This Privacy Policy describes how we at Progressive Expert Consulting, Inc., (“PEC”, “vConnect”, “we” or “us”) collect, use, store, and share your information whenever you use our Services. These Services include each and every way you might interact with us through our website and mobile application. This Privacy Policy may be revised periodically, and new revisions will be reflected by changes to the “Last Updated” date above. At times, we may also provide you with additional notices such as adding a statement to our website homepage or sending you a notification. Please revisit this page to stay up to date on any changes. Your continued use of the vConnect Services constitutes your agreement to this Privacy Policy and any amendments thereto.
This Privacy Policy is incorporated into, and is subject to, the vConnect Terms of Use. Your use of the vConnect Services and any personal information you provide through the vConnect Services remains subject to the terms of this Privacy Policy and our Terms of Use.
If you do not agree with our Privacy Policy or Terms of Use, please delete your Account, uninstall the vConnect application and discontinue use of the vConnect Services; your continued usage of the vConnect Services will signify your assent to and acceptance of our Privacy Policy and Terms of Use.
Please note that any Public Submissions, which are part of User Content, or other content posted at the direction or discretion of users of the vConnect Service, become published content and are not considered personally identifiable information subject to this Privacy Policy.
This Privacy Policy does not apply to the practices of companies that we don’t own or control, or to individuals whom vConnect does not employ or manage, including any of the third parties to which vConnect may disclose user information as set forth in this Privacy Policy.
Information We Collect
1. What You Directly Provide Us
For you to create a vConnect Account, we need to collect a few important details about you: a unique username you’d like to be known as; a password; answer some questions about your age; your device identifiers; and provide any one or more of the following to identify you in communications from and to your vConnect Account (“Account Identifiers”) – an email address we can contact you at, a mobile phone number or other social media profiles. You may update or correct most of the basic vConnect Account information by editing your Account settings within vConnect. If you delete your Account, keep in mind that we may retain certain information in backup for a limited period of time, or as required by law.
2. What You Automatically Provide Us When You Use Our Services
Because vConnect is about direct communications with people you know, there is some information we collect automatically when you access our Services which we use to facilitate the broad range of communications offered through our Services:
- Usage Information. We may collect information about your activity and the messages you send and receive through our Services. For example, we collect information such as the time, date, sender, the recipient of a message.
- Content Information. We may retain information and content you provide to our Services. For example, we retain shared documents and materials for conferences.
- Device Information. We may collect information about your device, including the hardware model, operating system and version, unique device identifiers, browser type and language, mobile device phone number, and mobile network information. We also collect certain device information that will help us diagnose problems in the rare event you experience any crash or other problem while using our Services, such as the list of apps on your device and other information about your device’s performance at the time of the event for troubleshooting purposes.
- Website Log Information. When you use the vConnect website, our servers automatically record certain information that your web browser sends whenever you visit any website. These server logs may include information such as your web request, Internet Protocol (“IP”) address, browser type, browser language, referring / exit pages and URLs, platform type, number of clicks, domain names, landing pages, pages viewed and the order of those pages, the amount of time spent on particular pages, the date and time of your request, one or more cookies that may uniquely identify your browser, your Account, the Account you are requesting the status of and various status information. When you use the vConnect Service, our servers log certain general information that our application sends whenever a message is sent or received, or if you update or request any status information, including time and date stamps and the mobile phone numbers the messages were sent from and to.
3. The Information vConnect Does Not Collect
Except for the Account Identifiers you provide directly to us, vConnect does not collect names, emails, addresses or other contact information.
4. Information We Collect When You Contact Us
When you contact us for support or communicate with us in any other way, we’ll collect whatever information you volunteer. For instance, if you submit artwork, files, or any other materials to us through our websites, we will collect what you give us. This information is subject to the Terms of Use section regarding Feedback.
How We Use Information
If you submit personally identifiable information to us through the vConnect Services, then we use your personal information to operate, maintain, and provide to you the features and functionality of the vConnect website and vConnect mobile application. In particular, your Account Identifiers are essential to your use of the vConnect Service and will be retained. Any personally identifiable information within your Public Submissions that you voluntarily disclose in the vConnect Services becomes publicly available and may be collected and used by other users of the vConnect Service (unless such user is blocked by you). Your name (as it is saved in other user’s mobile phone address book or contact list) may be displayed to other users when you update your Public Submissions through the vConnect Service and other users may contact you through the vConnect Service. We do not use your Account Identifiers or other personally identifiable information to send commercial or marketing messages without your consent or except as part of a specific program or feature for which you will have the ability to opt-in or opt-out. We may, however, use your Account Identifiers without further consent for non-marketing or administrative purposes (such as notifying you of major vConnect Site or vConnect Service changes or for customer service purposes). We may use both your personally identifiable information and certain non-personally-identifiable information (such as anonymous user usage data, cookies, IP addresses, browser type, clickstream data, etc.) to improve the quality and design of the vConnect website and vConnect Services and to create new features, promotions, functionality, and services by storing, tracking, and analyzing user preferences and trends. We may use cookies and log file information to: (a) remember information so that you will not have to re-enter it during your visit or the next time you use the vConnect Services or vConnect website; (b) provide custom, personalized content and information; (c) monitor individual and aggregate metrics such as total number of visitors, pages viewed, etc.; and (d) track your entries, submissions, views and such.
