Privacy Policy

Contents

1. Introduction
2. Information We Collect
3. Cookies
4. Web Beacons
5. Safeguarding Your Information
6. Disclosing Your Information to Third Parties
7. Links to other Websites
8. Ads
9. Accessing/Correcting Your Information
10. Children
11. E-mail Communications
12. Changes to this Policy
13. Questions/Comments

1. Introduction

   Thank you for visiting our website. Please read this privacy policy carefully before using the site.

   Our Commitment to Privacy. We take your privacy very seriously. We are committed to protecting your personal information and keeping you informed about our privacy practices.

   Application. This privacy policy applies to the InteractiveMediaCouncil.org website, which is owned and operated by Interactive Media Council, Inc. ("IMC"), a not-for-profit corporation registered in the State of New York, and located at 244 Madison Avenue, New York, New York, 10016, USA.

   Purpose. The purpose of this privacy policy is to explain how we collect, use, and safeguard the personal information we obtain through this website, and to assist you in making informed decisions when using the site.

   Consent. By using this website you consent to all terms and conditions in this privacy policy. If you do not understand or accept all the terms and conditions please do not use the website.

   back to top

2. Information We Collect

   IMC collects two types of information through this website: "Personal Information" and "Non-Personal Information".

   "Personal Information" refers to information that you give us and can be used to identify, contact and/or locate you. Examples of personal information we may collect include your first and last names, e-mail address, postal address, phone number, credit card details and employer. We collect your personal information only when you disclose it to us voluntarily, such as when you submit a form on our site or send us an e-mail. We do not collect personal information without your knowledge and consent. You are under no obligation to disclose personal information to us and much of this site can be accessed without such disclosure. However, if you wish to receive certain products, services or information from us, you may be required to disclose your name, e-mail address and other personal information. Areas on the website where we collect personal information are clearly marked.

   We collect personal information to deliver the products and services you order; to respond to your questions, comments and requests; to improve our website; to update our contact lists; and, to conduct other normal business operations.

   When you submit personal information on this website, you understand and agree that we may access, store, and/or use your personal information.

   We will retain your personal information for as long as needed to deliver the products and services you request, to provide customer service, and to comply with legal obligations. When your personal information is no longer needed, we will delete it from our systems or convert it to anonymous form.

   "Non-Personal Information" refers to information that does not identify specific individuals and is collected on an aggregate basis. Examples of non-personal information we may collect include the type of browser you are using; your operating system; your Internet Protocol (IP) address; your Internet Service Provider (ISP), the country where you are located; your preferred language; the website you were on immediately before visiting our website; the website you go to immediately after leaving our website; and, the pages you access on our website. We collect non-personal information as you browse and interact with our site. Although it may be possible to identify a person using non-personal information (e.g., by combining it with other non-personal information), IMC makes no attempt to discover your identity using non-personal information.

   We collect non-personal information to analyze trends; to monitor system performance; to diagnose problems with the site; to improve the site's usability; to identify popular areas of the site; to improve our products and services; to improve customer service; to improve our marketing; and, for other purposes that serve to enhance our site's quality and user experience.

   IMC may use third-party services to collect, store, manage and/or use personal and non-personal information. For instance, we use Google Analytics to provide us with statistics and reports on site visitors. Any personal or non-personal information submitted to these third-party services is subject to their terms and conditions.

   back to top

3. Cookies

   This website may use cookies to collect and store information.

   What is a cookie? A cookie is a small data file that a website stores in a user's browser in order to enable the site to "recognize" the browser during the current session and on the user's return visits, thus enabling a more streamlined user experience. Cookies are very common and are necessary to provide many of the services we take for granted on the Internet. With cookies, a website can, for example, save the items in your shopping cart while you continue shopping, save your website preferences for the next time you visit, and browse a password-protected site without forcing you to log in again at every click. In essence, cookies enable browsing sessions that are faster, more personalized and more efficient.

   Cookies can also be used to collect information from users. We use cookies to obtain non-personal information. We do not use cookies to obtain personal information.

   IMC may use both session and persistent cookies. (In general, a session cookie exists only while the user is reading and navigating the site; it is deleted when the user closes the browser — when the session is over. A persistent cookie outlasts user sessions and remains in the browser.)

