Privacy Policy

Last updated: July 19, 2025

1. General Information

At Vegustando (vegustando.com), we are committed to protecting and respecting your privacy. This Privacy Policy explains how we collect, use, and protect your personal information when you visit our website, in accordance with Costa Rica’s Law 8968 on the Protection of Personal Data and other applicable regulations.

2. Information We Collect

2.1 Information you voluntarily provide to us:

• Newsletter: Email address when you subscribe to our newsletter (Mailchimp)
• Comments: Name, email, and comments on recipes
• Contact: Information you send us through contact forms
• Cookie preferences: Your choices regarding cookies and tracking

2.2 Information collected automatically:

• Technical cookies: Essential for the operation of the site
• Google Analytics 4: Aggregated website usage data
• Google AdSense: Data for ad personalization, with consent
• Server logs: IP address, anonymized where applicable, browser, pages visited

2.3 Recipe Reviews and Ratings:

• Data collected: Name/nickname, email, rating, review comment
• Purpose: To improve recipes and help other users with useful feedback
• Legal basis: Legitimate interest in improving the service
• Publication: Reviews may be publicly displayed on the website
• Moderation: We reserve the right to moderate inappropriate content
• Verification: We may verify reviews to prevent spam and false content

2.4 Affiliate Programs:

• Amazon Associates: Tracking cookies to track purchases and commissions
• Affiliate links: Tracking of clicks and conversions
• Legal basis: Legitimate interest and consent where required
• Transparency: Affiliate links are clearly marked

3. Consent Management

Types of consent:

• Essential cookies: Do not require consent, as they are necessary for basic operation
• Analytics cookies: Require consent (Google Analytics)
• Advertising cookies: Require explicit consent (Google AdSense)
• Affiliate cookies: Require consent for personalized tracking
• Newsletter: Double opt-in required
• Reviews: Implied consent upon submission, with the option to request deletion

4. How We Use Your Information

• Newsletter: To send you new recipes and related content (legal basis: consent)
• Site improvement: To analyze usage and improve the user experience (legal basis: legitimate interest)
• Communication: To respond to your inquiries and comments (legal basis: legitimate interest)
• Advertising: To display relevant ads (legal basis: consent)
• Reviews: To publish user feedback and improve the experience (legal basis: legitimate interest)
• Affiliation: To track conversions for affiliate programs (legal basis: legitimate interest)
• Legal compliance: When required by law

5. Legal Basis for Processing

We process your personal data based on Costa Rica’s Law 8968 and international principles:

• Consent: For newsletters, non-essential cookies, and personalized advertising
• Legitimate interest: For basic analytics, site improvement, reviews, and affiliate activity
• Legal compliance: When required by law
• Contractual performance: To provide requested services

Note for EU visitors: We also comply with the GDPR to ensure data protection for our European visitors.

6. Sharing Information with Third Parties

We do not sell, trade, or transfer your personal information to third parties, except in the following cases:

6.1 Service providers:

• Mailchimp (Intuit Inc.): Newsletter management – Certified under international privacy frameworks
• Google LLC: Analytics and AdSense – Certified under international privacy frameworks
• Amazon Associates: Affiliate program – Certified under international privacy frameworks
• Hostinger: Hosting and infrastructure

6.2 Other situations:

• Legal compliance: When required by competent authorities
• Protection of rights: To protect our legal rights
• Content moderation: To verify and moderate reviews when necessary

7. International Data Transfers

Some of our providers are located outside Costa Rica:

• United States: Providers with recognized privacy certifications
• European Union: Providers based in countries with adequate protection
• Safeguards: Contracts with data protection clauses
• Rights: You may obtain information about the safeguards by contacting us

8. Cookies and Similar Technologies

We use different types of cookies:

8.1 Essential cookies, which do not require consent:

• Basic website operation
• Remembering cookie preferences
• Security and spam prevention
• User session management

8.2 Analytics cookies, which require consent:

• Google Analytics 4, with aggregated and anonymized data
• Website performance analysis

8.3 Advertising cookies, which require explicit consent:

• Google AdSense for personalized ads
• Tracking for relevant advertising

8.4 Affiliate cookies, which require consent:

• Amazon Associates for conversion tracking
• Other affiliate programs where applicable

8.5 Details of Main Cookies:

Cookie control: You can manage your preferences at any time through our cookie banner or your browser settings.

