The American Cheese Society (ACS) values your privacy and steadfastly believes in protecting information pertaining to our website visitors, members, and customers. We do not share information with third parties and we only contact you based on your requests and needs.
The following discloses our information-gathering and dissemination practices for this website, www.cheesesociety.org:
INFORMATION – GATHERING
Our privacy policy applies to all information submitted to or collected by ACS, whether provided during checkout or when registering or logging in. We will not require you to provide more information than is necessary when visiting or purchasing on our website.
This web server logs the IP addresses of the systems which access this site and the files visited. These logs are retained for our internal use only. In certain instances, we may ask visitors to provide additional, voluntary information about themselves.
COOKIES
The use of cookies is an industry standard that we use to maintain a user’s identity between web sessions, and to allow members who have logged in to access information located in members-only areas of the site. By modifying your browser setting, you can prevent your browser from accepting cookies, however you will be unable to use the full functionality of our web site and may need to login repeatedly as you move between various areas of the site. Since we do not use cookies to collect personally identifying information, we recommend that you leave them turned on
CHECKOUT INFORMATION
When you purchase an item from us, we will naturally ask for billing and shipping information. Other than for credit card authorization, this information is never shared with any third party.
USE OF INFORMATION
We do not provide any personally identifiable information we gather or develop about our visitors to any third parties for any purpose.
Visitor IP address and accessed files are used to identify server problems and to provide site usage statistics. This information is used to provide future content suitable to our audience and to generate statistical reports. Information is collected in aggregate, and individual site usage information will not be disclosed.
Becoming a registered user of the site, regardless of your membership status in the association, means you will periodically receive communications from ACS. If you do not wish to receive such communications you may unsubscribe or request to have your registration deleted through ACS’s communications preferences. An unsubscribe link will always be clearly identified in all communications for your use.
GDPR COMPLIANCE
The General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) is an important piece of legislation that is designed to strengthen and unify data protection laws for all natural persons (individuals) within the European Union. The regulation became effective and enforceable on May 25, 2018.
ACS is committed to full compliance with the GDPR with regard to ACS members and sponsors who are natural persons protected by the GDPR. ACS works with several data processors to collect demographic data about our current and potential members and sponsors to fulfill our mission. All of our data processors are in compliance with GDPR. Data is collected via our Association Management System (AMS) when members or sponsors join, renew, or otherwise engage with ACS. Data is also collected during visits to ACS web domains. We use Google Analytics and Hotjar to better understand our users’ needs and to optimize their service and experience. You can opt-out of the creation of a user profile, Hotjar’s storing of data about your usage of our site, and Hotjar’s use of tracking cookies on other websites by following this opt-out link.
Information is collected voluntarily and will not be shared with third parties.
One of the benefits of ACS membership is inclusion in, and access to, our searchable directories and rosters. ACS allows members to control what information, if any, they wish to share with other members via our multifaceted Membership Directory search and via our event attendee roster(s).
Information gathered for the purposes of the ACS Judging & Competition is used internally to verify that all entering organizations are current members of ACS, and that they confirm they are in compliance with U.S. federal regulations. This information is used only to determine ACS Judging & Competition eligibility and is not shared with any third parties.
Our natural person members, website visitors, and customers have the right to:
1. Opt-in or opt-out of direct marketing, website tracking, and data collection; and
2. Be “forgotten” (as provided for in the GDPR)
Currently, ACS uses the following communications platforms: Attendee Interactive, Constant Contact, Hot Jar, Google Analytics, Mail Chimp, MemberSuite, Survey Monkey, Vertical Response, Silverstripe.
SECURITY
This site has security measures in place to protect the loss, misuse, and alteration of the information under our control.
CONTACTING THIS WEBSITE
For all privacy and policy questions with regards to this site, please contact info@cheesesociety.org.
Though this site can and may contain links to non-cheesesociety.org sites, ACS is not responsible for the privacy practices or the content of these websites.
CHANGES TO THIS POLICY
We reserve the right to modify our privacy policy at any time. Changes are at our discretion and will generally only be made in order to better serve our customers and to adhere to technological advances and industry standards. If we make changes to our privacy policy, we will post those changes prominently on this page.
EFFECTIVE DATE
The effective date of this policy was April 1, 2011.
TERMS OF USE
All content included on cheesesociety.org, such as photos, graphics, text, images, logos, icons, videos, and software is the property of American Cheese Society (ACS), its partners, or its suppliers, and is protected by United States and international copyright laws. The assemblage of all content on cheesesociety.org is the exclusive property of ACS and protected by United States and international copyright laws.
TRADEMARKS
AMERICAN CHEESE SOCIETY, ACS ANNUAL CONFERENCE, ACS JUDGING & COMPETITION, ACS CERTIFIED CHEESE PROFESSIONAL, ACS CERTIFIED CHEESE SENSORY EVALUATOR, T.A.S.T.E. TEST, ACADEMY OF CHEESE, CHEESEBYTES, AMERICAN CHEESE EDUCATION FOUNDATION, AMERICAN CHEESE MONTH, and other marks indicated on our site are trademarks of ACS. All other trademarks not owned by ACS that appear on this site are the property of their respective owners.
DISCLAIMER OF LIABILITY AND WARRANTIES
ACS does not warrant the accuracy, adequacy, or completeness of the information and materials on this site, and expressly disclaims liability for errors or omissions in this information and materials. No warranty of any kind, implied, expressed, or statutory including but not limited to the warranties of non-infringement of third party rights, title, merchantability, fitness for a particular purpose, and freedom from computer virus, is given with respect to any software, information, or other item located on, derived from, or linked to by this website. Everything is provided “as is”, “as available”. In no event will ACS be liable for any damages, including without limitation direct or indirect, special, incidental, or consequential damages, losses or expenses of any kind arising in connection with the use of or inability to use this website or any linked site.
YOUR ACCOUNT
When you use this website, you are responsible for maintaining the confidentiality of your account, password, and for restricting access to your computer. You also agree to assume responsibility for all activities that occur under any account or password that you maintain for electronic commerce with cheesesociety.org. If you are under 18, you may purchase from cheesesociety.org but only with consent of a parent or guardian. ACS reserves the right to refuse service, terminate accounts, remove or edit content, or cancel purchases at its sole discretion.
APPLICABLE LAW
By accessing this site, you are consenting to the exclusive jurisdiction of the state of Colorado, without regard to principles of conflict of laws, in any action arising out of or relating to this agreement, including without limitation any use of this website. Additionally, you waive any other venue to which you might be entitled by domicile or otherwise.
USE OF THE AMERICAN CHEESE SOCIETY NAME
The American Cheese Society (ACS) values its good name and reputation. No company or individual is authorized to or has permission to use the name, imagery, reputation, or good will of ACS in its commercial endeavors, whether to market or promote its products, services, events, or ideas for any commercial purpose. Nor may any company or individual use the name of the Society for any promotional purpose without the express written permission of ACS.
The American Cheese Society, its name, acronym, and various logos, marks, imagery, and imprints may be used only and solely with the express written permission of ACS. All marketing to ACS members must be done with the express written permission of ACS and is available exclusively to current members in good standing and only through authorized ACS outlets with the prior review and approval of ACS. Any attempt, whether express or implied, to refer to any relationship between any entity and ACS as a partner, affiliate, endorser, or allied organization without the prior written permission of ACS will be deemed a violation of this policy.
