Privacy Policy
1. INTRODUCTION
Autism Speaks, a non-profit 501(c)(3) entity, is dedicated to promoting solutions, across the spectrum and throughout the life span, for the needs of individuals with autism and their families. We do this through advocacy and support; increasing understanding and acceptance of autism spectrum disorder; and advancing research into causes and better interventions for autism spectrum disorder and related conditions.
This Privacy Policy applies to: (a) information we collect from persons, either electronically, via postal mail, in-person or over the phone, in connection with their relationship with Autism Speaks whether it be for a donation or other means (b) all registrants or participants in Autism Speaks Walks or any other Autism Speaks sponsored event and (c) users of any related services, applications or sites that link to this Privacy Policy (collectively (a), (b) and (c) referred to hereunder as the "Services").
The Policy describes Autism Speaks’ collection and use for its legitimate interest of users' Personal Information (e.g., information that identifies a specific person, such as full name, postal address, telephone number, email address, or credit or debit card number) where that information is not otherwise publicly available. It also describes generally Autism Speaks’ practices for handling Other Information (e.g., interests, demographics and site usage) collected from you, through us or from a third party to the extent such information is associated with a particular device, user or user account.
2. INFORMATION WE COLLECT
Personal Information
"Personal Information" is the information that identifies you as an individual, such as name, postal address, telephone number, email address and credit or debit card number.
Personal Information You Submit
We collect Personal Information when you submit it to us, including but not limited to when you submit a donation, register for or subscribe to certain events, products, or services, create a profile, participate in an auction, sweepstakes, game or contest, take a survey, use an interactive feature, or participate in a forum.
Personal Information We Receive from Third Parties
We may receive Personal Information about you from third parties, including, for example, information about your transactions, purchase history, or relationships with various product and service providers, and your use of certain applications. For example, if you access an Online Service through a third party connection or log-in, such as Facebook Connect, that third party may pass certain information about your use of its service to us. This information could include, but is not limited to, the user ID associated with your account, any information you have permitted the third party to share with us, and any information you have made public in connection with that service.
Other Information
"Other Information" is any information that does not reveal your specific identity, such as browser information, information collected through cookies and other technologies, demographic information, and aggregated information. We may combine Other Information with your Personal Information, and when we do, we treat the combined information as Personal Information.
Other Information You Submit
We collect Other Information when you submit it to us. It may include your age, gender, education, occupation, financial information, interests, photos, connections, and comments.
Other Information We Receive from Third Parties
We may receive Other Information about you from third parties, including but not limited to, demographic data, information about your interests, and information about your activities on other websites.
Other Information We Collect Automatically When You are Online
Personal Data
Personal data is collected when users provide personal information that is not publically available to Autism Speaks, for example by registering through the Site and donating funds. The personal information that you provide must be true, accurate and complete and all registration details (where applicable) must contain your real name, address and other requested details.
Aggregated information, such as information on traffic patterns within the Site, is collected by Autism Speaks through various methods:
IP Addresses: We collect IP addresses through the Site. An IP address is a number that is automatically assigned to your computer whenever you're surfing the web. Web servers, the computers that "serve up" web pages, automatically identify your computer by its IP address, and when you request a page from the Site, our servers log your IP address. The Site does not link IP addresses to anything personally identifiable, so although your session will be logged, you will remain anonymous to us.
Use of Cookies: Autism Speaks may use cookies and other tracking technologies (including browser cookies, pixels and beacons), which are comprised of small bits of data that often include an anonymous unique identifier. A cookie is a small data file that most major web sites write to your device for record keeping purposes when you visit them. Cookies allow us to measure activity on the Site and to improve your user experience, for example by remembering your passwords and viewing preferences. Cookies are used by Autism Speaks to measure activity on the Site and make improvements and updates based on which areas are popular and which are not. We will make available cookies, containing non-personally identifiable information such as IP address and pages viewed, regarding your activity on the Site to certain third party providers with whom we work, in order to show advertisements relating to this Site that may be of interest to you. Most browsers are initially set to accept cookies. If you'd prefer, you can set yours to refuse cookies or to alert you when cookies are being sent. However, it is possible that some parts of the Site will not function properly if you do so.
Children and Privacy
We will not knowingly market to or collect personally identifiable information from children under age 13.
3. HOW WE USE YOUR INFORMATION
We use the Personal Information we collect from and about you for the purposes set forth below. Please note that we may use and disclose Other Information for any purpose, except where we are required to do otherwise under applicable law. If we are required to treat Other Information as Personal Information under applicable law, then we may use and disclose it for all the purposes for which we use and disclose Personal Information.
To improve the quality of our services, we may combine the Personal and Other Information we collect with information that you provide to us in connection with us.
To provide and manage our relationship and/or services. We use the Personal Information we collect from and about you to provide our products and services and features to you and to improve upon our services, including, without limitation: to process and fulfill your donation, to send you information about your relationship or transactions with us, to measure and improve those services and features, to personalize your experience; to allow you to comment on content, participate in online games, contests, promotions or rewards programs, to provide you with customer support, and to respond to inquiries.
