Privacy Policy
This privacy policy has been compiled to better serve those who are concerned with how their 'Personally Identifiable Information' (PII) is being used online. PII, as described in US privacy law and information security, is information that can be used on its own or with other information to identify, contact, or locate a single person, or to identify an individual in context. Please read our privacy policy carefully to get a clear understanding of how we collect, use, protect or otherwise handle your Personally Identifiable Information in accordance with our website.
The Privacy Policy and User Agreement informs you of our policies regarding the collection, use and disclosure of personal data collected from you. This Policy applies to the websites for Universal Studies, and at www.universalstudies.us (referred to as “Website”) and any other information collected from you by Universal Studies. The Policy is not applicable for the collection of information from any website other than the Website; nor is it applicable when there is collection of information by our affiliated businesses or by third parties. By using the Website, you agree to the collection and use of information in accordance with this Policy.
Collection and Use of Personal Information
When you request or submit information via our pop-up messaging window found on the bottom right of every page or when you contact us through our contact page (www.universalstudies.us/contact) we collect personal information that can be used to contact or identify you. It may include – but is not limited to – your name. Data such as your email address, phone number, current location, nationality, your computer’s Internet Protocol (“IP”) address and other details may be collected. No personal data will be used for profiling purposes. Personal data will be kept on local computers if at all for a maximum of 1 year. If you are requesting information as a potential program participant, we may collect other personal data so that we can assess your application and, if necessary, make appropriate arrangements for you. We may collect the personal information that you voluntarily provide us from pop-up window messages, emails, phone calls, and posts or from other sources, including from offline communications.
The personal information that we may use is the data collected in the following ways:
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To fulfill the purpose for which such personal data is required (for example personal details submitted as part of a specific inquiry).
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To communicate with you about matters regarding your participation, your academic reports or any questions you may have related to such matters.
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To provide technical support and information regarding the site or changes to our terms & conditions or our policies. Such information must be communicated to you to optimize your experience and use of our services.
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To contact you with newsletters, marketing or promotions about new or existing services that we believe may be of interest to you. We may use your personal data to send surveys or questionnaires so that we can learn more about your needs and interests. If you would prefer that we do not send marketing messages to you, please refer to the “Consent” section below.
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Personal data may be used for internal business purposes, such as improving the Sites, thus allowing us to personalize the content that you and others see based on personal characteristics or preferences, as well as enabling us to perform data analysis, audits and so forth on the sites.
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We do not collect via the website your credit card number or other payment account numbers, nor do we collect your billing address or any other information you may use to contact us or fulfill any purchase. This information may be requested by our sales representatives when you enroll in our programs.
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Your personally identifiable information may be requested and used by us if you enter or engage in promotions, sweepstakes, competitions and contests and, if you win, we may request certain personal data to enable us to process the prize. You are required to carefully read the rules of each Promotion, as these may refer to additional information about Universal Studies’ use of your personally identifiable information. To the extent that the terms and conditions of such rules conflict with this Policy, the terms and conditions of such rules will apply.
Collection and Use of Non-Personal Data
Like many site operators, information is collected from your browser whenever you visit our site. This information includes your browser type, browser version, operating system, domain name, the pages of our site that you visit, the time and date of your visit, the time spent on those pages and other statistics. This information is non-personal data and is not linked to personal data about you.
We use non-personal information to help us improve the service and customize the user experience. We aggregate non-personal information to track trends and analyze patterns on the site. The Privacy Policy does not limit in any way our use or disclosure of non-personal data and we reserve the right to disclose non-personal information at our discretion. If we combine non-personal information and personal data, the combined data is to be considered personal data in accordance with this Policy.
Cookie Policy
As per the disclaimer on our home page, website uses cookies and other technologies to collect non-personal data and improve the experience, analyze site traffic, serve targeted advertisements and keep the content relevant for our website visitors. We use cookies to identify/do the following:
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Your location
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Your browser and device
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For analytics and research
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Measure and analyze the audience for each page in order to subsequently improve the ergonomics, browsing, or visibility of content
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Measure the reliability of Website by analyzing the number of visits to its pages in real time, and offer varied ads that are adapted to users’ areas of interest;
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Cookies may also be saved by social media tools if you use these functionalities (e.g. Twitter).
A cookie is a small, non-executable file that is placed on your computer when you browse a site. Our sites use two types of cookies: “first-party session cookies” that retain information for the duration of your visit and “persistent cookies” that remain on your computer after your visit and help us monitor the pages of the site you visit so that we can continue to improve our site according to your preferences. Our cookies do not save any personal or confidential information about you. You may delete these cookies at any time in your browser settings.
When you use our site, you are consenting to us employing data collection via cookies. Although you can disable cookies using your web browser’s cookie menu, you may affect the functionality of this Site’s ability to provide access to information.
You can choose to have your computer warn you each time a cookie is being sent, or you can choose to turn off all cookies. You do this through your browser settings. Since browser is a little different, look at your browser's Help Menu to learn the correct way to modify your cookies.
