Privacy Policy

Last updated: 21 September 2026

Who is responsible

rsorourke.com is the research site of Richard S O'Rourke. For data protection purposes the controller is Richard S O'Rourke, contactable at richard@rsorourke.com.

What we collect, and why

Working-paper requests. When you request a working paper we collect your name, email address, affiliation (optional), which paper you want and why. We use this to decide the request, send you the paper, and reply to you. Legal basis: your consent, given by ticking the box on the form. We may follow up once about that paper. The form also has an optional, unticked box to receive occasional updates; leaving it unticked means you are not added to any mailing list. Ticking it starts the double opt-in described under Updates sign-up.

Updates sign-up. If you ask for occasional updates we collect your email address and send you those updates. Legal basis: consent — you confirm it by clicking the link in the email we send you (double opt-in), and every email has an unsubscribe link. Withdrawing consent stops the emails; it does not affect anything sent before.

Technical information. Our servers log the technical details your browser sends (for example your IP address and browser type) for security and abuse prevention, and our forms use a bot check. This is our legitimate interest in keeping the site working and secure. Logs are kept for a short period and are not linked to the forms above.

Analytics and error monitoring

We use PostHog, hosted in the EU, to understand how the site is used. It runs without cookies and without a persistent identifier, so it does not track you across visits or sites; we see aggregate page and interaction counts, not individuals. We use Sentry to record errors in the site's code; it is configured not to send personal data.

Who we share it with

We use Brevo (EU-hosted) to send email — request replies, papers and updates — and, if you sign up for updates, to hold your email address on our list. Brevo acts on our instructions and does not use your data for its own purposes. The site runs on servers operated for us by our hosting provider, with backups held with Cloudflare in the EU. We do not sell or rent your information, and we do not share it with anyone for marketing.

How long we keep it

Working-paper requests are kept for up to two years from your last contact with us, then deleted. Update sign-ups are kept until you unsubscribe or ask us to remove you. You can ask for earlier deletion at any time.

Your rights

Under UK GDPR you have the right to access the personal data we hold about you, to have inaccuracies corrected, to have your data deleted, to restrict how we use it, to receive a copy in a portable format, to object to processing, and to withdraw consent at any time. Email richard@rsorourke.com and we will respond within one calendar month.

Complaints

If you believe we are not handling your data properly you can complain to the UK Information Commissioner's Office (ICO) at ico.org.uk or on 0303 123 1113.

Updates to this policy

We may update this policy occasionally; the date at the top reflects the most recent change. For material changes we will update this page and, where appropriate, tell you directly.