TowerGroup Privacy Policy
We at The TowerGroup, Inc. ("we" or "us" or "TowerGroup") respect your privacy and value the relationship we have with you. This Privacy Notice describes the types of information we collect on www.towergroup.com (the "Site") how we may use that information, and with whom we may share it.
Information We Collect
Generally, we collect personal information on this Site to provide you the information, product or services you request. This information will consist of your name and contact details. We generally collect all of our information on servers located in the United States.
You may sign up on the Site to receive our information, content, newsletters or subscriptions. In order to fulfill your requests, we may ask you for your information, such as name, contact details, email address and interests. Additionally, in order for you to obtain some of this content and functionality we may ask you to register on the Site and create a user name and password, as well as potentially, a security question. When you purchase products or services we will collect your name, contact information, and billing information.
You may use the send to colleague functionality on this Site to send your colleagues information from TowerGroup and its partners. In order to fulfill this request, we will ask you for your and your colleagues' names and email addresses. We do not retain this data after the email is sent.
We may ask you to complete online surveys and opinion polls on a variety of topics, including your activities, attitudes, and interests as they relate to our products and services. When you complete a survey we usually collect your name, zip code, and email addresses. We also may ask you for additional information, such as your age, interests, or product preferences
When you visit our Site, your browser automatically may send us certain information, such as a referring Web site, IP (internet protocol) address, and information about your computer and browser. The Site may include electronic image requests (called a "single-pixel gif", "clear-gifs" or "web beacon" request). These web beacons allow us to obtain information such as the IP address of the computer that downloaded the page on which the beacon appears, the URL of the page on which the beacons appears, and the time the page containing the beacon was viewed, all of which may be used to measure the effectiveness of our Site and content.
In connection with the web beacons we also may use cookies. Cookies are bits of text that are placed on a computer's hard drive when you visit certain web sites. We use cookies to tell us, for example, whether you have visited the Site before or if you are a new visitor and to help us identify Site features in which you may have the greatest interest.
By collecting this information we learn how to tailor our Site to our visitors' needs. While generally we examine such information only in an aggregated format, it is possible to link such information to other information we maintain. To find out more about how this information is collected and used, please go to www.networkadvertising.org or www.omniture.com/en/privacy/product.
Also, if your email software is capable of receiving html coded emails, if and when we send you emails, we may collect information regarding the delivery of the email, including whether the email was delivered, whether it was opened, whether it was opened with html capable email software, when it was opened, IP address, and further links on which you may click. This data may be associated with your email address.
How We Use Personal Information
Personal information collected through or in connection with the Site is used in connection with the purpose for which it was submitted, including: to contact you to answer a question, to send you a newsletter or other information you have requested, to provide you products you purchased, to process payments for your purchases, to allow access to restricted sections of the Site, and to arrange for any other services you have requested.
We also may use the information we collect to enhance your interactive experience while using our Site or viewing our electronic communications, to improve the content of the Site or to improve the quality or variety of the products, services and promotions we offer.
We may use the information you provide to us to contact you regarding other offers, information and items that may interest you. See the discussion of choices if you do not wish to receive such information.
How We Share Personal Information
We do not share personal information about you gathered through your interaction with the Site, except as described here.
We may share information you provided with service providers we have retained to perform services on our behalf, including web hosting service providers, email service providers, advertising agencies, payment processing services and fulfillment houses. In those situations, the service provider is performing work for us, and we take the appropriate steps designed to ensure your information is used only to provide the services specified, and that it is maintained in a confidential manner.
If you answer surveys or questionnaires, we do not share your personal information from such surveys or questionnaires other than with our service providers, but we may share such data on an anonymized basis, without your personal information.
In addition, we may disclose information about you to others (i) if we are required to do so by law, (ii) in response to legal process, (iii) to law enforcement authorities or other government officials, or (iv) when we believe disclosure is necessary or appropriate to prevent harm or loss or in connection with an investigation of suspected or actual fraud or illegal activity.
We reserve the right to transfer any information we have about you in the event we sell or transfer all or a portion of our business or assets. Should such a sale or transfer occur, we will use reasonable efforts to try to ensure that the transferee uses personal information you have provided through this Site in a manner that is consistent with this Privacy Notice.
Links to Other Web Sites
We provide links to other Web sites for your convenience and information. These sites operate independently and are not under our control. These sites may have their own privacy notices in place, which we strongly suggest you review if you visit any linked Web site. We are not responsible for the content of these sites, any products or services that may be offered through these Web sites, or the privacy practices of these Web sites.
Children's Privacy
This Site is intended for an adult audience and is not meant for children. We do not knowingly collect information from children under 13. It is TowerGroup's policy not to collect personal information of any person under 13. If we knowingly obtain personally identifiable information in error on a child under the age of 13, we will delete that information from our systems.
Security
TowerGroup is committed to using industry practices to maintain the security of personal information collected on our Site. To try to prevent unauthorized access, maintain data accuracy, and ensure the correct use of personal information, we have put in place technical, physical and administrative methods designed to safeguard the personal information we collect online. We store personal information on a secured server behind a firewall that is not directly connected to the Internet.
Please remember that no data transmission over the Internet, or by other means, can be guaranteed to be 100% secure. Thus, while we strive to protect your personal information, TowerGroup cannot ensure or warrant the security of any information you transmit to us. Therefore, you understand, acknowledge, and agree that you transmit your Personal Information over the Internet and through this Site at your own risk.
If you registered to access a portion of this Site, you should maintain the confidentiality of your user name and password. You should use a password that is not easily guessed. We use secure socket layer (SSL) or secure HTTP (HTTPS) technology to protect your user name and password when you enter that information on the Site. If you believe your user name and password have been compromised, please contact us per the "Contact Us" section below.
Your Choices
You can "opt-out" of receiving promotional email from us by following the opt-out instructions in our emails. To ensure that your opt-out request is honored, you must use the method designated in the emails to notify us of your opt-out request, since we cannot guarantee that other methods of notification will be effective or timely.
If you believe you have opted out, but continue to receive emails from us, please contact us by one of the means listed under "How to Contact Us", below, and we will try to resolve the issue.
To subscribe or unsubscribe to any of our programs, newsletters or alerts, you should follow the specific directions provided for that specific program, newsletter or alert on the Site. If you cannot determine how to opt-out of a particular program or you would like us to remove any information we have about you or to correct any information, please contact us as specified in the "Contact Us" section below.
Please note that even if you chose to opt-out of TowerGroup's marketing communications, we will continue to send you important service related communications, including follow-up messages regarding products or services you ordered.
Please note that we will retain your data for as long as you have a continuing relationship with us and for three (3) years after. If you would like us to remove this data in a shorter timeframe, please let us know. Information regarding your past activity may remain in our archived records after your personal data has been deleted.
Updates to this Privacy Notice
Note that by using the Site and any related interactive services you signify your agreement to this Privacy Notice. This Privacy Notice may change from time to time. Changes to this Privacy Notice will become effective when those changes are posted to the Site. Your continued use of the services and the Site subsequent to any changes to this Privacy Notice constitutes your acceptance of the changes. Please review this Notice periodically to ensure continuing familiarity with its most current provisions, and so you are aware of any changes or updates to this Notice. We indicate above the effective date of the Notice.
How to Contact Us and Update Information
If you have any questions about our information practices or our products, services or promotions, please contact us at:
TowerGroup
Two Charles River Place
63 Kendrick Street
Needham, MA 02494-2708
USA
Tel: 1.781.292.5200
Fax: 1.781.449.6982
Email: service-info@towergroup.com
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