Privacy Policy
Last updated: January 24, 2025
At AskSMB.io, we respect your privacy and are committed to being transparent about how we collect, use, and share information. This Privacy Policy explains our practices regarding the data we collect when you visit our website, use our AI assistant, read our guides, or interact with our tools. By using AskSMB.io, you agree to the collection and use of information as described in this policy.
📊 Information We Collect
We collect different types of information depending on how you interact with AskSMB.io:
- Account Information: When you create an account, we collect your name, email address, and authentication credentials. This allows us to provide personalized features and save your preferences.
- Chat and Interaction Data: Messages you exchange with our AI assistant are processed to provide responses. For guests, chat history is stored locally in your browser. For registered users, conversations may be saved to your account for continuity.
- Usage Information: We automatically collect information about how you use our site, including pages visited, time spent on pages, links clicked, and the tools or calculators you use. This helps us understand what content is most valuable to our users.
- Device and Browser Information: We collect technical information such as your IP address, browser type, operating system, device type, and screen resolution to optimize your experience and troubleshoot issues.
- Contact Form Submissions: If you contact us through our website, we collect the information you provide, including your name, email, and message content.
🍪 Cookies and Tracking Technologies
AskSMB.io uses cookies and similar tracking technologies to enhance your experience, analyze site traffic, and serve relevant advertisements. A cookie is a small text file stored on your device that helps us recognize you and remember your preferences.
Types of cookies we use:
- Essential Cookies: These are necessary for the website to function properly. They enable core features like user authentication, session management, and security. You cannot opt out of essential cookies.
- Preference Cookies: These remember your settings and choices, such as dark mode preference, language selection, and whether you've dismissed certain notifications.
- Analytics Cookies: We use analytics services (including Google Analytics) to understand how visitors interact with our site. These cookies collect information about pages visited, time on site, and how you arrived at AskSMB.io. This data is aggregated and anonymous.
- Advertising Cookies: These cookies are used by us and our advertising partners to deliver ads that are relevant to your interests. They track your browsing activity across websites to build a profile of your preferences. See the "Advertising" section below for more details.
For more detailed information about the cookies we use, please visit our Cookie Policy.
📢 Advertising and Google AdSense
AskSMB.io displays advertisements to support the free content and tools we provide. We partner with Google AdSense and other third-party advertising networks to serve these ads.
How Advertising Cookies Work
Google, as a third-party vendor, uses cookies to serve ads on AskSMB.io. These cookies enable Google and its partners to serve advertisements based on your visits to our site and other websites across the internet. This is commonly known as interest-based or personalized advertising.
The DoubleClick Cookie
Google uses the DoubleClick cookie to serve ads across its advertising network. The DoubleClick cookie enables Google to:
- Show you ads based on your previous visits to AskSMB.io and other websites
- Limit the number of times you see the same advertisement
- Measure the effectiveness of advertising campaigns
- Understand user behavior to improve ad relevance
Third-Party Advertising Partners
In addition to Google, other third-party vendors and advertising networks may serve ads on AskSMB.io. These partners may use cookies, web beacons, and similar technologies to collect information about your browsing activities over time and across different websites. This information may be used to provide advertisements tailored to your interests.
We do not have access to or control over the cookies and tracking technologies used by third-party advertisers. Their use of such technologies is subject to their own privacy policies, not this one.
⚙️ How We Use Your Information
We use the information we collect for the following purposes:
- Providing Our Services: To operate AskSMB.io, including our AI assistant, guides, calculators, and other tools.
- Personalization: To customize your experience, remember your preferences, and provide relevant content recommendations.
- Communication: To respond to your inquiries, send important updates about our services, and (with your consent) share relevant content or offers.
- Analytics and Improvement: To understand how users interact with our site, identify popular content, troubleshoot issues, and improve our services.
- Advertising: To display relevant advertisements that support our ability to provide free content and tools.
- Legal Compliance: To comply with applicable laws, respond to legal requests, and protect against fraudulent or illegal activity.
✅ Your Choices and Rights
You have several options for controlling how your information is collected and used:
Cookie Controls
- Browser Settings: Most web browsers allow you to manage cookies through their settings. You can typically find these options in your browser's "Privacy" or "Security" settings. You can choose to block all cookies, accept all cookies, or receive a notification when a cookie is set.
- Note: If you disable cookies, some features of AskSMB.io may not function properly. For example, we may not be able to remember your login status or preferences.
Opting Out of Personalized Advertising
- Google Ads Settings: You can opt out of personalized advertising from Google by visiting Google Ads Settings. This allows you to manage the information Google uses to show you ads.
- Network Advertising Initiative: You can opt out of interest-based advertising from many third-party ad networks by visiting the Network Advertising Initiative Opt-Out Page.
- Digital Advertising Alliance: The DAA provides an opt-out tool at aboutads.info that allows you to opt out of interest-based advertising from participating companies.
- Important: Opting out of personalized advertising does not mean you will stop seeing ads on AskSMB.io. You will still see advertisements, but they will be less relevant to your interests.
Account and Data Controls
- Account Deletion: You may delete your AskSMB.io account at any time by contacting us. This will remove your account information and saved chat history from our servers.
- Data Access: You may request a copy of the personal data we hold about you by contacting us at the email address below.
- Communication Preferences: You can unsubscribe from marketing emails by clicking the unsubscribe link in any email we send.
🔗 Third-Party Services
AskSMB.io integrates with third-party services to provide our features and functionality. These include:
- Google Analytics: For website analytics and understanding user behavior.
- Google AdSense: For serving advertisements on our site.
- Authentication Providers: If you choose to sign in using a third-party service (such as Google), we receive basic profile information from that provider.
- AI Service Providers: Our AI assistant is powered by third-party AI services. Your chat messages are processed by these services to generate responses.
Each third-party service has its own privacy policy governing their use of your information. We encourage you to review the privacy policies of any third-party services you interact with.
🔒 Data Protection and Security
We implement appropriate technical and organizational measures to protect your personal information against unauthorized access, alteration, disclosure, or destruction. These measures include:
- Encryption of data in transit using SSL/TLS
- Secure authentication mechanisms
- Regular security reviews and updates
- Limited access to personal data on a need-to-know basis
However, no method of transmission over the internet or electronic storage is completely secure. While we strive to protect your personal information, we cannot guarantee its absolute security.
🗄️ Data Retention
We retain your personal information for as long as necessary to provide our services and fulfill the purposes described in this policy. Account information is retained until you delete your account. Analytics data is retained in aggregated, anonymized form. If you request deletion of your data, we will process your request within a reasonable timeframe, subject to any legal obligations to retain certain information.
👶 Children's Privacy
AskSMB.io is designed for business owners and professionals. Our services are not directed to children under the age of 13 (or the applicable age of consent in your jurisdiction). We do not knowingly collect personal information from children. If you believe we have inadvertently collected information from a child, please contact us immediately so we can delete it.
🌍 International Users
AskSMB.io is operated from the United States. If you access our site from outside the United States, please be aware that your information may be transferred to, stored, and processed in the United States or other countries where our service providers operate. By using our site, you consent to such transfers.
📅 Updates to This Policy
We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time to reflect changes in our practices or for legal, operational, or regulatory reasons. When we make material changes, we will update the "Last updated" date at the top of this page. We encourage you to review this policy periodically to stay informed about how we protect your information.
📧 Contact Us
If you have questions, concerns, or requests regarding this Privacy Policy or our data practices, please contact us at:
Email: asksmb@outlook.com
Website: asksmb.io
You may also visit our Contact Page to send us a message directly.