This privacy policy ("Privacy Policy", “Policy”) applies to the information collected by Global Equity Organization, a non-profit 501(c)(6) mutual benefit corporation organized under the California Non-profit Mutual Benefit Corporation Law for educational purposes ("GEO", We”, “Us”).

This Privacy Policy explains what personal data are processed about you, why we are processing your personal data and for which purposes, how long we hold your personal data for, how to access and update your personal data, as well as the options you have regarding your personal data and where to go for further information.

In this Privacy Policy, when we refer to "personal data", we mean information which could directly identify you (for example, your name) and information which could indirectly identify you, meaning that it could identify you when combined with other information which we hold about you (for example, your email or IP address). "Process" or "processing" means just about any conceivable use of personal data, including recording, storing, viewing or disclosing personal data.

If you have any questions about your personal data which are not answered by this Policy, please contact GEO.

 

OUR PRIVACY PLEDGE 

GEO is committed to respecting and protecting your privacy. If we collect any private information that personally identifies you ("personal information") we will not share this with any third party, unless:

  • we have your consent;
  • to our employees, contractors or consultants who are bound by an obligation of confidentiality; 
  • to affiliated companies for the purposes of processing personal information on our or your behalf (we require that these parties agree to process such information based on our instructions and in compliance with this Privacy Policy and any other appropriate confidentiality and security measures);
  • in order to protect and defend the rights or property of GEO, or those of visitors to the website;
  • in response to a search warrant or other legally valid inquiry or order; 
  • to an investigative body in the case of a breach of an agreement or contravention of law;
  • when sharing the information is a necessary operation of the website (i.e. to process credit card information);
  • as otherwise required by law.

We will only collect personally identifiable information when such information is submitted to us, by, for example, filling out a mailing list form, membership application, survey or registration form.

THE INFORMATION WE COLLECT

Information that you provide to us

We collect your personal data, details about other members of your household and details about authorised contacts to give you the best possible experience as a user of our products and services. In general, we collect information from you when you interact with us to attend an online or in-person event or conference, apply for a Fellowship, Award or a position on our Board of Directors, visit our website, enter a competition, complete a survey or contact us with an enquiry or complaint.

This covers all channels of communication with us, including over the telephone, email, website, via one of our apps, social media, SMS, post and in person.

We may collect the following information from you to provide you with a quote, set up and manage your account and to verify who we are dealing with if you contact us:

  • Your name
  • Your company name
  • Contact address
  • Email address
  • Telephone number
  • Bank account or payment details (should you make payment for membership, service or event)
  • Details about whether you are a corporate issuer, provider, academic or government representative to enable us to identify which products and services will be most suitable for you and the appropriate cost of these.

Information that we obtain through your use of our websites

If you visit our website globalequity.org:

  • Your device and browser may disclose certain information (such as device type, operating system, browser type, IP address, MAC number, dates and times our website was accessed and other information) that may be personal data.

Cookies and similar technologies

GEO uses cookies and similar technologies that collect and store information when you visit a GEO Website or use a GEO App. This is to enable GEO to identify your internet browser and collect data on your use of our website, which pages you visit, the duration of your visits and identify these when you return so that we improve your experience when visiting our website(s). Cookies can help us in many ways, for example, by allowing us to tailor a website to better match your interests or to store your password to save you having to re-enter it each time.

If you do not wish to receive cookies, please configure your Internet browser to erase all cookies from your computer's hard drive, block all cookies or to receive a warning before a cookie is stored.

For more information, please refer to the Cookie Policy at www.globalequity.org/policies/cookies.

Information gathered through external sources

Debt collection agencies:

  • If you have an outstanding debt with us, additional personal data may be provided to us by debt collection agencies. This could include updated contact details such as your new address.

Other companies with an appropriate lawful basis for sharing your personal data: 

  • Where you have told another company you are happy to hear about our products and services i.e. if you consent to receive marketing from GEO when completing a third party survey online. 

PROCESSING YOUR PERSONAL DATA

We’ll use your personal data for the purposes outlined below:

To fulfil our contractual agreement to provide you with our products and services:

  • Where requested by you, to provide you with a quotation for any of our products and services 
  • To deliver our products and services to you according to our contractual agreement 
  • To collect payments 
  • To contact you with important information about your account, including bills and statements
  • To share with third party systems to
  • GEO will, from time to time, share your data with third party systems for non-commercial purposes. These systems include but are not limited to GEO's website, credit card processors, telecommunications and teleconferencing systems and other third-party platforms supplied by Rhythm, Higher Logic, Feathr, Elevate, CommPartners, Acclaim, Credly, Campaign Monitor and Constant Contact. 

To comply with our legal obligations, and for the establishment, exercise or defence of legal claims:

  • To meet our data protection obligations to verify your identity, before we provide you with information relating to your account 
  • To resolve any disputes relating to your experience of our services
  • For the detection and prevention of crime, including any investigations into potential fraudulent activity
  • To defend against litigation or legal claims

Where we have legitimate business interests:

  • To respond to customer enquiries and complaints 
  • To manage payment schedules and debt collection 
  • To understand customer behaviour using modelling, analysis and profiling, so that we can provide you with products and services that are best suited to your requirements 
  • For management information (MI) reporting purposes including the use of analytics to help us continually improve our offering and operations to our customers 
  • Subject to your marketing preferences, to provide you with information about products and services that we think you’d benefit from, by post, telephone or by electronic means (where permitted by local law) 
  • To contact you with service messages that will support you and improve our service to you 

Where we have your consent:

  • To provide you with information about products and services that we think you’d benefit from in accordance with your marketing preferences

COMMUNICATION AND MARKETING - YOUR CHOICES

Subject to your marketing preferences, or where you have otherwise expressly consented, you may receive offers that are tailored towards your preferences based on the information gathered about you, from the various sources described above, in order to provide you with better products and increasingly tailored services. This could include updates about industry news or GEO resources that we have identified for you based on your usage. 

