Privacy Policy

Right To Be, Inc. (“Right To Be”, “we”, “our”, or “us”) is the owner and operator of the sites  https://righttobe.org/ and https://stories.righttobe.org/ (the “Sites”). This Privacy Policy applies to the  Sites and any other websites or services offered by us that reference or link to this Privacy Policy  (collectively, the “Services”). “You” or “Your” refers to the person accessing the Services. This Privacy  Policy provides important information regarding the collection, use, and disclosure of personal  information collected on the Services when you register with, access, or use the Services.  

This Privacy Policy is incorporated into and subject to the Terms of Use. Each time that you access or  use the Services you signify that you agree to be bound by the Terms of Use and this Privacy Policy. IF  YOU DO NOT AGREE WITH OUR POLICIES AND PRACTICES, DO NOT REGISTER WITH, ACCESS, OR USE THE  SERVICES. 

Information obtained from our business customers pursuant to our contractual arrangements  (“Customer Data”) is subject to the privacy and data protection requirements set forth in those  agreements and is processed at the direction of the respective business customer. If you have questions  about Customer Data, please contact the relevant data controller for further assistance or contact  [email protected] for help in identifying the appropriate contact. 

1. COLLECTION OF PERSONAL INFORMATION 

“Personal information” is data that can be used to uniquely identify or contact a single person (directly  or indirectly). We may collect the following kinds of personal information for members (verified and  unverified) of the Services and for visitors who use the Services.  

Information you provide directly to us. 

Members. If you register as a member on the Services, we collect your name, email address, display  name, password, and profile photo. If you are a verified member, you can view help requests and  provide support on the Services. To become a verified member, you must link and connect a Twitter,  LinkedIn, or other social media account to your account on the Services or have a current verified  member recommend you. As a verified member, you may share details of a story of harassment,  including whether you experienced such harassment or witnessed such harassment, the location of such  harassment, the type of harassment experienced, the narrative of the harassment, a photo representing  the experience of such harassment.  

Journalists. If you are a verified member and a journalist, you can request a “journalist account” on the  Services to allow for more specific and attentive support from other members. If we grant you a  journalist account, you may be subject to additional moderation review and authentication.  

Visitors and Others. Even if you do not use the Services as a member, you may still provide us  information. We may use links throughout the Services to provide you with the opportunity to contact  us via email to partner with us, ask questions, receive newsletters, and attend webinars. To do so, we  may request additional personal information from you such as your name, email address,  company/organization name, title, entity type, operating budget, phone number,  company/organization’s physical address, and any other details you may provide. If you decide to  donate to us, you will provide us with payment information such as the donation amount, donation frequency, payment method, and where a credit card is used, name, address, credit card number,  expiration date, and credit card security.  

Information we collect automatically. 

We or our service providers may collect certain information automatically or passively when you use our  Services, such as your Internet protocol (IP) address and other device identifiers that are automatically  assigned to your computer or device when you access the Internet such as browser type, operating  system, Internet service provider, pages that you visit before and after using the Services, the date and  time of your visit, information about the links you click and pages you view within the Services, and  other standard server log information. This information helps us manage, improve, and customize the  Services.  

We may use cookies, pixel tags, and similar technologies to automatically collect this information as  further set forth in our cookie policy. Cookies are small bits of information that are stored by your  computer’s web browser. Pixel tags are very small images or small pieces of data embedded in images,  also known as “web beacons” or “clear GIFs,” that can recognize cookies, the time and date a page is  viewed, a description of the page where the pixel tag is placed, and similar information from your  computer or device. We may also use analytics software or providers (such as Google Analytics) to help  us operate our business and the Services or administer activities on our behalf. Google Analytics is a web  analytics service provided by Google, Inc. that uses cookies to help the Services analyze how users  navigate the Services. The information generated by the cookie about your use of the Services (including  your IP address) will be transmitted to and stored by Google in aggregate form. Google uses this  aggregated information on our behalf in order to evaluate use of the Services, compile reports on  Services activity and other services relating to activity and usage of the Services. You can learn more  about Google Analytics and how to opt out here: https://tools.google.com/dlpage/gaoptout. 

