PRIVACY POLICY

PLEASE READ THIS ENTIRE POLICY. BY CONTINUING TO USE LWVMD’s WEBSITES, YOU CONFIRM THAT YOU UNDERSTAND AND ACCEPT THE TERMS OF THIS PRIVACY POLICY. IF YOU DO NOT AGREE WITH THIS PRIVACY POLICY, PLEASE DO NOT USE LWVMD WEBSITES. IF YOU WISH TO REGISTER FOR ANY LWVMD ACTIVITIES OR SERVICES WITHOUT USE OF AN LWVMD WEBSITE, YOU MAY CONTACT LWVMD BY PHONE AT 410-269-0232.

INTRODUCTION

Information regarding the League of Women Voters of Maryland (LWVMD) can be found on our website at  www.LWVMD.org/about. LWVMD uses the NationBuilder™ platform to organize our community of members, supporters and prospects. You can read more about that company and its features and policies at NationBuilder.com.

This Privacy Policy is meant to help you understand what information LWVMD collects, how and why we collect it, and ways you can control the information we gather. It pertains to the state League website, lwvmd.org, as well as the websites of Maryland local Leagues listed below:

LWV of Anne Arundel County

lwvaacmd.org or aac-lwvmaryland.nationbuilder.com

LWV of Baltimore City

lwv-baltimorecity.org or baltcity-lwvmaryland.nationbuilder.com

LWV of Baltimore County

lwvbaltimorecounty.org or baltimoreco-lwvmaryland.nationbuilder.com

LWV of Calvert County

lwvcalvert.org or calvert-lwvmaryland.nationbuilder.com

LWV of Harford County

harford-lwvmaryland.nationbuilder.com

LWV of Howard County

lwvhowardmd.org or hoco-lwvmaryland.nationbuilder.com

LWV of Kent County

kent-lwvmaryland.nationbuilder.com

LWV of Queen Anne's County

lwvqac.org or qac2-lwvmaryland.nationbuilder.com

LWV of Washington County

lwvwashco.org or washington-lwvmaryland.nationbuilder.com

LWV of the Mid-Shore

lwvmidshore.org or lwvmaryland2.nationbuilder.com

LWV of Prince George's County

lwvpgcmd.org or lwvmaryland3.nationbuilder.com

LWV of St. Mary's County

smc-lwvmaryland3.nationbuilder.com

WHAT LWVMD COLLECTS

User-provided personal information (non-financial)

With a user’s consent, LWVMD may collect all or some of the following types of personal information:

  • first and last name
  • physical street address including city, state, zip/postal code
  • phone number(s)
  • email address
  • professional and educational history
  • demographic information including your birth date, race, ethnicity, gender, sexual orientation, position, title, salary, affiliation
  • username and password
  • subject of inquiry

The option to provide or decline to provide race and demographic information is voluntary.

 

LWVMD collects information that users provide when using online services including, but not limited to:

  • LWVMD website registration
  • LWVMD membership application
  • Event registration including online and in-person conferences, webinars, and community events
  • Subscriptions to LWVMD products and programs.
  • Subscriptions to and the download of digital communications including newsletters, public policy Action Alerts and petitions, public policy text messages, and research reports
  • Content contribution to LWVMD when users volunteer, participate in a survey, provide feedback, sign a petition, report a problem, request support or otherwise intentionally interact with the website.
  • General questions, comments, and requests via “Contact LWVMD”. We also collect emails and email addresses of those who communicate with us directly.
  • Search queries on the website.

User-provided financial information

When you submit payment through our website to join LWVMD as a member, donate, register for an event, make a purchase or pay your dues, credit card information is collected through a third-party payment processor certified by the Payment Card Industry Security Standards Council (PCI SSC). LWVMD does not receive or store credit card information on our server. 

Indirect data collection technologies

Our servers automatically record certain log files when you access the website. Server logs may include information such as which pages of the website you visited, your internet protocol (“IP”) address, browser type, and other information on how you interact with the website. These log files are generally deleted after one week.

As part of offering and providing customizable and personalized services, LWVMD uses cookies and other online tracking technologies such as pixel tags and web beacons to store and sometimes track information about you. 

