Privacy & reader participation

Last updated: 7 October 2026

Website analytics

We measure public page views, approximate countries and cities, and referral domains using native analytics. When our host does not supply a city, we temporarily match the network address against a locally hosted DB-IP Lite city database. We do not send visitor IP addresses to an external geolocation service. The database is an October 2026 snapshot; matches are approximate and may be affected by mobile networks or VPNs. Our native analytics do not set cookies or store raw IP addresses, precise coordinates, page query strings or account identities. A daily rotating keyed hash of network address and browser information estimates daily visitors; the key is discarded during subsequent activity after the day ends. Records are retained for up to 90 days, with expired records removed in batches during site activity. Known bots, signed-in editors and private pages are excluded. We respect Do Not Track and Global Privacy Control signals. Analytics reports are available only to authorized administrators.

Optional Google Analytics and Ads measurement

With your permission, we load a shared Google tag for Google Analytics and Google Ads to measure public website visits, engagement, advertising and successful Business Desk inquiry submissions. Google may receive device and connection information, including your IP address, ad identifiers and a random inquiry reference used to prevent duplicate counts. We send no inquiry text, names, email addresses or phone numbers to this tag. Enhanced conversions and advertising personalization are disabled. Google Analytics and Google Ads may set first-party measurement cookies. The tag does not load before you allow measurement, and Do Not Track or Global Privacy Control disables it. Your choice is saved on this browser for 180 days. Use “Measurement preferences” at the bottom of public pages to change it. Declining does not affect access or inquiry submissions. Google’s advertising privacy information.

Information you choose to share

Signing in identifies your account to support saved articles, newsletter preferences, contributions and editorial access. We store submissions, contact details and subscription choices only when you use those features.

Business Desk inquiries

You can submit a Business Desk inquiry without an account. Iraq Business Desk stores your business profile, contact details, service interests and meeting preferences to assess your inquiry and arrange follow-up. An automatic browser check and submission limits help reduce spam. Temporary security counters use keyed hashes of network addresses and submitted email addresses; raw network addresses are not stored in those counters. Counters expire within two hours and are removed during subsequent form activity. Business Desk records are available only to authorized administrators and are not published. Iraq Business Desk reviews each inquiry before suggesting an external consulting provider. A submitted inquiry is not automatically forwarded and does not authorize sharing with a provider. We discuss the proposed referral and seek your agreement before sharing contact details or inquiry content. Earlier provider-specific consent remains limited to the inquiry and purpose for which it was given. If you arrive from an article, its identifier is saved with your inquiry to help the Desk understand the context. Inquiries are not sent for AI analysis. Use the private inquiry form below for access, correction or deletion requests.

Business & investment planner

The planner stores applications, contact details, business answers, estimates, supporting files, coach notes and saved document versions. These records are private to the business, authorized administrators and an assigned coach when the business permits access. When AI assistance is requested, business answers and calculation results are sent to OpenAI for processing; account contact fields and uploaded files are not included automatically. Do not put unnecessary sensitive information in free-text answers. AI requests use disabled response storage, which does not imply zero provider retention. Supporting documents are not automatically verified. Contact us using the private inquiry form for access or deletion requests.

Comments and opinions for our reporting

The footer contribution form does not require an account. We store your name, company or organization, email, news story links, original comments, and the wording and date of your permission to quote. Authorized editors use these submissions for editorial follow-up, article development and special collection contracts. Collection exports and connected editorial tools can include your name, organization, story links, comments and permission record; email addresses are excluded from those collection packets and remain in the private editor report. If selected after review, your comments may be used or quoted with attribution to your supplied name and organization. They are not automatically published. Spam protection uses the same browser check and temporary hashed security counters described for Business Desk inquiries. Do not include confidential or sensitive information. Include your submission reference when requesting access, correction or deletion.

Public and private contributions

Approved comments display your supplied name and message publicly. Your email is not shown with comments. Questions, reports and inquiries are available to authorized editors. Do not include confidential client information or sensitive source identities in a submission.

Newsletter preferences

We store your selected sectors and signed-in account email when you opt in to the weekly digest. Each edition requires editorial review. When delivery is configured, the email provider receives your address and matching briefing content. We retain delivery records to avoid duplicate editions and investigate delivery problems. Old pre-launch registrations require a new opt-in before email delivery. Unsubscribe through an email link or below. Saved searches, opportunity watchlists and in-site alerts are private to your account. Dashboard topic preferences are stored on the browser in use and do not send notifications. Scenario and delivery-comparison inputs stay in the current browser tab and are not stored.

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External services

Source links lead to third-party websites with their own policies. The World Monitor map connects to World Monitor and its data providers when it loads near the visible page. These services receive connection information, including your IP address, and apply their own privacy policies. YouTube and Apple Podcasts embeds connect to their providers as players load near the visible page. Those providers receive connection information, including your IP address, and apply their own privacy policies. Videos use YouTube’s privacy-enhanced embed domain and do not autoplay. Google Ads measurement is described above. The featured episode’s optional Apple Podcasts player loads only when you select it; Apple then receives connection information and applies its own privacy policy. On the public dashboard and in the analyst workspace, X timelines connect to X only after you select “Load X timeline”; X then receives connection information and applies its own privacy policy. The private Polymarket monitor retrieves data through our server. Public Polymarket charts connect directly to Polymarket as they approach the visible page; Polymarket receives connection information, including your IP address, and applies its own privacy policy. Charts do not share your site account details. Opening an external source link connects your browser to that provider. Hosting and sign-in services may process information needed to provide and secure the site.

Privacy requests

Use the private inquiry form for a data access or deletion request. Include which records you want to access, correct or remove so the editorial desk can respond.