CT EXAMINER LLC PRIVACY POLICY
Effective Date: December 1, 2022
CT Examiner LLC and our affiliates (collectively, “CTEx”, “we”, “us” or “our”) recognize the importance of protecting the privacy of our online and mobile application visitors. The following privacy policy (“Privacy Policy”) describes how we handle information we collect from our website, available at www.ctexaminer.com (the “Service”).
PLEASE REVIEW THIS PRIVACY POLICY CAREFULLY. By using the Service or submitting information to or through the Service, you accept the terms of this Privacy Policy and our Terms of Service, and you consent to the collection, use, disclosure and retention of your information as described in this Privacy Policy. IF YOU DO NOT AGREE WITH ANY PART OF THIS PRIVACY POLICY, YOU ARE NOT AUTHORIZED TO USE THE SERVICE.
1. What Information We Collect
Personal Information You Submit to Us.
CTEx may collect personal information from you, which may include your name, address, e-mail address, phone number and credit card/payment information. This information is collected and stored electronically when you submit it to us through the Service, such as when you create an account with us, subscribe to our Service or click on our newsletters. We may use your personal information to complete or support a requested activity, such as to process your payment, to communicate with you about the Service or to customize your experience with us. If you submit information to us in connection with a subscription to the Service, you may update your information, such as your name, e-mail address and physical address information for purposes of maintaining the accuracy of this information and your subscription.
When you use the Service, we may collect location data to identify the town from which you are accessing our Service. For instance, if you allow the Service to access location services through the permission system used by your device’s mobile operations system or browser, we may collect the location of your device to help analyze the popularity of stories by town or to personalize or improve our Service. We may also generalize your location, for example by using your IP address.
Information We Collect or Receive from Others.
We offer the ability to gift our Service and Service-related products, such as monthly and/or yearly subscriptions and promotional goods, to friends and contacts through the Service. In such an event, you may enter in their contact information directly through the Service.
We may collect or receive information about you from third party sources, such as usage information collected by third party data analytics service providers or other service providers acting on our behalf. We may also collect information about you from public records or other sources of publicly available information, including information that you have made public through accounts associated with you on social media platforms, such as Facebook, Twitter or Instagram. For example, if you submit a letter to us through a social media platform for publication by our Service, we may collect information about you from the social media profile from which we receive the submission.
Information Collected Automatically.
Information about your computer hardware and software may be automatically collected by CTEx or through our service providers when you access or use the Service. This information may include: your IP address, browser type, device ID, domain names, search history, browser history and other technical usage information. This information is used by us for our business purposes, including for the operation and improvement of the Service, for technical troubleshooting, for marketing purposes, to maintain the quality of the Service and to provide general statistics regarding use of the Service. We may use cookies and other tools to automatically collect this information. Please see the section below entitled, “Cookies and Other Information Collection Tools” to learn more about how these tools work.
2. Cookies and Other Information Collection Tools
Data Collection Tools.
We or our service providers may use various technologies to automatically collect information, including, but not limited to cookies, plugins and device identifiers. We refer to all of these technologies as “cookies” for purposes of this Privacy Policy.
What are cookies?
A cookie is a small file containing a string of characters that is sent to your computer when you visit a website or use an online service. When you visit the website or use the service again, the cookie allows that website or online service to recognize your browser or device. Cookies may store unique identifiers, user preferences and other information.
Duration of cookies.
We, ourselves or through our service providers, may use either “session cookies” or “persistent cookies.” Session cookies are temporary and expire once you close your browser or once your session ends. Persistent cookies remain on your device for much longer or until you or your browser erase them. Persistent cookies have varying durations that are dependent on their expiration date.
Why do we use them?
We use cookies and other data collection tools to help improve your experience with the Service. For example, we use Google Analytics to help analyze how visitors use the Service and to improve the Service. These tools use cookies to collect standard Internet log information and user behavior information in an anonymous form. The information generated by the cookie about your use of the Service (including IP address) is transmitted to our data collection tool service providers. This information is then used by us to evaluate visitors’ use of the Service through aggregated and anonymized insights and to compile statistical reports of website activity for CTEx to better understand our visitors. If you would like to opt-out from the use of your information by Google Analytics, you may use Google’s analytics opt-out browser add-on designed for this purpose.
How do I control cookies?
Web browsers allow some control of most cookies through the browser settings. To find out more about cookies, including how to manage and delete cookies, visit www.allaboutcookies.org. Some web browsers provide settings that allow a visitor to reject cookies or to alert a visitor when a cookie is placed on the user’s computer, tablet or mobile device. Most mobile devices also offer settings to reject mobile device identifiers. Although users are not required to accept cookies or mobile device identifiers, blocking or rejecting them may prevent access to some features available through the Service.
