Privacy Policy

PenPal News Privacy Policy

Welcome to the PenPal News website (the “Site”). PenPal News knows that you care about how your personal information is used and shared, and we take your privacy seriously. We will only use your data as set forth in this Privacy Policy. This Privacy Policy discloses the privacy practices for the Site and explains how PenPal News (“us” or “we”) collects and uses information from users who access the Site and use our services.

Please read the following information carefully before accessing the Site. The Privacy Policy may be amended at any time, with or without notice to users. We encourage you to periodically visit this page to review the current Privacy Policy.

Your use of the Site constitutes your agreement to abide by this Privacy Policy and your consent to our collection and use of your information, including personally identifiable information, as set forth in this Privacy Policy. Please regularly consult this Privacy Policy in order to be aware of updated practices. If you would not like PenPal News to collect and use your information in the manner set forth in this Privacy Policy, please do not provide that information to us.

Type of Information We Collect and How We Use It

Generally, we will collect certain Aggregate Information, Personal Information, or both when you subscribe to our products or services; contact us; participate in forums, or message boards; rate, tag, or comment on articles; or participate in surveys, contests, or games.

1. Aggregate Information

A. Collection. We may collect and use general, non-identifying information (“Aggregate Information”) to improve the content of our Site, for systems administration, and for trouble-shooting purposes. This Site’s servers may automatically collect information about your computer, including information such as the following, as well as other information:

· Your Internet Protocol (“IP”) address, which can identify the location from which you entered the Internet;

· The type of web browser you use;

· The type of operating system you use, such as your company or the domain name of your Internet Service Provider (“ISP”); and

· Webpages that you visit and the number of pages you visit.

B. Use. We may use Aggregate Information to help improve your use of the Site. For example, we may use this information to analyze trends to improve the Site’s design and content and to help diagnose technical problems. We may also use this information in seeking advertisers and partners.

2. Personal Information

A. Collection. We also collect what we call “Personal Information”, which is any information that you voluntarily submit to us, such as:

· Your name;

· Email address;

· School name;

· City, state, and country;

· Gender;

· Age; and

· Hobbies and interests.

Often, we request this information when you:

· Register or create a profile on the Site;

· Inquire about our Pen Pal News, and its products or services;

· Request support;

· Join an on-line community, forum, or message board;

· Send us an email;

· Enter a contest or complete a survey; or

· Otherwise contact us using Personal Information.

Certain actions that you perform on the Site may trigger the collection of additional Personal Information. Here are some examples:

· Forums and Message Boards. Please be aware that any Personal Information as well as any other information or content that you post on a forum or message board, or otherwise disclose may be collected and used directly by third parties. We cannot control the actions of other users with whom you may choose to share information. You should have no expectation of privacy with respect to your communications through these Forums.

· Contests. We may, from time to time, sponsor contests or other events (“Events”) which require the collection, processing, and storage of individual contact information and demographic information of those wishing to participate. These Events may prompt participants to answer survey questions. Any personally identifiable information collected in connection with these Events will be treated as Personal Information. No purchase is ever necessary to participate in an Event. Please see the official rules of each Event for more information. We may co-sponsor Events with other companies, in which case any information collected is likely to be shared with participating sponsors, who may use this information as they wish. A registrant’s personal contact information will not be released to any third party organization, other than the named sponsors, without the registrant’s consent.

· Third Party Information. You may choose to register or enter a contest on behalf of another person. The personal information of another person also constitutes Personal Information.

B. Use. No information of any student or adult that makes identity and location known to the public will be released on the non-password protected portion of PenPal News without authorization from a student’s teacher or without express written permission from the teacher or the student’s parent or legal guardian.

We may use your Personal Information for one or more of the following purposes:

· The specific purposes for which you provide the information to us;

· To fulfill your requests for, products, services, programs, subscriptions, and offerings;

· To send you information about your transactions with us;

· To send you a confirmation or to notify you that you have won a contest;

· To provide you with notification of the Site’s new products, programs, services, or features;

· To enhance or develop the Site’s features, products, or services; or

· To personalize content and advertising that you and others see on the Site.

We may also use the Personal Information we collect for internal purposes, which may require the transfer of such information to our other offices, affiliates, or third party service providers. This transfer may be necessary for administrative purposes, technical maintenance, communication about customer service issues, the marketing and promotion of products and services that might be of interest to you, and to use in seeking advertisers and partners.

