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Privacy Policy

1. Introduction

The University of Greenwich Accounting Society ("we," "our," or "us") is committed to protecting your privacy. This Privacy Policy explains how we collect, use, disclose, and safeguard your information when you visit our website and interact with our services.

This website is operated by the University of Greenwich Accounting Society, a student-led organization at the University of Greenwich, UK.

2. Information We Collect

2.1 Information You Provide

We collect information that you voluntarily provide when:

• Submitting Testimonials: When you submit a testimonial through our website, we collect your first name, last name, department, opinion text, and rating. This information is stored with a "pending" status until reviewed and approved by administrators.
• Contacting Us: When you use our contact form, we collect your name, email address, subject, and message. We may also automatically collect your IP address and browser information for security purposes.
• Event Registration: When you register for events, we may collect your name, email address, and phone number for event management purposes.

2.2 Automatically Collected Information

When you visit our website, we automatically collect certain technical information:

• Usage Data: Pages visited, time spent on pages, click patterns, and navigation paths
• Device Information: IP address, browser type and version, operating system, device type
• Technical Data: Date and time of visits, referring website addresses

This information is collected through standard web server logs and may be used for website analytics and security purposes.

3. How We Use Your Information

We use the information we collect for the following purposes:

• To Display Testimonials: Approved testimonials are displayed on our website. Your first and last names are partially masked (showing only the first letter followed by asterisks) to protect your privacy while maintaining authenticity.
• To Respond to Inquiries: We use contact form information to respond to your questions, comments, or requests.
• Event Management: Information provided during event registration is used to manage events, send confirmations, and communicate event-related information.
• Website Improvement: We analyze usage data to improve website functionality, user experience, and content.
• Legal Compliance: We may use your information to comply with legal obligations or respond to legal requests.

4. Content Moderation

All testimonials submitted through our website are subject to review and moderation:

• Submissions are stored with a "pending" status until reviewed by administrators
• We reserve the right to approve, reject, or edit testimonials at our discretion
• Only approved testimonials are displayed publicly on the website
• Rejected testimonials are not displayed but may be retained for record-keeping purposes

5. Data Sharing and Disclosure

We do not sell, trade, or rent your personal information to third parties. We may share your information only in the following circumstances:

• University of Greenwich: We may share information with the University of Greenwich for administrative or academic purposes related to the Accounting Society.
• Service Providers: We may share information with trusted third-party service providers who assist us in operating our website (e.g., web hosting, email services), subject to strict confidentiality obligations.
• Legal Requirements: We may disclose information if required by law, regulation, legal process, or governmental request.
• Protection of Rights: We may disclose information to protect the rights, property, or safety of the Accounting Society, our members, or others.

6. Data Security

We implement appropriate technical and organizational measures to protect your personal information:

• Secure data transmission using SSL/TLS encryption
• Limited access to personal data on a need-to-know basis
• Regular security updates and monitoring
• Secure database storage with access controls

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

7. Your Rights (UK GDPR)

Under the UK General Data Protection Regulation (UK GDPR), you have the following rights regarding your personal information:

• Right of Access: You can request copies of your personal data that we hold
• Right to Rectification: You can request correction of inaccurate or incomplete data
• Right to Erasure: You can request deletion of your personal data under certain circumstances
• Right to Restrict Processing: You can request that we limit how we use your data
• Right to Data Portability: You can request to receive your data in a structured, commonly used format
• Right to Object: You can object to processing of your personal data for certain purposes

To exercise any of these rights, please contact us using the information provided in the Contact Information section below.

8. Data Retention

We retain your personal information only for as long as necessary to fulfill the purposes outlined in this Privacy Policy:

• Testimonials: Approved testimonials are retained indefinitely for display on the website. Pending or rejected testimonials may be retained for up to 2 years for record-keeping purposes.
• Contact Form Submissions: Retained for up to 3 years or until you request deletion, whichever comes first.
• Event Registration Data: Retained for the duration of the event plus 1 year for historical records.
• Website Analytics Data: Retained for up to 26 months.

When personal information is no longer needed, we will securely delete or anonymize it.

9. Third-Party Links

Our website may contain links to third-party websites (such as LinkedIn, Instagram) or services. We are not responsible for the privacy practices or content of these third-party sites. We encourage you to review the privacy policies of any third-party sites you visit.

10. Children's Privacy

Our website is not directed to children under the age of 16. We do not knowingly collect personal information from children under 16. If you are a parent or guardian and believe your child has provided us with personal information, please contact us immediately so we can delete such information.

11. International Data Transfers

Your information is processed and stored on servers located in the United Kingdom. We do not transfer your personal data outside the UK or European Economic Area (EEA) unless adequate safeguards are in place, in accordance with UK GDPR requirements.

12. Changes to This Privacy Policy

We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time to reflect changes in our practices or for other operational, legal, or regulatory reasons. We will notify you of any material changes by posting the updated Privacy Policy on this page and updating the "Last Updated" date.

Your continued use of the website after any changes to this Privacy Policy constitutes your acceptance of the updated policy.