legal
Terms and privacy
Short, because there isn't much to say. No third-party trackers, no advertising, no selling or sharing of data. You can cancel a membership at any time.
Last updated 21 September 2026
Who you're dealing with
This site is run by Carlton Gibson, a self-employed software engineer based in Spain. I'm the seller of memberships and the controller of any personal data the site holds. Full business details are on every invoice, and available on request.
For anything on this page, write to carlton.gibson@noumenal.es. A person reads it.
Membership terms
What you're buying. A membership supports my open source work, the writing on the site, and gives you what's listed for your tier on the membership page at the time you join, plus any benefits at that tier added later. My open source packages themselves stay freely available under their own licences, whether or not you're a member.
Price and renewal. Memberships are annual and priced in euros. VAT is added at checkout where it applies; EU businesses with a valid VAT number pay net under the reverse charge. A membership renews each year on the same terms until you cancel, and every payment comes with an invoice.
Cancelling. Cancel at any time from Manage billing in your account. Cancelling stops the next renewal; your membership runs to the end of the year you've paid for. Changing tier is prorated.
Changing your mind. If you're buying as a consumer in the EU you can withdraw within 14 days of joining for a full refund. Email me; no form, no reason needed. Outside that, if something has gone wrong, ask. I'm generally happy to offer full or partial refunds within reason.
Payment. Payments are taken by Stripe. I never see or store your card details.
What this isn't. Unless we've agreed otherwise in writing, a membership is not a support contract, a service level agreement or a warranty on the open source software, which is provided as is under its licence. Corporate memberships are agreed individually, and that agreement governs where it differs from this page.
Changes and law. These terms are subject to change. I will inform members by email of any substantive updates. Spanish law applies. If you're a consumer, the protections of the country you live in still apply to you.
Privacy
Just reading. You don't need an account and if you don't create one the site sets no cookies for you. I track basic traffic level with self hosted analytics: no cookies, no fingerprinting, no profile of you, and nothing sent to anyone else. The site also keeps its own log of pages viewed, with the time and, if you're signed in, your account. The server keeps ordinary access logs, including IP addresses, for a short time for security and operations.
With an account. I store your email address and what's needed to sign you in. Two cookies are set: one keeps you signed in, one protects forms from forgery. Both are strictly necessary, which is why there's no cookie banner.
As a member. I store your tier, its status and renewal date, your organisation and its seats if you have them, and the Stripe customer reference that links to your billing. Stripe holds your payment details, billing address and tax number, and produces the invoices. I use all this to provide the membership and to meet tax obligations, and for nothing else.
Who else touches it. Only services that work on my behalf: Stripe for payments and invoices, and Amazon Web Services for sending the site's email (sign-in codes, account notices). Amazon's email service runs in the United States, under the EU's standard safeguards. Nobody else. No data is sold, shared or used for advertising.
The newsletter. The Stack Report can be read on the site, or via RSS or email. Email is sent through Buttondown. If you subscribe there, Buttondown holds your address under its own privacy policy, and every email has an unsubscribe link.
How long. Account data is kept until you ask me to delete your account. Invoices and payment records are kept for as long as Spanish tax and commercial law requires.
Your rights. You can ask for a copy of your data, have it corrected or deleted, or object to how it's used. Email me and I'll deal with it within a month. If you're not satisfied, you can complain to the Spanish data protection authority, the AEPD, or to the authority where you live.