# Privacy Information

## Summary

Publisher Reach CTA Toolkit for Google Preferred Sources has no telemetry, advertising, usage analytics, tracking pixel, or connection to the plugin authors. It stores configuration in WordPress and can connect a visitor's browser to Google's Preferred Sources service, depending on the integration mode selected by a site administrator.

This document describes Publisher Reach 1.0.0 behavior.

## WordPress data

Publisher Reach stores its settings in the site's WordPress database. Settings include integration mode, placement, selected public post types, appearance, language, optional prompt scope, trigger and dismissal configuration, and uninstall preference. The publication hostname is derived from the site's WordPress Home URL when needed; Publisher Reach does not store a separate publication identity.

Settings are per site in WordPress multisite. Network activation does not convert them into a network-wide eligibility assertion or a shared publication hostname.

Publisher Reach does not create visitor profiles, store Google account information, record whether a visitor completed Google's flow, or receive eligibility or ranking data from Google.

## Browser storage

The optional floating prompt can be scoped across the site, to the front page, or to selected singular public content types. It can appear immediately, after a configured delay, or at a configured scroll threshold.

If a visitor dismisses the prompt, timed dismissal stores a timestamp under `publisher_reach_prompt_dismissed_v1` in `localStorage` for the configured 1–365 day period; the default is 30 days. Session dismissal stores the value `1` under `publisher_reach_prompt_dismissed_session_v1` in `sessionStorage` for the browser session. If the selected storage is unavailable, the prompt closes for the current page without falling back to a longer-lived store.

Neither value contains an account identifier or proves that the visitor completed Google's flow. Publisher Reach does not transmit either value to the site or the plugin authors. Web Storage is scoped to the site's origin, not a WordPress path: path-based multisite subsites on the same origin share these dismissal keys. WordPress cannot export or erase them, and server-side uninstall cannot remove them.

## Google requests by mode

### Google native mode

Google's recommended native mode uses its standard button and interface, including an iframe.

### Publisher Reach manual SDK mode

Manual mode keeps the locally rendered trigger and progressively enhances it with Google's Preferred Sources SDK.

In native or manual mode, immediately before the first non-deeplink Publisher Reach surface renders, the site can allow or deny the SDK for the whole document. If allowed, the page requests Google's library from `https://news.google.com/swg/js/v1/publisher.js` before the visitor activates the CTA. If denied, that surface and all later native or manual surfaces on the document become deeplinks and Publisher Reach removes its enqueued Google and controller scripts. A later surface cannot reverse the first decision.

When the SDK is requested, the browser may send ordinary request information such as IP address, user agent, referrer, language, and publication domain. Google controls subsequent processing.

### Deeplink mode

Publisher Reach renders a local anchor to `https://www.google.com/preferences/source?q=<domain-or-subdomain>`. It does not load a Google script or iframe on the source page. The visitor contacts Google only after following the link.

Publisher Reach bundles the official Google badge image files used by manual and deeplink surfaces. Those images are served locally by the WordPress site and do not make a separate request to Google or the plugin authors.

Google documentation: https://developers.google.com/search/docs/appearance/preferred-sources

Google Terms: https://policies.google.com/terms

Google Privacy Policy: https://policies.google.com/privacy

## Site-owner responsibilities

Site owners should choose a mode and document-wide SDK policy appropriate for their privacy notice, consent obligations, audience, and Content Security Policy. Publisher Reach does not claim to provide or guarantee legal compliance. Native and manual modes must not be described as click-only contact when the SDK is allowed because Google's script loads before activation.

## Uninstall

With **Delete data on uninstall** enabled (the default), uninstall removes Publisher Reach's `publisher_reach_settings` option and `_publisher_reach_hide_automatic` post metadata in the relevant site scope. If deletion is disabled, those values are intentionally retained. Uninstall does not remove or alter posts. Browser `localStorage` and `sessionStorage` values are outside the server's control and may remain after uninstall.
