Airfarewatchdog.com Privacy Policy
Your Privacy Rights
Below you will find the updated Privacy Policy for Airfarewatchdog.com, effective June 4, 2008.
We understand that providing information online involves trust on your part. We take this trust very seriously, and make it our highest priority to ensure the security and confidentiality of the personal information you provide to us. Please read the following policy to learn about our privacy practices.By visiting our U.S. Web site, www.Airfarewatchdog.com, you are accepting the practices described herein.
What information we collect from you
In General. We receive and store any information you enter on our Web site or give us in any other way. This includes information that can identify you ("personal information"), including your first and last name and your e-mail address. We may also request information about your location and travel preferences. You can choose not to provide information to us, but in general some information about you is required in order for you to register as a member; subscribe to a newsletter; participate in a user forum; comment on a blog or article; purchase products or services; complete a traveler profile; participate in a survey, contest, or sweepstakes; ask us a question; or initiate other transactions on our site.
Information from Other Sources. We also may periodically obtain both personal and non-personal information about you from affiliated entities, business partners and other independent third-party sources and add it to our account information. Examples of information we may receive include: updated delivery and address information, purchase history, and demographic information.
Automatic Information. We automatically collect some information about your computer when you visit Airfarewatchdog.com. For example, we will collect your IP address, Web browser software (such as Netscape Navigator or Internet Explorer), and referring Web site. We also may collect information about your online activity, such as airfares viewed and subscription activity. One of our goals in collecting this automatic information is to help customize your user experience.
Cookies and Other Web Technologies. When you visit Airfarewatchdog.com, we may assign your computer a "cookie" (a small, unique identifier text file). For example, whenever you sign in as a Airfarewatchdog.com member, we may record your member ID and the name on your member account in the cookie file on your computer. We also may record your password in this cookie file, if you select the option to be automatically logged in. Note that member IDs, passwords, and any other account-related data included in such cookies are encrypted for security purposes. You can always choose not to receive a cookie file by enabling your Web browser to refuse cookies or to prompt you before accepting a cookie. Please note that if you refuse to accept cookies from Airfarewatchdog.com, you may not be able to access many of the travel tools offered on our site. We also may use Web beacons (also known as clear gifs, pixel tags or Web bugs) to deliver or communicate with cookies, to count users who have visited certain Web pages on our site, and to understand whether you have come to our site from an online advertisement displayed on a third-party Web site.
Information Collected by Third Parties. Third parties, such as vendors, advertising entities, and business partners, may use cookies and other technologies (such as Web beacons) to collect information about your online activities. The purposes for collecting this information include: to measure usage of our site; to analyze, modify, and personalize advertising content on Airfarewatchdog.com and other sites; and to provide ads about goods and services we hope will be of interest to you. We do not have access to or control over cookies or other features these third parties may use, and the information practices of these third parties are not covered by this Privacy Policy. Some of these third parties may be third-party network advertisers that offer you the option of not having this information collected. To learn more, please click here.
How we use your information
Airfarewatchdog.com uses your e-mail address to send you newsletters and promotional e-mails. We use other information about you for the following general purposes: to provide you with the products and services you request; to communicate with you in general; to respond to your questions and comments; to measure interest in and improve our products, services, and Web site; to notify you about special offers and products or services that may be of interest to you; to otherwise customize your experience with Airfarewatchdog.com; to reward you as part of any reward and recognition program you choose to join; to solicit information from you, including through surveys; to resolve disputes, collect fees, or troubleshoot problems; to prevent potentially prohibited or illegal activities; to enforce our Terms of Use; and as otherwise described to you at the point of collection.
Please review "Your choices with respect to the collection and use of your information" below.
With whom we share your information
Airfarewatchdog.com may share your information with the following entities:
- Third-party vendors who provide services or functions on our behalf, including credit card processing, business analytics, customer service, marketing, distribution of surveys or sweepstakes programs, and fraud prevention. We may also authorize third-party vendors to collect information on our behalf, including as necessary to operate features of our website or to facilitate the delivery of online advertising tailored to your interests. Third-party vendors have access to and may collect information only as needed to perform their functions and are not permitted to share or use the information for any other purpose.
- Business partners with whom we may jointly offer products or services. You can tell when a third party is involved in a product or service you have requested because their name will appear with ours. If you choose to access these optional services, we may share information about you, including your personal information, with those partners. Please note that we do not control the privacy practices of these third-party business partners.
- Affiliated Web sites. If you were referred to Airfarewatchdog.com from another Web site, we may share some information about you with that referring Web site. We have not placed limitations on the referring Web sites’ use of your personal information and we encourage you to review the privacy policies of any Web site that referred you to Airfarewatchdog.com.