A cookie is a small data file placed on the hard drive of your computer or mobile device and managed by your browser. The cookie may contain the name of the server that has placed it there, a unique identifier, and an expiration date, among other data. Cookies may involve the transmission of information from LWVMD to you and from you to LWVMD. Cookies help you log in faster and enhance your navigation through our website. Some cookies are “persistent cookies” used each time you access LWVMD’s website. Other cookies are “session cookies” used only during a specific browsing session. We also use “analytics cookies” that allow web analytics services to recognize your browser or device and, for example, identify whether you have visited our website before, what you have previously viewed or clicked on, and how you found us. This information is provided anonymously for statistical analysis only. Analytics cookies are usually persistent cookies.

You may disable browser cookies in your browser or set your browser to warn you when a cookie is being sent.  You may lose some features or functionality when you disable cookies. Remember, also, that disabling cookies is browser specific. For example, if you use both Microsoft Edge and Chrome, you will need to disable cookies in each browser.

A pixel tag is an invisible line of code placed on LWVMD’s websites or in emails which allows us to analyze promotional strategies and the general usage patterns of visitors to our websites. Pixel tags allow LWVMD to better match our goods, services, and other offers with your interests and needs.

Small electronic files known as web beacons and tiny images known as clear GIFS may also be used to track visits to web pages, email clicks and other related statistics.

Social media plugins

Social media application program interfaces or plug-ins (“Plug-ins”) from social networks, including Facebook, Google+, LinkedIn, Xing, Twitter, Instagram, Tumblr, Pinterest and/or possibly other companies, may be integrated into the LWVMD website. 

When you create an account on the LWVMD website, you have the option to sign in using your Facebook or other social media site (“SMS”) login. If you do so, you authorize LWVMD to access certain SMS account information, such as your public SMS profile (consistent with your privacy settings in SMS), your email address, interests, likes, gender, birthday, education history, relationship interests, current city, photos, personal description, friend list, and information about and photos of your SMS friends who might be common SMS friends with other users. Plug-ins may transfer information about you to the Plug-in’s respective platform without action by you. This information may include your platform user identification number, which website you are on, and more. Interacting with a Plug-in will transmit information directly to that Plug-in’s social network and that information may be visible by others on that platform. Plug-ins are controlled by the respective platform’s privacy policy, and not by LWVMD’s privacy policy. You can find the privacy policy for a platform on their website.

To keep LWVMD from sharing information across platforms, log out of your SMS before engaging with the LWVMD website.

Analytical services

Our websites use Google Analytics and Google Tag Manager, which are web analysis services offered by Google, Inc. to help LWVMD analyze how users interact with our sites. You can learn more about these products from Google’s Terms of Service and Privacy Policy. LWVMD also makes use of Google AdWords, another offering that uses cookies and remarketing technologies to deliver relevant information and advertisements to users who have previously visited LWVMD websites. You may opt-out of the use of such web analytic products by downloading the “Google Analytics Opt-out Browser Add-on.” We use Google Analytics and Google Tag Manager to analyze the use of our website. We do not transfer personal information to Google Analytics.

What LWVMD does with the information we collect

We use information that we collect about you or that you provide to us, including any personal information:

  • To present our website and its contents to you.
  • To provide you with information, products or services that you request from us.
  • For analyzing how the website is used, diagnosing service or technical problems, maintaining security, and personalizing content.
  • To communicate with you about your account, including renewal notices.
  • To carry out our obligations and enforce our rights arising from any contracts entered into between you and us, including for billing and collection.
  • To notify you about changes to our website, our policies, terms or any products or services we offer or provide through it.
  • To allow you to participate in interactive features on our website.
  • In any other way we may describe when you provide the information.

If you provide a mobile phone number, email or mailing address, we may send LWVMD-related communications to it via digital push notification, text message, email or regular mail, including any notices required by law, in accordance with any applicable privacy settings and the user preferences in your account profile.

LWVMD uses indirectly collected data to: 

  • remember information so that you will not have to re-enter it during your visit or the next time you visit the site; 
  • provide custom, personalized content and information; 
  • monitor the effectiveness of our services; 
  • monitor aggregate metrics such as total number of visitors, traffic, and demographic patterns; 
  • diagnose or fix technology problems reported by our users or engineers that are associated with certain IP addresses; 
  • help you efficiently access your information after you sign in; 
  • track user content and users to the extent necessary to comply as a service provider with the Digital Millennium Copyright Act, and 
  • enhance our website security.

LWVMD may share your personal information with third parties including those in the following categories:

  • LWV affiliates, including but not limited to LWVUS and LWVNCA
  • conference registration and event service providers
  • payment processors
  • bulk digital communications and postal mail managers
  • customer relationship management platforms.

