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This statement discloses the privacy practices for all ThePortalUSA.org™ websites. Questions regarding this privacy policy should be directed Questions and Answers.

Information We Collect

We recognize your right to confidentiality and are committed to protecting your privacy. We use the information that we collect on our web sites to provide you with a superior internet experience and to communicate with you.

Your Account

All sensitive information such as your tax identification or social security numbers, bank account information, and credit card information that you enter into any of our web forms is handled in a secure manner. We will not retain your credit card information. Should you enter an order for something offered by one of our affiliated merchants on their website, they will also ask you to set up "your account," which includes your name, e-mail address, mailing and shipping address, credit card number, expiration date. Using your account information, the merchant may send you communications that they believe are relevant to you, such as renewal reminders, newsletters and e-mails. If you prefer not to receive optional e-mails or other communications, you should adjust your account with them to prevent such communications. ThePortalUSA.org will retain all of your general registration information and feedback to maintain your account and for future communication with you.

Customer Feedback

We are pleased to hear from our volunteers, members, site managers, and clients and welcome your comments and suggestions. We may share your feedback, but not your personal information.

Information Automatically Collected

We use Google Analytics to monitor the usage of our sites. Google may capture the Internet protocol (IP) address of your internet service provider, computer, browser software and operating system, your web server, the date and time you access our site, session information (such as download errors and page response times), information about your viewing, search and purchase history and information about the referring URL and the URL click stream to, through, and from our Web sites. We use this information to monitor the usage and performance of our site, to enhance our customers' search and overall user experiences and to determine aggregate information about our user base and usage patterns.

Information From Third Parties

If we receive updated account information from third parties, we may revise your account for you so that we can efficiently communicate with you. In addition, we may acquire customer names, phone numbers, e-mail addresses and mailing addresses for select mailings from third parties.

Other Information You Provide

We collect additional information that you choose to give us. For example, you provide information to us when you complete surveys or contest entry forms, sign up for special discounts or coupons, communicate with us by e-mail, phone or otherwise, provide product reviews, or provide alternative delivery addresses.

Sharing Your Information with Third Parties

We protect all of your information against unauthorized access or release. We utilize secure https:// websites for processing your orders and handling your bank, tax ID, and social security numbers. Each of our merchants should be utilizing secure https:// websites for processing your orders and they should have privacy policies in place. Please verify this when placing orders with any of our affiliated merchants. Your personal information may be handled by one of the following American companies:

• ThePortalUSA.org, a Washington State nonprofit organization
• Small Fry Media, a registered DBA in Washington State
• Brand Manufacturers - We may develop programs with some of our brand manufacturers through which you may be offered special discounts or coupons on products in exchange for providing your e-mail address or completing a survey about the manufacturer's products. When you are offered such discounts or coupons in exchange for providing information (for example, giving your e-mail address or completing a survey), you will be notified that if you choose to participate, your name, e-mail address and responses will be shared with the brand manufacturer. No other information will be shared.
• Agents - We may enter into agreements with other companies or individuals to perform functions on our behalf. These functions may include sending promotional e-mails on our behalf to such companies' customers; serving advertisements on our behalf, analyzing data; providing marketing assistance; processing credit card or debit card payments; and fulfilling and delivering orders. These companies and individuals have access to only to information necessary to perform their functions. They are not allowed to use the information for any other purpose and are contractually obligated to maintain the confidentiality and security of the information. We may share non-personal, summary, or aggregate customer data with partners and other third parties.
• Business Transfers - We may buy or sell business assets. In such transactions, customer information is usually treated as one of the transferred business assets. Should we sell any business assets we will post a notification on this page so you will be aware of the transaction.
• Compliance with Law; Protection of Rights, Property or Safety - We will disclose account and other personal information when we believe that disclosure is necessary to comply with the law, to enforce or apply our Terms of Use or other policies or user agreements, or to protect the rights, property, or safety of our business, our customers, or others.
• As You Direct - If you direct, we will release customer information to your authorized representative, or such other person as you may direct.
• From time to time, we may partner with certain companies who, in conjunction with their membership programs or rewards programs, require that we disclose purchasing information about their members who visit our web sites (for example, to earn points for purchases made on our site through links from the partner site). We will disclose only the information required to make these programs work for you and support your membership in them. In addition, we disclose this information to such companies only if you have consented first, including consent implied by your agreement to the membership or participation rules. If you do not want us to disclose that information to the strategic partner, then you must contact the partner directly.

