This Privacy Policy explains how WebSpecifier ("we", "us", "our") collects, uses, stores and protects personal information when you visit webspecifier.com or contact us through our website. We are committed to protecting your privacy and handling your data in an open and transparent manner in accordance with the UK General Data Protection Regulation (UK GDPR) and the Data Protection Act 2018.
1. Who We Are
WebSpecifier is a web-based service providing product selection tools for engineering and manufacturing businesses. For the purposes of UK GDPR, WebSpecifier is the data controller responsible for your personal data.
Contact: hello@webspecifier.com | +44 1227 918314
2. What Data We Collect
We may collect the following categories of personal data:
Data you provide to us directly
- Your name and job title
- Your business email address and phone number
- Your company name and industry sector
- Any message or enquiry you submit via our contact form
Data collected automatically
- IP address and browser type
- Pages visited and time spent on site
- Referring website or search term
- Device type and operating system
We do not collect any special category data (such as health, financial or biometric information).
3. How We Use Your Data
We use the personal data we collect for the following purposes:
- To respond to your enquiry — when you submit our contact form, we use your details to get back to you with a relevant response.
- To provide our service — if you become a client, we use your data to deliver the WebSpecifier product selector tool and related services.
- To improve our website — anonymised usage data helps us understand how visitors use our site so we can make it better.
- To send you relevant communications — only where you have given us permission to do so.
- To comply with legal obligations — we may need to retain certain records for tax, accounting or regulatory purposes.
4. Legal Basis for Processing
Under UK GDPR, we rely on the following lawful bases for processing your personal data:
- Legitimate interests — responding to business enquiries and improving our website.
- Contract — processing necessary to deliver services to our clients.
- Consent — where you have explicitly agreed to receive marketing communications or to cookies being placed on your device.
- Legal obligation — where we are required to retain or share data by law.
5. Cookies
Our website uses cookies to improve your browsing experience. Cookies are small text files placed on your device. We use the following types:
- Essential cookies — necessary for the website to function. These cannot be disabled.
- Analytics cookies — help us understand how visitors use our site (e.g. pages visited, time on site). These are only set with your consent.
- Preference cookies — remember your settings and choices. Only set with your consent.
When you first visit our site, you will be shown a cookie consent banner. You can change your cookie preferences at any time by clicking "Cookie Settings" in our website footer.
6. How Long We Keep Your Data
- Enquiry data — retained for up to 2 years from the date of your last contact with us.
- Client data — retained for 6 years after the end of our contract, in line with standard UK business record-keeping requirements.
- Analytics data — anonymised and aggregated; not stored as personal data.
7. Who We Share Your Data With
We do not sell your personal data to third parties. We may share your data with:
- Our hosting provider — for secure storage of website data (IONOS UK).
- Email service providers — used solely to deliver communications you have requested.
- Legal authorities — where required by law or court order.
Any third parties we work with are required to handle your data securely and in accordance with UK GDPR.
8. International Transfers
We store and process your data within the UK and European Economic Area (EEA). We do not transfer your personal data to countries outside the UK/EEA without appropriate safeguards in place.
9. Your Rights
Under UK GDPR, you have the following rights regarding your personal data:
- Right of access — you can request a copy of the data we hold about you.
- Right to rectification — you can ask us to correct inaccurate data.
- Right to erasure — you can ask us to delete your data in certain circumstances.
- Right to restriction — you can ask us to limit how we use your data.
- Right to data portability — you can ask for your data in a portable format.
- Right to object — you can object to processing based on legitimate interests.
- Right to withdraw consent — where processing is based on consent, you can withdraw it at any time.
To exercise any of these rights, please contact us at hello@webspecifier.com. We will respond within 30 days. You also have the right to lodge a complaint with the Information Commissioner's Office (ICO) at ico.org.uk or by calling 0303 123 1113.
10. Security
We take appropriate technical and organisational measures to protect your personal data against unauthorised access, loss or destruction. Our website uses HTTPS encryption for all data transmitted between your browser and our server.
11. Changes to This Policy
We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time. When we do, we will update the "Last updated" date at the top of this page. We encourage you to review this policy periodically.
12. Contact Us
If you have any questions about this Privacy Policy or how we handle your data, please contact us: