Privacy policy

Who this is

Cooking Something (cookingsomething.com) is a small, independently run recipe site. This policy covers every visitor, wherever you're reading from - including the EU/EEA and UK, where we try to honor GDPR-style rights (listed below) for everyone, not just visitors legally entitled to them.

What we collect

If you create an account: your display name, email address, and a bcrypt-hashed password (we never store or see your actual password). We also record which recipes you rate, comment on, or save to favorites/collections, and the comments themselves.

If you subscribe to the newsletter: your email address, the source you signed up from, and your confirmation status (double opt-in - a subscription isn't active until you click the confirmation link we send).

If you use the contact form: your name, email, and message, so we can reply.

Everyone, automatically: a lightweight, anonymous on-site view counter for recipe and review pages. It uses a random token stored in your browser's session storage (cleared when you close the tab) to avoid counting the same visit twice - not a cookie, and it never identifies you or links your visits across sites. This is how the “views” you might see in our admin dashboard are counted.

We do not collect payment information (there's nothing to buy here) and we do not knowingly collect data from children under 13.

Cookie consent categories

Necessary (always on): if you sign in, a single session cookie keeps you signed in. These aren't part of the consent choice below - the site can't function without them.

Analytics (optional, off by default): we may use Plausible, a privacy-focused analytics tool that doesn't use cookies, doesn't fingerprint your device, and doesn't collect personal data - it only reports aggregate numbers (like “how many people read this recipe this week”). It only runs if you've turned analytics on in your cookie preferences.

Advertising (optional, off by default): if and when this site shows advertising, ad providers may set cookies or use similar identifiers on your device to choose which ads to show and to measure how they perform. Those only run if you've turned advertising on in your cookie preferences. We don't currently run any advertising scripts - this category exists so the choice is ready whenever that changes, without needing a new consent prompt or a rewritten policy.

You can review or change any of these choices at any time via the “Cookie preferences” link in the footer.

Where it's stored

Database (accounts, comments, ratings, recipes, newsletter status): held with a managed database provider.

Images: recipe and review photos (added by site editors, not uploaded by visitors) are stored with an S3-compatible object storage provider.

Email delivery (password resets, newsletter, contact replies): sent through a transactional email provider.

Every provider we use encrypts data in transit and at rest, restricts who on their side can access it, and is bound by a data processing agreement covering how it may be used. These providers may process data on servers outside your country, including in the United States. We only work with providers who take security seriously, and none of them are permitted to use your data for their own purposes.

What we don't do

We don't sell your personal data. This site may display advertising to help cover its costs; where it does, ad providers may set cookies or use similar identifiers to deliver and measure ads, but only if you've turned on advertising in your cookie preferences (see “Cookie consent categories” above) - it's never on by default. Beyond running the site (showing you your favorites, moderating comments, sending the emails you signed up for), showing ads you've agreed to see, and, if you've consented, understanding which recipes people find useful, we don't use your data for anything else.

Your rights

Regardless of where you live, you can ask us to:

• See what data we hold about you.
• Correct anything that's wrong (or just edit your name/email from your account page).
• Delete your account and associated data.
• Export your data in a portable format.
• Unsubscribe from the newsletter instantly, via the link in every email.

To do any of the above, use the contact page - we respond to data requests within 30 days, and account deletion requests are typically handled much faster. Deleting your account removes your profile, comments, ratings and favorites; content already published publicly (like an approved comment) may be anonymized rather than instantly scrubbed from cached pages, but it will no longer be linked to your account.

Changes to this policy

If this policy changes in a meaningful way, we'll update the date at the top of this page. Continued use of the site after a change means you're okay with the update.

Contact

Questions about your data, or a request from the list above? Reach us via the contact page.