We’ll never sell your data to third parties for marketing purposes. Subject to your marketing preferences, we may send you recommendations about third party products and services that could be of interest to you. This information could be sent to you via telephone, email, SMS, post, push notification or via your online account. 

You can update your marketing preferences at any time within your myGEO account, or to opt out you can contact us.

You can also opt out of email marketing by clicking the ‘unsubscribe’ link within any marketing emails we send to you and you can opt out of SMS marketing by following the instructions at the bottom of any marketing SMS. If you use a GEO app and wish to update your push notification preferences, you can do this within the app.

PROFILING FOR MARKETING

We’d like you to receive personalised insights and offers about products and services that are most relevant to you, at the right time. In order to do this effectively, subject to your marketing preferences we will analyse your personal data to create a profile of you for marketing. 

Your profile will be used to send you personalised communications we feel you’d benefit from, based on a variety of factors such as: 

  • General postcode and demographic data from publicly available sources
  • Information you have provided us directly
  • Your current and historic website activity
  • Your membership type
  • The types of GEO events or services you have engaged with
  • The channels you use to interact with us
  • Any other products and services you have purchased from us
  • Customer insight information from external data sources such as credit reference agencies
  • The products and services you’ve bought from us previously

You can opt out of profiling for marketing at any time by opting out of all marketing.

CHILDREN’S PRIVACY STATEMENT 

GEO will not knowingly collect personal data from children without insisting that they seek prior parental consent if required by applicable law. We will only use or disclose personal data about a child to the extent permitted by law, to seek parental consent pursuant to local law and regulations or to protect a child. The definition of "child" or "children" should take into account applicable laws as well as national and regional cultural customs. 

SECURITY 

GEO has implemented appropriate technical and organisational measures to protect the confidentiality of the personal data that you entrust us with against unauthorised, accidental or unlawful access, loss, alteration and disclosure. We update and test our physical, logical and procedural security controls on an ongoing basis. These include limiting access to your personal data to those who need it and training our employees about the importance of maintaining the privacy and security of your personal data.

INTERACTING WITH GEO THROUGH SOCIAL MEDIA 

If you choose to interact with us through social media on a GEO administered social media page such as Facebook, Instagram, Twitter or LinkedIn, your personal data (such as your name, your profile picture and the fact that you are interested in GEO) will be visible to all visitors of your personal webpage depending on your privacy settings on the relevant social media platform, and will also be visible to us. 

You can delete any information that you share on these sites at any time through your relevant social media platform’s account. We do not track your activity across the different social media sites that you use. Please contact us if you wish to make a request that you are unable to action yourself and which relates to a GEO Social Media Page. For further information please see the section ‘Your rights in relation to your personal data’. 

Additionally, and to the extent GEO is jointly responsible with a social media platform of a GEO Social Media Page, we will have access through the social media platform to aggregated data providing statistics and insights that help to understand the types of actions you take on GEO Social Media Pages. For more information on how your personal data is processed on those social media platforms, including any targeted advertising that you may receive, please refer to your privacy settings accessible through your relevant social media platform’s account.

YOUR RIGHTS IN RELATION TO YOUR PERSONAL DATA 

The following section sets out your rights in relation to your personal data. If you would like to exercise any of your data subject rights, please contact us.

We aim to keep our information as accurate as possible. You can request: 

  • access to your personal data
  • correction or deletion of the personal data (but only where it is no longer required for a legitimate business purpose such as billing)
  • that you no longer receive marketing communications
  • that the processing of your personal data is restricted; and/or that you receive personal data that you have provided to GEO in a structured, digital form to be transmitted to another party, if this is technically feasible

You have the right not to be subject to any decisions made based solely on automated processing including profiling, which produces legal effects or significantly affects you. Where such decisions are made, you have the right to: 

  • Obtain Human intervention 
  • Express your point of view 
  • Obtain an explanation of the decision and challenge it 

WHO CAN YOU CONTACT IF YOU HAVE A QUERY, CONCERN OR COMPLAINT ABOUT YOUR PERSONAL DATA? 

If you have any issues, queries or complaints regarding the processing of your personal data please contact us. 

If you are unsatisfied with the handling of your personal data by GEO, then you have the right to lodge a CCPA violation complaint - please visit the complaints form on the California Attorney General’s office website.

CHANGES TO THE PRIVACY POLICY 

This Privacy Policy does not form part of any member's contract with us and we may amend it from time to time. In the event of any conflict between the GEO Privacy Policy and your Terms and Conditions, regarding the processing of your personal data, the GEO Privacy Policy will prevail. Any changes we make to our Privacy Policy in the future will be posted on our website and, where appropriate, notified to you by email. 

HOW TO CONTACT US

GEO will respond to reasonable requests to review your personal data and to correct, amend or delete any inaccuracies. If you have any questions or comments about this policy, please contact us.

This policy was last updated in April 2023.