Privacy Policy

Privacy Policy

Effective as of October 28, 2020.

Thank you for visiting the Legal Aid Disaster Resource Center (the “Site”). This Privacy Policy applies only to the Site, which is controlled by the Legal Services Corporation (“we”, “our” or “us”), and it pertains only to information that we collect through the Site. BY USING THE SITE, YOU CONSENT TO THE TERMS AND CONDITIONS OF THIS PRIVACY POLICY AND TO OUR PROCESSING OF PERSONAL AND NON-PERSONAL INFORMATION FOR THE PURPOSES STATED BELOW. IF YOU DO NOT AGREE TO THE TERMS AND CONDITIONS OF THIS PRIVACY POLICY, PLEASE DO NOT USE THE SITE.

We collect two types of information from Site visitors: (1) Personal Information; and (2) Non-Personal Information. Specific information regarding our data collection is detailed below.

PERSONAL INFORMATION

“Personal Information” refers to information that allows others to identify or contact you specifically. We may collect various forms of Personal Information, including the following:

• Email
• Address
• Phone Number

For instance, if you agree to receive newsletters and other information from us, we may collect your email address. We may also pair your email address with your address and any other information you provide to determine whether you may be eligible to receive services from providers in your state or local community, and to ensure the information we provide will be relevant to you.

Although you are under no obligation to provide the information requested, if you decline to do so, we may be unable to provide you with information about certain services. If you do not want us to collect your Personal Information, please do not provide it to us.

NON-PERSONAL INFORMATION

Unlike personal information, “Non-Personal Information” does NOT identify you personally.  Non-personal information can be technical or demographic information, such as your age, gender, zip code or other geolocation data, or interests. Below are some examples of the Non-Personal Information that we collect via the Site and descriptions of how this information may be used:

• Internet Protocol (IP) address – An IP address is an identifying number that allows computers connected to the Internet to send and receive information. It permits your computer or network to provide data, for instance, to the web pages you view, and vice versa. We use your IP address to deliver our web pages to users upon request, to tailor our Site to the interests of our users, and to measure traffic within our Site.
• Web Beacons (also known as “clear gifs,” “web bugs” or “pixel tags”) – Web beacons are tiny graphics with a unique identifier, similar in function to cookies. We use web beacons to count the number of users who have visited certain pages of the Site and to assess the effectiveness of our programs and services. When used in HTML-formatted email messages, web beacons can tell the sender whether and when an email has been opened. In contrast to cookies, which are stored on a user’s computer hard drive, web beacons are embedded invisibly on web pages.
• Demographic Information – Demographic information includes your gender, age, zip code, and interests, which the Site may automatically collect. We use your demographic information to provide you with personalized services and to ensure the information provided by the Site meets your needs. Please note that we consider aggregated demographic information, which is not personally identifiable, to be Non-Personal Information.
• Addresses Searched and Corresponding Information – We will save addresses typed into our search tool along with corresponding information results to evaluate user interest in particular geographic areas as well as results obtained. In turn, we will use this data on an aggregate level to assess the effectiveness of our outreach and website promotion strategies as well to inform our future research.

We may collect the above Non-Personal Information from all visitors to our Site. If you do not want us to have access to your Non-Personal Information, please do not visit our Site.

USE OF INFORMATION COLLECTED VIA THE SITE

Personal Information

We use Personal Information that is collected on the Site for the following primary purposes:

• To deliver services to you
• To provide you with information regarding programs and services in your area
• To verify your email address
• To answer your questions or other requests
• To contact you regarding your use of the Site or our services
• To notify you about a material change to this Privacy Policy or our services, if necessary
• To otherwise administer the Site or your interaction with our services

We may use your Personal Information in other ways as well to further the overall purpose of the Site’s operation. By providing your Personal Information, you are consenting to our use of it.

Non-Personal Information

We use your Non-Personal Information as described above and in other ways permitted by applicable laws, including combining Personal Information with Non-Personal Information.

For example, we may use Non-Personal Information and usage data to: (i) create marketing analyses and reports showing how our users collectively interact with our services; (ii) develop reports that help us and other strategic third parties in determining the interests of Site users; or (iii) improve our program and service offerings. Such reports will be shared with the Legal Services Corporation and third parties assisting our administration of this Site and its services. Please note that while Personal Information may inform the development of any such reports, reports will not contain your Personal Information.

