Privacy Policy
Last updated: September 3, 2026
This Privacy Policy explains how Black Emerald Press LLC, the publishing imprint of Lauren M. Hayes (“Black Emerald Press,” “we,” “us,” or “our”), collects, uses, shares, and protects personal information through laurenmhayes.com (the “Site”).
By using the Site, submitting information through the Site, or placing an order, you acknowledge the practices described in this Privacy Policy.
INFORMATION WE COLLECT
Depending on how you interact with the Site, we may collect information such as:
- name;
- email address;
- telephone number;
- billing address;
- shipping address;
- order details and purchase history;
- messages or information submitted through contact forms;
- newsletter subscription information;
- comments, reviews, or other content you submit;
- IP address;
- browser and device information;
- approximate or general location information inferred from your IP address, device, or network information;
- cookie and analytics information; and
- other information you voluntarily provide.
When you place an order, WooCommerce may store information associated with the transaction, including customer contact information, billing and shipping details, items purchased, order status, order dates, and other information needed to fulfill and maintain the order. WooCommerce provides merchants with tools to manage retention of this data. (WooCommerce)
PAYMENT INFORMATION
Payments are processed through third-party payment providers made available through our checkout.
Black Emerald Press LLC does not directly store your complete payment-card number.
When you make a payment, information necessary to process and support the transaction may be transmitted to the payment provider used to complete your purchase. This may include transaction details, billing and shipping information, payment-method information, device information, and information necessary for payment processing, fraud prevention, and related services.
The payment provider used to complete your transaction processes customer information according to its own applicable privacy notices and data-processing terms.
HOW WE USE YOUR INFORMATION
We may use personal information to:
- process and fulfill orders;
- collect payment;
- calculate applicable tax and shipping;
- provide order confirmations, shipping notices, and other transactional communications;
- provide customer service;
- process returns, refunds, or damaged-order claims;
- maintain accounting, tax, and business records;
- prevent fraud and misuse;
- respond to questions and inquiries;
- maintain and improve the Site;
- monitor Site performance and security;
- comply with legal obligations;
- enforce our Terms & Conditions and other policies; and
- send marketing or newsletter communications when you have subscribed or otherwise consented to receive them.
We do not use order information to automatically enroll customers in marketing communications simply because they made a purchase.
EMAIL AND NEWSLETTER COMMUNICATIONS
If you voluntarily subscribe to our newsletter or other promotional communications, we may use your name and email address to send those communications.
Our newsletter and subscriber-management services may be provided through Kit or another email service provider.
You may unsubscribe from marketing emails at any time by using the unsubscribe link contained in the email.
Transactional emails relating to purchases, payments, refunds, shipping, or customer-service matters are not marketing emails and may still be sent when necessary to complete or support your transaction.
Kit provides tools for creators to manage subscriber consent, including opt-in consent where required. (Kit Help Center)
COOKIES AND SIMILAR TECHNOLOGIES
The Site may use cookies and similar technologies to:
- enable essential website and checkout functions;
- remember preferences;
- help protect the Site from fraud or abuse;
- understand Site traffic and usage;
- measure website performance; and
- support analytics and marketing functions where enabled.
Some cookies are necessary for the Site and WooCommerce checkout to function.
Your browser may allow you to block or delete cookies, but doing so may affect certain website or checkout features.
Where required by applicable law, non-essential cookies or tracking technologies will be used subject to applicable consent requirements.
ANALYTICS
We may use analytics tools or services to understand how visitors use the Site, such as pages visited, general traffic patterns, browser/device information, and other usage information.
Analytics providers may use cookies or similar technologies according to their own privacy practices.
Analytics information is used to improve the Site, troubleshoot problems, understand audience behavior, and evaluate website performance.
HOW WE SHARE INFORMATION
We do not sell or rent customer mailing lists or customer order information to third parties for their own independent marketing purposes.
