Privacy
Policy
Introduction
Your privacy is of the utmost
importance to RateDrop. Our basic principles are:
- We respect your privacy at RateDrop
- You control your personal Information,
- We try to limit our collection of personal Information
as needed to provide and improve our services to you,
- We do not disclose your personal Information to third
parties unless we need to do so to fulfill your requests, you expressly
tell us to, we believe we are reasonably compelled to do so, or we are
required to by law.
RateDrop's services contain links to other web sites outside RateDrop. We are not responsible for the privacy policies
and/or practices of other sites. When linking to another site a user should
read the privacy policy stated on that site. This privacy policy only governs
Information collected on RateDrop.com.
What
Information is Gathered
We collect the Information you give
us when you become a member of RateDrop. Use of this information includes, but is not
limited to, creating your account, username, and password. Upon registration an account with this same
information is created for you at BetterBidding.com.
Site
Visitors
In general, you can browse most
parts of the site without registering, but to
use some features (including posting) you will need to register (and validate
your account via clicking a link in the email sent) in order to post on the
site.
Browser
and Other Information We May Collect
In addition to the Information we
collect when you register for an account, RateDrop
also collects certain technical and other information about the online
activities of our users (whether they have registered or not). This may
include, but is not limited to, IP addresses, browser type, and operating
system.
We have the ability to view your IP
address if you visit RateDrop. We also collect the Information that you provide
when you make a post so that we can archive and display your posts.
Member
Emails
As a registered member, you must
agree to receive our system emails. URL tracking may be used in some of these
emails in order to track response rates and other aspects which may help us
improve the services provided. URL tracking may use cookies.
International
Visitors
Like almost every Web site, RateDrop may be accessed by an international audience. By
visiting our Web site and providing us with Information, you acknowledge and
agree that your Information may be processed for the purposes identified in
this policy. In addition, such Information may be stored on servers located
outside your resident jurisdiction, which may have more or less stringent
privacy practices than your own. By providing us with your Information, you
consent to the transfer of such Information.
How
Information is Used
We understand that you value your
personally identifiable Information. We generally use your personal Information
to render you services and to improve our services.
We may use your personal and
registration Information to: improve our services; troubleshoot problems;
measure consumer interest in our products and services; inform you about online
and offline offers, products, services, and updates; customize your experience;
protect us against error, fraud and other criminal activity; enforce our Terms
of Use; and as otherwise described to you at the time of collection and in this
policy. At times, we may look across multiple users to identify problems, and
in particular we may examine your personal Information to identify users using
multiple User IDs or aliases.
Email
Communications from RateDrop
RateDrop may send you messages through our messaging system to keep
you apprised of your membership status, alerts you have signed up for, site
developments, and to inform you of new offers.
Third
Party Use and Partner Site Email Communications
RateDrop may have or initiate partnerships with other Web-based
services. Some of these arrangements may include the sharing of some of your
personal Information with our partners in order to extend these services to
you. We only share Information when you specifically authorize it.
RateDrop, as well as its partner sites, may send you e-mail messages
on a regular basis to keep you apprised of your membership status, site
developments, and to inform you of new offers. Examples of this include special
offers from our business partners. Included in each of these messages are
simple instructions on how to remove yourself from these mailings if you do not
wish to receive them in the future.
Third
Party Sharing to Render Services to You
We may use third parties to help us
perform services, such as transmitting emails and other service-related
functions. If these third parties require access to your Information in order
to provide their services, they will be obligated to abide by this privacy
policy when handling your Information. We require third party service providers
to limit their use of your personal Information to rendering services for us
and you consistent with this policy.
Disclosure
of Personal Information
Your personally identifiable Information, is not sold to others. There are some
situations where we may need to disclose Information to organizations or
entities not described in our policy here. RateDrop
may be required to disclose your personal Information: (i)
if we believe it is reasonably necessary to comply with legal process (such as
a court order, subpoena, search warrant, etc.) or other legal requirements of
any governmental authority; (ii) would potentially mitigate our liability in an
actual or potential lawsuit; (iii) is otherwise necessary to protect our rights
or property; or that of others (iv) is necessary to protect the interest of
other users of our web site.
Merger
or Sale of RateDrop
We may transfer the Information in
our possession in connection with a sale of assets of the company, a sale of
the company or a merger.
