Privacy Pledge of Close Encounters^TM

(Privacy Matters! member since May 25, 1999.)

When people you've never met want information about you, a natural reaction is to take a step back and wonder how that information might be used.

The more "powerful" the information is -- in other words, the more ways in which it can be used or potentially abused -- the more cautious you will be when asked to provide it. If it's just your name, you probably won't care. But if it's your e-mail address, you may be less inclined to provide it. And if it's your credit card information, you may not want to provide it at all, especially if it's not in a way that you are familiar with.

As a Privacy Matters!^TM member site, we fully recognize and understand your concern, and how it relates to our site. If you use all of the features of our site, you may eventually be asked to share personal information with us, which might make you feel uncomfortable since you would be sharing that information via the World-Wide Web. For this reason, we pledge to abide by the Privacy Matters! Customer Privacy Protection Pledge, which states:

1. We will not attempt to collect information specific to you without your knowledge. We may analyze the anonymous, aggregate information generated by your visit, such as server logs, to determine visitor traffic patterns, but this information will not be tied to you directly.
2. When requesting information, the reason for doing so will either be obvious (e.g., a shipping address for an order you are placing) or will be stated explicitly within one click from the page location where the information is requested, in such a way that you may read the explanation before providing the information.
3. We will not request user-specific information from our site visitors who, by the nature of the content of our site, are expected to be under the age of 18, unless we can positively confirm that the under-age user's parent(s) or legal guardian(s) have given explicit consent for the provision of such information. Statements by the under-age user regarding the consent of his or her parent(s) or legal guardian(s) will not be taken as proof that such consent has been given.
4. Personal information that you share with us will not be redistributed to any third party (via sale, rental, gift, or other sharing or transfer) without your explicit, verified permission in advance. This means you don't need to "opt out" of having your information redistributed -- we assume that is what you want unless you specifically tell us otherwise. Of course, if we are presented with a legal court order requiring the transfer of your information for law enforcement purposes, we may have no choice but to comply with that order.
5. (For commercial sites) We will not use information that you provide for future off-site electronic marketing efforts unless you specifically request that we do so. For example, if you place an order and provide your e-mail address in the process, you will not need to "opt out" from our mailing list(s). Furthermore, all requests to "opt in" to our mailing list(s) will be verified prior to sending you any electronic marketing material. Such verification will be done by requiring that you respond to an e-mail sent to your address prior to your receipt of marketing material, so that you need not do anything at all if you do not wish to be added to the mailing list(s).
6. If we use HTTP cookies, or if we display banners that are served from another site that uses HTTP cookies, we will explain why the cookies are being used. This explanation will be placed in a clear, obvious location and will be written to be easily understood. For cookies that are not generated on our site, our explanation will depend largely on the explanation provided by the other site(s). (The advertising-supported version of the Privacy Matters! pledge may include ad banners that employ cookies from the banner provider.)
7. We will use all available resources to protect your personal information from unauthorized disclosure, both during transfer between your computer and our server and while the information is in storage under our control.
8. We will submit to regular peer review by other Privacy Matters! member sites to ensure that our privacy policy is enforced. If you feel we are violating our pledge, you are asked to report it to the Privacy Matters! administrators, referring to Member # 1000554.

We hope this assurance will help you feel more comfortable using our online resources! If you have any questions about the handling of your information, you are urged to contact us promptly.