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Privacy Policy

My Czech Heritage — Privacy Policy

Last updated: 1 September 2026

Family history is personal. You share letters, photographs, names, and stories with me, and often information about relatives who are still living. This page explains plainly what I do with that information, why, and what you can ask me to do about it — written in the same spirit as my Membership Terms: to be read, not skimmed.

1. Who I am (the controller)

I am Zdislava Silvarová, a self-employed genealogist (OSVČ) based in the Czech Republic. I operate the website myczechheritage.co and provide genealogy research, family-history education, consultations, memberships, and family-tree creation services.

I decide how and why your personal data is processed and am therefore the controller under the GDPR. I am not required to appoint a Data Protection Officer. If you have any privacy questions or wish to exercise your rights, please write to me directly.

2. What data I collect

Account and contact data. Your name, email address, country, membership or customer account details, and messages you send me. I collect these when you buy a membership, book a service, submit a form, contact me by email, or receive a gift membership or voucher.

Billing and payment data. Your billing name, address or country where needed, invoice details, payment status, and the last four digits or card type reported back to me by the payment provider. Payments are processed by Stripe; I do not see or store your full card number. Gift vouchers are processed through the same payment system.

Project, intake and research materials. This is the heart of my work: the information you provide when you ask for genealogy research, a consultation, family-history guidance, or help with a specific research question. It may include family names, dates and places, house numbers, occupations, family stories, photographs, certificates, letters, notes, scans, links to archival records, previous research, and correspondence.

Family-tree data. If you ask me to create, organise, correct, review, expand, or transfer a family tree, I may process the information and materials you provide or authorise me to access. This may include names; family relationships; dates and places of birth, marriage and death; house numbers; occupations; photographs; documents; source citations; research notes; existing trees; and family-tree exports, including GEDCOM files.

Most genealogical information concerns people who have died and is not personal data under the GDPR. A family tree may, however, also include living people. Where it does, I use only the information reasonably needed for the agreed service, keep it to a minimum, and take particular care with privacy.

Information about living relatives. You may provide the name or contact details of a living relative if you ask me to make an introduction or contact them in connection with your family-history project. I receive this information from you or, where relevant, from publicly available sources. I use it only for that purpose and handle it as described in sections 3 and 6 below. I will not pass a living person’s contact details or personal information to anyone else without their clear permission, unless I have another legal reason to do so

Sensitive information. Please do not send me DNA test results, detailed health information, information about adoption, criminal allegations, political or religious beliefs, or other sensitive information about living people unless we have agreed in writing in advance that it is necessary for your project. If such information is included incidentally in historical records or family papers, I will treat it with particular care and use it only where relevant to the research you have asked me to do.

Access to third-party genealogy platforms. If you invite me to your family tree or account on a platform such as Ancestry, MyHeritage, FamilySearch, or another service, I may view and use the information available to me there only as needed for the work you have asked me to do. I do not need, and prefer not to receive, your account password. Where possible, please invite me through the platform’s own editor, collaborator, or sharing settings.

Communications. Emails, contact-form messages, website chat messages, social-media messages, consultation notes, feedback, requests, research updates, and other correspondence connected with your membership, purchase, enquiry, or project. This may include communications by email, phone, video call, messaging app, social-media platform, or another channel that you or I use for the agreed work.

If we have an online consultation, I may keep basic appointment details and notes needed to provide the service. I do not record calls unless we agree this with you in advance.

Website data. Basic technical and usage data collected when you visit myczechheritage.co, such as pages viewed, approximate location derived from your IP address, device and browser type, IP-related technical information, and cookie preferences. Details are in section 8.

3. Why I process it, and on what legal basis

Performance of a contract — Art. 6(1)(b) GDPR. I process your account, contact, payment and project information to provide the services you request: genealogy research, consultations, educational materials, memberships, family-tree creation, family-tree review, organisation of research materials, communication about your project, and delivery of the agreed results. If you do not provide the information needed for a particular service, I may be unable to provide that service.

Legal obligations — Art. 6(1)(c) GDPR. I keep invoices, payment records and other documents where required by Czech accounting and tax law.

Legitimate interests — Art. 6(1)(f) GDPR. I may process limited information where necessary to run and protect my business, keep appropriate project records, prevent misuse, respond to enquiries, establish or defend legal claims, and conduct proportionate genealogical research requested by you. I balance these interests against the rights and privacy of the people concerned and minimise the data I use.

Consent — Art. 6(1)(a) GDPR. I rely on consent where it is genuinely optional, including non-essential cookies, newsletters, and the publication or use of anonymised research examples. I also rely on consent when sharing a living relative’s contact details or other personal information with you. You may withdraw consent at any time by writing to zdislava@myczechheritage.co. This does not affect processing carried out before withdrawal.​

Contacting living relatives. If you ask me to contact a living relative in connection with your family-history project, I will explain who I am, why I am contacting them, and that I am acting in connection with your request. I will share only the minimum information needed to make that introduction. I will not give you their contact details, personal information, photographs, documents, messages, or research findings unless they have clearly agreed that I may do so, or another lawful basis applies. If they decline contact or ask not to be contacted again, I will respect that decision.

