Idestar Consulting Group ("Idestar", "we", "us", or "our") is committed to protecting your privacy. This Privacy Policy explains how we collect, use, disclose, and safeguard your personal information when you visit idestar.com and submit enquiries through our contact form. Please read this policy carefully. If you disagree with its terms, please discontinue use of the site.
We collect information you provide directly to us through our contact form, and limited technical information collected automatically when you visit our website.
| Data Point | Why We Collect It | Required? |
|---|---|---|
| First and last name | To address you appropriately in correspondence | Yes |
| Work email address | To respond to your enquiry | Yes |
| Phone number | To follow up if email is unresponsive. Validated at submission to filter out VOIP, toll-free, and invalid numbers. | Yes |
| Company name | To understand the context of your enquiry | Yes |
| Project description | To assess how we can help you | Yes |
When you visit idestar.com, our hosting and security provider automatically collects certain technical data including IP address, browser type, pages visited, and time of visit. This data is used solely for security, performance monitoring, and DDoS protection. We do not use third-party analytics trackers such as Google Analytics.
We use the personal information you submit exclusively for the following purposes:
| Purpose | Legal Basis (GDPR) |
|---|---|
| Responding to your enquiry and assessing fit for our services | Legitimate interests / Pre-contractual steps |
| Scheduling and conducting introductory calls or meetings | Legitimate interests / Pre-contractual steps |
| Sending proposals, scope documents, or engagement letters | Pre-contractual steps / Contract performance |
| Complying with legal obligations | Legal obligation |
We do not sell, rent, or share your personal data with any third party for marketing purposes. We do not send unsolicited marketing emails. Your information is used solely to respond to and manage your enquiry with Idestar.
We work with a small number of trusted technology providers to operate our website and manage communications. We describe them below by category and purpose rather than by product name. Each provider is bound by their own privacy policy and applicable data protection laws, is contractually limited to processing data only as needed to perform its function for us, and is not permitted to use your data for its own purposes. Details of a specific provider are available on request — see Section 11.
Hosts idestar.com and our backend systems, stores enquiry and booking records in our database, and provides DDoS protection, bot filtering, SSL, and DNS management. Automatically processes visitor IP addresses and traffic data for security purposes.
Sends enquiry notifications, booking link emails, and calendar invites on our behalf from support@idestar.com. Processes recipient email addresses and message content solely to deliver these automated emails.
Validates phone numbers submitted through our contact form to confirm they're real, direct mobile or landline numbers before we follow up. Phone numbers are processed transiently for this check and are not retained by the provider beyond it.
Our company email platform. All correspondence sent to or from @idestar.com addresses is processed and stored by this provider in accordance with their data protection policies.
Used to verify that contact form submissions are made by humans and not automated bots. Processes minimal browser signals to make this determination without storing personal data.
We retain your personal information only for as long as necessary to fulfil the purposes for which it was collected.
| Data | Retention Period | Reason |
|---|---|---|
| Contact form submissions (enquiries that did not lead to an engagement) | 12 months from submission | To follow up if circumstances change |
| Enquiry, booking, and internal note records in our database | Until the enquiry is closed + 12 months, or duration of engagement + 7 years if converted to a client | Case management and legal/contractual obligations |
| Email correspondence (enquiries that became active clients) | Duration of engagement + 7 years | Legal and contractual obligations |
| Hosting provider traffic logs | Up to 30 days | Security monitoring — managed by our hosting provider |
After the applicable retention period, personal data is permanently deleted from our systems. You may request earlier deletion at any time — see Section 5.
Depending on your location, you may have the following rights regarding your personal data. We will respond to all verified requests within 30 days.
Request a copy of the personal data we hold about you.
Request correction of inaccurate or incomplete data.
Request deletion of your personal data, subject to legal retention obligations.
Request that we limit how we use your data while a dispute is resolved.
Request your data in a structured, machine-readable format.
Object to processing based on legitimate interests.
California residents: we do not sell personal data. No opt-out required.
Where processing is based on consent, withdraw it at any time.
To exercise any of these rights, email operations@idestar.com with the subject line "Privacy Request". We may need to verify your identity before processing the request.
idestar.com does not use advertising cookies, third-party tracking pixels, or analytics platforms such as Google Analytics.
The only cookies or local storage that may be set on your device are:
| Cookie | Provider | Purpose | Duration |
|---|---|---|---|
| __cf_bm | Hosting provider | Bot management — distinguishes humans from automated traffic | 30 minutes |
| cf_clearance | Hosting provider | Records that a visitor passed a security challenge | Session |
| Verification token | Bot & spam protection provider | Verifies form submission is from a human. Not stored after verification. | Session |
These cookies are strictly necessary for security and are not used for tracking or advertising. No consent banner is required for strictly necessary cookies under GDPR.
Idestar is based in the United States. If you are visiting from the European Union, United Kingdom, or other regions with data protection laws that differ from US law, please be aware that your information may be transferred to and processed in the United States.
Where our service providers transfer data internationally, they do so under appropriate safeguards including Standard Contractual Clauses (SCCs) and compliance with applicable data protection frameworks.
By submitting the contact form on idestar.com, you acknowledge that your data may be transferred to and processed in the United States in accordance with this Privacy Policy.
Our website and services are directed exclusively at businesses and professionals. We do not knowingly collect personal information from anyone under the age of 16. If you believe we have inadvertently collected data from a minor, please contact us immediately at operations@idestar.com and we will delete it promptly.
We implement industry-standard technical and organisational measures to protect your personal data, including:
| Measure | Details |
|---|---|
| Transport encryption | TLS 1.3 enforced on all connections |
| Email authentication | SPF, DKIM, and DMARC (p=reject) configured on idestar.com |
| DDoS protection | Enterprise-grade DDoS mitigation at the network edge |
| Bot protection | Automated bot-traffic filtering and CAPTCHA verification on forms |
| Security headers | Content Security Policy, X-Frame-Options, X-Content-Type-Options |
| Admin authentication | Password-protected admin panel with signed JWT sessions (8-hour expiry) and rate-limited login attempts |
| Access controls | Company email access restricted to authorised personnel only |
No method of transmission over the internet is 100% secure. While we take reasonable steps to protect your data, we cannot guarantee absolute security.
We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time to reflect changes in our practices, technology, or legal requirements. When we make material changes, we will update the "Last Updated" date at the top of this page. We encourage you to review this policy periodically.
Continued use of idestar.com after changes are posted constitutes your acceptance of the updated policy.
For any questions, concerns, or requests regarding this Privacy Policy or our data practices, please contact us using the details below. We aim to respond within 5 business days.