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Privacy Policy

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This Privacy Policy governs the manner in which ReadMe collects, uses, maintains and discloses information collected from users (each, a "User") of the https://www.readme.com website ("Site"). This privacy policy applies to the Site and all products and services offered by ReadMe.

Content Overview

Personal identification information

We may collect personal identification information from Users in a variety of ways, including, but not limited to, when Users visit our site, register on the site, place an order, fill out a form, and in connection with other activities, services, features or resources we make available on our Site. Users may be asked for, as appropriate, name, email address, credit card information. Users may, however, visit our Site anonymously. We will collect personal identification information from Users only if they voluntarily submit such information to us. Users can always refuse to supply personally identification information, except that it may prevent them from engaging in certain Site related activities.

Non-personal identification information

We may collect non-personal identification information about Users whenever they interact with our Site. Non-personal identification information may include the browser name, the type of computer and technical information about Users means of connection to our Site, such as the operating system and the Internet service providers utilized and other similar information.

Web browser cookies

Our Site may use "cookies" to enhance User experience. User's web browser places cookies on their hard drive for record-keeping purposes and sometimes to track information about them. User may choose to set their web browser to refuse cookies, or to alert you when cookies are being sent. If they do so, note that some parts of the Site may not function properly.

How we use collected information

ReadMe may collect and use Users personal information for the following purposes:

  • To improve customer service Information you provide helps us respond to your customer service requests and support needs more efficiently.

  • To personalize user experience We may use information in the aggregate to understand how our Users as a group use the services and resources provided on our Site.

  • To improve our Site We may use feedback you provide to improve our products and services.

  • To process payments We may use the information Users provide about themselves when placing an order only to provide service to that order. We do not share this information with outside parties except to the extent necessary to provide the service.

  • To run a promotion, contest, survey or other Site feature To send Users information they agreed to receive about topics we think will be of interest to them.

  • To send periodic emails We may use the email address to send User information and updates pertaining to their order. It may also be used to respond to their inquiries, questions, and/or other requests. If User decides to opt-in to our mailing list, they will receive emails that may include company news, updates, related product or service information, etc. If at any time the User would like to unsubscribe from receiving future emails, we include detailed unsubscribe instructions at the bottom of each email or User may contact us via our Site.

How we protect your information

We adopt appropriate data collection, storage and processing practices and security measures to protect against unauthorized access, alteration, disclosure or destruction of your personal information, username, password, transaction information and data stored on our Site.

Sensitive and private data exchange between the Site and its Users happens over a SSL secured communication channel and is encrypted and protected with digital signatures.

Sharing your personal information

We do not sell, trade, or rent Users personal identification information to others. We may share generic aggregated demographic information not linked to any personal identification information regarding visitors and users with our business partners, trusted affiliates and advertisers for the purposes outlined above.We may use third party service providers to help us operate our business and the Site or administer activities on our behalf, such as sending out newsletters or surveys. We may share your information with these third parties for those limited purposes provided that you have given us your permission.

Third party websites

Users may find advertising or other content on our Site that link to the sites and services of our partners, suppliers, advertisers, sponsors, licensors and other third parties. We do not control the content or links that appear on these sites and are not responsible for the practices employed by websites linked to or from our Site. In addition, these sites or services, including their content and links, may be constantly changing. These sites and services may have their own privacy policies and customer service policies. Browsing and interaction on any other website, including websites which have a link to our Site, is subject to that website's own terms and policies.

EU Residents

If you are a resident of the European Union (“EU”), United Kingdom, Lichtenstein, Norway, or Iceland, you may have additional rights under the EU General Data Protection Regulation (the “GDPR”) with respect to your Personal Data, as outlined below.

For this section, we use the terms “Personal Data” and “processing” as they are defined in the GDPR, but “Personal Data” generally means information that can be used to individually identify a person, and “processing” generally covers actions that can be performed in connection with data such as collection, use, storage and disclosure. Company will be the controller of your Personal Data processed in connection with the Services.

