The Mearns Guide Privacy Policy
Introduction
Welcome to www.themearnsguide.co.uk. We are committed to protecting your privacy and ensuring that your personal information is handled in a safe and responsible manner. This Privacy Policy outlines how we collect, use, disclose, and protect your information.
Grounds for data collection
Processing of your personal information (meaning, any information which may potentially allow your identification with reasonable means; hereinafter " Personal Information
") is necessary for the performance of our contractual obligations towards you and providing you with our services, to protect our legitimate interests and for compliance with legal and financial regulatory obligations to which we are subject.
When you use the Site, you consent to the collection, storage, use, disclosure and other uses of your Personal Information as described in this Privacy Policy.
We encourage our Users to carefully read the Privacy Policy and use it to make informed decisions.
Information we collect?
We collect two types of data and information from Users when you visit our website, download or install the mobile app, register on our site, fill out a form, place an order or interact with other site features.
The first type of information is un-identified and non-identifiable information pertaining to a User(s), which may be made available or gathered via your use of the Site (“ Non-personal Information ”). We are not aware of the identity of a User from which the Non-personal Information was collected. Non-personal Information which is being collected may include your aggregated usage information and technical information transmitted by your device, including certain software and hardware information (e.g. the type of browser and operating system your device uses, language preference, access time, etc.) in order to enhance the functionality of our Site. We may also collect information on your activity on the Site (e.g. pages viewed, online browsing, clicks, actions, etc.).
The second type of information Personal Information
which is individually identifiable information, namely information that identifies an individual or may with reasonable effort identify an individual.
The types of information we may collect include:
- Non-Personal Identification Information: Browser type, operating system, mobile type, Internet service provider (ISP), and other technical information.
- Usage Data: Pages you visit, the time and date of your visit, time spent on those pages, and other diagnostic data.
- Personal Identification Information: Name, email address, phone number, mailing address, payment information, and other personal details.
We do not rent, sell, or share Users’ information with third parties except as described in this Privacy Policy.
We may use the information for the following:
- Communicating with you – sending you notices regarding our services, providing you with technical information and responding to any customer service issue you may have;
- To communicate with you and to keep you informed of our latest updates and services;
- To serve you advertisements when you use our Site (see more under "Advertisements");
- To market our websites and products (see more under "Marketing");
- Conducting statistical and analytical purposes, intended to improve the Site
In addition to the different uses listed above, we may transfer or disclose Personal Information to our subsidiaries, affiliated companies and subcontractors.
In addition to the purposes listed in this Privacy Policy, we may share Personal Information with our trusted third party providers, who may be located in different jurisdictions across the world, for any of the following purposes:
- Hosting and operating our Site;
- Providing you with our services, including providing a personalized display of our Site;
- Storing and processing such information on our behalf;
- Serving you with advertisements and assist us in evaluating the success of our advertising campaigns and help us retarget any of our users;
- Providing you with marketing offers and promotional materials related to our Site and services;
- Performing research, technical diagnostics or analytics;
User Rights
You may request to:
- Receive confirmation as to whether or not personal information concerning you is being processed, and access your stored personal information, together with supplementary information.
- Receive a copy of personal information you directly volunteer to us in a structured, commonly used and machine-readable format.
- Request rectification of your personal information that is in our control.
- Request erasure of your personal information.
- Object to the processing of personal information by us.
- Request to restrict processing of your personal information by us.
- Lodge a complaint with a supervisory authority.
However, please note that these rights are not absolute, and may be subject to our own legitimate interests and regulatory requirements.
If you wish to exercise any of the aforementioned rights, or receive more information, please contact us using at the email address provided below:
info@themearnsguide.co.uk.
Use of The Mearns Guide - App Specific
The Application may collect some Personal Data from its Users. The data is held in accordance with guidelines provided by the Information Commissioner's Office.
Types of Data Collected
Within the scope of Personal Data that this Application gathers, individually or via third parties, include: Geographic location, Cookie, and Usage Data. Additional Personal Data gathered may be delineated within other sections of this privacy policy or explained specifically in connection with the Data collection.
