EFFECTIVE DATE: October 1, 2015
We at The Arc value your privacy whether you are a casual visitor, a registered member, a donor, a constituent, or a professional provider (“you” or for those who register “member” unless the context applies to a specific category such as donor). In this Privacy Policy (“Policy”), we describe how we collect, use, and disclose information that we obtain through our website www.thearc.org (the “Site”), the services available through our Site (collectively, the “Services”), and how we use and disclose that information. This Policy applies only to thearc.org and not to the websites associated with any of our chapters.
By visiting the Site or using any of our Services, you agree that your personal information will be handled as described in this Policy. Your use of our Site or Services, and any dispute over privacy, is subject to this Policy and our Terms of Service, including its applicable limitations on damages and the resolution of disputes. The Terms of Service are incorporated by reference into this Policy.
We may collect information about you directly from you and from third parties, as well as automatically through your use of our Site or Services.
Information We Collect Directly From You. When you become a member of The Arc, we ask you to fill out a form that requests your name, address and e-mail address, and telephone, as well as some demographic information such as gender, age, and depending on the context some information about your family. We also may collect additional optional information from you, including for example payment details from donors and credentials/experience information from professional providers.
Information We Collect Automatically.. We may automatically collect the following information about your use of our Site or Services through cookies, web beacons, and other technologies: your domain name; your browser type and operating system; web pages you view; links you click; your IP address; the length of time you visit our Site and or use our Services; and the referring URL, or the webpage that led you to our Site.We may combine this information with other information that we have collected about you, including, where applicable, your user name, name, and other personal information Please see the section “Cookies and Other Tracking Mechanisms” below for more information.
We use your information, including your personal information, for the following purposes:
Your personal information will never be sold, given, rented or traded to others for purposes other than providing you member benefit opportunities. We may share your information, including personal information, as follows:
We and our third party service providers use cookies and other tracking mechanisms to track information about your use of our Site or Services. We may combine this information with other personal information we collect from you (and our third party service providers may do so on our behalf).
Currently, our systems do not recognize browser “do-not-track” requests. You may, however, disable certain tracking as discussed in this section (e.g., by disabling cookies); you also may opt-out of targeted advertising by following the instructions in the Third Party Ad Network section.
Cookies. Cookies are alphanumeric identifiers that we transfer to your computer’s hard drive through your web browser for record-keeping purposes. Some cookies allow us to make it easier for you to navigate our Site and Services, while others are used to enable a faster log-in process or to allow us to track your activities at our Site and Service. There are two types of cookies: session and persistent cookies.
Disabling Cookies. Most web browsers automatically accept cookies, but if you prefer, you can edit your browser options to block them in the future. The Help portion of the toolbar on most browsers will tell you how to prevent your computer from accepting new cookies, how to have the browser notify you when you receive a new cookie, or how to disable cookies altogether. Visitors to our Site who disable cookies will be able to browse certain areas of the Site, but some features may not function.
Local Storage Objects. We may use Flash Local Storage Objects (“Flash LSOs”) to store your Site preferences and to personalize your visit. Flash LSOs are different from browser cookies because of the amount and type of data stored. Typically, you cannot control, delete, or disable the acceptance of Flash LSOs through your web browser. For more information on Flash LSOs, or to learn how to manage your settings for Flash LSOs, go to the Adobe Flash Player Help Page, choose “Global Storage Settings Panel” and follow the instructions. To see the Flash LSOs currently on your computer, choose “Website Storage Settings Panel” and follow the instructions to review and, if you choose, to delete any specific Flash LSO.
Clear GIFs, pixel tags and other technologies. Clear GIFs are tiny graphics with a unique identifier, similar in function to cookies. In contrast to cookies, which are stored on your computer’s hard drive, clear GIFs are embedded invisibly on web pages. We may use clear GIFs (a.k.a. web beacons, web bugs or pixel tags), in connection with our Site to, among other things, track the activities of Site visitors, help us manage content, and compile statistics about Site usage. We and our third party service providers also use clear GIFs in HTML e-mails to our customers, to help us track e-mail response rates, identify when our e-mails are viewed, and track whether our e-mails are forwarded.
Third Party Analytics. We use automated devices and applications, such as Google Analytics, to evaluate usage of our Site and, to the extent permitted, our Application. We also may use other analytic means to evaluate our Services. We use these tools to help us improve our Services, performance and user experiences. These entities may use cookies and other tracking technologies to perform their services. We do not share your personal information with these third parties. To opt out of the collection of this demographic information from Google Analytics Demographics and Interest Reporting, you can use the Google Analytics Opt-out Browser Add-on.
We invite you to post content on our Site and provide responses to our blog, including your comments, pictures, and any other information that you would like to be available on our Site. If you post content to our Site, all of the information that you post will be available to [all visitors to our Site/all members on our Site]. If you post your own content on our Site or Services, your posting may become public and we cannot prevent such information from being used in a manner that may violate this Policy, the law, or your personal privacy.
Our Site and Services may contain links to third-party websites. Any access to and use of such linked websites is not governed by this Policy, but instead is governed by the privacy policies of those third party websites. We are not responsible for the information practices of such third party websites.
We have implemented commercially reasonable precautions to protect the information we collect from loss, misuse, and unauthorized access, disclosure, alteration, and destruction. Please be aware that despite our efforts, no data security measures can guarantee 100% security.
You should take steps to protect against unauthorized access to your password, phone, and computer by, among other things, signing off after using a shared computer, choosing a robust password that nobody else knows or can easily guess, and keeping your log-in and password private. We are not responsible for any lost, stolen, or compromised passwords or for any activity on your account via unauthorized password activity.
You may modify personal information that you have submitted by logging into your account and updating your profile information. Please note that copies of information that you have updated, modified or deleted may remain viewable in cached and archived pages of the Site for a period of time.
We may send periodic solicitations or informational emails to you. You may opt-out of such communications by following the opt-out instructions contained in the e-mail. Please note that it may take up to 10 business days for us to process opt-out requests. If you opt-out of receiving emails about recommendations or other information we think may interest you, we may still send you e-mails about your account or any Services you have requested or received from us.
If you have questions about the privacy aspects of our Services or would like to make a complaint about this Policy, please contact us at:
toll-free at 1-800-433-5255, ext. 3713; or
e-mail us at donorsupport@thearc.org; or
write us at The Arc, 1825 K Street NW, Suite 1200, Washington, DC 20006.
This Policy is current as of the Effective Date set forth above. We may change this Policy from time to time, so please be sure to check back periodically. We will post any changes to this Policy on our Site, at https://futureplanning.thearc.org/pages/privacy-policy. If we make any changes to this Policy that materially affect our practices with regard to the personal information we have previously collected from you, we will endeavor to provide you with notice in advance of such change by highlighting the change on our Site.