3. How We Use Information
We may use the information we collect for various purposes, including to:
- provide the Service to you and improve functionality;
- develop the Service and Service-related offerings, such as by using analysis reports to gauge readership interest and habits and reader locations by consultants to help us direct content and/or newsletter offerings;
- build a profile of user habits, viewing or downloads through aggregated information to assist us in marketing, such as to create a promotional map of users;
- administer, operate and customize the Service and Service-related products we offer, and to give each user a more consistent and personalized experience when interacting with us;
- process payments for subscription, newsletter or other purchases made through our Service using one or more third party payment processors;
- evaluate user interactions with the Service and market new CTEx offerings that we may provide that we think may be of interest to you, such as a location-based newsletter;
- provide customer service or otherwise communicate with you about the Service;
- enforce this Privacy Policy or any other agreements you have entered into with us;
- detect and protect against misuse, fraud or illegal activities or to comply with our legal obligations; or
- complete any other business or commercial purpose you have requested or to which you have consented.
4. How We Share Information
With Third Party Service Providers Performing Services on Our Behalf.
We share your personal information with our service providers to perform the functions for which we engage them, including to host the website, to assist us in providing functionality or improvements to the Service or to process payments. We may also partner with our service providers to engage in analysis, auditing, research and reporting. We may share information with our service providers for these purposes.
For Other Purposes You Direct or To Which You Consent.
We may share information with other third parties when you consent or direct us to do so. For example, if you refer friends to use the Service, we may share with that friend information about you to let them know who the referral came from.
De-Identified or Aggregated Information.
We may share information on a non-personally identifying aggregate basis for any lawful purpose. For example, we may collect and use aggregated information to build a profile of user habits, viewing and downloads that will not be connected to an identifiable user. From time to time, we may also publish aggregated usage information for our internal use, such as for our promotional purposes.
For Legal Purposes.
We may also share information that we collect from visitors as needed to enforce our rights, protect our property or protect the rights, property or safety of others, or as needed to support external auditing, compliance and corporate governance functions. We will disclose personal information as we deem necessary to respond to a subpoena, regulation, binding order of a data protection agency, legal process, governmental request or other legal or regulatory process. We may also share personal information as required to pursue available remedies or limit damages we may sustain.
Changes of Control.
We may transfer information, including your personal information, in connection with, or during negotiation of a merger, sale of company assets, financing, acquisition or other change of ownership or control by or of us or any affiliated entity (in each case whether in whole or in part).
5. Security of Information
We use reasonable security measures designed to prevent unauthorized intrusion to the Service and the alteration, acquisition or misuse of information we collect. For example, we may use service providers, such as Stripe, to process payments submitted electronically through our Service. However, the security of information that you transmit over the internet cannot be guaranteed. Data transferred over the internet may be subject to loss, corruption or unauthorized acquisition or misuse. It is your responsibility to protect the security of your account log-in information.
6. Links to External Websites
The Service may contain links to third party websites and services, including but not limited to Facebook, Twitter and Instagram. The Service may also contain embedded videos from third party services, such as YouTube. Any access to and use of such third party websites and services is not governed by this Privacy Policy, but is instead governed by the privacy policies of those third party websites and services, and we are not responsible for the information practices of such third parties. We encourage you to review the privacy notices of all websites and services that you visit.
7. State Disclosures
California Privacy Rights.
Under California Civil Code Section 1798.83, also known as California’s “Shine the Light” law, California residents with whom we have an established business relationship are entitled to request and receive, free of charge, once per calendar year, information about certain personal information we shared, if any, with other businesses for their own direct marketing uses in the previous calendar year. To request a copy, please contact us at the email provided in the “How to Contact Us” section, below. Please be aware that not all information sharing is covered by the “Shine the Light” law requirements and only information on covered sharing will be included in our response.]
8. Do Not Track
The Service respects “Do Not Track” requests when they are received. Do Not Track is a privacy preference that you can set in your web browser to indicate that you do not want certain information about your webpage visits collected across websites when you have not interacted with that service on the page. For details, including how to turn on Do Not Track, visit www.donottrack.us.
9. Children
We do not knowingly collect or maintain personal information from any person under the age of thirteen (13). No parts of the Service are directed to or designed to attract anyone under the age of thirteen (13).
10. Changes to this Policy
Any changes to our Privacy Policy will be posted to this page so users are always aware of the information we collect and how we use it. Accordingly, please refer back to this Privacy Policy frequently as it may change.
11. How to Contact Us
If you have any questions regarding this Privacy Policy, or if you’d like to submit a request to update or delete your CTEx subscription or membership information, in part or in whole, please contact us by email at: admin@ctexaminer.com.