If there are any conflicts this section and any other provision of this Privacy Policy, the policy or portion that is more protective of Personal Data shall control to the extent of such conflict. If you have any questions about this section or whether any of the following applies to you, please contact us at [email protected].

What Personal Data Do We Collect From You?

We collect Personal Data about you when you provide such information directly to us, when third parties such as our business partners or service providers provide us with Personal Data about you, or when Personal Data about you is automatically collected in connection with your use of our Services.

Information we collect directly from you:

We receive Personal Data directly from you when you provide us with such Personal Data, including without limitation the following:

  • First and last name
  • Email address
  • Mailing address
  • Telephone number
  • Credit/debit card information
  • User content, for example, information or content you upload (which can include Personal Data if you include Personal Data in such content)

Information we receive from third party sources:

Some third parties such as our business partners and service providers provide us with Personal Data about you, such as the following:

  • Account information for third party services: If you interact with a third party service when using our Services, such as if you use a third party service to log-in to our Services (e.g., Facebook Connect or Twitter OAuth), or if you share content from our Services through a third party social media service, the third party service will send us information about you, such as information from your public profile, if the third party service and your account settings allow such sharing. The information we receive will depend on the policies and your account settings with the third party service.
  • Information from our advertising partners: We receive information about you from some of our service providers who assist us with marketing or promotional services related to how you interact with our websites, applications, products, services, advertisements or communications.

Information we automatically collect when you use our Services:

Some Personal Data is automatically collected when you use our Services, such as the following:

  • IP address
  • Device identifiers
  • Web browser information
  • Page view statistics
  • Browsing history
  • Usage information
  • Cookies and other tracking technologies (e.g. web beacons, pixel tags, SDKs, etc.)
  • Location information (e.g. IP address, zip code)
  • Log data (e.g. access times, hardware and software information)

Third Party Analytic Tools

Our Services may use third party analytic tools, such as Google Analytics, that use cookies, web beacons, or other similar information gathering technologies to collect standard internet log information and usage information. The information generated is used to compile statistical reports on user activity. We will never (and will not allow any third party to) use the statistical reports to track or to collect any personal information of visitors to, or users of, our Services. We will not associate any information gathered from the statistical reports with any personal information from any source. Google Analytics collects information such as how often users visit a website, what pages they visit when they do so, and what other websites they visited prior to coming to a website. We use the information obtained from these applications only to improve our Services and our product and service offerings. The information generated about your use of our Services will be transferred and saved to the vendor’s server in the United States. Google’s ability to use and share information collected by Google Analytics about your visits to the Services is restricted by the Google Analytics Terms of Use and the Google Privacy Policy. You can opt-out of Google Analytics tracking by visiting https://tools.google.com/dlpage/gaoptout.

Cookies

When you visit our sites, we will send you a cookie, which is a small file stored on your computer that allows us to uniquely identify it. Where required by applicable law, we obtain your consent for the use of cookies. You may choose to delete or not accept our cookies as described in this privacy policy. If you delete or choose not to accept our cookies, you may not be able to utilize all the features of our products and services. If you are a resident of the EU or other jurisdiction that requires us to obtain your consent to use cookies on our sites, then you will have an opportunity to manage your cookie preferences on such sites; except that certain cookies are essential to enable core site functionality, and you cannot choose to disable those cookies. Through cookies we place on your browser or device, we may collect information about your online activity after you leave our Services. Just like any other usage information we collect, this information allows us to improve the Services and customize your online experience, and otherwise as described in this Privacy Policy. Your browser may offer you a “Do Not Track” option, which allows you to signal to operators of websites and web applications and services (including behavioral advertising services) that you do not wish such operators to track certain of your online activities over time and/or across different websites. Our Services do not support Do Not Track requests at this time, which means that we collect information about your online activity both while you are using the Services and after you leave our Services.

How Do We Use Your Personal Data?

