Last updated: September 26, 2026
Philly Crime Update (phillycrimeupdate.com) is a news website covering crime and public safety in Philadelphia and the surrounding region. This page explains what personal data we collect from visitors, why we collect it, and who it may be shared with.
Who we are
Our website address is https://phillycrimeupdate.com. The site is hosted on WordPress.com, a service of Automattic Inc. You can reach us through our Contact page.
Comments
When visitors leave comments on the site, we collect the data shown in the comment form, along with the visitor’s IP address and browser user agent string, to help detect spam. Comments may be checked by Akismet, an automated spam detection service operated by Automattic.
An anonymized string created from your email address (also called a hash) may be sent to the Gravatar service to see if you use it. The Gravatar service privacy policy is available here: https://automattic.com/privacy/. After your comment is approved, your profile picture is visible to the public next to your comment.
If you leave a comment, you may choose to save your name, email address, and website in cookies. These cookies are for your convenience, so you do not have to fill in your details again the next time you comment. They last for one year. The comment and its metadata are kept indefinitely so we can recognize and approve follow-up comments automatically instead of holding them in a moderation queue.
Contact form
If you use our contact form, we receive the name, email address, subject, and message you submit so we can respond. We do not sell that information.
Newsletter (Jetpack Subscriptions)
If you subscribe to our newsletter, your email address is collected and stored by Jetpack Subscriptions, a WordPress.com/Automattic service, so that new posts can be emailed to you. You must confirm your subscription by email. You can unsubscribe at any time with the link in any newsletter email. Automattic processes subscriber data under its own privacy policy: https://automattic.com/privacy/.
Advertising & Cookies
This site is supported by advertising. We work with third-party advertising providers, including Google (Google AdSense) and WordAds, the advertising program run by Automattic, and their advertising partners. These providers may use cookies, web beacons, and similar technologies to collect information about your visits to this and other websites so they can show you relevant ads, limit how often you see an ad, and measure ad performance.
- Third-party vendors, including Google, use cookies to serve ads based on a user’s prior visits to this website or other websites.
- Google’s use of advertising cookies enables it and its partners to serve ads to users based on their visits to this site and/or other sites on the Internet.
- You may opt out of personalized advertising by visiting Google Ads Settings at https://adssettings.google.com. You can also opt out of some third-party vendors’ use of cookies for personalized advertising by visiting https://www.aboutads.info/choices.
- To learn more about how Google uses information from sites that use its services, see How Google uses information from sites or apps that use our services.
WordAds (Automattic) and partners. Ads on this site may also be delivered through WordAds, operated by Automattic, which works with a network of advertising partners (for example, ad exchanges and demand partners listed in our ads.txt file). These partners may set their own cookies and collect information such as your IP address, device and browser information, and pages visited in order to serve and measure ads. For details, see Automattic’s privacy policy at https://automattic.com/privacy/ and its cookie policy at https://automattic.com/cookies/.
You can also control or delete cookies through your browser settings. Blocking cookies may affect how some parts of the site work, and you may still see ads, but they will be less personalized.
Analytics
We use Google Analytics, added through Google’s Site Kit plugin, to understand how visitors use the site, such as which pages are viewed, how visitors arrive, and general device and location information. Google Analytics uses cookies to collect this information. You can learn more at https://policies.google.com/privacy and opt out with the Google Analytics Opt-out Browser Add-on at https://tools.google.com/dlpage/gaoptout.
We also use Jetpack Stats, a WordPress.com/Automattic service, to count visits and see which posts are popular. Jetpack Stats processes limited technical information, such as IP address (used only for processing), browser, and referring page, under Automattic’s privacy policy.
Your U.S. state privacy rights (Do Not Sell or Share)
Residents of California and certain other U.S. states have the right to opt out of the “sale” or “sharing” of personal information, which can include the use of cookies and similar data for targeted advertising. To opt out, use the “Do Not Sell or Share My Personal Information” link, which appears in the site footer for visitors in applicable states. You can also opt out of personalized ads with the Google and industry tools listed above. Depending on where you live, you may also have the right to request access to, correction of, or deletion of personal information we hold about you. To make a request, use our Contact page.
Embedded content from other websites
Articles on this site may include embedded content (for example, videos, social media posts, or articles). Embedded content from other websites behaves the same way as if you had visited the other website directly.
These websites may collect data about you, use cookies, embed additional third-party tracking, and monitor your interaction with that embedded content, including tracking your interaction if you have an account and are logged in to that website.
Who we share your data with
We do not sell the information you send us directly, such as contact form messages or newsletter sign-ups. As described above, third-party services collect data about your visit, set cookies, or serve advertising on this site: Google (AdSense, Analytics, and Site Kit), WordAds/Automattic and its advertising partners, Jetpack (Stats and Subscriptions), and Akismet. These services are operated by their providers and process data under their own privacy policies.
What rights you have over your data
If you have left comments on this site, or subscribed to our newsletter, you can ask for an exported file of the personal data we hold about you, including any data you have provided to us. You can also ask us to erase any personal data we hold about you. This does not include data we are required to keep for administrative, legal, or security purposes.
To make a request, use our contact page: https://phillycrimeupdate.com/contact/
Children
This site is a general news site and is not directed to children under 13. We do not knowingly collect personal information from children under 13.
Changes to this policy
We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time. The “Last updated” date at the top of this page shows when it last changed.