Privacy Policy

1. Information We Collect

1.1 Information You Provide to Us

We collect information you voluntarily provide when interacting with our services, including:

• Contact Information: Name, email address, phone number, and mailing address when you subscribe to our newsletter, create an account, or contact us.
• Account Information: Username, password, and profile details if you create an account on our website.
• Correspondence: Information you share when contacting us, including customer service inquiries, news tips, and feedback.
• Payment Information: Credit card details, billing address, and other financial information when you make a donation or purchase. Note that payment processing is handled by secure third-party payment processors who maintain their own privacy policies.
• Survey Responses: Information you provide when participating in surveys, contests, or promotions.

1.2 Information Collected Automatically

When you visit our website or use our services, we automatically collect certain information, including:

• Device Information: Device type, operating system, browser type, IP address, and device identifiers.
• Usage Information: Pages visited, time spent on pages, links clicked, and other actions taken on our website.
• Location Information: General location information derived from your IP address.
• Cookies and Similar Technologies: Information collected through cookies, web beacons, and similar technologies. See our Cookie Policy section for more details.

1.3 Information from Third Parties

We may receive information about you from third parties, including:

• Social media platforms when you interact with our content or connect your social media account with our services.
• Business partners, such as event co-sponsors or organizations we collaborate with on environmental initiatives.
• Publicly available sources to supplement the information we collect directly from you.

2. How We Use Your Information

We use the information we collect for the following purposes:

2.1 Providing and Improving Our Services

• Delivering the content, products, and services you request
• Processing transactions and sending related information
• Personalizing your experience based on your preferences
• Developing new features and improving our existing services
• Troubleshooting issues and providing customer support

2.2 Communication

• Sending newsletters, alerts, and other content you've subscribed to
• Responding to your inquiries, comments, and requests
• Informing you about changes to our services, policies, or terms
• Sending administrative messages and service announcements

2.3 Marketing and Advertising

• Sending promotional communications about our services and environmental campaigns
• Delivering targeted advertising based on your interests and activities
• Measuring the effectiveness of our marketing and advertising campaigns
• Inviting you to participate in events, surveys, or research

You can opt out of marketing communications at any time by following the unsubscribe instructions in our emails or contacting us directly.

2.4 Research and Analytics

• Analyzing usage patterns to understand how people use our services
• Conducting research to improve our content and user experience
• Generating aggregated, non-identifying analytics to assess performance

2.5 Legal and Security Purposes

• Protecting our rights, property, and safety, as well as those of our users and the public
• Detecting, preventing, and addressing fraud, security breaches, and technical issues
• Complying with legal obligations and enforcing our terms and policies
• Establishing, exercising, or defending legal claims

3. How We Share Your Information

We may share your information with the following categories of recipients:

3.1 Service Providers

We share information with third-party service providers who perform services on our behalf, such as:

• Payment processors for handling donations and purchases
• Email service providers for newsletter distribution
• Analytics providers to help us understand website usage
• Cloud hosting and storage providers
• Customer support services

These service providers are contractually obligated to use your information only for the purposes of providing services to us and in accordance with this Privacy Policy.

3.2 Business Partners

We may share information with organizations we collaborate with on environmental initiatives, events, or joint offerings. We will always make clear when this sharing occurs and will only share what is necessary for the specific collaboration.

3.3 Legal Requirements

We may disclose your information if required to do so by law or in response to valid requests by public authorities (e.g., court orders, government requests). We may also disclose information if we believe disclosure is necessary to protect our rights, property, or safety, or that of our users or others.

3.4 Business Transfers

If EcoWatch is involved in a merger, acquisition, or sale of all or a portion of its assets, your information may be transferred as part of that transaction. We will notify you of any change in ownership or uses of your information.

3.5 With Your Consent

We may share your information with third parties when you have given us your consent to do so.

3.6 Aggregated or De-identified Data

We may share aggregated or de-identified information that cannot reasonably be used to identify you with third parties for research, reporting, or statistical purposes.

4. Your Rights and Choices

Depending on your location, you may have certain rights regarding your personal information, including:

4.1 Access and Portability

You have the right to access the personal information we hold about you and, in some cases, receive this information in a structured, commonly used, and machine-readable format.

4.2 Correction

You have the right to request that we correct inaccurate or incomplete information about you.

