Who we are

Ideas Forward ("we," "us") is a company registered in Greece. Our website is ideasforward.com.

For questions regarding this policy or your personal data, contact us at: hello@ideasforward.com

What data we collect and why

1. Website analytics (Matomo)

We use Matomo, a self-hosted, open-source analytics platform, to understand how visitors use our website so we can improve it. Matomo runs on our own server located in Germany (European Union). No analytics data is sent to third parties.

Data collected through analytics:

• Pages you visit and the time of your visit
• Referrer URL (the page that linked you here)
• Your approximate geographic location (country/region level only — see IP anonymization below)
• Browser type, operating system, device type, and screen resolution
• Session duration and interactions (clicks, downloads)

Data we do NOT collect through analytics:

• No cookies are placed on your device. We use Matomo's cookieless tracking mode.
• No personal identifiers (name, email, account) are collected through analytics.
• No cross-site or cross-device tracking takes place.
• No advertising profiles are built from your visit.

2. Contact form

When you use our contact form, we collect your email address and the message you submit. This data is used solely to respond to your inquiry. We store contact form submissions on our web server in Germany and delete them once your inquiry has been resolved, unless we are required to retain them for legal reasons.

Legal basis: Article 6(1)(b) GDPR — processing is necessary to take steps at your request prior to entering into a contract, or Article 6(1)(f) — our legitimate interest in responding to inquiries directed at us.

3. Newsletter (Mailchimp)

If you subscribe to our newsletter, we collect your email address. Newsletter delivery is handled by Mailchimp (Intuit Inc.), a third-party email service provider based in the United States. Mailchimp may also collect data about your interaction with our emails (such as whether you opened an email or clicked a link).

Mailchimp processes data under the EU–US Data Privacy Framework. You can review Mailchimp's privacy practices at mailchimp.com/legal/privacy.

You can unsubscribe at any time using the unsubscribe link included in every newsletter email, or by contacting us directly at hello@ideasforward.com.

Legal basis: Article 6(1)(a) GDPR — your explicit consent, given when you subscribe. You may withdraw consent at any time by unsubscribing.

How we protect your privacy

IP anonymization

Your IP address is anonymized by masking the last two bytes (e.g., 192.168.xxx.xxx) before any processing or storage occurs. Geolocation lookups also use the anonymized IP only. This means we cannot identify individual visitors by IP address.

Data retention

• Raw visitor logs (anonymized) are automatically deleted after 6 months.
• Aggregated statistical reports (non-personal, e.g., "150 visits to /about on Monday") are retained for 24 months.

Data location

Our website hosting server and Matomo analytics server are both located in Germany. Contact form data is stored on our web server in Germany. Newsletter data (email addresses) is processed by Mailchimp on servers in the United States, covered by the EU–US Data Privacy Framework. Apart from Mailchimp, no personal data leaves the European Union.

Third-party data sharing

We do not sell, trade, or share your personal data with third parties, with one exception: if you subscribe to our newsletter, your email address is processed by Mailchimp (Intuit Inc.) for the sole purpose of delivering our newsletter. Mailchimp acts as a data processor on our behalf. No other data is shared with third parties.

Legal basis summary

Your rights

Under the GDPR, you have the right to:

• Access — request what data (if any) we hold relating to you
• Rectification — request correction of inaccurate data
• Erasure — request deletion of your data
• Restriction — request that we limit processing of your data
• Object — object to our processing based on legitimate interest
• Lodge a complaint — with the Hellenic Data Protection Authority (HDPA) at www.dpa.gr or with any EU supervisory authority

To exercise any of these rights, email us at hello@ideasforward.com. We will respond within 30 days.

Opt out of analytics

Even though we do not use cookies and anonymize all data, you can still opt out of being tracked entirely:

Changes to this policy

We may update this policy from time to time. The "last updated" date at the top of this page will reflect the most recent revision. Significant changes will be noted on our website.