We process Personal Data to operate, improve, understand and personalize our Services. For example, we use Personal Data to:

  • Create and manage user profiles
  • Communicate with you about the Services
  • Process orders
  • Contact you about Service announcements, updates or offers
  • Provide support and assistance for the Services
  • Meet contract or legal obligations
  • Respond to user inquiries
  • Fulfill user requests
  • Comply with our legal or contractual obligations
  • Resolve disputes
  • Protect against or deter fraudulent, illegal or harmful actions
  • Enforce our Terms of Service

We will only process your Personal Data if we have a lawful basis for doing so. Lawful bases for processing include consent, contractual necessity and our “legitimate interests” or the legitimate interest of others, as further described below.

  • Contractual Necessity: We process the following categories of Personal Data as a matter of “contractual necessity”, meaning that we need to process the data to perform under our Terms of Service with you, which enables us to provide you with the Services. When we process data due to contractual necessity, failure to provide such Personal Data will result in your inability to use some or all portions of the Services that require such data.

    • Email address
    • Credit/debit card information
    • IP address
    • Device identifiers
    • Web browser information
    • Page view statistics
    • Browsing history
    • Usage information
    • Cookies and other tracking technologies (e.g. web beacons, pixel tags, SDKs, etc.)
    • Log data (e.g. access times, hardware and software information)
    • All data you upload to the Services

  • Legitimate Interest: We process the following categories of Personal Data when we believe it furthers the legitimate interest of us or third parties.

    • Email address
    • IP address
    • Device identifiers
    • Web browser information
    • Page view statistics
    • Browsing history
    • Usage information
    • Cookies and other tracking technologies (e.g. web beacons, pixel tags, SDKs, etc.) - For more information, please review our Cookie Policy above.
    • Location information (e.g. IP address, zip code)
    • Log data (e.g. access times, hardware and software information)

    Examples of these legitimate interests include:

    • Operation and improvement of our business, products and services
    • Marketing of our products and services
    • Provision of customer support
    • Protection from fraud or security threats
    • Compliance with legal obligations
    • Completion of corporate transactions

  • Consent: In some cases, we process Personal Data based on the consent you expressly grant to us at the time we collect such data. When we process Personal Data based on your consent, it will be expressly indicated to you at the point and time of collection.

  • Other Processing Grounds: From time to time we may also need to process Personal Data to comply with a legal obligation, if it is necessary to protect the vital interests of you or other data subjects, or if it is necessary for a task carried out in the public interest.

How and With Whom Do We Share Your Data?

We share Personal Data with vendors, third party service providers and agents who work on our behalf and provide us with services related to the purposes described in this Privacy Policy or our Terms of Service. These parties include:

  • Payment processors
  • Fraud prevention service providers
  • Ad networks
  • Analytics service providers
  • Staff augmentation and contract personnel
  • Hosting service providers
  • Co-location service providers
  • Telecommunications service providers

We also share Personal Data when necessary to complete a transaction initiated or authorized by you or provide you with a product or service you have requested. In addition to those set forth above, these parties also include:

  • Other users (where you post information publicly or as otherwise necessary to effect a transaction initiated or authorized by you through the Services)
  • Social media services (if you interact with them through your use of the Services)
  • Third party business partners who you access through the Services
  • Other parties authorized by you

We also share Personal Data when we believe it is necessary to:

  • Comply with applicable law or respond to valid legal process, including from law enforcement or other government agencies
  • Protect us, our business or our users, for example to enforce our terms of service, prevent spam or other unwanted communications and investigate or protect against fraud
  • Maintain the security of our products and services

We also share information with third parties when you give us consent to do so.

Furthermore, if we choose to buy or sell assets, user information is typically one of the transferred business assets. Moreover, if we, or substantially all of our assets, were acquired, or if we go out of business or enter bankruptcy, user information would be one of the assets that is transferred or acquired by a third party, and we would share Personal Data with the party that is acquiring our assets. You acknowledge that such transfers may occur, and that any acquirer of us or our assets may continue to use your Personal Information as set forth in this policy.

How Long Do We Retain Your Personal Data?

We retain Personal Data about you for as long as you have an open account with us and for 12 months after you close your account. In some cases we retain Personal Data for longer, if doing so is necessary to comply with our legal obligations, resolve disputes or collect fees owed, or is otherwise permitted or required by applicable law, rule or regulation. Afterwards, we retain some information in a depersonalized or aggregated form but not in a way that would identify you personally.