Users may choose to provide Personal Data voluntarily or have it gathered automatically during their use of this Application. The utilization of Cookies - or other tracking tools - either by this Application or by the proprietors of third-party services utilized by this Application, unless otherwise noted, is employed to identify Users and retain their preferences solely for the purpose of furnishing the service as required by the User.
Should certain Personal Data not be provided, this Application may be unable to render its services. Users accept liability for any Personal Data of third parties published or exchanged through this Application and affirm their right to communicate or distribute such data, thereby absolving the Data Controller of any responsibility.
Methods of Processing the Data
The Data Controller ensures that Users' Data is handled securely and with care, implementing measures to prevent unauthorized access, disclosure, alteration, or destruction. Data processing takes place using computer systems and IT tools, following specific organizational protocols closely aligned with the designated purposes.
Furthermore, besides the Data Controller, certain personnel involved in the site's operations (e.g., administration, sales, marketing, legal, system administration) or external entities (like third-party technical service providers, mail carriers, hosting providers, IT companies, communications agencies) may have access to the Data as Data Processors, as appointed by the Owner when necessary. An up-to-date list of these entities can be obtained from the Data Controller upon request.
The Use of Collected Data
User information is collected to enable the Application to offer its services and for the following reasons: accessing third-party service accounts, location-based interactions, commenting on content, and engaging with external social networks and platforms. Specific sections of this document outline the Personal Data used for each purpose.
Interaction with external social networks and platforms
These services facilitate direct interaction with social networks or other external platforms from the pages of this Application. The interaction and information accessed through this Application are always governed by the User’s privacy settings on each social network. If a service that enables interaction with social networks is installed, it may gather traffic data for the pages on which the service is present, even if Users do not utilize it.
Location-based interactions - Geolocation
This application may collect, utilize, and disclose user location data to offer location-based services. Additionally, most browsers and devices offer default tools to opt out of this feature. If explicit permission is granted, this application may track the user's location data. Personal data collected includes geographic positions.
Retention
We will retain your personal information for as long as necessary to provide our services, and as necessary to comply with our legal obligations, resolve disputes, and enforce our policies. Retention periods will be determined taking into account the type of information that is collected and the purpose for which it is collected, bearing in mind the requirements applicable to the situation and the need to destroy outdated, unused information at the earliest reasonable time. Under applicable regulations, we will keep records containing client personal data, account opening documents, communications and anything else as required by applicable laws and regulations.
We may rectify, replenish or remove incomplete or inaccurate information, at any time and at our own discretion.
Cookies
We and our trusted partners use cookies and other technologies in our related services, including when you visit our Site or access our services.
A "cookie" is a small piece of information that a website assign to your device while you are viewing a website. Cookies are very helpful and can be used for various different purposes. These purposes include allowing you to navigate between pages efficiently, enable automatic activation of certain features, remembering your preferences and making the interaction between you and our Services quicker and easier. Cookies are also used to help ensure that the advertisements you see are relevant to you and your interests and to compile statistical data on your use of our Services.
The Site uses the following types of cookies:
a. 'session cookies'
which are stored only temporarily during a browsing session in order to allow normal use of the system and are deleted from your device when the browser is closed;
b. 'persistent cookies
' which are read only by the Site, saved on your computer for a fixed period and are not deleted when the browser is closed. Such cookies are used where we need to know who you are for repeat visits, for example to allow us to store your preferences for the next sign-in;
c. 'third party cookies'
which are set by other online services who run content on the page you are viewing, for example by third party analytics companies who monitor and analyze our web access.
Cookies do not contain any information that personally identifies you, but Personal Information that we store about you may be linked, by us, to the information stored in and obtained from cookies. You may remove the cookies by following the instructions of your device preferences; however, if you choose to disable cookies, some features of our Site may not operate properly and your online experience may be limited.