   Third-Party Cookies. Content from third-party sources on this website may contain cookies that send data to those third parties. Examples of such content include embedded YouTube videos, banner ads, and social media links. IMC has no access to or control over third-party cookies and this privacy policy does not cover these types of cookies. You should refer to the privacy policy of the respective third party for information about their cookies.

   Managing Cookies. Most web browsers are set by default to accept cookies. By changing your browser settings, however, you can receive alerts before a cookie is downloaded, thus giving you the option to accept it or not. You can also instruct your browser to block cookies altogether. We don't recommend blocking cookies as this may lead to a less productive and less enjoyable browsing session. There is also the possibility that parts of a website will simply not work when cookies are blocked. For more information about managing cookies visit AboutCookies.org.

   back to top

4. Web Beacons

   IMC uses web beacons in e-mails to our subscriber lists.

   What is a web beacon? A web beacon is an object (often a GIF image file) embedded in a web page or an HTML e-mail for the purpose of tracking the user's activity. It is usually 1 pixel x 1 pixel in size and transparent, camouflaged or otherwise invisible on the page. It automatically activates when a person visits the web page or opens the e-mail. It can then send usage data to the website manager/e-mail sender. Such data may include when the web page was visited, if the e-mail was opened, what links in the page/e-mail were clicked, and other tracking information.

   We use web beacons to track e-mail open rates, bounce rates, click rates, forwards, complaints and other data. We use this data to help us improve the effectiveness of our e-mail campaigns and our relationship with our subscribers. We do not use web beacons to collect personal information that we don't already have.

   If you do not wish to be monitored in this way, you can make a request for text-only e-mails from us, or turn off the display of images in your HTML e-mail.

   back to top

5. Safeguarding Your Information

   We are committed to ensuring the confidentiality and security of your personal information. It is our goal to always prevent unauthorized access to, and unauthorized use, alteration, destruction and disclosure of, the personal information in our possession.

   We do not consider even the best Internet security, however, to be 100% effective all the time. Therefore, we do not guarantee that security breaches won't occur. To minimize this risk we take the following steps:

   • Data Encryption. Credit card and other sensitive information you may submit to us on the website is handled by a secure server which encrypts the data, making it unreadable and unusable to anybody trying to intercept the transmission. We process financial transactions on the website with assistance from Thawte, VeriSign and/or PayPal, all of which adhere to high standards of data security and privacy protection.
   • No Credit Card Storage. We don't store complete credit card numbers either online or offline. Once your card is processed, the only data we keep are the last four digits of the card number for reference and record-keeping purposes.
   • Passwords. All files containing personal information are password-protected. We change passwords on a regular basis.
   • Restricted Access. We permit access to personal information only to authorized personnel and then only when necessary to fulfill a customer order or another essential business need.
   • Trusted Partners. Various services we use in the course of normal business operations, such as e-mail notifications, credit card processing, and data storage, may be contracted out to third-party vendors. We are careful to select only those vendors that meet our high standards for data security and privacy protection.
   • Review of Security Measures. We routinely review our information security practices to enhance the protection of your information.

   Also, as stated above (in section Information We Collect), once your personal information is no longer needed, we delete it from our systems or convert it to anonymous form.

   Note: E-mail messages you send may not be transmitted via a secure server. Therefore, we recommend against using e-mail to send sensitive information, such as credit card numbers.

   back to top

6. Disclosing Your Information to Third Parties

   Our policy is to never sell or rent your personal information. We have never done it and have no plans to do it. If we were to ever change this policy, we would not sell or rent your personal information without your permission.

   We reserve the right, however, to disclose personal information to third parties under the following conditions:

   • To deliver a product or service you have ordered.
     If you purchase something through this website, we may need to disclose personal information to our billing and delivery vendors. There may be other third-party vendors we use to fulfill your orders. These companies have access only to personal information that is necessary to complete their work for us, and are authorized to use it only as necessary to complete their work for us.
   • When required by law.
     If we are required to comply with a law, regulation, subpoena, warrant or other legal demand, we will be forced to disclose personal information, as required.
   • To protect our rights, property and safety.
     If we come to believe, in good faith, that disclosure of personal information is necessary or advisable to protect our rights; our safety, your safety or the safety of others; our property or services; to enforce our Terms of Use; or to investigate fraud, we will disclose personal information as we deem appropriate.
   • With your consent.
     We may disclose your personal information to third parties where we have your permission to do so.

