Privacy & Cookie Policy
Last updated: 30 September 2026
This notice explains how Ratiom handles personal information when you browse this website, ask for a prototype, contact me or buy my services. It covers the UK GDPR, the Data Protection Act 2018 and the UK rules on cookies and similar technologies (PECR), as applicable. As Ratiom is established in Poland, EU data protection law also applies where relevant.
1. Who is responsible?
Data controller: Gary O'Toole, trading as Ratiom, a sole proprietorship registered in Poland.
Privacy officer and contact: Gary O'Toole
Email: Gary@ratiomagency.com
Address: 52 Górników, Prokocim, Kraków, 30-816, Poland.
Business registration details are on the Business Information page.
If I process personal information solely on a client's instructions while building or maintaining their website, that client is the controller. The client's privacy notice and our data processing agreement apply to that work.
2. What information I use
- Enquiries and correspondence: your name, business name, email address, telephone or WhatsApp number if supplied, website address, project requirements and anything else you choose to send.
- Projects and purchases: contact and billing details, proposals, contracts, invoices, payment status, project files and support communications. Payment providers handle payment credentials under their own notices.
- Technical information: IP address, requested page, browser information, timestamps and security logs needed to deliver and protect the website.
- Optional analytics: device and browser information, approximate location, visitor identifiers, pages viewed, referral information, clicks and engagement. Ligna may associate activity with a contact or enquiry when its analytics are enabled.
- Privacy choices: the choices you make in the cookie settings, the date of your choice, its expiry and the notice version.
Most information comes directly from you or your browser. A colleague may introduce you or provide your details for a project. If I obtain information about you from another source, I will explain that source and its use when required, normally at first contact and within one month. Please do not send sensitive personal information that is unnecessary for your enquiry.
3. Why I use it and the lawful basis
| Purpose | Lawful basis |
|---|---|
| Respond to your enquiry, prepare a prototype or quote, and deliver agreed services. | Steps you request before a contract, or performance of a contract with you. For employees or representatives of a business customer, legitimate interests in communicating with that business and delivering its project. |
| Manage billing, accounts and records required by law. | Contract where relevant, and legal obligations such as applicable Polish tax and accounting requirements. |
| Secure the website, prevent misuse, troubleshoot and handle disputes. | Legitimate interests in protecting the business, visitors and services, balanced against your rights; legal obligations where applicable. |
| Remember your privacy choices. | Legitimate interests in respecting and evidencing your choice. This preference storage is necessary to provide the consent controls you use. |
| Load Google Analytics, Ligna analytics or the optional Ligna form. | Your consent for the optional browser technology. Responding to information you deliberately submit is then handled on the enquiry or contract basis above. |
| Send optional promotional emails or messages. | Consent where required. Agreeing to cookies, requesting a prototype or submitting an enquiry does not subscribe you to marketing. |
You do not have to provide personal information to browse. If you request work, I need enough contact and project information to respond and perform our agreement. Without required billing details, I may be unable to invoice or supply the service.
4. Cookies, pixels and your choices
Google Analytics and Ligna scripts are blocked until you choose to allow them. Ignoring the banner, scrolling or continuing to browse does not give consent. “Agree to all” enables the listed optional services. “Reject all” keeps them off. “Choose settings” lets you allow Google Analytics, Ligna analytics and the Ligna enquiry form separately. There is no advertising consent hidden in the Google Analytics choice.
You can reopen Cookie settings from the small button on screen or the footer at any time. Withdrawing permission for a loaded service refreshes the page to stop its scripts and listeners; unsent form details may be lost. The site removes known, accessible first-party analytics cookies for the withdrawn category and Ligna form drafts when the form is disabled. Your browser controls are available to remove any remaining provider cookies or site data that this site cannot access.
| Service / storage | Purpose and duration |
|---|---|
Ratiom: ratiom_consent (local storage) | Remembers your choices and notice version on this browser for 180 days. Expired choices are not used to authorise tracking. This record is not an analytics identifier and is not sent to a separate consent service. |
Google Analytics: _ga, _ga_* | Distinguishes visits and sessions. The Google tag is configured for a maximum cookie lifetime of 180 days, without resetting the lifetime on every visit. Google Signals and advertising personalisation are disabled in this site's tag. |
Ligna analytics, served through secure-analytics.com | Visit, referral and engagement measurement. Its Matomo-compatible tracker is instructed to limit visitor and referral cookies (_pk_id.*, _pk_ref.*) to 180 days and session cookies (_pk_ses.*) to 30 minutes. Provider updates and account settings can affect the exact identifiers used. |
| Ligna form-attribution and engagement pixels | Connect submitted form details and visit activity to an enquiry; measure mouse movement, scrolling, clicks and time on page. Requests may go to app.ligna.io and secure-preview.com. These scripts are enabled only with the Ligna analytics choice. |
Ligna enquiry form: lf-draft:* (local storage) | May save unfinished form fields on your device. Ligna's renderer clears a draft after submission; it does not specify an automatic draft expiry. This site also removes those drafts when you withdraw form permission or return without valid form consent. Avoid entering confidential information on a shared device. |
Local storage can remain physically on a device until removed by the site or browser; an expired consent record does not enable any optional script. Browser-cookie lifetimes and how long providers keep information on their servers are different things.
