Data protection information

This information applies to the téarma.ie public website.

What usage data we collect

We collect certain usage data with the aid of services such as Plausible while users browse the website. We use Plausible to record information about where our users come from and what they do while on this site. Plausible collects and stores technical details about the browser and the computer used to visit the site. We use a cookie to store information about the most recent search you completed on the website. This information is stored for 24 hours only and the cookie is not linked to any personal data.

How we use this usage data

We use the data collected by Plausible to construct aggregate reports on user numbers, location and behaviour. These reports inform our future development plans. This data is not personal data, as defined by EU GDPR, and it does not allow us identify individual users.

We reserve the right to report and/or publish aggregated usage metrics.

How long we store this usage data for

As this data is anonymised, we store it indefinitely. This allows us to chart the development of our user base over the lifetime of the project.

What search data we collect

Every time you search the site, we store the following data:

1. What you searched for;
2. When you searched;
3. What results you got;
4. How long the search took;
5. Your device IP address.

How we use this search data

Counting the number of searches carried out by users of our website constitutes the best measure of the success of our project. In addition, we use 1–4 to help us monitor our performance and improve our service. For example, if we notice that a particular search term is causing problems for our system, we will endeavour to apply a fix. Or if we notice that all searches are taking too long, we will investigate if something needs to be optimised or if our services need more computing power.

We use 5 (i.e. ‘Your device IP address’) to verify that the search is being carried out by a person and not a computer program such as a web scraper. For example, if we notice that large numbers of searches are being carried out by a particular IP address, we can exclude those searches from our search statistics, if deemed necessary. We never use this data to identify individual users.

We reserve the right to report and/or publish aggregated search data.

How long we store this search data for

As 1–4 is not personal data, we store it indefinitely. We delete IP addresses associated with searches more than 1 year old on the 1st day of every calendar month.

Consent

By accessing our website you agree to abide by all policies and practices outlined in this document.

Contact

If you have any queries in relation to this policy you can contact us at tearma@dcu.ie.