   We may disclose non-personal information to third parties as we deem necessary or appropriate. As this information does not personally identify you, we don't seek your permission to disclose it.

   back to top

7. Links to other Websites

   This website may contain links to other sites ("linked-to sites"). We do not control and are not responsible for the content or privacy practices of linked-to sites. This privacy policy applies only to information collected on this website; once you leave this website our privacy policy no longer applies. Your information collected by a linked-to site is subject to that website's privacy policy, if any. We recommend you review the privacy policy of all websites you visit before you submit any personal information.

   back to top

8. Ads

   This website allows third-party advertising companies ("ad partners") to display ads on our web pages. Ad partners are permitted to use cookies and/or web beacons on our site for the purposes of serving ads and gathering anonymous user data, such as the number of ad clicks and the number of ad impressions. Our ad partners assure us that they use cookies and/or web beacons to collect only non-personal information from our site users and never personal information such as your name, e-mail address, phone number or other information that may be used to identify, contact and/or locate you.

   Google and possibly other ad partners use cookies to serve ads on this site. The Google cookie, known as the "DoubleClick cookie", enables Google and its partners to serve ads on this site based on your visit to this and other sites on the Internet. You may opt out of the DoubleClick cookie for interest-based advertising on the Google Ads Preferences Manager site. You may opt out of many third-party cookies for interest-based advertising on the aboutads.info site. For more information about online behavioral advertising and your choices visit the Network Advertising Initiative.

   back to top

9. Accessing/Correcting Your Information

   IMC takes steps to ensure the personal information we hold is accurate, up-to-date and complete.

   If you wish to view, edit or delete the personal information we have on file for you, please log in to your IMC account and go to account settings, or you may contact us with your request.

   Note that we may be unable to grant you access to information we have if (1) it contains references to other persons, (2) it contains proprietary information or trade secrets, (3) it is subject to legal privilege, or (4) it is subject to other legal restrictions.

   Our goal is to always provide site users with easy and free access to their personal information. We reserve the right, however, to charge a fee for a request that requires significant time and effort to fulfill. We will notify the user in advance of any charges that may be due. We also reserve the right to reject requests that we find frivolous, repetitive or impractical; that violate the privacy of others; or that would require a commitment of significant resources.

   Users submitting a request about their personal information will receive a response in no more than 30 days (but likely within 2-5 business days).

   back to top

10. Children

    This website is not intended for use by people under the age of 13. (Should a child access this site, however, we are confident that parents/guardians will find no content that is objectionable or otherwise harmful to children.)

    We do not knowingly collect or use information from children under 13 years of age. If we learn that we hold such information, we take steps to erase it from our records and cancel any applicable accounts.

    If you believe that a child under 13 years of age has provided us with personal information please let us know.

    (To learn more about protecting children online visit OnGuardOnline.gov.)

    back to top

11. Email Communications

    We may periodically contact you by e-mail. When we send e-mails to our subscriber lists we always provide a simple and clear unsubscribe tool which allows recipients to remove their address from our records and no longer receive these e-mails. Certain e-mails, however, are considered essential and responsible business communications and do not offer the option to unsubscribe. These types of messages include account updates and service changes, among others.

    We use web beacons to monitor the effectiveness of our e-mail campaigns. For more details see the relevant section above.

    back to top

12. Changes to this Policy

    We reserve the right to amend this privacy policy at any time. Any and all changes will be posted on this page. If the changes are, in our sole discretion, important, we will update the "Last modified:" date (see above) to indicate the effective date of the revised policy. We may also announce material changes to this policy by other means, such as a notice on our home page, an e-mail message or a Twitter update. Changes to this policy will not be applied retroactively. The current policy governs, not the policy in force when your personal information was collected. Your continued use of this website following the posting of changes to this policy constitutes your acceptance of the policy, as amended.

    In the event of a merger, acquisition, consolidation, reorganization, bankruptcy, sale or transfer of assets involving IMC, your personal and non-personal information may become subject to a transfer of ownership and/or a different privacy policy. We will provide notice on this website before your personal information is transferred and/or becomes subject to a different privacy policy.

    back to top

13. Questions/Comments

    If you have questions/comments about this privacy policy or about your personal information on file with us please contact us.
    back to top