Privacy Policy

At ConnectedCity.com, we are committed to maintaining the accuracy, confidentiality, and security of our users’ personal information. As part of our commitment, the following Ten Privacy Principles, based on the Canadian Personal Information Protection and Electronic Documents Act, govern our actions as they relate to the use of our users’ personal information.

Ten Privacy Principles:

Principle 1 – Accountability

ConnectedCity.com is responsible for maintaining and protecting the personal information under its control. ConnectedCity.com has a designated an individual who is accountable for compliance with the Ten Privacy Principles.

Principle 2 - Identifying Purposes

The purposes for which personal information is collected will be identified before or at the time the information is collected.

Principle 3 – Consent

Knowledge and consent are required for the collection, use or disclosure of personal information except where required or permitted by law.

Principle 4 - Limiting Collection

The personal information collected must be limited to those details necessary for the purposes identified by ConnectedCity.com.

Principle 5 - Limiting Use, Disclosure and Retention

Personal information may only be used or disclosed for the purpose for which it was collected unless the user has otherwise consented, or when it is required or permitted by law. Personal information may only be retained for the period of time required to fulfill the purpose for which it was collected or as required by law.

Principle 6 – Accuracy

Personal information must be maintained in as accurate, complete and up-to-date form as is necessary to fulfill the purposes for which it is to be used.

Principle 7 - Safeguarding User Information

Personal information must be protected by security safeguards that are appropriate to the sensitivity level of the information.

Principle 8 – Openness

ConnectedCity.com will make information available to our users concerning the policies and practices that apply to the management of their personal information.

Principle 9 - User Access

Upon request, a user shall be informed of the existence, use and disclosure of their personal information, and shall be given access to it. Users may verify the accuracy and completeness of their personal information, and may request that it be amended, if appropriate.

Principle 10 - Handling User Complaints and Suggestions

Users may direct any questions or enquiries with respect to the privacy principles outlined above or about our practices by contacting:

ConnectedCity.com
#115 – 887 Great Northern Way
Vancouver, BC Canada V5T 4T5
Phone: 604-294-8733
Email: [email protected]
www.ConnectedCity.com

Before ConnectedCity.com is able to provide you with any information or correct any inaccuracies, however, we may ask you to verify your identity and to provide other details to help us to respond to your request. We will endeavor to respond within an appropriate timeframe. If you have questions or concerns regarding our organization's Privacy Policy and practices, you should first contact ConnectedCity.com directly. If you do not receive acknowledgment of your inquiry or your inquiry has not been satisfactorily addressed, you should then contact the Privacy Commissioner's Office at http://www.privcom.gc.ca (or 112 Kent Street, Ottawa, Ontario, K1A 1H3), who will then serve as a liaison with ConnectedCity.com to resolve your concerns.

WHAT INFORMATION IS COLLECTED?

ConnectedCity.com collects personal information from users during the member registration process and at several different points on the website. Providing us with your personal information is always your choice. Most of the information we collect comes to us directly from you, and only with your consent.

When you visit the ConnectedCity.com Website, information is not collected that could identify you personally unless you choose to provide it voluntarily. You are welcome to browse the Website at any time anonymously and privately without revealing any personal information about yourself. ConnectedCity.com is the sole owner of the information collected on ConnectedCity.com and does not share this information with third parties.

TYPES OF INFORMATION WE COLLECT Personal Information

Personal information is information that refers to you specifically. With your consent, we may gather personal information from you in person, over the telephone or by corresponding with you via mail, facsimile, the Internet, or from referrals by third parties. In order to become a member of ConnectedCity.com and manage your member account, a user must first complete the registration form. During registration a user is required to give his/her contact information, including name and email address. ConnectedCity.com may use this information to inform the user about services on our Website for which he/she has expressed an interest. It is optional for the user to provide demographic information but he/she is encouraged to do so as this information will allow ConnectedCity.com to provide each user with content and newsletters that more closely matches his/her interests.

Anonymous/Non-Personal Information

At ConnectedCity.com, we routinely collect anonymous/non-personal information. Anonymous/non-personal information is information that we do not associate with or trace back to a specific individual or business entity. For example, our web servers collect some anonymous/non-personal information automatically when you visit the ConnectedCity.com Website. Gathered electronically, this information may include the pages you visited, the type of web browser you are using, the level of encryption your browser supports and your Internet Protocol address. The anonymous/non-personal information collected may be used for research and analytical purposes.

HOW YOUR INFORMATION IS USED

We use personal information to communicate with you, process applications and ultimately to provide you with the services you have requested. We use anonymous/non-personal information to improve our products and services.

Newsletter

During the registration process new members are asked if they would like to subscribe to our newsletters so we ask for contact information such as name and email address. We also ask for information related to your particular interests in order to provide you with newsletter content that matches your particular profile. Out of respect for our users’ privacy we provide a way to opt out of these communications in the “My Account” area by clicking on the “Edit Profile” section and then selecting the “No” option associated with a particular newsletter’s opt-in request.