Except as set forth in this Privacy Policy, PenPal News is not responsible for the confidentiality of any information communicated to PenPal News and such information will be considered non-personal, non-confidential, and non-proprietary. You agree that PenPal News may use anything you post or submit, including any feedback, information, and ideas, for the purpose of marketing PenPal News, or for any other purpose without limitation and without the need to compensate you. You agree not to take action against PenPal News or its owner in relation to content you submit when visiting the Site.

3. Security Measures

We have put in place appropriate physical, electronic, and managerial procedures in order to secure the information we collect online, prevent unauthorized access, maintain data accuracy, prevent fraud, ensure the correct use of information, and for risk management purposes. Please note that PenPal News does not employ Secure Socket Locker (SSL) technology.

4. Sharing Aggregate and Personal Information

We reserve the right to share both Aggregate and Personal Information we collect from you with third parties if we are authorized to do so, if we believe in good faith that the law requires it, to protect the rights of Pen Pal News, or as part of a sale disposition of our assets (including our membership and customer records). We may also use and disclose Personal Information to comply with any court order or government investigation, subpoena or inquiry, as otherwise required by law, or to protect the property or personal safety of Pen Pal News, users of the Site, or the public. We may also use and disclose Personal Information to prevent or trace abuses of the Site, including but not limited to use of a forum or message boards.

Cookies

When you visit the Site you will be issued a “cookie,” a small text file placed on your user’s hard drive to track your use of the Site. Cookies help to prevent you from having to register or re-enter your information every time you visit the Site. Cookies are also used to authenticate your identity and provide us with certain information about your computer, but will not interfere with the operation of your computer. We may use cookies to gain knowledge of Internet usage and to improve the Site’s content and advertisements.

Some cookies may contain your Personal Information, and such cookies may be shared with our affiliates.

If you would like to avoid cookies, your web browser may have an option that enables you to disable or not accept cookies. Please note, however, that some aspects of the Site may not function properly if you choose to disable or not accept cookies.

Web Beacons

We may use web beacons to gather metrics from anonymous web users and email recipients for the purpose of operating and improving the Site and email communications. A web beacon is an electronic image that is embedded in a web page or email which allows us to track when users view a web page or recipients open an email containing a beacon. We do not identify the name of a web user or the email address of a web recipient when we use web beacons.

Disclaimer

While we have taken reasonable steps to limit the uses of information you provide and we may allow you to set privacy options that limit access to information you post on the Site, please be aware that no security measures are perfect or impenetrable. We cannot and do not guarantee that this information will remain permanently secure and will not be viewed by unauthorized persons. There is always a possibility that your information could be lost due to technical problems or stolen from our databases. We are not responsible for any such loss, theft, circumvention of any privacy settings or security measures, or any other unanticipated security breach.

Even after removal, copies of information you post may remain viewable in cached and archived pages, or if other users have copied or stored this information.

Third Parties

This policy does not apply to websites or practices of companies that Pen Pal News does not own or control, or to individuals that Pen Pal News does not employ or manage.

1. Hyperlinks

We may post hyperlinks to third-party websites (“Third Party Sites”). We cannot control the actions of Third Party Sites, and are not responsible for their use of any information that you provide directly to them. We advise you to take the time to educate yourself about the privacy policy and terms of use of any website that you visit. We do not control or endorse Third Party Sites.

2. Third Party Advertisements

Third party advertisements that appear on the Site are sometimes delivered (or “served”) directly to users by third party advertisers. The advertisers may automatically receive your IP address when they deliver advertisements to you. These third party advertisers may also download cookies to your computer, or use other technologies to measure the effectiveness of their ads and to personalize advertising content. Cookies allow the advertiser to recognize your computer each time that advertisers sends you an advertisement. In this way, an advertiser may compile information about where individuals using your computer or browser saw the advertisements and determine on which advertisements users have clicked. This privacy policy does not cover the use of cookies or other tracking technologies by third party advertisers.

We do not have access to or control of the cookies that may be placed on your computer by the third party advertisers, and third party advertisers do not have access to your contact information stored on the Site unless you choose to share this information with them.

Again, if you would like to avoid cookies, your web browser may have an option that enables you to disable or not accept cookies. Please note, however, that some aspects of the Site may not function properly if you choose to disable or not accept cookies.

Revisions to the Privacy Policy

We may periodically update the features of the Site to better serve you and all our customers. We reserve the right to change this Privacy Policy at any time and without advance notice and any modifications are effective when they are posted here. Please re-visit this page to review the most current Privacy Policy. The date of the newest version will be posted below.