Privacy Policy

Last updated: July 2, 2026

HostMortem (hostmortem.io) is operated by Step41. This policy explains what data is collected when you use the site and how it's handled. HostMortem does not require an account, does not ask for personal information to use the diagnostic tool, and does not store the domains or IP addresses you look up.

Diagnostic queries

When you run a diagnostic, your browser sends the target domain or IP to a Cloudflare Worker API, which performs live lookups against public data sources (DNS resolvers, certificate transparency logs, WHOIS/RDAP registries, IP geolocation providers, and blocklists) and returns the results directly to your browser. These lookups are not logged, cached, or associated with your identity. Each diagnostic run is a fresh, independent snapshot — nothing about the domains you check is retained after the request completes.

Analytics

HostMortem uses Google Analytics (gtag.js) to understand aggregate traffic — pages visited, general geographic region, device type, and referral source. Google Analytics uses cookies and similar technologies to collect this information. See Google's Privacy Policy for details on how Google processes this data.

Advertising

HostMortem displays ads served by Google AdSense. Google and its partners may use cookies to serve ads based on your prior visits to this site or other sites. You can opt out of personalized advertising by visiting Google Ads Settings, or opt out of third-party vendor use of cookies for personalized advertising by visiting aboutads.info.

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 based on your visits to this site and/or other sites on the Internet.

Cookies

Cookies set on hostmortem.io come from Google Analytics and Google AdSense as described above. HostMortem itself does not set first-party cookies to track individual users, and does not use cookies for authentication since there is no account system.

Data shared with third parties

HostMortem does not sell or share personal data with third parties for their own marketing purposes. The only data transmitted to third-party services is: (1) the domain or IP address you submit, which is sent to public DNS, WHOIS, and geolocation lookup services solely to perform the diagnostic you requested, and (2) aggregate, non-identifying analytics data sent to Google as described above.

Children's privacy

HostMortem is a developer tool not directed at children under 13, and we do not knowingly collect personal information from children.

Changes to this policy

This policy may be updated as the site's functionality or third-party integrations change. The "Last updated" date at the top of this page reflects the most recent revision.

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