Privacy statement
We are committed to protecting your privacy. By using our web site you consent to the collection and use of personal information as described here.
We collect information in order to improve our products and services. We do maintain a sales database, a customer database and a mailing database. Outside these databases we hold information in desensitised, generalised, aggregated form.
We are located in the UK. We are happy to comply with the requirements of the UK Data Protection Act 1998 and the privacy directives of the European Union. We follow strict security procedures in the acquisition, processing, storage, disclosure and disposal of information.
We do not sell, trade, exchange or rent personal information to others. We may publish in aggregate form statistics about our visitors and customers.
We may from time to time use "Cookies" or "Server Session Data" to hold information about the way you are using our site and the way you like to personalise the site to meet your needs. "Cookies" are small information files that are stored by your browser on your computer's local storage. Our "Cookies" do not and will not contain any information which can identify you as an individual. Our web site will continue to operate if you use browser software having set the option to disable the use of "Cookies".
Privacy is important
As a software company we are in a privileged position to understand the technology that impacts privacy. There is a gap in understanding of what is possible and what is believed to be possible. More people should consider the issues in depth and decide what actions need to be taken both as an individual and as a member of a wider community.
Each computer is unique
When you buy a computer it has globally unique identifying codes. The "MAC" address (well known to telecommunications network engineers) on every network connection card is unique. Network connection cards can connect through modems or other telecommunications network connections to the Internet. The retailer who sold you your computer could match your personal data with that held by the manufacturer of your computer.
Manufacturers provide features to allow remote maintenance and remote diagnostics of computer operations. The manufacturer of your computer or its software could connect through a telecommunications network (maybe even a wireless network) and find out about your machine and your usage of your machine without your knowledge.
All that you do and all that you say
Computers can be set to create extensive activity logging files. These can trace in the finest detail what activity has been undertaken and when.
When you connect to the Internet you typically use a telephony line provided by a telephone company. They monitor your activity for billing purposes and more. Your Internet Access Provider company might be a different company than your telephone company. They again monitor your activity again for billing purposes and more.
The Internet "backbone" high capacity networks have listener processes monitoring traffic.
When you enter web sites invisible "Cookies" created and amended by banner advertisements silently track as you move from web site to web site. As you complete forms or answer "harmless" questions or visit one area of a web site in preference to another knowledge is being gathered. This information can be matched with individual profiling and credit databases.
A possible future
As we walk around the centres of most towns we see surveillance cameras tracking all activity. Pattern matching software can identify faces. Information on various databases can be matched to see who was where when, what they were doing and what level of threat they present.
In the future biometrics measurement devices such as retina or finger print or heat profile scanners might become more common. The level of uncertainty about who did what, where and when will reduce.
Societies and individuals
Public knowledge, public accountability and strong legislation provide the safeguards to prevent abuse. A constant theme throughout the ages is the challenge of finding an acceptable balance between the needs of individuals who are required to relinquish aspects of personal privacy and the needs of those who are charged with providing safety to society as a whole.
Tempus omnia revelat.