4.3 Deletion

You have the right to request that we delete your personal information in certain circumstances, such as when the information is no longer necessary for the purposes for which it was collected.

4.4 Restriction and Objection

You have the right to request that we restrict the processing of your information or to object to our processing of your information in certain circumstances.

4.5 Withdrawal of Consent

Where we process your information based on your consent, you have the right to withdraw that consent at any time.

4.6 Opt-Out of Marketing

You can opt out of receiving marketing communications from us at any time by clicking the "unsubscribe" link in our emails, updating your communication preferences in your account settings, or contacting us directly.

4.7 How to Exercise Your Rights

To exercise your rights, please contact us using the information provided in the "Contact Us" section below. We will respond to your request within the timeframe required by applicable law. Please note that in some cases, we may need to verify your identity before processing your request.

5. Cookie Policy

5.1 What Are Cookies?

Cookies are small text files that are placed on your device when you visit a website. They are widely used to make websites work more efficiently and provide information to the website owners.

5.2 Types of Cookies We Use

We use the following types of cookies on our website:

• Essential Cookies: Necessary for the website to function properly. These cannot be disabled.
• Preference Cookies: Remember your settings and preferences to enhance your experience.
• Analytics Cookies: Help us understand how visitors interact with our website by collecting and reporting information anonymously.
• Marketing Cookies: Track your activity across websites to deliver personalized advertisements.

5.3 Third-Party Cookies

Some cookies are placed by third parties on our website, such as:

• Google Analytics to analyze website traffic
• Social media plugins to enable sharing content
• Advertising partners to deliver relevant ads

These third parties may use cookies, web beacons, and similar technologies to collect information about your use of our website and other websites.

5.4 Managing Cookies

You can control cookies through your browser settings. Most browsers allow you to block or delete cookies. However, if you block essential cookies, some features of our website may not function properly.

You can also manage your cookie preferences through our Cookie Consent tool, which appears when you first visit our website.

6. Data Security

We implement appropriate technical and organizational measures to protect your personal information against unauthorized access, disclosure, alteration, or destruction. These measures include:

• Encryption of sensitive information
• Regular security assessments and vulnerability testing
• Access controls limiting data access to authorized personnel
• Regular backups to prevent data loss
• Staff training on data protection and security practices

While we strive to protect your information, no method of transmission over the Internet or electronic storage is 100% secure. Therefore, we cannot guarantee absolute security of your data.

7. Data Retention

We retain your personal information for as long as necessary to fulfill the purposes outlined in this Privacy Policy, unless a longer retention period is required or permitted by law. The criteria used to determine our retention periods include:

• The length of time we have an ongoing relationship with you
• Legal obligations that require us to keep data for certain periods
• Statute of limitations for potential legal claims
• Our legitimate business needs

When we no longer need to retain your information, we will securely delete or anonymize it.

8. International Data Transfers

EcoWatch is based in the United Kingdom, but we may transfer, store, and process your information in countries other than your country of residence. These countries may have data protection laws that are different from those in your country.

When we transfer your information internationally, we take appropriate safeguards to ensure that your information receives an adequate level of protection, including:

• Using standard contractual clauses approved by relevant authorities
• Ensuring recipients adhere to binding corporate rules
• Relying on adequacy decisions for certain countries
• Obtaining your consent for specific transfers where appropriate

9. Children's Privacy

Our services are not directed to children under the age of 16, and we do not knowingly collect personal information from children under 16. If we learn that we have collected personal information from a child under 16, we will take steps to delete such information as quickly as possible.

If you believe that we might have collected information from a child under 16, please contact us immediately using the information provided in the "Contact Us" section.

10. Changes to This Privacy Policy

We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time to reflect changes in our practices or legal requirements. We will notify you of any material changes by:

• Posting the updated policy on our website with a new effective date
• Sending an email to users who have provided us with their email address
• Displaying a notice on our website

We encourage you to review this Privacy Policy periodically to stay informed about our data practices.

11. Contact Us

If you have any questions, concerns, or requests regarding this Privacy Policy or our data practices, please contact us at:

For data subjects in the European Union, please note that our Data Protection Officer can be contacted at dpo@ecowatch-news.com.

If you are not satisfied with our response to your concern, you may have the right to lodge a complaint with your local data protection authority.