The Ligna form loads only on the contact page after permission. It may request supporting resources such as fonts, styling or spam protection, according to its configuration. You can always email me instead. If JavaScript is disabled, optional embeds stay off. If your browser prevents saving preferences, your choice lasts for the current page only and you may be asked again.
Changing your choice does not undo processing that was lawful before withdrawal. To request deletion of information already received, contact me. Clearing site data, changing browser or a material change to these services may cause the banner to appear again.
5. Who receives information
Information is shared only as needed for the relevant purpose with website hosting and security providers, email and communication services, project and client-management services, payment processors, and professional advisers such as accountants. Authorities may receive it where legally required.
Google provides the optional analytics service. See Google's privacy policy and how Google uses information from partner sites.
Ligna, Inc. provides the optional form, analytics, engagement and related client-management processing. It processes customer contact information on the customer's behalf under its data processing terms. See Ligna's privacy policy and data processing addendum.
I do not sell your personal information. Giving cookie consent does not authorise Ratiom to send your details to other businesses for their independent marketing.
6. International processing
Ratiom is operated from Poland. Information may also be processed in the United States and other countries where Google, Ligna and their service providers operate. Data protection laws in those countries can differ from those in the UK and EEA.
Restricted transfers require a recognised adequacy arrangement or appropriate contractual safeguards, such as the European Commission's Standard Contractual Clauses and the UK Addendum or International Data Transfer Agreement where applicable. Ligna's published data processing terms provide for Standard Contractual Clauses and the UK Addendum for relevant transfers. You can contact me for details of the safeguards applicable to your information and how to obtain a copy. Cookie consent is not a substitute for those transfer safeguards.
7. How long information is kept
I retain personal information only for the purpose for which it is needed. The criteria depend on the type of record:
- Enquiries and unsuccessful proposals: while the enquiry is active and for a reasonable follow-up period, considering the last meaningful contact and any unresolved request.
- Client and project records: for delivery and agreed support, and afterwards only as needed for contractual responsibilities or the applicable period for legal claims.
- Invoices and tax records: for the retention period required by applicable accounting and tax law.
- Security logs: for investigating incidents and maintaining security, with longer retention only where an incident or legal requirement justifies it.
- Analytics records: for the reporting period needed to assess website performance, subject to the provider's account retention settings. Browser-storage limits are listed above; they do not automatically delete historical analytics reports.
- Rights requests, consent evidence and suppression records: as needed to demonstrate that a request was handled and to respect an objection to future contact.
Records that no longer have a justified purpose are deleted or anonymised. Where deletion affects backups, copies may remain until the normal backup rotation completes and are not used for new purposes.
8. Your rights
Depending on the circumstances, you can request access to your personal information, correction, erasure, restriction of use, or a portable copy of information you provided where processing is automated and based on consent or contract. You can withdraw consent at any time.
Your right to object: you can object to processing based on legitimate interests for reasons relating to your situation. You can object to direct marketing at any time, without giving a reason, and that use must stop.
Email Gary@ratiomagency.com to exercise a right. Requests are normally free and answered within one month. If an extension is permitted because of complexity or the number of requests, I will explain it within that first month. I may need proportionate information to verify your identity. Some rights are subject to legal exceptions, for example where records must be kept by law.
9. Complaints
You can contact me first, but you do not have to do so before contacting a regulator. In the UK, you can complain to the Information Commissioner's Office (ICO), telephone 0303 123 1113, or write to Wycliffe House, Water Lane, Wilmslow, Cheshire, SK9 5AF.
As Ratiom is established in Poland, you can also contact the President of the Personal Data Protection Office (UODO). If EU GDPR applies, you may complain to the supervisory authority where you live, work or believe an infringement occurred.
10. Security, automated decisions and changes
Access to personal information should be limited to people and providers who need it for the stated purposes, using appropriate security controls. No online transmission or storage system can be guaranteed completely secure.
This website's analytics and engagement tools can create activity profiles. They are not used by Ratiom to make solely automated decisions with legal or similarly significant effects on you. The services are intended for business users, not children.
This notice may change as the service changes. The date above identifies the latest revision. Material changes to optional tracking purposes require a fresh choice before those purposes are enabled.