We may utilize a short-lived form of cookie when you visit the Services. A cookie is used to identify one  unique visitor from another visitor during a particular session. A session is the period of active Services use while that unique visitor is linked to our server. We may use cookie technology during a session as a  

tool to carry forward your input information. This enables the visitor to input their information once  and have the information appear later. A pixel tag may tell your browser to get content from another  server. We, or our service providers, may place cookies or similar files on your computer or other  devices used to access the Services for security purposes, to facilitate Services navigation and to  personalize your experience while visiting the Services.  

1. USE OF INFORMATION 

We use payment information, such as credit card numbers, expiration date, and security codes, as  necessary to complete a particular transaction such as a donation, or as otherwise required by law. 

We use the personal information we collect for a variety of business purposes, depending on how you  interact with the Services, including to: 

• Share member-inputted stories of harassment and to facilitate commentary on such stories; • Assist partners in setting up local Right To Be sites; 
• Assist members in setting up accounts with Right To Be; 
• Sign up member or visitors for e-mail updates; 
• Communicate support resources with members who have shared stories of harassment;
• Share anonymized member reports (e.g., narrative of a story of harassment, location of a story  of a harassment) or non-personal aggregate data with third party researchers for research  purposes or universities or legislators for advocacy purposes; 
• Analyze the use of the Services and member data to understand and improve the Services; 
• Customize the content you see when you use the Services – for example, location information is used to tag the location of a story of harassment reported by a member, which location may be  edited by the member; 
• Respond to your questions or requests;  
• Do all things necessary to provide and administer the Services;  
• Manage, protect, and improve the Services; and  
• For any other purposes disclosed to you at the time we collect your information or pursuant to  your consent. 

III. DISCLOSURE OF INFORMATION 

We want you to understand when and with whom we may share the information we collect. 

• General Public. We may disclose information to the general public via the Services if you submit  content in a public forum, such as stories of harassment or comments on such stories. If you  choose to engage in public activities on the Services, you should be aware that any information  you share there can be read, collected, or used by other users of these areas. You should use  caution in disclosing personal information while participating in these areas. We are not  responsible for the information you choose to submit in these public areas. 
• Advocacy. We may disclose your anonymized information (e.g., location of harassment) to  universities or legislators for advocacy purposes. 
• Research. We may disclose your anonymized information to third party researchers (e.g.,  narrative of harassment) for research purposes. 
• Service Providers. We may disclose your personal information to service providers that require  access to your personal information for business purposes, to protect the security and integrity  of the Services, to correct technical problems and malfunctions of the Services, to technically  process your personal information, to provide the Services, or to take precautions against  liability. We also may provide your personal information to service providers who provide  services on our behalf, such as our website developer or analytics provider.  
• Legal purposes. We may disclose information to other third parties as required to respond to  subpoenas, court orders, legal process, law enforcement requests, legal claims or government  inquiries, and to protect and defend the rights, interests, safety, and security of Right To Be, our  affiliates, members, or the public. Such information disclosed includes any information  disclosed or collected in connection with a member-inputted story of harassment, including the  content of such story and the name and e-mail address of the member. 
• Business transfers. We may share your information in connection with a substantial corporate  transaction, such as the sale, merger, consolidation, asset sale, change in control,  reorganization, or in the unlikely event of bankruptcy of our business.
• With your consent. We may share information for any other purposes disclosed to you at the  time we collect the information or pursuant to your consent.  
• Mobile Carriers. If you request the Services via a mobile device, your request will be transmitted  via your mobile carrier’s network and your carrier may have access to it. Consult your carrier’s  privacy policy for additional information. 

1. THIRD-PARTY SITES AND PLATFORMS 

The Services may include links to third-party websites or services that we think may be of interest to  you. Please note that these websites and services are independent from the Services and are not  controlled by us. These links are made available to your as a convenience, and you agree to use these  links at your own risk. If you access third-party services, such as Facebook, ShareThis, Google, or Twitter,  through the Services to login to the Services or to share information about your experience on the  Services with others, these third-party services may be able to collect information about you, including  information about your activity on the Site, and they may notify your connections on the third-party  services about your use of the Site, in accordance with their own privacy policies.  