Where Information Is Processed and Data Security
The Services are hosted, controlled, and offered by vConnect from its facilities in the United States of America, and are governed by U.S. law. vConnect makes no representations that the vConnect Services are appropriate or available for use in other locations. Those who access or use the vConnect Services from outside the United States of America do so at their own volition and are responsible for compliance with local law. If you are a user accessing the Services from the European Union, Asia, or any other region with laws or regulations governing personal data collection, use, and disclosure that differ from those of the United States, please be advised that through your continued use of the Services, you are transferring your personal information to the United States and you consent to that transfer.
vConnect uses commercially reasonable physical, managerial, and technical safeguards to preserve the integrity and security of your personal information. We cannot, however, ensure or warrant the security of any information you transmit to vConnect and you do so at your own risk. Using unsecured Wi-Fi or other unprotected networks to submit messages through the vConnect Service is never recommended. Once we receive your transmission of information, vConnect makes commercially reasonable efforts to ensure the security of our systems. However, please note that this is not a guarantee that such information may not be accessed, disclosed, altered, or destroyed by breach of any of our physical, technical, or managerial safeguards. If vConnect learns of a security systems breach, then we may attempt to notify you electronically so that you can take appropriate protective steps. vConnect may post a notice on the vConnect Site or through the vConnect Service if a security breach occurs.
How We Share Information
- We share messages to other vConnect users who you specifically communicate with.
- We share your Public Submissions, including selfies, photos, your display name and other user content that you provide with other vConnect users who you interact with on the Services.
We do not sell or share your personally identifiable information with other third-party companies for their commercial or marketing use without your consent or except as part of a specific program or feature for which you will have the ability to opt-in or opt-out. We may share your personally identifiable information with third party service providers to the extent that it is reasonably necessary to perform, improve or maintain the vConnect Service. We may share non-personally-identifiable information (such as anonymous user usage data, referring / exit pages and URLs, platform types, asset views, number of clicks, etc.) with interested third-parties to assist them in understanding the usage patterns for certain content, services, advertisements, promotions, and/or functionality on the vConnect Site.
We may share information about you with service providers who perform services on our behalf, and we may share information about you with your consent or at your direction, or as otherwise provided in this Privacy Policy.
We may also share aggregated or de-identified information, which cannot reasonably be used to identify you. As an example: Because it’s not always clear whether a new friend request comes from someone you actually know, we may share whether you and the requestor have vConnect friends in common without disclosing the usernames of those common friends.
The Services may also contain third-party links provided by another company. By going to those links, you may be providing personal information directly to the third party, us, or both. You acknowledge and agree that we are not responsible for how those third parties collect or use your information. As always, we encourage you to review the privacy policies of every third-party website or service that you visit or use, including those third parties you interact with through our Services.
We may collect and release personally identifiable information and/or non-personally-identifiable information if required to do so by law, or in the good-faith belief that such action is necessary to comply with state and federal laws (such as U.S. Copyright Law), international law or respond to a court order, subpoena, or search warrant or equivalent, or where in our reasonable belief, an individual’s physical safety may be at risk or threatened. vConnect also reserves the right to disclose personally identifiable information and/or non-personally-identifiable information that vConnect believes, in good faith, is appropriate or necessary to enforce our Terms of Use, take precautions against liability, to investigate and defend itself against any third-party claims or allegations, to assist government enforcement agencies, to protect the security or integrity of the vConnect Site or our servers, and to protect the rights, property, or personal safety of vConnect, our users or others.
Children
vConnect is neither directed to, nor intended for people who are under 13 years old; persons under the age of 13 are prohibited from creating vConnect Accounts, and we do not knowingly collect any personal information from anyone under 13. If vConnect learns that personally identifiable information of persons under 13 years of age has been collected in the vConnect Services, then vConnect may deactivate the Account and delete all such information.
Otherwise, you affirm that you are either at least 18 years of age, or an emancipated minor, or possess legal parental or guardian consent, and are fully able and competent to enter into the terms, conditions, obligations, affirmations, representations, and warranties set forth in these Terms, and to abide by and comply with these Terms. In addition, you affirm that you have not been previously suspended or removed from the Services and do not have more than one vConnect Account.
In the Event of Merger, Sale, or Bankruptcy
In the event that vConnect is acquired by or merged with a third party entity, we reserve the right to transfer or assign the information we have collected from our users as part of such merger, acquisition, sale, or other change of control. In the unlikely event of our bankruptcy, insolvency, reorganization, receivership, or assignment for the benefit of creditors, or the application of laws or equitable principles affecting creditors’ rights generally, we may not be able to control how your personal information is treated, transferred, or used.
Update to this Privacy Policy
We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time. If we modify our Privacy Policy, we will post the revised version here, with an updated revision date. You agree to visit these pages periodically to be aware of and review any such revisions. If we make material changes to our Privacy policy, we may also notify you by other means prior to the changes taking effect, such as by posting a notice on our websites or sending you a notification. By continuing to use our website after such revisions are in effect, you accept and agree to the revisions and to abide by them.
How to Contact Us
Should you have questions or comments related to this Privacy Policy, please contact us by visiting https://www.pecinc.com/pages/vconnect/privacy or by sending mail to: vconnect@pecinc.com
The vConnect Privacy Policy was revised and effective as of 2020-10-12.