Service Announcements

If our service is temporarily suspended for maintenance we might send users an email to notify them of this fact. Generally, users may not opt out of these communications, although they can deactivate their account. However, these communications are not promotional in nature.

Customer Service

We communicate with users on a regular basis to provide requested services. In regards to issues relating to a user’s account we reply via email or over the telephone, in accordance with the users’ wishes.

Profiles

ConnectedCity.com stores information that is collected through cookies and log files to create a profile of our users. A profile is stored information that we keep on individual users that details their viewing preferences. Consequently, collected information is tied to the users’ personally identifiable information to provide offers and improve the content of the Website for the user. This profile is used to tailor a user's visit to our Website, and to direct pertinent marketing promotions to them. We do not share your profile with third parties.

Cookies

A cookie is a piece of data stored on the user's computer tied to information about the user. We use both session cookies and persistent cookies. For the session cookie, once users close the browser, the cookie simply terminates. A persistent cookie is a small text file stored on the user's hard drive for an extended period of time. Persistent cookies can be removed by following Internet browser help file directions.

By setting a cookie on our Website, users would not have to log in a password more than once, thereby saving time while on our Website. If users reject the cookie, they may still use our Website. The only drawback to this is that the user might be limited in some areas of our Website. For example, all member functions posting messages on the message board, requesting additional information from providers, saving searches, etc. require the use of either a session or persistent cookie selectable in the user profile settings. Persistent cookies enable us to enhance the experience on our Website by customizing content based on whether a visitor is a member or not, or when they most recently visited the Website.

Log Files

Like most standard Website servers we use log files. We use a third party tracking service called Google Analytics. Our log files include internet protocol (IP) addresses, browser type, internet service provider (ISP), referring/exit pages, platform type, date/time stamp, and number of clicks to analyze trends, administer the Website, track users’ movement in the aggregate, and gather broad demographic information for aggregate use. IP addresses, and user specific information, are not linked to the personally identifiable information that our log files record.

WHEN INFORMATION MAY BE DISCLOSED TO OUTSIDE PARTIES

We are obliged to keep your personal information confidential except under the following special circumstances.

Business Transitions

In the event ConnectedCity.com goes through a business transition, such as a merger or being acquired by another company, or selling a portion of its assets, users' personal information will, in most instances, be part of the assets transferred. Users will be notified via email prior to a change of ownership or control of their personal information. If as a result of the business transition, the users' personally identifiable information will be used in a manner different from that stated at the time of collection they will be given choice consistent with our notification of changes section.

Surveys and Contests

From time-to-time our Website requests information from users via surveys or contests. Participation in these surveys or contests is completely voluntary and the user therefore has a choice whether or not to disclose this information. The requested information typically includes contact information, such as name and shipping address and demographic information, such as postal code. Contact information will be used to notify the winners and award prizes. Anonymous survey information will be used for purposes of monitoring or improving the use and satisfaction of this Website. Users' personally identifiable information is not shared with third parties unless we give you prior notice and choice and the choice of whether or not to disclose such information.

Users of our Website are always notified when their [personal] information is being collected by any outside parties. We do this so our users can make an informed choice as to whether or not they should proceed with services that require an outside party.

Choice/Opt-Out

Our users are given the opportunity to "opt-out" of having their [personal] information used for purposes not directly related to our Website at the point where we ask for information. For example, our order form has an "opt-out" mechanism so users who buy a product from us, but don't want any marketing material, can keep their email address off of our lists.

Users who no longer wish to receive our newsletter and promotional communications may opt-out of receiving these communications by replying with unsubscribe as the subject line in the email, by emailing us at [email protected], or “My Profile” area by clicking on the “Edit Profile” section and then de-selecting the option associated with a particular newsletter’s opt-in request. We also offer an opt-out mechanism on our newsletter or by mail:

ConnectedCity.com
#115 – 887 Great Northern Way
Vancouver, BC Canada V5T 4T5
Phone: 604-294-8733
Email: [email protected]
www.ConnectedCity.com

When Required By Law

Although we make every effort to preserve user privacy, we may need to disclose personal information when required by law wherein we have a good-faith belief that such action is necessary to comply with legislation, a current judicial proceeding, a court order or legal process served on our Website.

WITH WHOM WE MAY SHARE YOUR INFORMATION

Personal Information

Our Employees

In the course of daily operations, access to private, sensitive and confidential information is restricted to authorized employees who have a legitimate business purpose and reason for accessing it. As a condition of their employment, all employees of ConnectedCity.com are required to abide by the Privacy Policy we have established. Employees are informed about the importance of privacy and prohibited from disclosing any user information to unauthorized individuals or parties.

