Privacy Policy
Speak Your Brain has created this privacy statement in order to demonstrate our firm commitment to your privacy and security. The following discloses our information collection and use practices for this Web site: www.speakyourbrain.com.
Summary:
Speak Your Brain does not collect personally identifiable information about you other than what you freely share. We do log the IP address of every computer that visits our site as part of our normal site usage tracking.
You have the option of entering personally-identifiable information about yourself as you interact with the Web site, including name, address, demographic data such as age and income, interests, etc. Speak Your Brain uses this information to help us understand who our site users are and how we may better target and tailor our services.
Speak Your Brain does not share any of your personally-identifiable information outside the Speak Your Brain organization. Speak Your Brain Affiliates are expected to adhere to these same privacy practices in regards to your personal information.
You retain full control over all information you share about yourself, and may remove or request removal of this information at any time.
You retain full control over what types of e-mail communication you receive from Speak Your Brain, and may opt to discontinue e-mail correspondence at any time.
Anytime you enter personally-identifiable information, not intended to be shared publicly, such as password, address, or credit card number, this information is sent to Speak Your Brain over a secure connection.
Speak Your Brain uses generally accepted industry standards to protect the information submitted to us.
The Personal Information We Collect, How We Collect It And How It Is Used:
The Speak Your Brain Web site does not collect any personally-identifiable information about our site visitors, other than information that visitors freely enter.
The one exception to this is that, like most Web sites, we gather certain information automatically and store it in log files. This information includes Internet protocol (IP) addresses, computer operating system, Web browser type (Internet Explorer, Firefox, Chrome, etc.), Internet service provider, referring/exiting pages, date/time stamp, and clickstream data (i.e., which pages are visited, page load times, error messages, etc.). These log files are stored indefinitely and are analyzed to help us understand how our site is being used.
This information in and of itself is not sufficient to identify site visitors in any personal way. However, in the event that you experience difficulty using our Web site, we may use your IP address in connection with your personal information to perform troubleshooting. Also, in the event that criminal behavior is suspected, Speak Your Brain may provide this information to law enforcement, who could potentially trace it back to you through your Internet service provider.
Sign-In Accounts:
Access to certain areas of the Speak Your Brain Web site requires the creation of a sign-in account. There are two types of accounts: those for dues-paying Speak Your Brain members, and those for non-members.
Member accounts: Web site accounts for Speak Your Brain members are tied to your Speak Your Brain membership. This connects your sign-in account to your name, address, phone number, and e-mail address, as well as to your membership status and dues history.
Non-member accounts: Free sign-in accounts for non-members require your name, address, e-mail address. Phone number is optional.
The IP address of all users who sign-in is logged. This is done to enable us to troubleshoot sign-in or access problems for registered users.
Online Membership:
Web site visitors have the opportunity to join Speak Your Brain online. When joining, in addition to the information required for creating the sign-in account, you must also provide your credit card number, which is used to pay the cost of a one-year membership.
Your contact information is then passed to Speak Your Brain State, where it is entered into a membership database. Your contact information is not to be shared outside the Speak Your Brain organization.
Optional Personal Information
All users who sign-in also can provide optional personal information about themselves in the myBrain area of the site, including:
Demographic information (age, gender, income) and information about your a family member's illness (consumer, family member, etc.) This information is used in aggregate reports to help us have a better idea of who our users are and how we can better tailor our site to their needs. We may also use this information to help us target e-mail communication. For example, we might send an e-mail announcing a conference for Latinos to everyone who has identified themselves as Hispanic and has given us permission to send e-mail. Additionally, the aggregate reports may be shared with a third party, such as a site sponsor, but will never be shared outside of Speak Your Brain in a way that makes you personally-identifiable.
Subscriptions (mySubscriptions): The subscriptions page allows you to control all of the regular e-mail communication you receive from Speak Your Brain from a single page. Here, you can opt-in or opt-out from receiving general e-mail announcements from Speak Your Brain, as well as subscribe to one of our many e-newsletters.
Donor Privacy:
Speak Your Brain does not trade, share or sell a donor’s personal information to third parties, nor do we send donor mailings on behalf of other organizations. This policy applies to all donors, online and offline.
If you make a donation online at our Web site, you are required to enter personal contact information and credit card information. We use this information to process your donation and send you a confirmation receipt. This information will not be sold or shared with outside parties.