4. Who else touches your data

Wix (Wix.com Ltd.). Website hosting, membership accounts, forms, website analytics, stores and related website infrastructure. Wix may process data as my service provider and may also process certain data for its own purposes, such as security, fraud prevention and legal compliance, as described in its own privacy documentation.

Stripe. Payment processing. Stripe acts independently for some payment, security, fraud-prevention and legal-compliance purposes. I do not receive or store your full card number.

Google Workspace. Email, calendar, and secure storage of research correspondence, family-tree files, and working documents.

Assistants. Trained assistants may carry out limited routine research or administrative work under my direction. They receive only the information necessary for their task and are bound by confidentiality and appropriate data-processing obligations. They do not contact clients or living relatives unless I have specifically authorised it and it is necessary for the service.

Genealogy platforms, where you ask me to use them. This may include Ancestry, MyHeritage, FamilySearch or another platform you nominate. The applicable platform’s own terms and privacy policy apply. You remain responsible for your own account unless we agree otherwise in writing. I access only the information needed for the agreed work.

Czech archives and registry offices. In an official written request on your behalf I share only what the office needs — ancestor names, dates, places, and where required your name as the requesting descendant.

My accountant and, where legally required, public authorities.

I never sell your data and do not use it for advertising or profiling.

5. International transfers

Some service providers I use—such as Wix, Stripe, Google Workspace and genealogy platforms—may process personal data outside the European Economic Area, including in the United States. Where this happens, transfers are made using an appropriate legal transfer mechanism, such as an adequacy decision, the EU Standard Contractual Clauses, participation in the EU–US Data Privacy Framework where applicable, or another safeguard recognised under the GDPR. Further information is available in the relevant provider’s privacy documentation. You may also ask me for more information.

6. How long I keep it

  • Research materials, correspondence and project files. I keep these for the duration of your membership or project and for 3 years afterwards. This allows me to answer reasonable follow-up questions, verify the research where needed, and support you in relation to work already completed. I may keep them longer only if we agree this in writing, if you ask me to do so, or where I am legally required to retain them.

  • Family trees and family-tree working files. I keep the version of the family tree delivered to you, together with reasonable supporting working files, for 3 years after delivery. You may ask me to delete these earlier where possible, or we may agree in writing that I will retain your project for longer-term support. If the tree is held in your own account on a third-party genealogy platform, that platform’s own retention settings and privacy policy also apply.

  • Account data. Deleted or anonymised within a reasonable time after your membership or service ends, unless I need to retain it for another lawful purpose.

  • Invoices, payment and tax records. Kept for the period required by Czech accounting and tax law, which may be up to 10 years. I cannot delete information that I am legally required to keep.

  • Data relating to living relatives contacted on your behalf. Kept only as long as necessary to manage the introduction or contact request, then deleted or anonymised. I may retain a minimal record for longer where necessary to respect a request not to be contacted again.

  • If you ask me to delete your data, I will do so where possible, except for information I must keep by law. I will tell you what I need to retain and why

7. Your rights

Under the GDPR you can ask me to:

  • access the data I hold about you, and get a copy;
  • correct anything inaccurate;
  • erase your data ("right to be forgotten"), within the limits in section 6;
  • restrict processing while a dispute or correction is pending;
  • receive your data in a portable format and have it sent to someone else where technically feasible;
  • object to processing based on legitimate interests;
  • withdraw consent at any time.

Write to zdislava@myczechheritage.co. I'll respond within one month, free of charge. I can only act on the data I hold — your family tree on Ancestry or MyHeritage you control directly.

If you think I've handled your data badly, please tell me first — I'd rather fix it. You also have the right to complain to the Czech supervisory authority, Úřad pro ochranu osobních údajů (ÚOOÚ), Pplk. Sochora 27, 170 00 Praha 7, uoou.gov.cz — or to the data protection authority in your own country of residence.

 

I do not make decisions about you solely by automated means, including profiling, that would have legal or similarly significant effects on you

8. Cookies

myczechheritage.co runs on Wix, which uses essential cookies needed for functions such as security, login, checkout, and remembering cookie preferences. These cookies are necessary for the website to work properly.

Where non-essential cookies are used, for example for analytics or additional website functionality, any choices available to you will be shown through the cookie banner, cookie settings, or your browser settings. Rejecting non-essential cookies does not limit your membership or access to the website.

9. Changes and contact

I may update this policy from time to time — for example, if I change a tool, introduce a new service, or change how I handle personal data. The current version will always be available on this page with its “Last updated” date.

If I make a material change, I will take reasonable steps to let affected members know, usually by email where appropriate.

Questions, requests, or second thoughts? Write to zdislava@myczechheritage.co.

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