Betta Dreams A field guide

Privacy policy

Short version: we collect your email address only if you subscribe to the newsletter, your browsing is measured anonymously by Google Analytics only if you accept the cookie banner, and we never sell or share your data. The longer version is below.

Last updated: 2026-05-03.

Data we collect

The site collects only what's needed to do the job in front of it:

  • Newsletter subscribers: email address, the page URL where you signed up, the IP address of the request (used for rate limiting and abuse prevention), the country code derived from that IP by Cloudflare, your browser's user-agent string, and timestamps for subscription, confirmation, and unsubscription. Stored in our own database (Cloudflare D1).
  • Analytics (only if you accept the cookie banner): Google Analytics receives standard anonymous page-view data (URL, referrer, screen size, approximate location, device type). Decline the banner and no analytics beacon fires.
  • Server logs: Cloudflare retains standard HTTP request logs (timestamp, IP, user agent, URL) for abuse detection and operational telemetry. We do not receive or store these ourselves.

We do not collect names, addresses, phone numbers, payment information, or anything else. There are no user accounts, no comments, no logins.

Newsletter

When you subscribe, you'll get a confirmation email. Your address is not added to the active list until you click the link in that email (double opt-in). After that, you receive editorial emails when we publish something worth sending.

Every email we send includes a one-click unsubscribe link. Clicking it immediately marks you as unsubscribed in our database and stops all future sends. Unsubscribed addresses are retained as a suppression record so we can confirm we won't email you again, even if you re-submit by mistake. You can request full deletion of your record by emailing hello@bettadreams.com.

Email delivery is handled by Amazon SES. AWS sees the recipient address in transit and may temporarily log delivery metadata for their own bounce and abuse handling. Their privacy notice governs that processing.

Cookies and analytics

We do not set any cookies ourselves. The cookie banner you may have seen on your first visit asks for consent before loading Google Analytics. If you accept, Google Analytics drops its own cookies and collects anonymous browsing data per its privacy policy. If you decline, no analytics scripts run.

You can withdraw consent at any time by clearing your browser's local storage for this site, which will resurface the banner on your next visit.

Where data lives

Subscriber data is stored in Cloudflare D1, replicated across Cloudflare's edge data centers. Email is sent through Amazon SES in the US East (N. Virginia) region. Analytics data, if you accepted, is processed by Google.

Affiliate links

Outbound links to Amazon and other named retailers are sometimes affiliate links. When you click one, that merchant may set its own cookies to track the referral. We receive a small commission on some purchases at no cost to you. See the disclosures page for the full list of programs we participate in.

Embedded content

Some articles embed YouTube videos or link to external images hosted by third parties. Those services' privacy terms apply when you interact with their embeds.

Children's privacy

Betta Dreams is general-audience content. We do not knowingly collect any data from children under 13 (or under 16 in jurisdictions where that is the relevant age). If you are a parent and believe a child's data has somehow ended up in our hands, email us and we will investigate and delete it.

Your rights

Under GDPR, CCPA, and most modern privacy laws, you have the right to:

  • Know what personal data we hold about you
  • Request a copy of that data
  • Request correction of inaccurate data
  • Request deletion of your data
  • Object to or restrict processing
  • Withdraw consent (for newsletter subscription, this is the unsubscribe link)

To exercise any of these rights, email hello@bettadreams.com. We respond within 30 days, usually faster. We may need to verify your identity before processing requests for personal data.

Legal basis (GDPR)

For newsletter subscribers in the EU/UK: we process your email address on the basis of your explicit consent (the double opt-in confirmation click). For Cloudflare Web Analytics: we rely on legitimate interest, since the data is cookieless, aggregated, and cannot identify you. For Google Analytics: explicit consent via the cookie banner.

Data retention

Active subscriber records (status: confirmed) are kept for as long as you remain subscribed. Unsubscribed records are kept indefinitely as a suppression list to honor your unsubscribe. Bounced and complained records are kept indefinitely for the same reason. Rate- limit records are pruned within minutes. Server logs follow Cloudflare's standard retention.

Changes

Material changes to this policy will bump the "last updated" date above. Breaking changes (introducing new categories of collected data, new third parties, or new processing purposes) will get a banner on the homepage for 30 days, and existing subscribers will be notified by email.

Contact

Privacy questions or data-removal requests: hello@bettadreams.com.