Security

When you place an order online, your personal information and credit card or debit card information are encrypted using SSL encryption technology before being sent over the Internet. To check for this security, look for a small lock on the bottom of your browser and the web address in the address bar should indicate https:// and not simply http://. We do not store any of your credit card information.

Cookies

To personalize and enhance your browsing experience, we use a feature on your Internet browser called a cookie. Cookies are small files that your Web browser places on your computer's hard drive. We use cookies to let us know that you are a prior customer and to retrieve certain information previously provided by you to us, so that you do not need to re-enter this information every time you shop at the site. Cookies also let us know how you found us (e.g., through a particular web site or advertisement). Cookies are not used to access information entered on the secure server. This information can be accessed only when you enter your name and password. If you choose to configure your browser to remove or reject our cookies, you may not be able to make purchases.

Web Beacons

From time to time we contract with third party companies to help us better provide relevant products, services and information to you and to help us effectively measure advertising effectiveness. Some of these companies use cookies and/or Web beacons (also known as action tags or single pixel gifs). A Web beacon is a transparent image that has been placed on a Web page and sends a signal when a user has visited that page. A Web beacon does not contain any personal information. No information that is personally identifiable to you is transmitted to the third party using the Web beacon. The third party is required to protect the privacy of the information it receives using Web beacons or cookies and is not allowed to use the information it receives for any purpose beyond what is necessary to assist us. In addition, we may use web beacons in connection with the e-mails we send to our customers, to determine whether and when the images in our e-mail were rendered (which allows us to determine whether the e-mail was opened). This information may then be aggregated and used to assess the effectiveness of our e-mail communications.

Unsolicited E-mail (SPAM)

Your privacy is very important to us. Be assured that, in accordance with this privacy policy, we do not sell or distribute our customer list to third parties. You should be aware, however, that unscrupulous marketers can sometimes "harvest" your e-mail address directly from your computer or another person's address book or even obtain your e-mail address through programs that automatically search web pages and e-mail traffic for e-mail addresses. Please note that all e-mail that originates from us will either display the ThePortalUSA.org logo or contain ThePortalUSA.org copyright notice. In addition, our e-mails will contain our corporate address in Vancouver, Washington. If you receive an unsolicited e-mail that you believe is connected with us in any way, please forward a copy of the the e-mail to Unsolicited Mail and we will investigate.

Children

We do not sell products or services for purchase by children. We may sell children's products for purchase by adults. If you are under 18, you may use our Web site only with the involvement of a parent or guardian.

Linked Web Sites

Our Web stores may contain links to and from other sites operated and maintained by separate companies. We have no responsibility for linked Web sites (including the Web sites of participants in our associate program) and provide these links solely for the convenience and information of our visitors. The privacy policies of these sites may differ from our policy, so you should always review the privacy statement of each linked Web site you visit.

Your Consent

By using our Web site (including through our customer service line), you consent to the collection, use, and disclosure of information in accordance with the terms of this privacy policy. We reserve the right to modify or amend this policy at any time. If we ever change our privacy policy, we will post any changes on this page so that you are always aware of the information that we collect, how we use it, and under what circumstances we disclose it. Unless we clearly state otherwise, the changes to our privacy policy will affect only the information we collect after the effective date of the change.

Your Comments

We welcome your feedback. If you have questions or comments about our privacy policies, feel free to drop us an email or write us: ThePortalUSA.org 13023 NE Hwy 99, Suite 7-52 Vancouver, WA 98686. Last updated: 11/20/08