Privacy and cookies
What this site collects, why, and the choice you have.
This policy explains what personal data matthewburgos.com collects, why, and the choices you have. It is written to meet the EU General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR, Regulation 2016/679) and the Italian privacy code (Legislative Decree 196/2003).
Who is responsible for your data
The data controller is Matthew Burgos, journalist, based in Milan, Italy. For any question about your data, or to use your rights, email [email protected].
What is collected and why
Visit statistics (Google Analytics), only if you accept
If you choose Accept in the cookie banner, the site loads Google Analytics 4 to count visits and see which pages and stories are read, and which links (such as the email address or a magazine) are clicked. This helps improve the site. If you decline or do not choose, nothing from Google is loaded and no analytics cookies are set.
- Data: pages viewed, links clicked, approximate location (country and city), device, browser, how you reached the site. Google Analytics 4 does not store IP addresses.
- Legal basis: your consent (GDPR article 6(1)(a)). You can withdraw it at any time with the Cookie settings link at the bottom of every page; the analytics cookies are then removed.
- Provider: Google Ireland Limited, acting as processor. Data may be transferred to the United States under the EU-US Data Privacy Framework, to which Google is certified.
- Retention: 14 months, then deleted automatically. Advertising features and personalisation are switched off.
Hosting and security
The site's hosting and security provider processes technical data such as IP address, browser and the page requested, to deliver the site and protect it from attacks. The legal basis is the legitimate interest in running a secure website (article 6(1)(f)). The provider acts as processor and is certified under the EU-US Data Privacy Framework.
If you write to [email protected], your name, address and message are used only to reply and to handle the commission or request you wrote about (article 6(1)(b) and (f)). Email is hosted by a provider in a European data centre. Messages are kept for as long as the correspondence is useful and are never added to a mailing list or shared.
What the site does not do
There are no contact forms, newsletters, advertising, tracking pixels or embedded social media players. Links to magazines, Instagram, LinkedIn and other sites take you to those sites, whose own privacy policies apply. Your data is never sold.
Cookies and similar storage
| Name | Purpose | Type | Lasts |
|---|---|---|---|
| mb_consent | Remembers whether you accepted or declined analytics, so the banner does not reappear | Necessary (browser storage) | Until you clear it |
| _ga | Google Analytics: tells visits apart | Analytics, only with consent | 2 years |
| _ga_REMBCBHKJF | Google Analytics: keeps the visit count for this site | Analytics, only with consent | 2 years |
| mb_session | Keeps the site owner logged in to the private editor; visitors never receive it | Necessary | 12 hours |
You can also block or delete cookies in your browser settings.
Your rights
Under articles 15 to 22 of the GDPR you can ask to access, correct or delete your personal data, restrict or object to its use, receive it in a portable format, and withdraw consent at any time without affecting what was done before. Email [email protected]; you will get an answer within one month.
You can also complain to the Italian data protection authority, the Garante per la protezione dei dati personali, or to the authority in your own EU country.
Changes
If this policy changes, the new version is published on this page with a new date.
Last updated 10 November 2026