Our basic position
This site is a small, slow publication. We do not run advertising networks or behavioural advertising, and we carry no third-party advertising or social-media trackers. We try to collect as little as possible. The one analytics tool we use — Google Analytics — is described below.
What this site does collect
- Hosting logs. Our hosting provider (Firebase) keeps standard server logs — IP address, time, page requested, browser type — for a short retention period. This is standard for any website on the internet and is used only for security and operational purposes.
- Email addresses, only if you give them to us. If you subscribe to our monthly newsletter, we store your email address with our email provider for the purpose of sending you that newsletter. You can unsubscribe with one click at any time. We do not share, sell, or rent your email address.
- Analytics. We use Google Analytics (GA4) to understand how the site is read — which pages are visited, roughly where readers come from, and what device and browser they use. Google Analytics sets cookies in your browser and reports this information to us only in aggregate; we use it to improve the site, never for advertising. A notice at the foot of every page informs you that the site uses these cookies.
What this site does not collect
- No third-party advertising cookies.
- No behavioural tracking across other websites.
- No social-media share buttons that load tracking scripts.
- No personal information beyond what you voluntarily provide via the newsletter form or by emailing us.
If you contact us
If you email hello@mersina.com, we keep your message for as long as it is useful for the conversation. We do not add you to any mailing list without your explicit consent.
Affiliate links
Where we link to a hotel booking, tour operator, or other commercial service, we may receive a small commission at no cost to you. Such links are clearly marked. We never recommend a service solely because it pays us — every recommendation is editorial.
Changes to this policy
If we change this policy, the updated version will be published here with a new "last updated" date. For substantive changes, newsletter subscribers will be notified by email.
Your rights — EU and UK readers
If you are in the European Union or the United Kingdom, you have legal rights under the GDPR (or UK GDPR) to request a copy of the personal data we hold about you, to ask us to correct it, or to ask us to delete it. Email hello@mersina.com to exercise any of these rights and we will respond within the timescales the law requires.
Contact
Questions, a request to review the information we hold about you, or any other concern: hello@mersina.com.
— The TurkishPress editor