Privacy Policy

Bloomsbury Intelligence and Security Institute (BISI)

Last Updated: December 2025

1. Introduction

Welcome to the Bloomsbury Intelligence and Security Institute ("BISI", "we", "us", or "our"). We are committed to protecting and respecting your privacy.

This Privacy Policy explains how we collect, use, disclose, and safeguard your personal information when you visit our website https://bisi.org.uk or engage with our services.

"Bloomsbury Intelligence and Security Institute" is the trading name of Bloomsbury Intelligence and Security CIC, a Community Interest Company registered in England and Wales (Company No. 16255943), with its principal place of business in London, United Kingdom.

For the UK General Data Protection Regulation (UK GDPR) and the Data Protection Act 2018, we are the data controller.

Please read this Privacy Policy carefully. By accessing or using our website and services, you acknowledge that you have read, understood, and agree to be bound by this Privacy Policy.

2. Information We Collect

We collect and process the following personal information:

Personal Information You Provide to Us:

  • Email Address – collected when you subscribe to our newsletter, register for events, contact us, or make purchases.

  • First and Last Name – collected when you register for our services, events, or communicate with us.

We only collect personal information that is necessary for the purposes outlined in this policy.

3. How We Collect Your Information

We collect information in the following ways:

  • Directly from you – when you fill out forms on our website, subscribe to our mailing list, register for events, purchase products or services, or correspond with us via email.

  • Automatically – through our website hosting platform (Squarespace), which collects basic analytics data about website visitors (see Section 6 below).

4. Legal Basis for Processing (GDPR)

Under the UK GDPR, we must have a valid legal basis for processing your personal data. We rely on the following legal bases:

  • Consent – where you have given us clear consent to process your personal data for a specific purpose (e.g., receiving marketing emails). You may withdraw your consent at any time.

  • Contractual Necessity – where processing is necessary to perform a contract with you or to take steps at your request before entering into a contract (e.g., processing payments for products or services).

  • Legitimate Interests – where processing is necessary for our legitimate interests (or those of a third party), provided your interests and fundamental rights do not override those interests. Our legitimate interests include operating and improving our website and services, and communicating with you about our work.

  • Legal Obligation – where processing is necessary to comply with a legal obligation to which we are subject.

5. How We Use Your Information

We use the personal information we collect for the following purposes:

  • To provide, operate, and maintain our website and services

  • To process transactions and send related information, including purchase confirmations

  • To send you newsletters, updates, and marketing communications (where you have opted in)

  • To respond to your enquiries and provide customer support

  • To notify you about changes to our services or policies

  • To invite you to events and keep you informed about our work

  • To comply with legal obligations

6. Cookies and Analytics

We do not use third-party tracking or analytics tools such as Google Analytics.

However, our website is hosted on Squarespace, which provides built-in analytics functionality. Squarespace analytics collects aggregated, non-personally identifiable information about website traffic and usage patterns, including:

  • Page views

  • Traffic sources

  • Device and browser types

  • Geographic location (at country/region level)

This data helps us understand how visitors interact with our website and improve our content and services. For more information about Squarespace's data practices, please visit Squarespace's Privacy Policy.

Cookies: Squarespace may use cookies and similar technologies to enable certain website functionality. You can control cookies through your browser settings. Please note that disabling cookies may affect the functionality of our website.

7. Email Communications

We may send you emails for the following purposes:

  • Newsletters and updates about BISI's publications, reports, and activities

  • Event invitations and reminders

  • Transactional emails related to purchases or registrations

  • Responses to your enquiries

Marketing Emails: We will only send you marketing communications if you have opted in to receive them. Every marketing email we send will include an option to unsubscribe. You can opt out of receiving marketing emails at any time by clicking the "unsubscribe" link in any email or by contacting us at info@bisi.org.uk.

8. Payment Processing

We offer the following payment methods for our products and services:

  • PayPal

  • Bank Transfer

PayPal: When you make a payment via PayPal, your payment information is collected and processed directly by PayPal. We do not have access to your full payment card details. Please refer to PayPal's Privacy Policy for information on how they handle your data.