Anonymous/Non-Personal Information

Aggregate Information (Non-Personally Identifiable)

We share aggregated demographic information with our partners and advertisers. This is not linked to any personally identifiable information.

Third Party Advertisers

ConnectedCity.com shares Website usage information about users with third parties for the purpose of targeting our Internet banner advertisements on this Website and other Websites. For example, an advertiser may use cookies, which allow them to recognize a user's cookie when a user visits this Website. The information they collect and share through this technology is not personally identifiable.

SUPPLEMENTATION OF INFORMATION

In order for this Website to properly fulfill its obligation to users, it is necessary for us to supplement the information we receive with information from third party sources.

Enhancement Of Marketing Profile

We may purchase third party marketing data and add it to our existing user database to better target our advertising and provide pertinent offers we think would be of interest to our users. We use this information to enhance or overlay the "profile" of individual users. This aggregate marketing data is therefore tied to the users' personally identifiable information.

HOW WE SAFEGUARD YOUR INFORMATION

ConnectedCity.com takes every reasonable precaution to protect our users' personal information. When users submit personal information via the Website, their information is protected both online and offline. Only employees who need the information to perform a specific job (for example, our billing clerk or a customer service representative) are granted access to personally identifiable information. All employees are kept up to date on our security and privacy practices. Our employees are notified and/or reminded about the importance we place on privacy, and what they can do to ensure that our users' information is protected.

Electronic user files are kept in a highly secured environment with restricted access. Paper-based files are stored in locked filing cabinets. Access is also restricted. Finally, the servers that store personally identifiable information are in a secure environment, in a locked facility. If users have any questions about the security at our Website, users can send an email to either the Privacy Officer or [email protected].

ASSESSING, AMENDING AND DELETING/DEACTIVATING YOUR INFORMATION

At ConnectedCity.com, decisions are made based on the information we have. Therefore, it is important for your personal information to be accurate and complete. As a user, you have the right to access, verify, amend and delete any information held in your personal files.

Accessing Your Information

You may access and verify any of your personal information, including postal code, phone, email or postal address, on the member information page of our Website or by emailing our Customer Support at [email protected].

Amending Your Information

To help us keep your personal information up-to-date, we encourage you to amend inaccuracies and make corrections as often as necessary. Despite our efforts, errors sometimes do occur. Should you identify any incorrect or out-of-date information in your account, we will make the proper changes. Where appropriate, we will communicate these changes to other parties who may have unintentionally received incorrect information from us.

Deletion/Deactivation of Information

In addition to amending portions of your personal information, if you no longer desire our service, you may delete or deactivate all of the personal information we keep on file.

To Make A Change

To make a change to the personal contact information contained in your file, you may do one of the following:

a. Go to your Member Profile information page of our Website that is accessible when you’ve signed in to ConnectedCity.com or,
b. Email our Customer Support at [email protected].
In each case, you will be required to verify your identity by providing some personally identifying information.

QUESTIONS, CONCERNS AND COMPLAINTS

ConnectedCity.com considers itself a model for ethical e-business practices. Therefore, we strive to make users feel comfortable regarding how we collect and use your personal information. If users have any questions or suggestions regarding our Privacy Policy, please contact us at:

ConnectedCity.com
#115 – 887 Great Northern Way
Vancouver, BC Canada V5T 4T5
Phone: 604-294-8733
Email: [email protected]
www.ConnectedCity.com

UPDATING THIS PRIVACY POLICY

If we decide to change this Privacy Policy, we will post those changes to this privacy statement, the homepage, and other places we deem appropriate so that our users are always aware of what information we collect, how we use it, and under what circumstances, if any, we disclose it. We will use information in accordance with the Privacy Policy under which the information was collected.

If, however, we are going to use users' personally identifiable information in a manner different from that stated at the time of collection we will notify users via email. Users will have a choice as to whether or not we use their information in this different manner. However, if users have opted out of all communication with the Website, or deleted/deactivated their account, then they will not be contacted, nor will their personal information be used in this new manner. In addition, if we make any material changes in our privacy practices that do not affect user information already stored in our database, we will post a prominent notice on our Website notifying users of the change. In some cases where we post a notice we will also email users, who have opted to receive communications from us, notifying them of the changes in our privacy practices.

WEBSITES GOVERNED BY THIS POLICY

The Website that is governed by the provisions and practices stated in this Privacy Policy is: ConnectedCity.com.

OTHER WEBSITES

This Website contains links to other third party Websites that are not governed by this Privacy Policy. Although we endeavor to only link to Websites with high privacy standards, our Privacy Policy will no longer apply once you leave the ConnectedCity.com Website. Please be aware that ConnectedCity.com is not responsible for the privacy practices of such third party Websites. We encourage our users to be aware when they leave our Website and to read the privacy statements of each and every Website that collects personally identifiable information to learn how your information may be collected, used, shared and disclosed.