To contact you. Autism Speaks may periodically send promotional materials or notifications related to our products and services and/or the products and services of third parties to the email or postal address you provided. To help make these promotional materials more relevant to you, we may use and combine any of the Personal and Other Information we collect to assist us in sending you promotional materials. If you want to stop receiving promotional materials from us, please let us know by contacting us as described in the Contact Us section below or follow the unsubscribe instructions at the bottom of each email. There are certain service transactional notifications that you may not opt-out, such as billing and receipt notices, and notifications of date, locations, times and/or other changes to any Autism Speaks sponsored event to which you are registered. We may also use your email address to respond to inquiries or requests you make to us.
4. HOW WE SHARE YOUR INFORMATION
Information Made Public Through Use of Our Services and User Privacy Settings
Certain features on our website or other online services give you an opportunity to interact with us and others. These may include forums, message boards, chats, and creating community profiles. When you use these features, you should be aware that any information you submit, including your name, location and email address, may be publicly available to anyone, including other users, search engines, advertisers, third party application developers, and anyone else with access to our Online Services. We are not responsible for any information you choose to submit and make public through these interactive features.
Our Disclosure of Information
We also share your Personal and Other Information:
To allow third-party service providers to assist us in providing and managing Our Services. We may make your Personal and Other Information available to certain third-party service providers, such as contractors, agents or sponsors, who help us manage or provide our products and services by, for example: developing or supporting products and features; sending email messages on our behalf; processing payments; fulfilling orders; delivering subscriptions; auditing; processing data or statistics; and serving, customizing or delivering marketing or ads.
To permit third parties to send you promotional materials. We may share or trade your Personal and Other Information with other third party companies, groups, or non-profit organizations to directly market offers to you.
To protect the rights of Autism Speaks and our users. There may be instances when Autism Speaks may disclose your Personal and Other Information, including situations where we have a good faith belief that such disclosure is necessary in order to: (i) protect or defend the legal rights or property of Autism Speaks or its affiliates, or their employees, agents and contractors (including enforcement of our agreements); (ii) protect the safety and security of users of our products and services or members of the public; (iii) protect against fraud or for risk management purposes; (iv) comply with the law or legal process, including laws outside your country of residence; or (v) to respond to requests from public and government authorities including public and government authorities outside your country of residence.
To complete a merger or sale of assets. If Autism Speaks sells all or part of its business or makes a sale or transfer of its assets or is otherwise involved in a merger or transfer of all or a material part of its business, Autism Speaks may transfer your Personal and Other Information to the party or parties involved in the transaction as part of that transaction.
Mobile and Text Messaging
Text messaging originator opt-in data and consent will not be shared with any third parties unless required by law.
5. NOTICE
Means of Notice and Choice. This Privacy Policy is the primary means by which we provide you with notice and choice about our collection and use of your Personal Information. If we ask for specific Personal Information that will be used in a manner different from what is described in this Privacy Policy, we will inform you at the time of collection.
Privacy Policy Changes. Autism Speaks may modify this Privacy Policy as necessary.
Cross-Border Transfer. Your Personal Information may be stored and processed in any country where we have facilities or in which we engage service providers, and by using our products and services, you consent to the transfer of information to countries outside of your country of residence, including the United States, which may have different data protection rules than in your country.
Data Retention. We will retain your Personal Information for the period necessary to fulfill the purposes outlined in this Privacy Policy unless a longer retention period is required or allowed by law.
Linked Websites. Our Online Services may also be linked to sites operated by third parties, and may carry advertisements or offer content, functionality, games or applications developed and maintained by third parties. Some of these third party sites may be co-branded with an Autism Speaks logo, even though they are not operated or maintained by us. Autism Speaks is not responsible for the privacy practices of any such third parties, and once you leave our Online Services via a link, enable a third-party service, or click an advertisement, you should check the applicable privacy policy of the third-party site.
6. SECURITY
Autism Speaks takes reasonable efforts to secure and protect the privacy, accuracy, and reliability of your personal information and protect it from unauthorized access, misuse, alteration, and loss. Autism Speaks implements appropriate security measures consistent with industry standards. These include use of transport layer security (TLS) throughout the site to encrypt the transmission between this site and its users. Located in highly restricted locations, access to Autism Speaks servers is limited to authorized personnel. These servers are protected by antivirus and firewalls, all of which are regularly updated, constantly monitored for unauthorized access, and subjected to routine vulnerability testing. As no data security protocol is impenetrable, Autism Speaks cannot guarantee the security of our systems or databases, nor can we guarantee personal information we collect about you will not be breached, intercepted, destroyed, accessed, or otherwise disclosed without authorization. Accordingly, any information you transfer to Autism Speaks is provided at your own risk.
7. HOW TO ACCESS, CORRECT, UPDATE, OR DELETE YOUR INFORMATION
You can access or modify your information and modify your preferences by contacting us as indicated in the Contact Us section below.
You may also request to stop receiving electronic or postal notifications from Autism Speaks, request that we withhold your information from any third-party, or request Personal Information deleted entirely by Autism Speak at any time by contacting us as indicated in the Contact Us section below.
8. CONTACT US
To contact us in accordance with Section 7 of this policy, or if you have any further questions regarding this privacy policy or the use of your Personal and Other Information under this privacy policy complete our contact form to reach the appropriate team.
This policy was updated: February 2024