Bank Transfer: If you pay by bank transfer, we will receive your name and bank account details as provided by your bank in relation to the transaction. We use this information solely to process and verify your payment.

We retain payment records as necessary to comply with our legal and accounting obligations.

9. Advertising

We do not display advertisements on our website. We do not use remarketing services or any advertising networks for marketing or advertising purposes.

10. Data Sharing and Disclosure

We do not sell, trade, or rent your personal information to third parties.

We may share your personal information in the following circumstances:

  • Service Providers: We may share information with trusted third-party service providers who assist us in operating our website and conducting our business (e.g., Squarespace for website hosting, PayPal for payment processing, Google Drive). These providers are contractually obligated to protect your data and use it only for the purposes we specify.

  • Legal Requirements: We may disclose your information if required to do so by law or in response to valid requests by public authorities (e.g., a court or government agency).

  • Business Transfers: In the event of a merger, acquisition, or sale of all or a portion of our assets, your personal information may be transferred as part of that transaction.

11. International Data Transfers

Your personal data may be transferred to, and processed in, countries outside the United Kingdom or the European Economic Area (EEA). Where such transfers occur, we ensure that appropriate safeguards are in place to protect your data in accordance with UK GDPR requirements, such as:

  • Standard Contractual Clauses approved by the UK Information Commissioner's Office (ICO)

  • Transfers to countries with an adequacy decision

12. Data Retention

We retain your personal information only for as long as necessary to fulfil the purposes for which it was collected, including to satisfy any legal, accounting, or reporting requirements.

To determine the appropriate retention period, we consider the amount, nature, and sensitivity of the data, the potential risk of harm from unauthorised use or disclosure, the purposes for processing, and applicable legal requirements.

When personal data is no longer required, we will securely delete or anonymise it.

13. Your Rights Under UK GDPR

Under the UK General Data Protection Regulation, you have the following rights regarding your personal data:

  • Right of Access – You have the right to request a copy of the personal information we hold about you.

  • Right to Rectification – You have the right to request that we correct any inaccurate or incomplete personal information.

  • Right to Erasure ("Right to be Forgotten") – You have the right to request that we delete your personal information in certain circumstances.

  • Right to Restrict Processing – You have the right to request that we restrict the processing of your personal information in certain circumstances.

  • Right to Data Portability – You have the right to request that we transfer your personal data to another organisation, or directly to you, in certain circumstances.

  • Right to Object – You have the right to object to our processing of your personal information in certain circumstances, including for direct marketing purposes.

  • Right to Withdraw Consent – Where we rely on your consent to process your personal data, you have the right to withdraw that consent at any time.

To exercise any of these rights, please contact us using the details provided in Section 16 below. We will respond to your request within one month of receiving it.

You also have the right to complain to the UK Information Commissioner's Office (ICO) if you believe your data protection rights have been violated. You can contact the ICO at www.ico.org.uk.

14. Data Security

We implement appropriate technical and organisational measures to protect your personal information against unauthorised access, alteration, disclosure, or destruction. These measures include:

  • Secure hosting through Squarespace

  • Encrypted connections (HTTPS) for data transmission

  • Access controls limiting who can access personal data

  • Regular review of our data collection, storage, and processing practices

While we strive to use commercially acceptable means to protect your personal information, no method of transmission over the Internet or electronic storage is 100% secure. We cannot guarantee absolute security.

15. Children's Privacy

Our website and services are not directed at individuals under the age of 16. We do not knowingly collect personal information from children. If you are a parent or guardian and believe that your child has provided us with personal information, please contact us immediately. If we become aware that we have collected personal data from a child without verification of parental consent, we will take steps to delete that information.

16. Contact Us

If you have any questions, concerns, or requests regarding this Privacy Policy or our data practices, please contact us:

Bloomsbury Intelligence and Security Institute (BISI)

Email: info@bisi.org.uk

We aim to respond to all enquiries within a reasonable timeframe.

© 2024 Bloomsbury Intelligence and Security CIC. All Rights Reserved.