Privacy policy
Text you type into these tools is processed in your browser and never sent to us. This page sets out that in full, along with everything else this site does and does not do with data.
Last updated: 22 August 2026 · Applies to: counter-word.com and every page and tool on it.
The text you enter into the tools
This is what most people come to this page to check, so it comes first.
Every counter on this site runs as JavaScript inside your own browser. When you type or paste, your text is analysed on your device and the results are drawn on the page. It is never transmitted to us, never written to a database, never logged, and never seen by us or by anyone else. It is not kept between visits: closing or reloading the tab discards it.
You do not have to take our word for this. Load any tool page, disconnect from the internet, and carry on typing. The counter keeps working, because there is nothing for it to talk to.
Who is responsible
The controller of any personal data processed through this website is the operator of counter-word. You can reach us at contact@counter-word.com about anything on this page.
counter-word is a small independent website. It has no staff with access to visitor data, because there is no visitor data to access beyond what is described below.
What is actually collected
Visiting any website means your browser talks to a server, and that leaves a trace. Here is the whole of it.
| Data | Why it exists | How long it is kept |
|---|---|---|
| Server access logs: IP address, timestamp, page requested, browser user agent | Delivering pages, blocking abuse, diagnosing faults. Generated automatically by our hosting provider, not by anything we added. | 30 days, then deleted |
| Analytics | We do not use analytics. No page-view counting, no heatmaps, no session recording, no attribution tags. | Not applicable |
| Anything you put in an email to us | Answering you, and keeping a record of the exchange if it concerns a correction to the site. | 24 months from the last message |
There are no accounts, no sign-up, no newsletter, no comments, no uploads and no payments. Those are the usual sources of personal data on a website, and none of them exist here.
Legal basis, if you are in the UK or the EU
Server logs are processed on the basis of our legitimate interests (Article 6(1)(f) UK and EU GDPR) in running a website that works and is not being attacked. The interest is real, the data is minimal, and it is deleted after 30 days, so we consider it proportionate. Correspondence is processed on the basis of our legitimate interest in replying to you, or to take steps at your request before entering into any arrangement.
Should we ever add anything requiring consent, we would ask for it first, and declining would not restrict access to any tool on this site.
Cookies and similar technologies
This site sets no cookies. It uses no local storage, no session storage, no fingerprinting, no advertising pixels and no other technique for recognising you between visits or across sites.
That is why you are not being asked to accept anything. A consent banner exists to obtain permission for storage that requires it, and there is none here to permit. The cookie policy explains how to verify this yourself in about thirty seconds.
Third parties
Fonts, stylesheets, scripts, images and every other asset are served from this domain. Loading a page here does not disclose your visit to Google, to a content delivery network, or to anyone else. The fonts are self-hosted specifically so that this remains true.
One third party is unavoidable: our hosting provider, which operates the servers and therefore generates the access logs described above. They act as a data processor on our behalf, under a contract that restricts them to processing on our instructions. We do not sell, rent or share personal data with anyone, and there is no advertising on this site.
The embeddable widget
If you have placed our counter on your own site, the same rules apply to your visitors: their text is processed in their browser and never reaches us. The widget sets no cookies and loads no third-party resources, so embedding it does not create a consent obligation for you. Requests for the widget file appear in our server logs exactly as any other page request does.
Links to other sites
We link out where it is useful, mostly to research and to standards bodies. Once you follow a link, that site's practices apply and ours no longer do.
Where data is processed
Our hosting may involve servers outside the country in which it is operated, which is normal for web hosting. Where personal data leaves the UK or the European Economic Area, it is protected either by an adequacy decision covering the destination country, or by standard contractual clauses in our contract with the provider.
In practice the only personal data involved is a 30-day server log, so the exposure is limited to an IP address and a page request.
Your rights
Data protection law in the UK, the EU and a growing number of other places gives you rights over personal data about you. Depending on where you live, these include the right to:
- ask what personal data we hold about you, and receive a copy
- have inaccurate data corrected
- have data erased
- restrict or object to how it is processed, including objecting to processing based on legitimate interests
- receive data you gave us in a portable format
- withdraw consent at any time, where processing relies on consent
Being honest about what this means here: unless you have emailed us, the only thing we hold is a server log entry containing an IP address, and we have no reliable way to connect that to you as a person. If you write to contact@counter-word.com with enough detail for us to identify the relevant records, we will act on your request within 30 days.
If you are in California
We do not sell or share personal information as the CCPA and CPRA define those terms, and we have not done so in the preceding twelve months. We do not use it for cross-context behavioural advertising, and we do not collect sensitive personal information. You have the right to know, delete, correct and opt out, and we will not treat you differently for exercising any of them.
Complaints
Please raise it with us first at contact@counter-word.com. If that does not resolve it, you can complain to a data protection authority: in the UK, the Information Commissioner’s Office; in the EU, the supervisory authority for the country where you live or work; elsewhere, whichever body regulates data protection in your country.
Children
This is a general-purpose text tool, not a service aimed at children, and we do not knowingly collect personal information from anyone under 16, or under 13 where local law sets that lower threshold. If you believe a child has sent us personal information, write to contact@counter-word.com and we will delete it.
Security
The site is served over HTTPS. Because your text never leaves your browser and there are no accounts, passwords or payment details, the categories of data that usually matter in a breach simply do not exist here. No system is perfectly secure, but there is very little to lose.
Changes
If this policy changes in a way that affects how personal data is handled, we will update the date at the top and describe what changed. Continuing to use the site after a change means accepting the revised policy.
Common questions
Is the text I paste into the counter stored anywhere?
No. It is analysed by JavaScript in your browser and discarded when you close the tab. It is never sent to a server, so there is no copy for anyone to store, read or lose.
Why is there no cookie banner?
Because the site sets no cookies and uses no local storage. A banner exists to collect consent for storage that requires it, and there is none here to consent to.
Do you use Google Analytics?
No. We use no analytics of any kind — not Google Analytics, not a privacy-focused alternative, not server-side counting beyond the raw access logs our host generates automatically.
Can I use these tools for confidential material?
Nothing you enter reaches us, so from our side there is no exposure. Apply your own organisation's policy as well, since it may have rules about what may be entered into any external website regardless of how that site behaves.
How do I know the text really is not being uploaded?
Load a tool page, then disconnect from the internet and keep typing. The counter continues working, which it could not do if it depended on a server. You can also open your browser's network panel and watch: no requests are made while you type.