We may collect information including your email address, location, and other biographical information  from such third-party websites or services. The information we receive from these third-party websites  or services depends on your privacy settings. You should always review, and if you prefer, adjust your  privacy settings on third-party websites and services before linking them to or interacting with them  through the Services. You should always review, and, if you prefer, adjust your privacy settings on third party websites and services before linking or connecting them to the Services. We are not responsible  for the content or privacy practices of other websites or platforms. Your use of such third-party websites  or services, including using them to interact with the Services, will be subject to the third party’s privacy  policy and terms of use.  

1. YOUR RIGHTS AND CHOICES 

Your California Privacy Rights.  

California Civil Code Section 1798.83 entitles California residents the right to request from a business  with whom the California resident has an established business relationship which types of personal  information, if any, concerning whether a business has disclosed personal information to any third  parties for the direct marketing purposes by such third parties and the identities of the third parties with  whom the business has shared such information in the mediately preceding calendar year. We do not  currently share your personal information with third parties for direct marketing purposes by such  parties and have not done so in the last 12 months. You may request more information by contacting us  using the contact information at the bottom of this Privacy Policy.  

Website Data Collection and “Do Not Track” Notices. Except as otherwise provided herein, we do not  knowingly allow other parties to collect personal information about your online activities over time and  across third-party websites when you use the Services. The Sites do not currently respond to browser based do not track signals. For more information on Do Not Track, please visit http://allaboutdnt.org. 

Your Choices. If you need to correct, update, delete, or deactivate your personal information or change  your contact information, please contact us at any time by sending an email to [email protected]. Please note that we may not be able to correct or update your personal information previously provided  to us by third parties.  

You may be able to refuse or disable cookies by adjusting your web browser settings. Because each web  browser is different, please consult the instructions provided by your web browser (typically in the “help” section). If you do disable or opt out of receiving cookies, please be aware that some features  and services on the Services may not work as intended and you may not have access to all of the  features and services we may offer.  

If you receive any promotional e-mail communication from us, you will be given the option to  “unsubscribe” from receiving further e-mail communications from us at any time. Your option not to  receive promotional and marketing material will not preclude us from corresponding with you, by email  or otherwise, regarding your existing or past business relationships with us, and will not preclude us  from accessing and viewing your personal information in the course of maintaining and improving the  Services. 

For individuals located in the European Economic Area or the United Kingdom, please also see the  additional rights in Section VI. below. 

1. NOTICE TO INDIVIDUALS IN THE EEA OR UK

If you are engaging with the Services and are located in the European Economic Area or the United  Kingdom, then this section VI. also applies to you. 

Right To Be, Inc. is the data controller for members, journalists, and visitors of the Services. View the  “Contact Us” section below for contact details. We are not the data controller for Customer Data  processed on behalf of business customers. 

Legal Bases for Processing. Your personal information may be used by us, our employees, service  providers, and disclosed to third parties for the following purposes. For each of the purposes, we have  set out the legal bases on which we use your personal information. 

Where we rely on the legitimate interests of Right To Be or those legitimate interests of a third party to  justify the purposes for using your personal information, this will include the commercial interests of  Right To Be relating to improvement and development of our business operations and service offerings, or those of a third party; or protection of our business, employees, or those of a third party. 

Categories of Recipients. View Section III (Disclosure of Information) for the categories of recipients  with whom we share personal information.  

Data Retention. We will retain your personal information for as long as is necessary for purposes for  which it was collected. The precise period will depend on the reason why it was collected. Those  periods are also based on the requirements of applicable laws, applicable legal and regulatory  requirements and periods relating to the commencement of legal actions.  

Your Rights. The following is a summary of the data protection rights available to individuals in the  European Economic Area and the United Kingdom in connection with their personal information. The  rights may only apply in certain circumstances and are subject to certain exemptions. Please see the list  below for a summary of your rights. You can exercise these rights using the contact details at the end of  this Privacy Policy (see “Contact Us” below). 

