Effective Date: October 20, 2006
Upstate Niagara Cooperative, Inc. is committed to providing a fun,
entertaining, and safe online experience to people of all ages that may visit
this site, and we take special care to protect the privacy of children under the
age of 13. We have developed our privacy practices based on guidelines
established by the Children's Advertising Review Unit of the better Business
Bureau (CARU) and in compliance with the requirements established by the
Children's Online Privacy Protection Act of 1998 (COPPA ). We also recommend
that parents monitor their children's internet activities and learn to employ
software or other tools that can help children enjoy the fun and entertainment
of an online experience without compromising their personal safety or allowing
them to use the internet in a manner inconsistent with their parents'
preferences.
What information might we collect from children and how might we use it?
At Upstate Niagara Cooperative, Inc., it is our policy to create website
experiences for children that require limited or no collection of personal
information. Generally, we limit our collection of information to non-personally
identifiable information that is gathered through a child's voluntary submission
to us or through the use of cookie, web beacon, or similar technology.
From time to time, however, we may request limited personal information from
a child (such as name or e-mail address) in order for that child to participate
in particular activities at this site. Except in special, limited circumstances,
we do not collect such information from a child under 13 without the prior
consent of a parent/guardian. When we ask for consent, we will tell the
parent/guardian what we will do with the information that their child provides
to us, how they can review their child's information, and how they can request
us to delete it. Upstate Farms Cooperative, Inc., does not condition a child's
participation in any activity on the website on a child's disclosure of more
information than is reasonably necessary to conduct the activity.
As mentioned above, from time to time, we may collect information at this
site from a child under 13 without prior consent of a parent/guardian, but only
in these special, limited circumstances:
- We may seek a child's name and a parent/guardian's email contact
information to seek the parent/guardian’s consent or to provide them with a
notification.
- We may seek a child's name and email address in order to respond on a
one-time basis to a specific request of that child. For example, if a child
sends us an email request, we will hold their email address long enough to
respond to them and then delete it from our system after we have provided an
answer.
- From time to time, we may have special online promotions or offers on
this site that are open for registration by children under the age of 13
(for example, a sweepstakes or contest). If a child under the age of 13
wishes to participate, we will ask for a parent/guardian's name and email
address so that we can notify them and give them an opportunity to complete
the registration for their child or to opt out of the activity on behalf of
their child. Any information that is given to us in this circumstance is
used only for the purpose of conducting the activity and will be deleted
from our system after conclusion of the promotion and any legally required
period for keeping such information.
- We may seek a child's name and contact information to the extent
reasonably necessary to protect the safety of a child participating on our
website. In this situation, the information will only be used for the
purpose of protecting the child’s safety and, as above, we will provide the
parent/guardian with notice of this use.
- We may seek a child's name and contact information to the extent
reasonably necessary to protect the security or integrity of our website; to
take precautions against liability; to respond to judicial process; or (to
the extent permitted by law) to provide information to law enforcement
agencies or for an investigation on a matter related to public safety. Such
information will not be used for any other purpose.
Whenever we collect personally identifiable information at the site, the
information will be used solely by Upstate Niagara Cooperative, Inc., or its
agents or contractors for the purposes indicated at the time the child (with
parental/guardian notice or consent, as applicable) provides the information.
For example, if a parent registers a child in a sweepstakes, we will use the
information to notify the child that he or she has won and to fulfill the
sweepstakes prize. We also may transfer, disclose, or share such information
with third parties who are engaged by us specifically to administer or fulfill
certain online activities (e.g. , conducting sweepstakes and contests). Such
third parties have access to personal information needed to perform their
functions, but may not use it for other purposes. Lastly, we may also disclose
personally identifiable information to third parties when required by law or
pertinent to judicial or government investigations or proceedings, or when
otherwise necessary to protect our website or the safety of its users.
How do we use cookie, web beacons, or similar technologies?
We may employ cookie technology, web beacons, and similar devices on our site to
facilitate site administration and navigation and to provide an enhanced online
experience for our visitors. Information tracked through these mechanisms
includes but is not limited to (1) a user's IP address (e.g., yahoo.com -
192.168.1.1), (2) the type of web browser (e.g., Microsoft Explorer) and
operating system (e.g., Windows or Linux) being used, (3) the pages of the site
a user visits, and (4) other websites a user visited before visiting our site.
Most browsers accept cookies automatically, but can be configured not to do
so or to notify the user when a cookie is being sent. If you wish to disable
cookies, refer to your browser help menu to learn how to disable cookies.
Cookies do not collect or contain personally identifiable information such as
your child's name or email address.
Web beacons are 1x1 single-pixel graphics that allow us to count the number
of users who have visited a particular web page or to access certain cookies. We
may use web beacons on our websites to count users and to recognize users by
accessing our cookies. Like cookies, web beacons do not collect or contain
personally identifiable information such as name or email address.
Security
We have taken steps to protect the confidentiality, security, and integrity
of all information our visitors share with us. This includes setting up
processes to avoid any unauthorized access or disclosure of this information.
Send-to-a-friend tools
This site may, from time to time, include a send-to-a-friend application
that makes it easy for visitors to forward information or materials from our
site to friends or family by e-mail. In order to address the e-mail message, the
application will ask for the recipient's e-mail address and/or similar
information (including the sender's e-mail address). This information is only
used by the application to address the message so that it can be properly sent.
Upstate Niagara Cooperative, Inc., does not retain any of this information for any
purpose.
Contacting us regarding your child's personally identifiable information
Upon providing proper identification, parents can request review, correct,
update, or have deleted their child's personally identifiable information from
our database by writing to us at Upstate Niagara Cooperative, Inc., Twenty Five
Anderson Road, Buffalo, NY 14220 Attn: Marketing Coordinator. We can also be
reached by telephone by dialing our consumer response department at
1-866-874-6455 weekdays from 8 a.m. - 5 p.m. Eastern Time. Please feel free to
use this same contact information if at any time you have questions or concerns
about our Privacy Policy.
Changes to this policy
Upstate Niagara Cooperative, Inc., reserves the right to change our practices
and this site's Privacy Policy at any time. Any changes will be reflected on
this page. Therefore we recommend that you visit our Privacy Policy often so
that you are always fully informed. In addition, we will send a notice to any
parent informing them of any material change in the collection, use, and/or
disclosure practices to which that parent previously consented.
© 2008 Upstate Niagara Cooperative, Inc.
If you have any further questions about privacy or security, please contact
us by sending an email to: emailus@upstatefarms.com.
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