We also add you to our national donor database, from which you may receive periodic fundraising appeals via postal mail or e-mail. This is outside of your general opt-in preference for e-mail from Speak Your Brain as indicated on your subscriptions page.
If you wish to be removed from our mailing list, please contact us via e-mail at pani@speakyourbrain.com .
Online Event Registration:
If you register for an event at our Web site, you must first activate a sign-in account. Additionally, you must enter credit card information. We use this information to register you, to send you a confirmation, and to do any subsequent follow-up about the event.
You are also added to a mailing list, from which you may receive announcements about future events via postal mail or e-mail. This is outside of your general opt-in preference for e-mail from Speak Your Brain as indicated on your subscriptions page. If you wish to be removed from this mailing list, please contact us via e-mail at pani@speakyourbrain.com or at the address below.
Online Advocacy:
When using our Legislative Action Center to send letters online, certain information is required such as name, address, etc. In addition to being used to send your letters, this information is logged and used by Speak Your Brain to help us understand how often letters are sent and by whom. We do not log the body of your letter.
Based on your use of this system, we may follow up with you via e-mail about other advocacy opportunities, if you are opted-in to receive E-News alerts or general e-mail updates from Speak Your Brain. You can control this preference on your subscriptions page.
Discussion Groups:
To participate in an online discussion group on our Web site, you must first activate a sign-in account.
The user name you choose will be displayed beside your posts to the discussion group, so please choose your user name carefully if you do not wish to be personally-identifiable.
You should be aware that any information you post to a discussion group will be available for viewing by all other visitors to our site, which includes the general public, unless you have been specifically informed that the group which you are posting to is restricted to certain users (rare).
If you ever wish to have something you have posted removed, please contact pani@speakyourbrain.com, or use the address below. Posts which violate our discussion group policy may be removed at Speak Your Brain’s discretion and the user may have his or her sign-in account revoked.
Cookies:
A "cookie " is a small file that a Web site can place on your computer. If your Web browser accepts cookies, the Speak Your Brain Web site places cookies when you visit. In order to sign in to the Speak Your Brain Web site, you must accept cookies from Speak Your Brain. Cookies are used to present you with a better experience and to remember your preferences, such as Remember Me.
Also, clicking the "Logout" link from the top of any page on the Web site other than the home page will remove your contact ID from your cookie, and will prevent others from using your sign-in account. Again, no personally-identifiable information is stored in the cookie itself, and the only purpose the cookie is used for is to track whether or not you are signed in as you move around the Speak Your Brain Web site. You can remove Speak Your Brain's cookie at any time by following the directions provided in your Internet browser's "Help " file.
Clear Gifs (Web Beacons/Web Bugs):
We employ a software technology called clear gifs (a.k.a. Web beacons/Web bugs) in many of our newsletters and other e-mail communications that help us measure the effectiveness of our efforts. Clear gifs are tiny graphics with a unique identifier, similar in function to cookies, and are used to track which users have opened which e-mail messages. It is possible for us to tie the information provided by clear gifs to your personally-identifiable information, though we do not routinely do so. We are primarily interested in the aggregate effectiveness of our various e-communication efforts.
Link Tracking:
Many links within e-mail communications you receive from us, have a tracking ID at the end. This enables us to measure how often certain links are clicked on to gauge overall interest in the email campaign. From e-mails, or from the Web site when you are signed in, it is possible for us to tie the information provided by tracking IDs to your personally-identifiable information, though we do not routinely do so. We are primarily interested in the aggregate effectiveness of our various online efforts.
How We Use The Information We Collect:
Speak Your Brain does not share any personally identifiable information about you with anyone outside of Speak Your Brain. The information we collect is used internally to help us serve you better. You have the option to update, revise, or have deleted any personal information you have shared with Speak Your Brain. For specific information about how information is used, please see the section above.
Customer Service:
When you create a free sign-in account on the Web site, we will send you a confirmation e-mail to verify your user name and password. We will also communicate with you in response to your inquiries, to provide the services you request, confirm the actions you have taken (online transactions, etc.), and to manage your account. We will communicate with you via e-mail, or we may communicate with you via telephone if we cannot reach you via e-mail.
