Privacy and cookie policy
This policy explains what data this website collects, why, and what you can do about it. It is written to be read rather than to be skimmed past, so it is short.
The short version. We do not host files, so we never handle your downloads. We do not ask you to create an account. We do not sell personal data. The only cookies this site sets are for anonymous traffic measurement and advertising, and none of them are set until you accept them.
1. Who we are
InstallShelf ("we", "us") operates this website. For privacy questions, including requests to access or delete your data, contact hello@installshelf.com. We are the data controller for the limited processing described below.
2. What this site does not do
- We do not host, mirror or distribute software. Downloads happen entirely on the publisher’s website, under their privacy policy. Once you leave this site, this policy no longer applies.
- We do not require registration, and we do not operate user accounts.
- We do not sell, rent or trade personal information to anyone.
3. Information we process
| Category | What and why | Legal basis |
|---|---|---|
| Server logs | IP address, browser type, referring page, and timestamp, recorded automatically by our hosting provider to serve the page and defend against abuse. | Legitimate interest in operating a secure website. |
| Aggregate analytics | Which pages are visited and roughly where visitors come from, in a form that does not identify individuals. | Consent, where required. Otherwise legitimate interest in understanding which content is useful. |
| Outbound click counts | Which tools people click through to, recorded without a persistent identifier, so we know which entries are worth maintaining. | Legitimate interest in maintaining accurate links. |
| Your emails | If you write to us, we keep your address and message in order to reply and to follow up on the issue you raised. | Consent, and legitimate interest in answering correspondence. |
We do not knowingly collect information from anyone under 16, and we do not process special category data of any kind.
4. Cookies and consent
This site uses a consent banner. On your first visit, no non-essential cookie is set until you click Accept. If you choose Essential only, you can still use every part of the site — you will simply see advertising that is less relevant to you, and we will not load measurement scripts.
The types of cookie involved:
- Essential. A single local storage entry recording your cookie choice, so the banner does not reappear on every page. Cannot be disabled, because without it we cannot respect your choice.
- Analytics. Visits, pages and referrers, aggregated. Only after consent.
- Advertising. Set by advertising partners, only after consent. See section 5.
You can change or withdraw your consent at any time by clearing this site’s data in your browser settings, which resets the banner, or via your browser’s cookie controls. Withdrawing consent does not affect the lawfulness of processing carried out before that point.
5. Advertising
We display advertising. Where required by law, ads are served only after you consent to advertising cookies.
Third-party vendors, including Google, use cookies to serve ads based on your prior visits to this and other websites. Google’s use of advertising cookies enables it and its partners to serve ads to you based on your visit to this site and other sites on the internet.
- You may opt out of personalised advertising through Google’s Ads Settings.
- You can opt out of third-party vendor cookies for personalised advertising at aboutads.info or youronlinechoices.eu in the EU.
- Advertising partners may set their own cookies and have their own privacy policies. We do not control those cookies and cannot read their contents.
If you are in a region where personalised advertising requires explicit consent, declining it means you will still see advertising, but it will not be based on a profile of your interests.
6. Affiliate links
Some links on this site include an affiliate identifier. If you arrive at a publisher through one of those links and then buy something, that publisher may pay us a commission. The identifier tells the seller which page referred you. It does not give us access to your order, your payment details or your identity, and it does not change the price you pay.
Affiliate relationships never determine whether a tool appears, what our note about it says, or whether it carries an Editor’s pick badge.
7. Who we share data with
We share only what is necessary with service providers, and only these categories:
- Hosting and content delivery — to serve the pages you request.
- Analytics — to produce aggregate traffic figures.
- Advertising partners — to deliver advertising, after consent.
- Authorities — where we are legally obliged to disclose, and only to the extent required.
Where a provider processes data outside your country, including in the United States, we rely on appropriate safeguards such as standard contractual clauses. Some providers are certified under the EU–US Data Privacy Framework.
8. How long we keep things
Server logs are retained for a short period — typically 30 days — and then deleted or aggregated. Analytics data is kept in aggregate form. Correspondence is kept for as long as needed to resolve the matter, and then for a reasonable period in case it recurs. We do not keep personal data longer than necessary for the purpose it was collected for.
9. Your rights
Depending on where you live, you may have the right to:
- be told what personal data we hold about you and receive a copy;
- have inaccurate data corrected;
- have your data deleted;
- restrict or object to certain processing;
- receive your data in a portable form;
- withdraw consent at any time.
Under the GDPR and UK GDPR, you may also lodge a complaint with your national data protection authority. Under the CCPA/CPRA, California residents have the right to know what is collected, to request deletion, and to opt out of the sale or sharing of personal information — we do not sell personal information as that term is defined by the statute. We will not discriminate against you for exercising any of these rights.
To exercise any right, email hello@installshelf.com with enough detail for us to identify the data you mean. We respond within 30 days.
10. Security
This site is served over HTTPS. Because we hold almost no personal data, the risk attached to it is small by design — the safest data is data never collected. No transmission over the internet is completely secure, and we cannot guarantee absolute security.
11. Changes to this policy
If this policy changes in a way that affects your rights, we will update the date at the top of the page and, where the change is significant, note it prominently on the site. Continued use after a change means you accept the updated policy.