• Right of access to your personal information – You have the right to receive a copy of  your personal information that we hold about you, subject to certain exemptions.  
• Right to rectify your personal information – You have the right to ask us to correct your  personal information that we hold where it is incorrect or incomplete.  
• Right to erasure of your personal information – You have the right to ask that your  personal information be deleted in certain circumstances. For example (i) where your  personal information is no longer necessary in relation to the purposes for which they  were collected or otherwise used; (ii) if you withdraw your consent and there is no other  legal ground for which we rely on for the continued use of your personal information;  (iii) if you object to the use of your personal information (as set out below); (iv) if we  have used your personal information unlawfully; or (v) if your personal information  needs to be erased to comply with a legal obligation.  
• Right to restrict the use of your personal information – You have the right to restrict our use of your personal information in certain circumstances. For example (i) where you think your personal information is inaccurate and only for such period to enable us  to verify the accuracy of your personal information; (ii) the use of your personal  information is unlawful and you oppose the erasure of your personal information and  request that it is suspended instead; (iii) we no longer need your personal information,  but your personal information is required by you for the establishment, exercise, or  defense of legal claims; or (iv) you have objected to the use of your personal  information and we are verifying whether our grounds for the use of your personal  information override your objection.

• Right to data portability – You have the right to obtain your personal information in a  structured, commonly used and machine-readable format and for it to be transferred to  another organization, where it is technically feasible. The right only applies where the  use of your personal information is based on your consent or for the performance of a  contract, and when the use of your personal information is carried out by automated  (i.e. electronic) means.  
• Right to object to the use of your personal information – You have the right to object  to the use of your personal information in certain circumstances. For example (i) where  you have grounds relating your particular situation and we use your personal  information for our legitimate interests (or those of a third party); and (ii) if you object  to the use of your personal information for direct marketing purposes.
• Right to withdraw consent – You have the right to withdraw your consent at any time  where we rely on consent to use your personal information.  
• Right to complain to the relevant data protection authority – You have the right to  complain to the relevant data protection authority where you think we have not used  your personal information in accordance with data protection law. 

If you are located in the EEA or UK and you believe we are unlawfully processing your personal  information, you also have the right to complain to your local data protection supervisory authority. You  can find their contact details here: https://ec.europa.eu/justice/data-protection/bodies/authorities/index_en.htm. 

VII. SECURITY 

We use reasonable measures to help protect information from loss, theft, misuse and unauthorized  access, disclosure, alteration and destruction. You should understand that no data storage system or  transmission of data over the Internet or any other public network can be guaranteed to be 100 percent  secure. Please note that information collected by third parties may not have the same security  protections as information you submit to us, and we are not responsible for protecting the security of  such information. 

VIII. NOTICE TO RESIDENTS OF COUNTRIES OUTSIDE THE UNITED STATES 

We are headquartered in the United States and the Services are hosted in the United States. If you are  accessing the Services from outside the United States, be advised that any information you provide to us  will be transferred to and stored in the United States and that by providing your information to the  Services, you understand that your personal information will be transferred to and stored in the United  States for processing and maintenance in accordance with this Privacy Policy and our Terms of Use. If we transfer personal information outside the European Economic Area or the United Kingdom, we will  implement appropriate and suitable safeguards to ensure that such data will be protected as required by applicable data protection law. For further information as to the safeguards we implement please  contact [email protected].  

1. CHANGES TO THE PRIVACY POLICY

We may change this Privacy Policy from time to time as technology changes, or as we add new services  or change existing ones. The most recent version of the Privacy Policy will be posted on the Services,  with the “Last Updated” date posted at the top of the Privacy Policy. If we are going to use any personal  information in a manner that is materially different from that stated in this Privacy Policy at the time we  collected such information, we will post a notice on our home page that the Privacy Policy has been  modified and provide a link to the revised Privacy Policy and notify you if required by applicable law.  Any changes to the Privacy Policy will become effective upon posting of the revised policy. By accessing  the Services after the Effective Date, you are deemed to consent to our then-current Privacy Policy and any such changes.  

1. CHILDREN’S DATA

The Services are not intended for children under the age of 13, nor do we knowingly collect or retain  information in connection with the Services from children under the age of 13. If we learn that we have  collected the personal information of any such individual, we will take steps to delete the information as  soon as possible.  

1. CONTACT US

If you have any questions about this Privacy Policy, or the privacy practices of the Services, please  contact us at [email protected] or by mail to: 30 3rd Ave, Brooklyn, NY 11217.

EFFECTIVE DATE: NOVEMBER 16, 2016
UPDATED: JULY 28 2023