s handling of your payment data is governed by their privacy policy and PCI-DSS compliance standards.

Basic server logs: The web server generates standard access logs (IP address, browser type, pages visited, timestamps). These are used only for diagnosing technical issues and are not analyzed for behavioral profiling.

What Data Is NOT Collected

This site does not use cookies for tracking. It does not use Google Analytics, Facebook Pixel, or any third-party analytics service. It does not fingerprint your browser. It does not build behavioral profiles. It does not serve ads and therefore has no advertising data pipeline.

How Your Data Is Used

Your email address is used to send you the newsletter. If you are a paid member, your subscription status is used to identify you as a supporter. That’s it. Your information is not shared with, sold to, or made accessible to any third party for their own purposes.

Third-Party Services

The following services are involved in operating this site. Each handles data only as necessary to provide their specific function:

Ghost: The publishing platform, self-hosted on infrastructure controlled by Ariadne Worldbuilding. Your subscriber data lives on this server, not on Ghost’s commercial platform.

DigitalOcean: The hosting provider for the server. They provide the infrastructure but do not access the site’s content or subscriber data.

Mailgun: The email delivery service used to send newsletter emails. Mailgun processes your email address for the purpose of delivering emails on behalf of this publication. Mailgun’s privacy policy governs their handling of data that passes through their system.

Cloudflare: Provides DNS and security services. Cloudflare may process connection data (IP addresses) as part of routing traffic to the server. Their privacy policy governs that processing.

Stripe: Processes payments for paid memberships. When you become a paid member, Stripe collects your payment information directly. Ariadne Worldbuilding receives only limited, non-sensitive details (last four digits, card brand, expiration) for subscription management. Stripe is PCI-DSS Level 1 compliant. Their privacy policy governs their handling of your payment data.

Data Retention

Your email address is retained as long as you remain subscribed. If you unsubscribe, your data is removed from the active subscriber list. If you cancel a paid membership, your payment information is handled by Stripe according to their retention policies — Ariadne Worldbuilding does not retain payment credentials. Server logs are retained for a limited period for technical troubleshooting and then deleted.

Your Rights

You can unsubscribe from the newsletter at any time using the link in any email. You can cancel your paid membership at any time through the membership portal or by contacting ariadneworldbuilding@pm.me. You can request deletion of your data by contacting ariadneworldbuilding@pm.me. You can request a copy of the data held about you by contacting the same address. Requests will be honored promptly.

Data Security

The site is served over HTTPS with SSL certificates from Let’s Encrypt. Server access is restricted to SSH key authentication only. The server runs current security patches. Payment processing is handled entirely by Stripe’s PCI-compliant infrastructure. These are reasonable measures for a self-hosted publication, but no system is perfectly secure.

Children

This site is not directed at children under 13. If you are under 13, please do not subscribe or provide any personal information. If a parent or guardian becomes aware that their child has provided personal information, please contact ariadneworldbuilding@pm.me and it will be deleted.

Changes to This Policy

This policy may be updated as the publication grows or as services change. When it is, the “last updated” date at the top will reflect the change. Significant changes will be communicated through the newsletter.

Contact

For any questions about this policy or your data, contact ariadneworldbuilding@pm.me.