Respecting
Others' Privacy
By agreeing to our Terms of Use, you
agree that, with respect to other users' personal Information that you obtain
through the site or through a RateDrop-related
communication or RateDrop-facilitated transaction, RateDrop hereby grants to you a license to use such
Information only for: (a) RateDrop-related personal
communications that are not unsolicited commercial messages, (b) using services
offered through RateDrop, and (c) any other purpose
that a user expressly agrees to after you tell them the purpose you would like
to use it for. In all cases, you must give users an opportunity to remove
themselves from your systems and a chance to review what information you have
collected about them. In addition, under no circumstances, except as defined in
this paragraph, can you disclose personal information about another user to any
third party without our consent and the consent of that user. You agree that
other users may use your personal Information to communicate with you in
accordance with this paragraph.
RateDrop and our members do not tolerate spam. Therefore, without
limiting the foregoing, you are not licensed to add a RateDrop
member to your mailing list (email, including the RateDrop
site?s messaging systems, or
physical mail) without their express consent. To report RateDrop
related spam, please contact us using our legal form.
Security
of Information
Your Information is stored on RateDrop's servers located in the United States. We use
procedural and technical safeguards to protect your personal Information
against loss or theft as well as unauthorized access and disclosure to protect
your privacy.
That being said, "perfect security" does not exist on the Internet and no data transmission over the Internet can be
guaranteed to be absolutely secure. As a result, while we strive to protect
your personal Information, RateDrop cannot ensure or
warrant the security of any Information you transmit to us or from our online
products or services, and you do so at your own risk. Once we receive your
transmission, we make our best effort to ensure the security of your
Information on our systems.
Please note that we cannot guarantee
the security of member account Information. Unauthorized entry or use, hardware
or software failure, and other factors may compromise the security of member
Information at any time. Therefore, although we use industry standard practices
to protect your privacy, we do not promise, and you should not expect, that
your personal Information or private communications will always remain private.
If RateDrop
learns of a security systems breach we may attempt to notify you electronically
so that you can take appropriate protective steps. By using this web site or
providing personal Information to us you agree that we can communicate with you
electronically regarding security, privacy and administrative issues relating
to your use of this site. Depending on where you live, you may have a legal
right to receive notice of a security breach in writing. To receive free
written notice of a security breach (or to withdraw your consent from receiving
electronic notice) you should notify us.
Cookies,
Web Beacons and Personalization
"Cookies" are small files
placed on your hard drive that assist us in providing our services. We offer
certain features that are only available through the use of a
"cookie". We also use cookies to allow you to enter your password
less frequently during a session. Cookies can also help us provide information
that is targeted to your interests.
RateDrop uses cookies to store visitors' preferences and to record
session Information for purposes including: ensuring that visitors are not
repeatedly offered the same advertisements; to customize advertising and Web
page content based on browser type and user profile Information; to estimate
and report our total audience size and traffic; and to conduct research to
improve our content and services. We do not link the Information we store in
cookies to any personally identifiable Information you submit while on our
site. You may be able to configure your browser to accept or reject all or some
cookies.
We may use third party advertisers
to display advertisements on some of our pages. These advertisers may use their
own cookies and these are be subject to the advertiser?s own privacy policies, not the RateDrop
privacy policy.
RateDrop may use various technical methods to research certain usage
and activities on its and our website. The Information collected is used to
find out more about our users; for more accurate reporting; and to improve the
effectiveness of our marketing. No personally identifiable Information about
you is shared by RateDrop as a result of this
research.
You agree that we may use your
personal Information to contact you and deliver information to you that, in
some cases, are targeted to your interests, such as targeted banner
advertisements, administrative notices, product offerings, and communications
relevant to your use of the Site. By accepting the Terms of Use and Privacy
Policy, you expressly agree to receive this information.
Children
We at RateDrop
believe it essential that parents are involved in their children's online
experiences. That is why, in compliance with federal law, we do not knowingly
collect personal information of any kind from anyone under the age of 13. If we
become aware of a user under the age of 13 providing information on our site,
we will terminate their account and purge our databases of all Information
provided by that user.
Access
to and Changing Information
Once you become a member of RateDrop, the Information you provide is stored in the
site. You may access or change most of this Information at any time through
your account?s control
panel.
Notice
of Modifications
In the future, RateDrop
may update and revise its privacy policy. We will provide notice on our website
if we decide to change our privacy policy in a way that would be materially
less restrictive than this policy. If you continue to use RateDrop,
you will be accepting the new policies. If you choose to opt out of the new
policy, you must notify us in writing and will no longer be able to participate
as a member. The effective date of this policy is April 29, 2014.
Ultimately, you are solely
responsible for maintaining the secrecy of your passwords and/or any account
Information.
Questions?
If you have any questions about this
privacy policy still unanswered after reviewing this policy, please do not
hesitate to contact us.
Attn: Privacy Officer
RateDrop.com
PO Box 1895
Hoboken, NJ 07030