Privacy Policy of Good By Ecake
Last Updated: April 19, 2026
Good By Ecake is a home renovation, floor plan review, decor cost, and design essay blog written and operated by Jon Ecake from Austin, Texas. To run the site responsibly and improve your experience, limited information may be collected when you visit, comment, contact me, or interact with embedded services.
I do not collect personal information without your consent, and any data gathered is used solely to operate, improve, and protect the site.
Comments
When visitors leave comments on the site, the data shown in the comments form is collected, along with the visitor's IP address and browser user agent string, to help with spam detection.
An anonymized string created from your email address (a hash) may be provided to the Gravatar service to check whether you are using it. The Gravatar privacy policy is available here: https://automattic.com/privacy/. After your comment is approved, your profile picture becomes visible to the public alongside your comment.
Media
If you upload images to the site, please avoid uploading images with embedded location data (EXIF GPS) included, because visitors can download and extract that location data from images on the site.
Cookies
If you leave a comment you may opt in to saving your name, email address, and website in cookies. These are for convenience so you do not have to re-enter your details for subsequent comments. These cookies last for one year.
If you visit the login page, a temporary cookie is set to determine whether your browser accepts cookies. It contains no personal data and is discarded when you close your browser.
When you log in, additional cookies are set to save your login information and screen-display choices. Login cookies last for two days; screen-option cookies last for a year. If you select "Remember Me," your login will persist for two weeks. Logging out removes login cookies.
If you edit or publish an article, an additional cookie is stored in your browser containing no personal data — only the post ID of the article just edited. It expires after one day.
Embedded Content from Other Websites
Articles on this site may include embedded content such as videos, images, and external articles. Embedded content from other websites behaves exactly as if you had visited that other website directly.
These websites may collect data about you, set cookies, embed additional third-party tracking, and monitor your interaction with that embedded content — including tracking your interaction with it if you have an account and are logged in to that website.
Who I Share Your Data With
If you request a password reset, your IP address will be included in the reset email. Otherwise, personal information is not sold or rented. I may share limited data with service providers who operate the site (analytics, advertising, hosting), as required by law, for aggregated statistical reporting, or in connection with a business transaction if the site were ever transferred.
How Long Data Is Retained
If you leave a comment, the comment and its metadata are retained indefinitely so that follow-up comments can be recognized and approved automatically instead of held in a moderation queue.
For registered users (if any), the personal information in the user profile is stored. All users can see, edit, or delete their personal information at any time (except the username cannot be changed). Site administrators can see and edit that information as well.
Your Rights Over Your Data
If you have an account on the site or have left comments, you can request an exported file of the personal data held about you, including any data you have provided. You can also request that your personal data be erased. This does not include data required to be retained for administrative, legal, or security purposes.
Where Your Data Is Sent
Visitor comments may be checked through an automated spam detection service.
Information Collected by Good By Ecake
As the author and operator of Good By Ecake, I collect limited information to run the site and respond to reader inquiries. Specifically:
- When you contact me, I collect your email address, your name (if you provide it), and the subject and contents of your inquiry.
- While you use the site, the following may be logged:
- Errors and crashes, the type of device you use, and the operating system version.
- Aggregated statistics on visits and the features or articles you interact with.
- Your approximate location, if you allow it.
- Information you provide when creating an account or interacting with site features.
Data Retention
Personal data is retained only as long as necessary to fulfill the purpose for which it was collected, or as required by law or legitimate operational need.
Third-Party Services
To operate the site and support the editorial project, certain third-party services are used. These services may collect additional data to perform their functions:
- Advertising: Google AdSense for displaying advertisements.
- Analytics: Google Analytics and WordPress analytics tools.
- Hosting: The site is hosted by Hostinger.
- Embedded video: YouTube for embedded video content within articles.
- Affiliate link tracking: Architectural Designs (the house plan marketplace) and its affiliate network, which track clicks from house plan review links.
Homepage Link
A clearly visible link to this Privacy Policy is available from the site homepage and footer.
Advertising Privacy (Google AdSense)
This site uses Google AdSense to display advertisements. Google AdSense may use cookies and web beacons to collect information about your visits to this and other websites in order to provide relevant advertisements about goods and services of interest to you.
How Google Uses Your Data
Google, as a third-party vendor, uses cookies to serve ads on this site. Google's use of advertising cookies enables it and its partners to serve ads based on your visits to this site and other sites on the internet.
You can opt out of personalized advertising by visiting 🔗 Google Ads Settings. You can also opt out of third-party vendor use of cookies for personalized advertising by visiting 🔗 www.aboutads.info.
Consent and Cookies
By using this site, you consent to the use of cookies and similar technologies for advertising and measurement. You can manage your preferences or opt out via the industry tools below.
Measurement & Third-Party Partners
This site uses Google Analytics and WordPress measurement tools. Usage information (including your IP address) may be processed by providers such as Google and Hostinger to evaluate site usage and deliver services. Data may be transferred where required by law or to service providers acting on their behalf.
For more information on how Google uses data when you use this site, please visit 🔗 How Google Uses Data.
Affiliate Disclosure
Good By Ecake participates in the Architectural Designs affiliate program. When an article reviews a house plan sold on the Architectural Designs marketplace, the "Buy This Plan" link in that article is an affiliate link: if you click through and purchase the plan, I earn a small commission from the marketplace at no additional cost to you.
This does not change the price you pay, and it does not influence the content of my reviews. I publish critical and honest assessments — including limitations and design decisions I would push back on — regardless of the affiliate relationship.
The technical drawings for any plan reviewed on this site belong to the original plan designer on Architectural Designs; Good By Ecake does not design or sell house plans of its own.
Sharing Information
Personal information is not sold or rented. Limited information may be shared with the service providers that operate the site (analytics, ad serving, hosting, affiliate-link tracking), as required by law, for statistical or aggregated reporting, or in connection with a corporate transaction.
Your Rights
EEA (GDPR)
You may request access to, deletion of, or restriction of processing of your personal data by emailing [email protected]. You have the right to:
- Access your personal data
- Correct inaccurate personal data
- Request deletion of your personal data
- Object to processing of your personal data
- Request restriction of processing of your personal data
- Request transfer (portability) of your personal data
- Withdraw consent at any time
California (CCPA/CPRA)
California residents have the right to:
- Know what personal information is collected
- Know whether personal information is sold or disclosed, and to whom
- Opt out of the sale of personal information
- Access their personal information
- Request deletion of personal information
- Receive equal service and price even if they exercise their privacy rights
To exercise these rights, please contact [email protected].
Cookie Management & Third-Party Data
This site uses cookies to personalize ads and measure traffic. Information about your usage may be shared with advertising and analytics partners such as Google AdSense, Google Analytics, WordPress, and Hostinger. These partners may combine it with other information you have provided to them or that they have collected from your use of their services.
Manage Cookies & Opt Out
Analytics & Hosting Policies
Updates to This Policy
This Privacy Policy may be updated from time to time to reflect changes in services, legal requirements, or site features. The "Last Updated" date at the top of the page will reflect the most recent revision. Continued use of the site after an update constitutes acceptance of the revised policy.
Conclusion
By continuing to use Good By Ecake, you acknowledge and agree to the data-collection and cookie practices described above. The information collected — whether directly or through third-party services — is used to operate the site, improve your experience, serve relevant advertising, and deliver personalized content in a responsible and secure manner.