What Security Measures Do We Use?

We seek to protect Personal Data using appropriate technical and organizational measures based on the type of Personal Data and applicable processing activity. For example, secured storage and encryption.

Personal Data of Children:

As noted in the Terms of Service https://readme.com/tos, we do not knowingly collect or solicit Personal Data from anyone under the age of 13. If you are under 13, please do not attempt to register for the Services or send any Personal Data about yourself to us. If we learn that we have collected Personal Data from a child under age 13, we will delete that information as quickly as possible. If you believe that a child under 13 may have provided us Personal Data, please contact us at [email protected].

What Rights Do You Have Regarding Your Personal Data?

You have certain rights with respect to your Personal Data, including those set forth below. For more information about these rights, or to submit a request, please visit https://readme.com/gdpr. Please note that in some circumstances, we may not be able to fully comply with your request, such as if it is frivolous or extremely impractical, if it jeopardizes the rights of others, or if it is not required by law, but in those circumstances, we will still respond to notify you of such a decision. In some cases, we may also need to you to provide us with additional information, which may include Personal Data, if necessary to verify your identity and the nature of your request.

  • Access: You can request more information about the Personal Data we hold about you and request a copy of such Personal Data. You can also access certain of your Personal Data by visiting https://readme.com/gdpr and submitting a request
  • Rectification: If you believe that any Personal Data we are holding about you is incorrect or incomplete, you can request that we correct or supplement such data. You can correct some of this information directly by visiting https://dash.readme.com and editing your profile.
  • Erasure: You can request that we erase some or all of your Personal Data from our systems.
  • Withdrawal of Consent: If we are processing your Personal Data based on your consent (as indicated at the time of collection of such data), you have the right to withdraw your consent at any time. Please note, however, that if you exercise this right, you may have to then provide express consent on a case-by-case basis for the use or disclosure of certain of your Personal Data, if such use or disclosure is necessary to enable you to utilize some or all of our Services.
  • Portability: You can ask for a copy of your Personal Data in a machine-readable format. You can also request that we transmit the data to another controller where technically feasible.
  • Objection: You can contact us to let us know that you object to the further use or disclosure of your Personal Data for certain purposes, such as for direct marketing purposes.
  • Restriction of Processing: You can ask us to restrict further processing of your Personal Data.
  • Right to File Complaint: You have the right to lodge a complaint about Company’s practices with respect to your Personal Data with the supervisory authority of your country or EU Member State.

Transfers of Personal Data:

The Services are hosted and operated in the United States (“U.S.”) through Company and its service providers, and if you do not reside in the U.S., laws in the U.S. may differ from the laws where you reside. By using the Services, you acknowledge that any Personal Data about you, regardless of whether provided by you or obtained from a third party, is being provided to Company in the U.S. and will be hosted on U.S. servers, and you authorize Company to transfer, store and process your information to and in the U.S., and possibly other countries. You hereby consent to the transfer of your data to the U.S. pursuant to a data processing agreement incorporating standard data protection clauses promulgated by the EC, a copy of which can be obtained at https://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/TXT/?uri=celex%3A32010D0087.

Changes to this privacy policy

ReadMe has the discretion to update this privacy policy at any time. When we do, we will revise the updated date at the bottom of this page and send you an email. We encourage Users to frequently check this page for any changes to stay informed about how we are helping to protect the personal information we collect. You acknowledge and agree that it is your responsibility to review this privacy policy periodically and become aware of modifications.

Your acceptance of these terms

By using this Site, you signify your acceptance of this policy and terms of service. If you do not agree to this policy, please do not use our Site. Your continued use of the Site following the posting of changes to this policy will be deemed your acceptance of those changes.

Contacting us

If you have any questions about this Privacy Policy, the practices of this site, or your dealings with this site, please contact us at:

  • ReadMe
  • https://www.readme.com
  • ReadMe, 14 Geary St Fl 2, San Francisco, CA 94108
  • [email protected]

This document was last updated on April 25, 2024