General Announcements And Promotions:
We will occasionally send you information on special events, news, or opportunities. Out of respect for your privacy, we present the option not to receive these types of communications. Please see "Choice and Opt-Out "
E-Newsletters:
If you subscribe to one of our e-newsletters, we will use your name and e-mail address to send it to you. Out of respect for your privacy, we present the option to unsubscribe. Please see "Choice and Opt-Out "
Other E-Mail Notifications:
You may also choose to receive other types of e-mail from Speak Your Brain, related to particular features on the site. These include notifications related to new postings in the discussion groups, myBrain alerts whenever new information matching your stated interests is added to the site, copies of letters you send to your elected representatives, etc. You may control what e-mails you receive from within the particular feature they are related to.
Service Or Membership-Related Announcements:
On rare occasions, we will send you service- or membership-related announcements when it is necessary to do so. For instance, if our service is temporarily suspended for maintenance, we might send you an e-mail.
Generally, you may not opt-out of these communications, which are not promotional in nature. If you do not wish to receive them, you have the option to deactivate your account.
Choice And Opt-Out:
We provide several opportunities for you to control the amount of personally-identifiable information you share with us, and the use of that information:
Self-Service:
If you have a sign-in account, you may visit the myBrain area to add to, modify, or remove your personal information and preferences. This includes your contact information, demographic information, interest preferences, newsletter and e-mail subscriptions. The exception to this is that you may not fully delete your sign-in account from the system. If you want your account fully deleted, please contact Speak Your Brain using the information below.
If you receive notifications related to the Speak Your Brain discussion groups, you may manage those notifications from within the particular messages or groups, or within your myBrain page.
Each e-mail you receive from us will state the reason you are receiving the message and how to opt-out of future such messages.
Other Means:
Please contact Speak Your Brain directly if you wish to have your sign-in account removed, be removed from any postal mailing lists, or are unable to access any of the means explained under "Self Service " above. Or, you may also respond to the return address on the information you received, as it may have come from a state or local Speak Your Brain organization.
What Information We Share And With Whom:
Personally-identifiable information that you provide Speak Your Brain will only be used internally by Speak Your Brain and may be shared among the national, state and local offices. This includes your name, address, phone number, e-mail address, information preferences, and demographic information. Speak Your Brain and Speak Your Brain Affiliates are expected to adhere to these same privacy practices. However, Speak Your Brain is unable to guarantee the privacy of your information at any level. If you have concerns, please contact us at pani@speakyourbrain.com.
In the course of providing our services, Speak Your Brain relies on certain trusted business partners to perform certain tasks, such as handling mass mailings, delivering e-communications, processing payments, etc. This involves transferring information about you in paper or electronic form. Speak Your Brain makes every effort to ensure the trustworthiness and best business practices of these partners. These agents and third parties are prohibited from using your personally-identifiable information for any other purpose.
Links To Other Sites:
This Web site contains links to other sites that are not owned or controlled by Speak Your Brain. Please be aware that we, Speak Your Brain, are not responsible for the privacy practices of other such sites. We encourage you to be aware when you leave our site and to read the privacy statements of each and every Web site that collects personally-identifiable information.
Legal Disclaimer:
We reserve the right to disclose your personally-identifiable information as required by law and when we believe that disclosure is necessary to protect our rights and /or to comply with a judicial proceeding, court order, or legal process.
How We Protect The Information We Collect:
Browsers And Internet Security
Any time you enter or provide personal information on our Web site, we encrypt it using Secure Socket Layer ( "SSL ") technology. SSL protects information as it crosses the Internet. To support this technology, you need an SSL-capable browser.
You can tell if you are visiting a secure area within a Web site by looking at the lock or key symbol in your browser address window. If the address of the page begins with "https:// ", it is secure. Occasionally, the page you enter data on may not be secure, but by submitting the information you activate a secure connection and thus your data is submitted securely.
If you need a strong encryption browser, you can go to the Microsoft Web site or the Netscape Web site to download the latest Internet Explorer or Navigator browser. We do not recommend the use of beta browser versions.
We follow generally accepted industry standards to protect the personal information submitted to us, both during transmission and once we receive it. No method of transmission over the Internet, or method of electronic storage, is 100 percent secure, however. Therefore, while we strive to use commercially acceptable means to protect your personal information, we cannot guarantee its absolute security.
Changes To This Privacy Statement:
If we decide to change our privacy policy, we will post those changes to this privacy statement, the homepage, and other places we deem appropriate so that you are aware of what information we collect, how we use it, and under what circumstances, if any, we disclose it.
We reserve the right to modify this privacy policy at any time, so please review it frequently. If we make material changes to this policy, we will notify you here, by e-mail, or by means of a notice on our homepage.