Privacy Policy

Introduction

Welcome to Petite Gourmets ("we," "us," or "our"), accessible at petitegourmets.com. We are committed to protecting your privacy and ensuring that your personal information is handled responsibly. This Privacy Policy explains what information we collect, how we use it, and the choices you have regarding your data.

By using our website, you agree to the collection and use of information in accordance with this policy. If you do not agree with the terms outlined here, please discontinue use of our services.

Information We Collect

We collect several types of information to provide and improve our services:

Account Information: When you create an account on Petite Gourmets, we collect your name, email address, and password. You may also choose to provide a profile photo, dietary preferences, and other optional details to personalize your experience.

Usage Data: We automatically collect information about how you interact with our website, including pages visited, recipes viewed, search queries, time spent on pages, referring URLs, browser type, device type, operating system, and IP address. This data helps us understand how our visitors use the site and allows us to improve the overall experience.

Cookies: We use cookies and similar tracking technologies to maintain your session, remember your preferences, and gather analytics data. For more details, see the Cookies & Advertising section below.

User Content: When you submit recipes, write reviews, leave ratings, create collections, or interact with other features on our site, we collect the content you provide. This includes text, images, and any other materials you upload or share.

Newsletter Subscriptions: If you subscribe to our newsletter, we collect your email address and, optionally, your name and content preferences. We use this information solely to send you the newsletters and updates you have requested.

Contact Forms: When you reach out to us through our contact form or via email, we collect your name, email address, and the content of your message so that we can respond to your inquiry.

How We Use Your Information

We use the information we collect for the following purposes:

• Providing Our Services: To operate the website, manage your account, display recipes and articles, enable features such as meal planning, shopping lists, favorites, and collections, and to process user-submitted recipes.
• Sending Newsletters: To deliver newsletters, recipe recommendations, and updates that you have opted in to receive. You can unsubscribe at any time using the link provided in every email.
• Responding to Inquiries: To answer your questions, address your concerns, and provide customer support when you contact us.
• Personalization: To tailor your experience on the site, including personalized recipe suggestions, content recommendations based on your browsing history, and dietary preference filtering.
• Advertising: We display advertisements through Google AdSense to support the free operation of our website. Google may use cookies and similar technologies to serve ads based on your prior visits to our site and other websites. The information collected by Google for this purpose is governed by Google's own privacy policy.

Cookies & Advertising

Cookies are small text files stored on your device when you visit a website. We use cookies for the following purposes:

• Functionality Cookies: These are essential for the proper operation of our website. They maintain your login session, remember your language preference, and store settings such as your preferred measurement units. Without these cookies, certain features of the site may not function correctly.
• Analytics Cookies: We use Google Analytics to understand how visitors interact with our site. These cookies collect information about page views, traffic sources, and user behavior in an aggregated and anonymized form.
• Advertising Cookies: Google AdSense uses cookies to serve ads that are relevant to your interests. These cookies track your browsing activity across websites to build a profile of your preferences and display targeted advertisements accordingly.

Managing Your Cookie Preferences: Most web browsers allow you to control cookies through their settings. You can choose to block or delete cookies, though doing so may affect your ability to use certain features of our website. You can also opt out of personalized advertising by visiting Google's Ad Settings.

For more information about how Google uses data from sites that use their services, please visit Google's Privacy & Terms page.

Third-Party Services

We work with the following third-party service providers to operate and maintain our website:

• Google AdSense: We use Google AdSense to display advertisements on our site. Google may collect and use data about your visits to serve personalized ads. You can learn more about Google's data practices and opt-out options at Google's Privacy Policy.
• Google Analytics: We use Google Analytics to analyze website traffic and usage patterns. Google Analytics collects data such as your IP address, browser type, and pages visited. This information is processed in an aggregated form and helps us improve our content and user experience.
• Amazon Associates: Petite Gourmets participates in the Amazon Associates affiliate program. Some links on our site to products such as kitchen equipment, cookbooks, and ingredients are affiliate links. When you click on these links and make a purchase, we may earn a small commission at no additional cost to you. Amazon may collect information about your interaction with these links in accordance with their own privacy policy.
• Amazon Web Services (AWS): Our website is hosted on AWS infrastructure, and we use AWS services for email delivery and file storage. AWS processes data on our behalf in accordance with their data processing agreements and security standards.

Data Security

We take the security of your personal information seriously and implement appropriate technical and organizational measures to protect it against unauthorized access, alteration, disclosure, or destruction.

• Encrypted Passwords: All user passwords are securely hashed using industry-standard encryption algorithms. We never store passwords in plain text, and our staff cannot access your password.
• HTTPS Encryption: All data transmitted between your browser and our servers is encrypted using HTTPS (TLS/SSL), ensuring that your information remains private during transit.
• Secure Cloud Infrastructure: Our website and data are hosted on AWS, which provides enterprise-grade security including firewalls, intrusion detection, and regular security audits. We regularly update our software and dependencies to address known vulnerabilities.

While we strive to protect your personal information, no method of transmission over the Internet or electronic storage is completely secure. We cannot guarantee absolute security, but we are committed to maintaining the highest practical standards.

Your Rights

You have the following rights regarding your personal information:

• Access and Correction: You can access and update your account information at any time by logging into your account and visiting your profile settings. If you need assistance, contact us and we will help you access or correct your data.
• Newsletter Unsubscription: You can unsubscribe from our newsletters at any time by clicking the unsubscribe link included in every email we send, or by updating your email preferences in your account settings.
• Account Deletion: You may request the deletion of your account and all associated personal data by contacting us at info@petitegourmets.com. Upon receiving your request, we will delete your account and personal data within 30 days, except where we are required to retain certain information for legal or legitimate business purposes.
• Data Portability: You have the right to request a copy of your personal data in a structured, commonly used format.

For EU Users (GDPR): If you are located in the European Union, you have additional rights under the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR). These include the right to restrict processing of your data, the right to object to processing, and the right to lodge a complaint with a supervisory authority. We process your data based on your consent (which you may withdraw at any time) and our legitimate interests in operating and improving our services. To exercise any of these rights, please contact us at info@petitegourmets.com.

Children's Privacy

Petite Gourmets is not directed at children under the age of 13, and we do not knowingly collect personal information from children under 13. If we become aware that we have inadvertently collected personal data from a child under 13, we will take immediate steps to delete that information from our servers. If you are a parent or guardian and believe that your child has provided us with personal information, please contact us at info@petitegourmets.com so that we can take appropriate action.

Changes to This Policy

We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time to reflect changes in our practices, technologies, legal requirements, or other factors. When we make changes, we will update the "Last updated" date at the top of this page. We encourage you to review this policy periodically to stay informed about how we are protecting your information. Your continued use of the website after any changes to this policy constitutes your acceptance of the updated terms.

Contact Us

If you have any questions, concerns, or requests regarding this Privacy Policy or our data practices, please contact us at:

info@petitegourmets.com