Privacy Policy

Last updated: February 2026

1. Overview

We take the protection of your personal data very seriously. This privacy policy informs you about how we handle your personal data when you visit our website and use our services.

Responsible Party

Clemens Lode Verlag e.K.
Bilker Allee 188
40215 Düsseldorf, Germany
Email: info@lodepublishing.com
Phone: +49 (0) 1575 88 99 220

2. Hosting

This website is hosted on Cloudflare Pages. When you visit our website, your browser automatically transmits certain data for technical reasons:

• Browser type and version
• Operating system
• Referrer URL (previously visited page)
• IP address
• Time of server request

This data is processed based on our legitimate interest in providing a secure and functional website (Article 6(1)(f) GDPR).

Location Detection

We use Cloudflare's location detection service to determine your approximate geographic region. This allows us to display region-appropriate links (e.g., directing you to your local Amazon store). Only your country is detected; no precise location data is stored. This processing is based on our legitimate interest in providing a better user experience (Article 6(1)(f) GDPR).

3. Cookies

We do not use cookies to identify or track visitors. Our website functions without the use of tracking cookies or similar technologies.

4. Contact Forms & Email

When you contact us via our contact form or email, the data you provide (name, email address, message content) will be stored for the purpose of processing your inquiry and handling any follow-up questions.

Legal basis: Your consent (Article 6(1)(a) GDPR) and our legitimate interest in answering inquiries (Article 6(1)(f) GDPR).

Your data will be retained until you request deletion, withdraw your consent, or the purpose for storage no longer applies.

5. Feedback & Surveys

When you submit feedback through our website (e.g., template feedback form), we collect the information you provide, which may include:

• Age range and profession
• Experience level with our products
• Project descriptions and improvement suggestions
• Contact information (if you opt in for follow-up)

This data is used to improve our products and services. Feedback data is retained for up to 12 months for analysis and product improvement, then deleted.

Legal basis: Your consent (Article 6(1)(a) GDPR).

6. File Uploads

When you upload manuscript files through our service, these files are:

• Transmitted via encrypted connection (TLS/SSL)
• Stored securely for processing your formatting request
• Only accessed by authorized team members
• Deleted upon request or after project completion

Legal basis: Contract fulfillment (Article 6(1)(b) GDPR).

7. Payment Processing

Payment transactions are processed through Mollie B.V. (Netherlands), a PCI DSS-compliant payment processor. We do not store complete credit card information on our servers.

We store the following payment-related data:

• Invoice data (invoice number, amount, date, customer email and name): Retained for 10 years in accordance with German tax record-keeping obligations (§ 147 AO Aufbewahrungspflicht).
• Payment reference IDs (Mollie transaction IDs): Retained for 10 years alongside invoice data.

Legal basis: Legal obligation (Article 6(1)(c) GDPR) and contract fulfillment (Article 6(1)(b) GDPR).

7a. Newsletter

If you subscribe to our newsletter, we store your email address for the purpose of sending periodic updates (less than once per month). Your data is processed via Resend (email delivery service).

Your email address is retained until you unsubscribe. You can unsubscribe at any time by clicking the unsubscribe link in any newsletter email or by contacting us at info@lodepublishing.com.

Legal basis: Your consent (Article 6(1)(a) GDPR).

8. Your Rights

Under GDPR, you have the following rights:

• Right of access: Request information about your stored personal data
• Right to rectification: Request correction of inaccurate data
• Right to erasure: Request deletion of your data
• Right to restriction: Request restricted processing of your data
• Right to data portability: Receive your data in a machine-readable format
• Right to object: Object to processing based on legitimate interests
• Right to withdraw consent: Withdraw previously given consent at any time

To exercise these rights, contact us at info@lodepublishing.com.

9. Data Security

We use SSL/TLS encryption for all data transmission. Our website and services employ industry-standard security measures to protect your data against unauthorized access, alteration, or destruction.

10. Third-Party Services

We may use the following third-party services:

• Cloudflare: Website hosting and security (US-based, EU-US Data Privacy Framework certified)
• Calendly: Appointment scheduling for discovery calls. When you book a call, Calendly processes your name, email, and any information you provide. See Calendly's Privacy Policy.
• Mollie: Payment processing (Netherlands, EU-based). See Mollie's Privacy Policy.
• Resend: Email delivery service for transactional emails (welcome emails, confirmations)

These providers are contractually obligated to handle your data in accordance with GDPR requirements.

11. Supervisory Authority

You have the right to lodge a complaint with a data protection supervisory authority. The competent authority for our company is:

Landesbeauftragte für Datenschutz und Informationsfreiheit Nordrhein-Westfalen
Kavalleriestraße 2-4
40213 Düsseldorf
www.ldi.nrw.de

12. Changes to This Policy

We may update this privacy policy from time to time. The current version is always available on this page with the date of the last update.