We also use a tool called “Google Analytics” to collect information about your use of the Site. Google Analytics collects information such as how often users access the Site, what pages they visit when they do so, etc. We use the information we get from Google Analytics only to improve our Site and services. Google Analytics collects the IP address assigned to you on the date you visit sites, rather than your name or other identifying information. We do not combine the information collected through the use of Google Analytics with personally identifiable information. Google’s ability to use and share information collected by Google Analytics about your visits to this Site is restricted by the Google Analytics Terms of Use
and the Google Privacy Policy.
Third party collection of information
Our policy only addresses the use and disclosure of information we collect from you. To the extent you disclose your information to other parties or sites throughout the internet, different rules may apply to their use or disclosure of the information you disclose to them. Accordingly, we encourage you to read the terms and conditions and privacy policy of each third party that you choose to disclose information to.
This Privacy Policy does not apply to the practices of companies that we do not own or control, or to individuals whom we do not employ or manage, including any of the third parties which we may disclose information as set forth in this Privacy Policy.
How do we safeguard your information?
We take great care in implementing and maintaining the security of the Site and your information. We employ industry standard procedures and policies to ensure the safety of the information we collect and retain, and prevent unauthorised use of any such information, and we require any third party to comply with similar security requirements, in accordance with this Privacy Policy]
. Although we take reasonable steps to safeguard information, we cannot be responsible for the acts of those who gain unauthorised access or abuse our Site, and we make no warranty, express, implied or otherwise, that we will prevent such access.
Transfer of data outside the EEA
Please note that some data recipients may be located outside the EEA. In such cases we will transfer your data only to such countries as approved by the European Commission as providing adequate level of data protection, or enter into legal agreements ensuring an adequate level of data protection.
Advertisements
We may use a third-party advertising technology to serve advertisements when you access the Site. This technology uses your information with regards to your use of the Services to serve advertisements to you (e.g., by placing third-party cookies on your web browser).
You may opt-out of many third-party ad networks, including those operated by members of the Network Advertising Initiative ("NAI") and the Digital Advertising Alliance ("DAA"). For more information about this practice by NAI and DAA members, and your choices regarding having this information used by these companies, including how to opt-out of third-party ad networks operated by NAI and DAA members, please visit their respective websites: http://optout.networkadvertising.org/#!/ and http://optout.aboutads.info/#!/.
Marketing
We may use your Personal Information, such as your name, email address, telephone number, etc. ourselves or by using our third party subcontractors for the purpose of providing you with promotional materials, concerning our services, which we believe may interest you.
Out of respect to your right to privacy we provide you within such marketing materials with means to decline receiving further marketing offers from us. If you unsubscribe we will remove your email address or telephone number from our marketing distribution lists.
Please note that even if you have unsubscribed from receiving marketing emails from us, we may send you other types of important e-mail communications without offering you the opportunity to opt out of receiving them. These may include customer service announcements or administrative notices.
Corporate transaction
We may share information in the event of a corporate transaction (e.g. sale of a substantial part of our business, merger, consolidation or asset sale). In the event of the above, the transferee or acquiring company will assume the rights and obligations as described in this Privacy Policy.
Minors
We understand the importance of protecting children’s privacy, especially in an online environment. The Site is not designed for or directed at children. Under no circumstances shall we allow use of our services by minors without prior consent or authorisation by a parent or legal guardian. We do not knowingly collect Personal Information from minors. If a parent or guardian becomes aware that his or her child has provided us with Personal Information without their consent, he or she should contact us at info@themearnsguide.co.uk.
Updates or amendments to this Privacy Policy
We reserve the right to periodically amend or revise the Privacy Policy; material changes will be effective immediately upon the display of the revised Privacy policy. The last revision will be reflected in the "Last modified" section. Your continued use of the Platform, following the notification of such amendments on our website, constitutes your acknowledgment and consent of such amendments to the Privacy Policy and your agreement to be bound by the terms of such amendments.
How to contact us
If you have any general questions about the Site or the information we collect about you and how we use it, you can contact us at info@themearnsguide.co.uk
The Mearns Guide
Last Modified: 06/07/2024
