Privacy Policy 

Forestdale Inc. (FD) respects the privacy of every individual who contacts us. We are grateful for your support and crucial role in our essential work. As part of our commitment to safeguarding your privacy, we have adopted the online privacy policy outlined below. By visiting this website, you accept the practices, policies, and procedures described here and agree to be bound by the terms of this Privacy Policy. If you disagree with these terms, do not visit or use any links on this website. Please note that this Privacy Statement may be changed or updated at any time. If you have any questions about this Privacy Policy, please do not hesitate to contact us at [email protected].
Please note: This privacy policy applies to website visitors only. FD’s clients should review the HIPAA Notice of Privacy Practices.

COLLECTION AND USE OF INFORMATION

You may freely visit our website anonymously without giving us any personal information. There is also no requirement to register to view our website. However, certain features (e.g., signing up for FD updates or asking for specific program referral information) do necessitate some personally identifying information (including, but not limited to, name, address, and email). Availing of any of these services, requests, and features is voluntary. We collect two kinds of information from our website visitors:

1. Site usage data that is not individually identifiable - FD’s web server automatically recognizes and collects the domain name of each visit to our website. We also collect, by automated means, non-personal data in a form that cannot be directly associated with any specific individual. Much of this information is collected through the use of third-party tracking services, which include Google Analytics and Squarespace. For example:

·         The number of visitors, 

·         The number of times each visitor comes to the website, 

·         The pages accessed, and 

·         The length of time spent on each page.

This aggregate data is used to manage our website and improve its content and user experience.

1. Individually identifiable information is provided voluntarily by the visitor. Personal information is data that can be used to identify or contact you. We collect individually identifiable information about you when you share information about yourself (i.e., when you make a donation or sign up for our mailing list). We use individually identifiable information to provide you with info/updates or to deliver the service you have requested and maintain this information in proprietary databases. If you provide your address, telephone number, or email address to FD online, you may receive periodic communications from us.

At this time, we do not make our constituents’ emails or postal addresses available to any third parties. If we change this policy, we will notify our constituency via this page and provide them with the opportunity to designate their Privacy Preference.

FD works with reputable third-party website partners that may store information on our behalf to maintain safeguards (i.e., administrative, technical, and physical) for the FD website. These various safeguards protect against the theft, loss, misuse, unauthorized access, disclosure, alteration, or destruction of personal information collected from our website visitors.

EMAIL COMMUNICATION

If you sign up for FD email communications, we will ask you to provide certain individually identifiable information. You will receive occasional email updates on FD programs and newsworthy events or request donations. You may unsubscribe from these Constant Contact emails, at any time, by using the link in the footer of all such emails. 

Please Do Not Send Confidential Information To Us Directly Through This Website Or The Contact Email Addresses Listed.

LINKS TO OTHER SITES

Suppose you donate through the FD website via the “Donate” button. In that case, you will be redirected to Network for Good (NFG), our donor platform. To process your gift, NFG will ask for personally identifying information, including your name, home address, email address, and credit card billing information. The credit card information is used only to process your donation. It is not stored or used for any other purpose. However, if you opt to set up a recurring (monthly) donation, your credit card information will be stored and used to process the recurring gift.

The website provides a Contact Us form for questions related to FD’s work. If you utilize these contact forms, we will collect your email address and any other personal information you provide, enabling us to respond to your requests and questions.

From time to time, we may provide information and links to special events (i.e., the Annual FD Benefit) that support or relate to FD. If you register for any such event, we will again require certain personally identifying information. Additionally, participation in some of these events may require a fee, so we will also collect information related to transaction processing.

The FD website provides links to other websites, including social networks, resources, and our community partners and sponsors. Please note that FD is not responsible for the privacy practices of linked sites; we encourage you to review the privacy policy of each site you visit.

SOCIAL MEDIA POLICY

The FD Facebook page, www.facebook.com/forestdaleinc, is the official Facebook page affiliated with FD, one of the oldest child welfare organizations in New York City. In addition, we post on https://www.instagram.com/forestdale_inc/, https://www.linkedin.com/company/forestdale-inc./,  twitter.com@forestdeleinc, and https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCHDPbKZQVDpEx2xYDXCaQOg. Our goal is to foster a positive environment and share information on our social media pages.

Please remember that, as a voluntary member of social media communities, you are responsible for any correspondence or communication you have with individuals on any page or platform. You understand, acknowledge, and agree that you transmit certain personal information over social media platforms at your own risk. When you link to one of our social media venues, your personal information is visible to other users. It can be read, collected, or used by them. You are responsible for the personal information you choose to submit in these instances.

We ask that all followers of FD social media pages respect the interests and views of others. The administrators of FD social media pages reserve the right to delete comments/posts that may be considered offensive or threatening. The administrators of FD social media pages may report or block any fan whose postings or comments the agency deems inappropriate. Occasionally we will show photos of FD events or events where FD staff or program members participate on the website or social media. Any concerns regarding the use or administration of FD pages should be directed to the current administrator at [email protected].

CHILDREN ONLINE

Protecting the privacy of the very young is especially important. Therefore, we adhere to the 1998 Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA). For more information, visit the Federal Trade Commission’s COPPA site.

We do not knowingly collect, use, or disclose personally identifiable information about visitors to our website that are less than 13 years of age. If you are under 13, you must ask your parent or guardian to assist you while accessing/viewing this website. If you are the parent or guardian of a child under 13  and believe they have disclosed personally identifiable information to us, please contact us at [email protected].  If applicable, please include the username and email address that your child submitted. 

 SECURITY

We maintain physical, electronic, and administrative safeguards to prevent unauthorized web access and protect our site users' personal information.  For example, online contributions are processed using SSL (Secure Sockets Layer), a secure server software that encrypts all user information before sending it to us.

FD employees, affiliates' employees, those otherwise specified in this Privacy Policy, and those who do not need access to website visitor information to provide services or conduct FD business operations have restricted access. 

No website, application, or transmission can offer absolute information security. FD establishes and maintains what we believe to be reasonable procedures to protect the confidentiality and integrity of personally identifying information obtained through the FD website. However, we cannot guarantee or warrant the security of the information you transmit.

           
YOUR INFORMATION AND YOUR CHOICES
To the extent required by law, we provide you with reasonable access to the personally identifiable information you provide to us. Upon appropriate written request, we will update or amend your information. However, we reserve the right to use any information previously obtained to verify your identity or take other actions that we believe are appropriate and lawful. We will endeavor to comply with your request as soon as reasonably practicable. However, we may decline to process requests that are unreasonably repetitive, require disproportionate technical effort, jeopardize the privacy of others, are impractical, or for which access is not otherwise required by local law.

Please note that FD may need to retain certain information for record-keeping purposes. There may also be residual information that remains within our databases and other records, which will not be removed from such locations.  Finally, please note that we are not responsible for removing information from third-party databases (such as service providers) with whom we have shared information about you.

USE OF THE WEBSITE FROM OUTSIDE THE UNITED STATES
If you choose to access our website, you do so at your initiative and risk, You are responsible for complying with all local laws, rules, and regulations applicable in your jurisdiction. Please note that the website is hosted in the United States and is governed by United States law. If you visit the FD website from outside the U.S., be aware that your information will be transferred to, stored, and processed in the U.S., where our servers are located and our central database is operated.

The data protection and other laws of the United States and other countries might not be as comprehensive as those in your country. Using the FD website, as described in this Privacy Policy, you consent to your information being transferred to our facilities and to the facilities of those third parties with whom we share it.
  
PRIVACY POLICY EFFECTIVE DATE
This Privacy Policy is effective as of September 21, 2022.