Privacy Policy

Last updated: 1 November 2026

This page explains what WP Thinker (wpthinker.com) collects when you read the site, leave a comment, write to us or use one of our free tools, why we collect it, how long we keep it and what you can ask us to do with it. We have kept it in plain English. If anything is unclear, write to us at pr@thetechhacker.com.

The short version
  • We count visits with our own analytics, which runs on our server. There is no Google Analytics or other third-party tracker on the site.
  • Every visit is counted anonymously and without cookies. Detailed analytics (a visitor ID, device details, heatmaps) only starts if you click Accept on the banner.
  • We never sell your data, and we don't show third-party ads.

Who we are

WP Thinker publishes guides, reviews, code snippets and free tools about WordPress. The site is run by Thetechhacker Global Solutions, and you can reach us at pr@thetechhacker.com or through our contact page. When this policy says "we", "us" or "our", it means WP Thinker and Thetechhacker Global Solutions.

1. What we collect

1.1 Visit statistics (our own analytics)

We use analytics software that is built into this website and runs on our own server. No visit data is sent to Google or any other analytics company.

Every visit, without cookies. When you open a page, your browser tells our server which page it was, the page title, the page you came from, any campaign tags in the link (such as utm_source) and the size of your window. To tell one visitor from another for a single day, the server mixes your IP address, your browser's identification string and our site name with a secret code that changes every day. The result is a random-looking ID that can't be turned back into your IP address and can't be linked to your visits on other days. Your IP address is used only for that and to look up an approximate location (country, region and city). It is then thrown away. We keep the general browser, operating system and device type (for example "Chrome, Android, mobile"), but not the full browser string. Nothing is stored on your device for this.

Detailed analytics, only if you click Accept. If you accept the banner, we also keep:

  • a visitor ID and a visit ID, stored in your browser's local storage (wpt-vid, wpt-sid, wpt-sid-at), so we can see how many times you come back;
  • your IP address and approximate location;
  • device details your browser shares, such as screen size, language, time zone and whether you use an ad blocker;
  • how long you spend on each page and how far you scroll;
  • where you click and move the mouse on a page, which we use for heatmaps (pictures of where readers click), and which links you click to other websites.

You can change your mind at any time by clearing this site's data in your browser, which brings the banner back. If you decline, you are still counted, but only in the anonymous, cookie-free way described above.

Location data. Approximate locations come from the free "IP to City Lite" database by DB-IP (db-ip.com), licensed under CC BY 4.0. We download a copy of the database to our server once a month and look addresses up there. Your IP address is never sent to DB-IP.

People signed in to the WP Thinker dashboard (our own team) are not counted.

1.2 Cookies and local storage

We don't use advertising or tracking cookies. Readers don't get any cookies from us at all. The only cookie we set, wpt_session, keeps our own team signed in to the dashboard.

The site also keeps a few small settings in your browser's local storage. They stay on your device:

  • wpt-consent: your answer to the analytics banner;
  • wpt-theme and wpt-text-size: light or dark mode and text size, if you change them;
  • wpt-saved and wpt-recent-searches: articles you saved for later and your recent searches, so you can find them again;
  • wpt-vid, wpt-sid and wpt-sid-at: only if you accept analytics (see 1.1).

1.3 Comments

When you comment, we collect your name, email address, website (if you give one), the comment itself, your IP address and your browser's identification string. The IP address and browser string help us catch spam. Comments are held until we approve them. Your name, website and comment appear publicly, but your email address is never shown.

Next to each comment we show a profile picture from Gravatar, a service run by Automattic. To find it, an anonymised string made from your email address (a "hash") is sent to Gravatar. Gravatar's privacy policy is at automattic.com/privacy.

1.4 Contact form, advertising and partnership enquiries

When you use our contact form, we collect what you type (your name, email address and message, plus your phone number, company and subject if you give them), the page you sent it from, your IP address and browser string, and your approximate location. We also note how you found the site, for example from a search engine or a link. If you accepted analytics, the message is linked to your visit so we can see which pages led you to write. Messages may also be emailed to us through our own mail server.

1.5 Newsletter

If you subscribe, we keep your email address, your name if you give it, the page you subscribed from, your IP address and the date. Every newsletter includes your own unsubscribe link, and unsubscribing takes effect straight away. If we ever use an outside email service to send the newsletter, we'll name it in this policy before we do.

1.6 Reader reviews of web hosts

If you review a hosting company in our hosting comparison, we collect your name, email address, your review and ratings, the plan you used, your IP address and browser string. Reviews are checked by us before they appear. Your name, review and ratings are shown publicly. Your email address is not.

