Privacy & Cookie Policy
This policy explains how Manchester AI Receptionist (“we”, “us”) handles information when you visit this website. We keep analytics deliberately minimal and privacy-preserving: we use only first-party cookies, we never sell or share your data with third parties, and we never run third-party advertising or tracking networks.
The short version
- We measure how visitors use the site so we can improve it — nothing more.
- Analytics cookies are set only after you click “Accept” on the cookie banner.
- We never store your raw IP address. It is one-way hashed and discarded.
- We derive only coarse location (country/region/city) — never your precise GPS position.
- Analytics records are automatically deleted after a short retention window.
- No data is shared with third parties or used for advertising.
Cookies and similar storage we use
| Name | Type | Purpose | Lifespan |
|---|---|---|---|
ms_consent | First-party cookie | Remembers your accept/decline choice so we don’t ask again. | ~12 months |
ms_vid | First-party cookie | A random visitor ID used to count returning visitors. Set only after consent. | ~12 months |
ms_sid | Session storage | A random per-tab session ID used to group a single visit. Set only after consent. | Until the tab is closed |
The ms_consent cookie is strictly necessary to honour your choice and is set regardless of consent. The analytics identifiers (ms_vid, ms_sid) and all measurement below are created only if you accept.
What analytics we collect (only after consent)
When you accept, each page view records:
- The page path you viewed, the page you landed on, and how you arrived (direct, search, social, or referring site) plus any campaign (UTM) tags in the link.
- Your browser, operating system, and device type, derived from the user-agent string.
- Your browser language and timezone.
- Your screen and browser window size.
- Approximate time spent on the page.
- A coarse location — country, region, and city only — derived from your IP address.
Your IP address
We never store your raw IP address. It is used transiently for two things and then discarded:
- Coarse location — looked up against a local MaxMind GeoLite2 database to derive country/region/city. We deliberately discard latitude, longitude, and accuracy radius.
- Unique-visitor counting — combined with a secret server-side key and one-way hashed (HMAC-SHA256). The hash cannot be reversed back to your IP.
How long we keep it
Individual page-view records are automatically deleted after a short retention window (currently 14 days). We retain only aggregated, non-identifying statistics beyond that.
Legal basis
Under UK GDPR and the Privacy and Electronic Communications Regulations (PECR), we rely on your consent for analytics cookies and measurement. Nothing is collected until you accept, and declining leaves you with full access to the site.
Withdrawing consent
You can withdraw consent at any time by clearing this site’s cookies in your browser (in particular the ms_consent and ms_vid cookies). The banner will reappear on your next visit so you can choose again. You can also block or delete cookies using your browser’s privacy settings.
Sharing
We do not sell, rent, or share your information with third parties, and we do not use third-party advertising or tracking networks. Analytics data is stored in our own database.
Contact
Questions about this policy or your data? Email us at [email protected].