Honest by default.

Saves, lab takes, tier history, topic counts, and your visit log all live in your browser's localStorage under the key hdd:reader-profile. You can export it as JSON or wipe it from /saves. Nothing is uploaded.

When account-based sync arrives in a later phase, the schema is identical — your existing local data copies over once, then syncs across devices. Until then there is no server-side record of what you read.

• Anonymous analytics via PostHog and Vercel — page views, click events, time-on-page. No reverse lookup to a person.
• Email addresses only when you explicitly subscribe. Used to send the newsletter; never sold, never shared, double opt-in.
• Crash logs from Vercel hosting. Standard operational data; auto-purged.

• No cross-site tracking pixels.
• No selling or sharing of email addresses.
• No "summarize this article" AI button that pings a third-party model with your reading.
• No like / heart counters that pretend to be social proof.
• No popups demanding email before letting you read.

All written content on heydatadude.com is licensed under Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International (CC-BY 4.0). You can copy, remix, translate, and build on any essay or system as long as you credit HeyDataDude and link back. No permission needed.

Charts, datasets, and lab definitions are also CC-BY where the underlying data permits. Datasets sourced from third parties carry their original license and are noted on the dataset page.

You don't need to file a request to see your data — it lives on your device, visible at /saves. Email zain.raza@sjsu.edu for anything else, including subscription deletion.

We'll add an entry below if anything material changes. No silent rewrites.

Last updated 2026-05-07. First public version.