1.7 Free tools

When you use our free tools, the domain or web address you type is sent to the services needed to answer you:

  • the WHOIS lookup asks the domain's registry (over RDAP or WHOIS);
  • the SSL checker connects to the website you entered;
  • the WordPress theme and plugin detector loads that website's home page, then looks up the theme and plugin names it finds in the public WordPress.org directory (only those names are sent, nothing about you); a theme screenshot loads from WordPress.org in your browser only if you click to show it.

We keep results in our server's memory for 30 minutes so a repeat lookup is quick. We don't save what you looked up in our database. To stop abuse, we briefly count lookups per IP address in memory.

Some links to products and hosting companies go through an address on our site that starts with /go/. They are marked as sponsored. When you click one, we record the click with your IP address, browser string, the page you came from, your country and the time. We use this to see which recommendations readers find useful. The company you land on may pay us a commission if you buy, at no extra cost to you. Once you are on their site, their privacy policy applies, not ours.

1.9 Security and server logs

To keep the site safe and working, our server records:

  • suspicious requests (IP address, page, browser string and country);
  • visits by search-engine and other bots;
  • pages that weren't found (the address, the page that linked to it and the browser string, without the IP address).

An IP address that keeps attacking the site can be blocked automatically for 24 hours.

1.10 Embedded videos

Some articles include YouTube videos. We use YouTube's privacy-enhanced mode (youtube-nocookie.com), so YouTube shouldn't set cookies until you play a video. Once you press play, Google's privacy policy applies.

2. Why we use your information

  • To understand which articles are useful, so we can improve them and write better ones.
  • To answer your messages and handle advertising or partnership requests.
  • To publish and moderate comments and reviews, and keep spam out.
  • To send the newsletter you asked for.
  • To keep the site secure and working.

Where data protection laws such as the GDPR apply, we rely on these reasons:

  • Legitimate interests: anonymous visit counting, security, spam control and partner-link statistics.
  • Your consent: detailed analytics and the newsletter.
  • Taking steps at your request: replying to your messages.

3. Who we share it with

We don't sell or rent your personal data, and we don't share it with advertisers. The only outside services involved are:

  • Our hosting company: the site and its database run on a virtual private server rented from Hostinger.
  • Gravatar (Automattic): for comment profile pictures (see 1.3).
  • YouTube (Google): only when you play an embedded video.
  • Domain registries and the websites you check: only when you use our free tools (see 1.7).
  • Search engines (through IndexNow): when we publish or update an article, we send its web address to search engines so they can find it. No personal data is included.

We may also share information if the law requires it.

4. How long we keep it

  • Visit statistics: 395 days, then deleted automatically.
  • Comments: as long as the article is online, unless you ask us to remove yours. Spam is deleted after 30 days.
  • Contact messages: as long as we need them to deal with your request. Spam is deleted after 30 days.
  • Newsletter subscriptions: until you unsubscribe.
  • Tool lookups: 30 minutes, in memory only.
  • Security records: only as long as we need them to protect the site. Automatic blocks end after 24 hours.
  • Backups: a nightly copy of the database is kept for 14 days.

5. Your rights

You can ask us to:

  • show you the personal data we hold about you;
  • correct it;
  • delete it;
  • send you a copy in a portable format.

You can also object to how we use it, or withdraw your consent to analytics or the newsletter at any time. Withdrawing consent doesn't affect anything we did before.

Email pr@thetechhacker.com and we'll reply within 30 days. We may need to check it's really you first. If you live in the European Union or the UK and aren't happy with our answer, you can complain to your local data protection authority.

Anonymous visit statistics can't be linked back to you, so we can't find or delete them for one person.

5.1 Children

WP Thinker is written for adults who build and run websites. We don't knowingly collect personal data from children under 16. If you think your child has sent us their details, email us and we'll delete them.

6. How we protect your data

We protect your data in these ways:

  • The whole site uses an encrypted HTTPS connection, with security headers that tell browsers to always use it.
  • A firewall and rate limits block abusive traffic.
  • The dashboard sits behind a private address, with login limits, and two-factor sign-in is available for our team.
  • Only our own team can see analytics, messages and comment details.

No website can promise perfect security. If a breach ever put your personal data at risk, we would tell you and the relevant authority as the law requires.

7. Contact us

Questions about this policy or your data? Write to pr@thetechhacker.com or use our contact page.

8. Changes to this policy

We update this page when the way we handle data changes, and change the date at the top when we do. This version replaces the policy we used before 27 October 2026, which described Google Analytics and advertising cookies. We no longer use either.