USE OF INFORMATION COLLECTED VIA THE SITE

Personal Information

Examples of ways in which we may share or disclose your Personal Information include the following:

• To fulfill a service to you. For instance, if you request assistance from us regarding preparing for disasters in your area or finding a community service provider, we may share your Personal Information in order to provide the assistance to you.
• To promote the contribution of unaffiliated third-party service providers, agents, independent contractors who help us maintain our Site and provide other administrative services to us (including, but not limited to, processing your requests, providing customer service, maintaining and analyzing data, and sending customer communications on our behalf). We seek to ensure that these unaffiliated third parties do not use obtained Personal Information for any other purpose than to provide the administrative services for which they are responsible. If you do not want our unaffiliated third-party service providers to have access to your Personal Information for the purpose of assisting LSC in the Site’s maintenance, please do not register or submit any Personal Information to us.
• To comply with the law or in the good faith belief that such action is necessary to conform to the requirements of law, to comply with legal process served on us, or to protect and defend our rights or property. The Site may also act in urgent circumstances to protect the personal safety of our end users.
• To further the work of third parties as part of any corporate reorganization process including, but not limited to, mergers, acquisitions, and sales of all or substantially all of LSC’s assets.
• To track and analyze non-identifying information and aggregate usage data from the Site’s visitors and provide such information to third parties.
• To protect against potential fraud. We may verify with third parties the information collected from the Site. In the course of such verification, we may receive Personal Information about you from such services.

Except as described in this Privacy Policy or at the time we request the information, we do not use, share, or otherwise disclose your Personal Information to any third parties helping us administer the Site or our services. If you do not consent to your Personal Information being disclosed as discussed above, please do not provide it to us.

Non-Personal Information

Similar to our use of Personal Information, we share Non-Personal Information collected through Site in the manner disclosed above. We may share this Non-Personal Information with third parties helping to administer the Site or our services.

CHILDREN UNDER AGE 13

The Site does not target children under the age of 13 or knowingly collect Personal Information from such individuals. If we become aware that a child under 13 has provided us with Personal Information, we will take steps to remove such information.

OPTING-OUT

You may opt-out of receiving promotional messages from us or strategic third parties at any time. For communications through subscription services (e-mail alerts, text alerts, etc.), you can opt-out through the means provided by that service. We will process your unsubscribe as soon as possible, but please be aware that in some circumstances you may receive a few additional messages until the unsubscribe is processed. Please also note that unsubscribing from promotional e-mails will not opt you out of transactional communications or communications we are required to send.

YOUR DISCLOSURE TO THIRD PARTIES

If you respond to any interactive advertisement or offer by a third party (whether via e-mail, message, or otherwise), or if you request information about a product, program or service offered by a third party, your Personal Information will be disclosed to such third party. We cannot control, nor do we make any representations about, the collection or use of your information by such third parties. If you choose to register for or subscribe to any such third party product or service, any further correspondence between you and such third party including, without limitation, any resulting contractual agreements, are solely between you and the third party. We are not responsible for upholding any applicable terms, conditions, representations, or warranties made by the advertiser/third party in connection therewith and shall otherwise have no liability associated with your interaction with such third party.

CORRECTING INACCURACIES IN YOUR PERSONAL INFORMATION

If you would like access to any information we may have collected about you, or if you have any concerns regarding the accuracy of such information, please contact us at: dbonebrake@lsc.gov.

PROTECTING YOUR INFORMATION

We consider the confidentiality and security of your information to be paramount. We use physical, technical, and administrative security measures to keep your Personal Information secure and confidential. We will not provide your Personal Information to third parties, except to those entities supporting our administration of the Site, as required by law, or as otherwise provided in this Privacy Policy. Despite our best efforts to protect your information, the Internet is not a secure environment. There remains a risk that an unauthorized third party may circumvent our security measures, or that information you transmit through the internet to our Site may be intercepted. Accordingly, we cannot guarantee, nor do we make any representations about, the security of your information.

If we learn of a security breach, we may attempt to notify you electronically so that you can take appropriate protective steps. Specifically, we may post a notice on our Site if a security breach occurs. We may also send an email to the e-mail address you have provided, or a physical letter to the home address you have provided. Depending on where you live, you may have a legal right to receive notice of a security breach in writing. By using this Site or providing Personal Information to us, you agree to such communications regarding any security, privacy, or administrative issues specific to your use of the Site. However, nothing about this policy or your use of the Site vests LSC with an obligation to notify you of a breach.

THIRD PARTY WEB SITES

This Privacy Policy applies solely to information we collect through the Site. Though the Site may contain links to other web sites, we are not responsible for, nor do we make representations about, the privacy practices of these other web sites.

DO NOT TRACK SIGNALS

Please note that our Site does not support “Do Not Track” browser settings and does not currently participate in any “Do Not Track” frameworks that would allow us to respond to signals or other mechanisms from you regarding the collection of your Personal or Non-Personal Information.

ASSIGNMENT

In the event that all or part of our assets are sold or acquired by another party, or in the event of a merger, you grant us the right to assign the Personal and Non-Personal Information collected via the Site to another party.

CHANGES TO THIS PRIVACY POLICY

We reserve the right to modify this Privacy Policy as our services evolve or as is necessary to respond to changing legal regulations and business concerns. When we modify this Policy, we will also revise its “effective” date. For material changes to this Privacy Policy increasing our ability to use or disclose the Personal Information you have provided to us, we will attempt to obtain your consent before implementing the change by sending a notice to the primary e-mail address we have on file or by placing a prominent notice on the Site.

QUESTIONS

For inquiries regarding this Privacy Policy, please contact us at: dbonebrake@lsc.gov.