9. Data Retention

• Newsletter: Until you unsubscribe or request deletion
• Comments: 3 years from the last activity, unless you request deletion earlier
• Reviews and ratings: 3 years from publication, unless you request deletion earlier
• Google Analytics: 14 months, current 2025 setting
• Server logs: Maximum 12 months
• Contact data: 2 years from the last contact
• Affiliate data: 3 years for tax compliance

10. Your Data Protection Rights

As a personal data subject, you have the following rights under Costa Rica’s Law 8968:

10.1 Main rights:

• Access: Request information about the processing of your data
• Rectification: Correct inaccurate or incomplete data
• Deletion: Request deletion of your data
• Objection: Object to the processing of your data
• Restriction: Request restriction of processing
• Portability: Receive your data in a structured format, where technically possible

10.2 Specific rights regarding reviews:

• Review deletion: You may request deletion of your reviews at any time
• Modification: You may edit or update your reviews by contacting us
• Anonymization: We may anonymize your reviews while preserving useful content

10.3 Identity verification process:

To exercise your rights, we need to verify your identity through:

• Confirmation email: From the registered email address
• Additional information: Specific details about your data or activity
• Documentation: In exceptional cases, a copy of an identity document

Response time: We will respond to your requests within a maximum period of 1 month.

11. Data Security

We implement appropriate technical and organizational security measures:

11.1 Technical measures:

• Encryption: SSL/TLS certificate for all communications
• Backups: Regular and encrypted backups
• Updates: System and plugins kept up to date
• Firewall: Protection against unauthorized access
• Automated moderation: Systems to detect spam in reviews

11.2 Organizational measures:

• Restricted access: Authorized personnel only
• Internal policies: Security and privacy policies
• Regular assessments: Risk assessments and security measures

12. Security Breaches

In the event of a security breach that may pose a risk to your rights:

• Notification to authorities: Within the timeframes established by law
• Communication to affected individuals: If there is significant risk
• Corrective measures: Immediate implementation
• Documentation: Detailed record of the incident and actions taken

13. Links to Third-Party Websites

Our website may contain links to third-party websites, such as social media platforms, affiliate sites, and others. We are not responsible for the privacy practices of those websites. We recommend that you read their privacy policies before providing any personal information.

14. Minors

Our website is not specifically directed to children under the age of 13. If you are under 13 years old, you need the consent of your parents or guardians to use our services, including leaving reviews. We do not knowingly collect personal information from minors without appropriate consent.

15. Content and Review Moderation

To maintain the quality and reliability of reviews:

• Manual moderation: We review feedback for inappropriate content
• Automated systems: Detection of spam and duplicate content
• Removal criteria: Offensive content, spam, false information
• Appeals: You may appeal moderation decisions by contacting us
• Transparency: We notify users when a review is removed due to moderation

16. Changes to This Policy

We may update this Privacy Policy to reflect changes in our practices or for legal reasons. In the event of significant changes:

• Notification: By email for subscribers and through a banner on the website
• Grace period: 30 days to review the changes
• New consent: If required by law
• Version archive: We keep previous versions available upon request

17. Contact and Exercise of Rights

To exercise your rights or make privacy-related inquiries:

18. Supervisory Authority

If you believe that the processing of your personal data violates data protection regulations, you have the right to file a complaint with:

19. Applicable Legal Framework

This policy is governed by:

• Costa Rica Law 8968 – Protection of personal data, main law
• Regulation (EU) 2016/679 (GDPR) – For visitors from the EU
• International privacy frameworks – For data transfers
• Applicable Costa Rican legislation – Commercial Code, Law for the Promotion of Competition

This Privacy Policy is effective as of July 19, 2025.