- Companies within our corporate family. We may share your personal information with our parent company and corporate affiliates, including Expedia.com, TripAdvisor, Smarter Travel, and Hotwire, as well as international corporate affiliates such as BookingBuddy.co.uk. This sharing enables us to provide you with information about products and services, both travel-related and other, which might interest you. To the extent that our parent company and corporate affiliates have access to your information, they will follow practices that are at least as restrictive as the practices described in this Privacy Policy. They also will comply with applicable laws governing the transmission of promotional communications and, at a minimum, give you an opportunity in any commercial e-mail they send to choose not to receive such e-mail messages in the future.
We also may share your information:
- In response to subpoenas, court orders, or other legal process; to establish or exercise our legal rights; to defend against legal claims; or as otherwise required by law. In such cases we reserve the right to raise or waive any legal objection or right available to us.
- When we believe it is appropriate to investigate, prevent, or take action regarding illegal or suspected illegal activities; to protect and defend the rights, property, or safety of Airfarewatchdog.com, our customers, or others; and in connection with our Terms of Use and other agreements.
- In connection with a corporate transaction, such as a divestiture, merger, consolidation, or asset sale, or in the unlikely event of bankruptcy.
Other than as set out above, you will be notified when personal information about you will be shared with third parties, and you will have an opportunity to choose not to have us share such information.
We also may share aggregate or anonymous information with third parties, including advertisers and investors. For example, we may tell our advertisers the number of visitors our Web site receives or the most popular hotels and vacation destinations. This information does not contain any personal information and is used to develop content and services we hope you will find of interest.
How you can access your information
You can access and update your contact information and preferences by visiting the Newsletters page on the Airfarewatchdog.com Web site. You can close your Airfarewatchdog.com account by contacting us at the phone number listed below or by selecting “Unsubscribe Me” on the Newsletters page. Please note that after you close an account, you will not be able to sign in or access any of your personal information. However, you can open a new account at any time. Please also note that we may retain certain information associated with your account for analytical purposes as well as for recordkeeping integrity.
Your choices with respect to collection and use of your information
- As discussed above, you can choose not to provide us with any information, although it may be needed to take advantage of certain features offered on Airfarewatchdog.com.
- You also can add or update information and close your account as described above.
- You have the opportunity to sign up to receive e-mail newsletters. As a registered Airfarewatchdog.com member, you can modify your choices at any time on the Newsletters page. You will also be given the opportunity to unsubscribe from commercial messages in any such e-mail we send. Please note that we reserve the right to send you other communications, including service announcements, administrative messages, and surveys relating either to your Airfarewatchdog.com account or to your transactions on Airfarewatchdog.com, without offering you the opportunity to opt out of receiving them.
- The Help portion of the toolbar on most browsers will tell you how to prevent your browser from accepting new cookies, how to have the browser notify you when you receive a new cookie, or how to disable cookies altogether. Please note that if you refuse to accept cookies from Airfarewatchdog.com, you will not be able to access portions of our site.
How we protect your information
We want you to feel confident about using Airfarewatchdog.com to help plan your travel arrangements, so we are committed to protecting the information we collect. While no Web site can guarantee security, we have implemented appropriate administrative, technical, and physical security procedures to help protect the personal information you provide to us. For example, only authorized employees are permitted to access personal information, and they only may do so for permitted business functions.
Children's privacy
Airfarewatchdog.com is a general audience site and does not offer services directed to children. Should a child whom we know to be under 13 send personal information to us, we will use that information only to respond directly to that child to inform him or her that we must have parental consent before receiving his or her personal information.
External links
If any part of the Airfarewatchdog.com Web site links you to other Web sites, those Web sites do not operate under this Privacy Policy. We recommend you examine the privacy statements posted on those other Web sites to understand their procedures for collecting, using, and disclosing personal information.
Visiting our Web sites from outside the United States
This Privacy Policy is intended to capture information collected through our Web site from residents of the United States. If you are visiting our Web site from outside the United States, please be aware that your information may be transferred to, stored, and processed in the United States 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, but please be assured that we take steps to ensure that your privacy is protected. By using our services, you understand that your information may be transferred to our facilities and those third parties with whom we share it as described in this Policy.
Your California privacy rights
California Civil Code Section 1798.83 permits California residents to request certain information regarding our disclosure of personal information to third parties for their direct marketing purposes. To make such a request, please e-mail User Support.
Changes to this Privacy Policy
Airfarewatchdog.com may update this Privacy Policy in the future. We will notify you about material changes to this Privacy Policy by sending a notice to the e-mail address you provided to us or by placing a notice on our Web site.
How you can contact us
If you have questions about this Privacy Policy, please contact us at: privacy@airfarewatchdog.com or
Smarter Travel Media LLC
Attn: Airfarewatchdog.com
465 Medford Street, Suite 400
Boston, MA 02129
