Effective Date: September 1, 2021
VEST, the Victims Empowerment Support Team, respects the privacy of all visitors to its website (“site”). This Privacy Policy governs the collection of information by VEST from visitors using this site. This Privacy Policy does not apply to any information provided to VEST through other means; for example, live events, mail, or telephone. Please read this Privacy Policy carefully to understand VEST’s online privacy practices. By visiting this site, visitors agree to their visit and any dispute over VEST’s online privacy practices, is governed by this Privacy Policy. Questions regarding privacy issues should be directed to: [email protected].
VEST does not trade, share, or sell a donor’s personal information with anyone else, nor send donor mailings on behalf of other organizations. This policy is applicable for all online and offline communications, including website, email, mail, physical addresses and phone numbers.
Children’s Privacy
Children under the 18 (eighteen) years of age should receive permission from their parents before sending any information about themselves (such as their names, email addresses, and phone numbers) over the Internet, to VEST or to anyone else.
Types of Information Collected by VEST
The information VEST gathers can be divided into two categories: (1) information voluntarily supplied when registering or initiating any transaction (for example, name and address), and (2) information gathered on usage patterns and preferences as visitors navigate through this site. This includes forms or documents that are downloaded or when an online newsletter is read. In some cases, it may be an agent or affiliate of VEST that will collect the information on VEST’s behalf. Third party providers featured on, or linked to VEST’s site, (such as partner organizations or vendors of products and services offered through VEST’s site), may be gathering the same or different types of information.
Registration Information
To make use of certain features on VEST’s site (such as the ability to receive email newsletters) visitors will need to register and provide certain information during the registration process. This supplied information will help us offer more personalized features and information back to our site visitors, provide new and innovative content, and to tailor VEST’s site to users’ interests.
Supplying information is entirely voluntary. However, should the information not be provided, VEST may be unable to provide services that are available to other site visitors. For example, unless an email address is provided, VEST is unable to send its email newsletter.
Security
All financial information provided to VEST is transmitted using SSL (Secure Socket Layer) encryption. SSL is a proven coding system that lets your browser automatically encrypt, or scramble, data before you send it to us. We also protect account information by placing it into a secure system outside of our actual site, and that can only be accessed by management approved, qualified employees of VEST. Unfortunately, however, no data transmission over the Internet is 100% secure. While we strive to protect your information, we cannot ensure or warrant the security of such.
Promotions or Registration for Live Events
From time to time, promotions or other offers may be made on VEST’s site. To enter an online promotion, certain information will need to be provided (such as name, address, telephone number and email address) so winners may be contacted. There may also be live event registrations managed through the VEST site that will collect similar information. In either case, VEST may share information provided with any co-sponsor of the promotion (the identification of any co-sponsor will be provided in official promotion rules). Should visitors be unwilling to provide information needed for registration purposes, they will not be able to participate in VEST’s promotion or be able to be included in the event.
Cookies
To help make VEST’s site more responsive to the needs of its visitors, VEST uses a standard feature of browser software, called a “cookie,” to assign each visitor a unique, random number that resides on their computer. The cookie does not actually identify the individual. It is used to identify the computer a visitor used to access VEST’s site. Unless a visitor voluntarily identify themselves (through registration, for example), VEST will not know the visitor’s identity, even if a cookie is assigned to the visitor’s computer. The only personal information a cookie can contain is information provided by the visitor. The cookie is unable to read unrelated data off a hard drive.
VEST uses cookies to tailor its site to the needs of its visitors, to deliver a better, more personalized experience. In addition, VEST may use cookies to track the individual site pages visited by users. VEST can build a site that better meets our visitors’ needs by learning which pages are visited more frequently. Visitors can set their browser to not accept cookies, but if that case, they may not be able to take advantage of all personalized features delivered to other visitors to VEST’s site.
Other Methods of Collecting Information
VEST’s web pages may contain electronic images (called “single-pixel GIFs” or “web beacons”) that allow VEST and its vendors to count users who’ve visited particular pages or to access certain cookies. VEST may use these tools and other technologies to recognize which pages users visit, and which links they use. These features may also be included in VEST’s email newsletters so VEST can learn which messages have been opened and acted upon. VEST may also be able to verify online purchases from VEST’s site or from third party sites which have agreed to share such information.
Browser Level Information and IP Addresses
VEST’s web servers may automatically collect limited information about visitors’ computer configuration when visiting VEST’s site, including the type of browser software used, operating system running, resolution of computer monitor, website which referred the visitor, and IP address. (IP address is a numerical address which is used by computers connected to the Internet to identify the computer so data (such as the web pages viewed) can be transmitted. VEST may also use IP address information for systems administration and trouble-shooting purposes (an IP address does not identify the user.) VEST may use this information to deliver its web pages upon request to visitors, to tailor the VEST site to the interests of its users, and to measure traffic within the site.
Disclosure of Information/Exchanging Names
VEST will not share the personally identifiable information provided by visitors when registering on its site with other organizations, sponsors or advertisers, with the exception of the previously mentioned data sharing with co-sponsors of promotions or events. As previously mentioned, co-sponsors will be specifically named within official rules of any promotion or event. VEST may, however, take the information provided and aggregate it with data from all others using this site and associated services. Then VEST will use the pool of information to inform donors/sponsors about VEST’s audience without identifying visitors personally.
Vendors and Service Providers
To improve VEST’s site ability to provide information as relevant as possible for our visitors, VEST may offer some features in conjunction with other providers (“Provider Partners”). VEST’s email newsletters, for example, may be made available through cooperative arrangements with providers specializing in operating such services. In some instances, VEST’s Provider Partners will have the same access to visitor information as VEST. VEST’s providers will not share personally identifiable information provided by our visitors. Their use of the information will be subject to the terms of their respective privacy policies and follow VEST’s privacy policy standards.
Statistical Information
Much of the information VEST collects is in the form of aggregated statistics, such as the traffic visits from various pages within VEST’s sites, and the habits and preferences of VEST’s audience. Such aggregated information does not include any information which would identify visitors personally. VEST may use such aggregated information and disclose it to third parties as needed.
Sites to Which VEST links
VEST’s site includes links to other websites and provides access to products and services offered by third parties. VEST is not responsible for and unable to control the privacy policies of these third parties. When visitors access these third-party websites through VEST’s site, use of any information provided by visitors is governed by the privacy policy of the operator of the site visited.
Other Disclosures
VEST may occasionally release information about its visitors when release is appropriate to comply with the law or to protect the rights, property or safety of visitors to the VEST site, the public, customers, or VEST and its employees, agents, partners and affiliates. If VEST were to merge with another entity or otherwise reorganize, information on its visitors would be transferred to the reorganized entity.
Newsletters
VEST may offer visitors the opportunity to subscribe to email newsletters on various topics VEST believes are of interest to its visitors. If a visitor has opted to receive a particular newsletter, the visitors can always unsubscribe later by sending an email to [email protected] or by clicking on the unsubscribe link at the bottom of the newsletter.
Promotional Emails
From time-to-time VEST may send emails about VEST, information, services and special offers which VEST believes may be of interest to visitors who provide VEST with their email address. Though VEST intent is that visitors will find the promotional emails helpful, if the visitor decides they no longer wish to receive emails, they should send an email to [email protected] or by clicking on the unsubscribe link at the bottom of the email. Of course, visitors may change their preferences at any time. VEST will make any changes requested as quickly as possible.
Changes to this Policy
Should changes need to be made in the future to VEST’s Privacy Policy, we will post a revised Privacy Policy document on our website. The effective date for these changes will appear at the top of this new posting to reflect the effective date of the revised Privacy Policy.