We may also share de-identified information (such as anonymous usage data, referring/exit pages and URLs, platform types, number of clicks, etc.) with interested third parties to help them understand the usage patterns for certain services.

Some LWVMD websites may provide links to other sites on the Internet. These other sites are maintained by third parties over which LWVMD exercises no control. The appearance of any such third-party links is not intended to endorse any particular company or product. If you decide to access any of the third-party sites linked to the LWVMD websites, you do so entirely at your own risk and information you submit to them will be governed by their privacy policy, not that of LWVMD. LWVMD is not responsible for the services, content, conduct, or handling of materials by any third-party advertisers appearing on an LWVMD website. 

You may be asked by specific LWVMD vendors to consent to their processing of your information when such processing will be subject to their privacy policy. We encourage you to review such policies closely and be sure that you agree to them before providing your consent.

User content

Any personal information or content that you voluntarily disclose for posting to LWVMD websites, such as user content, becomes available to the public, as controlled by applicable privacy or website customization settings. If you remove information that you posted to LWVMD websites, copies may remain viewable in cached and archived pages, or if other users have copied or saved that information.

We reserve the right, but have no obligation, to monitor any user content you post on our website. We reserve the right to remove any such information or material for any reason or no reason, including without limitation if in our sole opinion such information or material violates, or may violate, any applicable law or to protect or defend our rights or property or those of any third party. We also reserve the right to remove information upon the request of any third party.

Choices you have about your information

If you are a registered user of an LWVMD website or an LWVMD member, you may review, correct and change your personal information by logging into the website and visiting your account profile page.

To manage the email communications you receive from LWVMD, you may select the unsubscribe link at the bottom of any email from LWVMD or contact us directly at  [email protected]. 

To request assistance revising your personal information in the LWVMD database, managing your user preferences or deactivating your account, please contact us by emailing  [email protected] or calling 410-269-0232. Please note, we will not accommodate a request to change information if we believe the change would violate any law or legal requirement or cause the information to be incorrect.

Following deactivation of your account with us, LWVMD may retain your profile information and user content for archival purposes. All information contained in your communications to other users or posted to public or semi-public areas of our website may also be retained and used.

How does LWVMD protect your information?

The safety and security of your personal information is important to LWVMD. We have implemented measures designed to secure your personal information from accidental loss and from unauthorized access, use, alteration and disclosure. All personal information you provide to us is stored on secure servers behind firewalls. LWVMD limits access to your personal information and requires anyone processing your information to sign a confidentiality agreement. Our website uses SHA-256 encryption and Verisign G5.

Individuals under the age of !6

LWVMD does not knowingly collect personal information from website users under the age of 16. With prior parental consent, individuals under the age of 16 may join LWVMD as associate members. In those instances, the parent will designate the personal information that LWVMD stores for the youth member. Please contact us at [email protected] if you have questions or concerns.

For website visitors in California

California Civil Code Section 1798.83 permits our website visitors who are California residents to request certain information regarding our disclosure of personal information to third parties for their marketing purposes. To make such a request, please contact:

League of Women Voters of Maryland
121 Cathedral Street, Suite 2B
Annapolis, MD 21401
410-269-0232
[email protected] 

Please make sure to state in the request that you are a California resident.

Important information for non-U.S. residents

This privacy policy originates and is hosted on a website located in the United States, which has different data protection laws from those of other nations, and particularly member nations in the European Union. Due to differing laws and legal practice, be aware that law enforcement agencies in the United States may have access to your personal information.

If you are a resident of a country other than the United States, you acknowledge and consent to our collecting, transmitting, and storing your personal information out of the country in which you reside.

LWVMD requests that persons to whom the GDPR applies do not volunteer any personal data considered sensitive by the GDPR, including racial or ethnic origin or sexual preference, even if a field exists for such information to be voluntarily provided. LWVMD may inquire about some sensitive information in relation to particular services it provides, but the disclosure of such information is always voluntary for the individual concerned.

How we make changes to this policy

When LWVMD makes updates to its Privacy Policy, changes will be posted on this page. If you continue to use our website after those changes are in effect, you agree to the new policy. If the changes are significant, we may provide a more prominent notice or get your consent, as may be required by law.

Contact us

If you have any questions about this Privacy Policy or need to contact the LWVMD to exercise your rights as a data subject under the GDPR, please contact the LWVMD at [email protected] or 410-269-0232.

Last Updated: August 2023