Privacy Policy
Last updated: 2026-10-14
This privacy policy explains how personal data is processed on the reptiles.ge website (the "Site"). The Site is an atlas of the animals of Georgia and an educational resource. It has no user accounts, registration, paid services, shopping cart, newsletter or built-in contact form.
The Georgian version is the primary/canonical one. If the language versions differ, the Georgian version prevails.
Who is responsible for processing
Owner of the Site and controller of personal data: Nika Shamiladze
Contact for privacy matters: hello@reptiles.ge
What data we process
Technical data
When you open the Site, technical data is processed, such as your IP address, browser/user agent, the requested URL, the time, the language setting, the referrer and the request headers needed for security and for delivering the Site. This data is also processed by the hosting/CDN infrastructure.
If an error occurs on the Site, a description of the error, the page URL and technical data about your browser and device are sent to Sentry. This is used to find and fix errors.
Language, theme and browser storage
The Site may store your language choice in a cookie, your theme preference in localStorage, your current quiz progress in sessionStorage, your recently chosen search results in localStorage, the state of the rating window in localStorage and a counter of time spent on the Site for the rating window in sessionStorage. This is used for the Site to work and to improve your experience.
Analytics and use of the Site
The Site uses Google Tag Manager. Through Google Tag Manager, page views, language changes, use of search, atlas filters, species/profile interactions, clicks on sources, gallery/audio interactions, quiz interactions, opening FAQ items and similar events may be processed.
In some cases an analytics event may contain the search text. Please do not type your own or anyone else's personal data into the site search.
Through Google Tag Manager, Google Analytics 4/Google Ads analytics or conversion cookies may be used, as described in the table below.
The Site also runs the top.ge visit counter. It records page views and receives the page address, the referrer and technical data about your browser.
Contact by email
If you contact us by email, we process your email address, your name, the content of your message and any other information you provide. This data is used to reply to you, to manage the communication and, where needed, to document a request or complaint.
Emails are kept for: 2 years.
Site rating
If you rate the Site in the rating window, we receive the number of stars, the page address, the language, the country, the type of device and browser, the time spent on the Site, the number of pages viewed and the site you came from. If you choose fewer than 5 stars, we ask what we could do better, and the text you write is sent together with the rating. This reaches the Site administrator as a Telegram message and is used only to improve the Site. Please do not include your own or anyone else's personal data in this text.
Authors, photographers and contributor data
The Site may publicly show the name, link, short biography and credit of an author, photographer or contributor, and the date, general location or coordinates of a photo, where this is needed to credit the source or author correctly. Such data may stay published for as long as the related content is available on the Site, unless the law or an agreement requires otherwise.
If your credit or contributor information is wrong, or you would like it updated or considered for removal, write to us at hello@reptiles.ge.
Why we process data
Data is processed for the following purposes:
- delivering the Site, security, finding errors and technical stability;
- keeping your language, theme, quiz progress and other functional settings;
- measuring use of the Site and improving its content;
- replying to questions sent by email;
- reviewing Site ratings and feedback to improve the Site;
- properly crediting authors, photographers and sources;
- meeting legal requirements and protecting rights.
The legal basis may be fulfilling your request, the legitimate interest in the security of the Site and its users, the legitimate interest in properly crediting content and sources, your consent for non-essential cookies/analytics, or a requirement of law. The specific basis depends on the type of data and the processing context.
Cookies, localStorage and sessionStorage
| Name | Type | Purpose | Duration | Category |
|---|---|---|---|---|
NEXT_LOCALE | cookie | remembers the chosen language | browser session or as set by the framework | necessary/functional |
reptiles-theme | localStorage | theme preference | until you or your browser deletes it | functional |
reptiles.search.recent | localStorage | recently chosen search results | no fixed expiry | functional |
reptiles-rating | localStorage | remembers the state of the rating window | until you or your browser deletes it | functional |
reptiles-rating-seconds | sessionStorage | counts time spent on the Site for the rating window | until the browser tab/session ends | functional |
reptiles.quiz.draft.{quizId} | sessionStorage | quiz progress | until the browser tab/session ends or the quiz is finished | functional |
| Google analytics/marketing cookies | cookie | analytics/conversion, if enabled in the GTM container | depends on the Google tag/configuration | analytics/marketing |
Non-essential analytics or marketing cookies should be enabled only with the relevant consent or another valid legal basis.
Who receives data
The following third parties are used to run the Site:
- Cloudflare: hosting, CDN, security and technical delivery;
- Bunny CDN/Storage: media/CDN and the admin upload workflow;
- Google Tag Manager, Google Analytics 4 and possible Google Ads tags: analytics/conversion, depending on the GTM container configuration;
- top.ge: visit counter;
- Sentry: monitoring of errors and Site speed;
- Telegram: delivering Site ratings to the Site administrator;
- Google Maps and other external sources: only when you follow an external link yourself.
Third parties process data under their own terms, data processing agreements and retention policies.
International transfers
Some providers may process data outside Georgia. In such cases, valid legal bases and appropriate safeguards are applied in line with Georgian personal data protection law.
If the Site's analytics or tracking is used to monitor the behaviour of users in the EU/EEA, the relevant GDPR requirements may also apply, including the rules on transparency, consent and data subject rights.
How long we keep data
Data is kept only for as long as the relevant purpose requires:
- quiz draft in sessionStorage: for the browser session or until the quiz is finished;
- theme preference and recent searches: until you or your browser deletes them, or the feature changes;
- Google analytics records: depends on the Google tag/configuration;
- email correspondence: 2 years;
- Site ratings and feedback: 2 years;
- contributor/photo credits: as a rule, for as long as the content is published, unless another legal basis requires a change.
Your rights
Under applicable law, you may have the right to:
- receive information about how your data is processed;
- request access to your data and a copy of it;
- request correction or completion of inaccurate or incomplete data;
- request deletion or blocking of your data, or that processing stop, where there are grounds for it;
- withdraw your consent, where processing is based on consent;
- object to processing, where processing is based on legitimate interest and there are grounds for the objection;
- apply to the supervisory authority set by applicable law or to a court.
To exercise a right, write to us at hello@reptiles.ge. We may need to confirm your identity so that we do not give data to the wrong person.
Children
The Site is an educational resource and is not designed to collect personal data from children. The Site has no accounts or profiles intended for children. If a minor contacts us by email, a parent or legal guardian may need to be involved, depending on the matter.
Security
The Site uses HTTPS, security headers and restricted admin access. Even so, no data transfer over the internet can be completely secure. We try to apply reasonable technical and organisational measures to protect data.
External links
The Site links to external sources, such as scientific sources, photo/audio sources, contributor pages and Google Maps. Once you go to an external site, that site's own rules and privacy policy apply.
Changes
This policy may be updated from time to time. When it is updated, the "last updated" date changes. For significant changes, an additional notice may appear on the Site.