We may disclose personal information to service providers that help us operate the Site or fulfill business functions, such as:
- website hosting providers;
- WooCommerce and WordPress-related service providers;
- payment processors, including Square;
- email delivery and newsletter providers;
- shipping carriers;
- analytics providers;
- fraud-prevention or website-security providers;
- accounting or recordkeeping providers; and
- professional advisers when reasonably necessary.
These service providers may receive the information reasonably necessary to perform their services.
We may also disclose information:
- when required by law, subpoena, court order, or governmental request;
- to investigate or prevent fraud, abuse, security incidents, or unlawful activity;
- to protect the rights, property, or safety of Black Emerald Press LLC, Lauren M. Hayes, our customers, or others; or
- in connection with a merger, sale, reorganization, or transfer of all or part of the business, subject to applicable law.
THIRD-PARTY LINKS AND EMBEDDED CONTENT
The Site may contain links to third-party websites or embedded content from services such as retailers, social-media platforms, video platforms, or other providers.
Visiting or interacting with those third parties may result in data being collected directly by them.
Black Emerald Press LLC does not control third-party privacy practices. You should review the privacy policies of those services when appropriate.
DATA RETENTION
We retain personal information only for as long as reasonably necessary for the purposes described in this Privacy Policy, including legal, tax, accounting, fraud-prevention, customer-service, and business-recordkeeping purposes.
Our current WooCommerce retention settings are:
- Pending orders: 30 days
- Failed orders: 30 days
- Cancelled orders: 12 months
- Refunded orders: 7 years
- Completed orders: 7 years
Customer-account creation is not currently enabled on the Site. If account creation is enabled in the future, this Privacy Policy may be updated accordingly.
Certain information may be retained longer when reasonably necessary to comply with legal obligations, resolve disputes, investigate fraud, or protect legal rights.
SECURITY
We use reasonable administrative, technical, and organizational measures intended to protect personal information.
Payment-card information submitted through Square is transmitted using Square’s security systems. Square states that customer information submitted to its systems is encrypted and that its services use security practices designed to protect merchant and customer information. (Square)
However, no website, database, or method of electronic transmission can be guaranteed to be completely secure.
CHILDREN’S PRIVACY
The Site is not directed to children under 13, and we do not knowingly collect personal information from children under 13.
If you believe a child under 13 has submitted personal information through the Site, contact us at laurenmhayes@laurenmhayes.com so that we can review and, where appropriate, delete the information.
YOUR PRIVACY RIGHTS
Depending on where you live, applicable law may provide rights relating to your personal information, including rights to request access, correction, deletion, restriction, or other information about how your data is processed.
These rights are not absolute and may be subject to legal exceptions. For example, we may need to retain certain transaction information for tax, accounting, fraud-prevention, or other legal purposes.
To make a privacy request, contact:
We may need to verify your identity before processing certain requests.
CALIFORNIA RESIDENTS
California privacy laws provide certain rights to eligible California residents and apply differently depending on the type and size of the business and the nature of its data practices.
Black Emerald Press LLC does not sell personal information for monetary compensation and does not intend to use customer order information for third-party direct marketing.
If applicable California law provides you with privacy rights in connection with our processing of your information, you may contact us using the information below to submit a request.
INTERNATIONAL VISITORS
Visitors from outside the United States may have additional privacy rights under the laws of their jurisdiction.
If applicable law grants you rights relating to access, correction, deletion, objection, restriction, portability, or withdrawal of consent, you may contact us to submit a request.
Nothing in this Privacy Policy limits rights that cannot lawfully be waived.
CHANGES TO THIS PRIVACY POLICY
We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time to reflect changes in our business, website, technology, service providers, or applicable law.
The current version will be posted on this page with an updated “Last updated” date.
CONTACT
Questions or requests relating to this Privacy Policy may be sent to:
Black Emerald Press LLC
Lauren M. Hayes
laurenmhayes@laurenmhayes.com