Disclosure or Transfer of Personal Data
We may disclose personal and other data we collect from you in the following ways:
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Share your Personal Information with companies or vendors who are performing services on behalf of Universal Studies. These vendors include servers for the purposes of communicating with users to solicit feedback and to respond to users’ questions. The recipients of the personal and non-personal information that you provide us include vendors who facilitate some aspects of our site and services, manage our database track trends and analyze use patterns on our site. These companies may be supplied with, or have access, to your personal data solely for the purposes of providing such services to us, or upon our behalf. Universal Studies is the data controller and will remain accountable for the personal information.
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We may process, store and share any Personal Information with Universal Studies employees, strategic partners (as found in www.universalstudies.us/content-partners) and service providers in any country worldwide, including but not limited to your home country, or the United States. Universal Studies will take appropriate steps to ensure that personal data is handled as described in this Policy. You agree that the personal information with which you provide us will be collected, used and processed here in the United States and other countries where Universal Studies has service providers, or by the third parties described above.
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Your personally identifiable information may be shared if permitted, governed or required by law, as well as to respond to requests from governmental or public authorities; to protect our rights, safety, privacy or property; to permit us to pursue available remedies or limit damages that we may sustain; and to enforce our terms and conditions and any other agreements.
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Representatives from countries we work with may contact you directly to offer a personalized counseling service. These trusted partners may be supplied with or have access to your personal data for the sole purpose of providing services to you on our behalf.
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In the event we undergo a business transaction such as, but not limited to, a merger, acquisition by another company, liquidation, sale or transfer of all or a portion of our assets, your Personal Information may be among the assets transferred to a third party involved in the business transaction. You acknowledge and consent that such transfers are permitted under the Privacy Policy.
Third-Party Links
As part of our service, Universal Studies may provide links to other websites, including those of partners, our website provider (Wix.com) or third parties. We are not responsible for the privacy practices, content or information contained in these linked sites. This Privacy Policy does not apply to your use of a linked website. The Privacy Policy of that website will apply to your use or application of these other Websites.
Minor
If you are a minor (under 18 years of age) seeking to apply to participate in our programs or subscribe to this website, or sign up for offers or newsletters, parental or guardian permission will be requested before processing your application. You will need to supply your parent or guardian’s email address, residential address and telephone number. Universal Studies has the right to verify these contact details.
Consent
By providing us with your contact details, you are confirming that you would like to receive offers and updates from us, you are agreeing to receive communication by email, telephone or postal services about our products and services.
By continuing on our website without clicking the “Accept” Button on the white pop-up window found at the bottom of each website page or by clicking it you are confirming to our cookie and privacy policy.
You can let us know at any time by contacting us at info@us-tours.net that you do not want us to send you information about our services or promotional services.
You may request at any time that we update, correct and/or remove personal information in our active database if consistent with applicable law. You can request these changes to info@us-tours.net. In those countries where applicable law rules that personal data is removed upon your request, we may retain certain historical information for record-keeping and statistics but we agree not to use or transfer this data.
If you wish at any time to unsubscribe from our email lists, please email us at info@us-tours.net.
Security
We are committed to protect the security of the personal data that we collect from you and that is why we implement these measures to secure your personal information.
Universal Studies will employ all reasonable measures to protect the personal information we collect from you from security breaches, such as unauthorized access, disclosure, alteration or destruction. We will undertake to maintain accuracy of your personal data and to keep it updated.
You have the right to access the personal data we have stored at any time, to do so simply contact us at info@us-tours.net.
Based on the EU GDPR we do not collect sensitive data. By nature, the data we collect and process does not qualify as sensitive data by the GDPR. We use a secure server, so that all personal information is transmitted via Secure Socket Layer (SSL) technology before being encrypted into our database. Personal information can only be accessed by persons authorized to do so under strict confidentiality guidelines.
The security of your Personal Information is important to us. However, no method of transmission over the Internet, or method of electronic storage, is 100% secure. While we strive to use commercially acceptable means to protect your Personal Information, we cannot guarantee its absolute security.
If you have reason to believe that your interaction with us is not secure, please notify us of the problem immediately by contacting info@us-tours.net.
Google Analytics
Our website uses Google Analytics, a web analytics service provided by Google, Inc. (“Google), located at 1600 Amphitheatre Parkway, Mountain View, California, United States. The information generated by the cookie about your use of our website (including your IP address) will be transmitted to and stored by Google on servers in the United States. Google will use this information for the purpose of evaluating your use of our website, compiling reports on website activity for website operators and providing other services relating to website activity and internet usage. Google may also transfer this information to third parties where required to do so by law, or where such third parties process the information on Google’s behalf. Google will not associate your IP address with any other data held by Google. Further information about Google’s privacy policy may be obtained from http://www.google.com/privacy.html.
According to CalOPPA, we agree to the following:
Users can visit our site anonymously.
Once this privacy policy is created, we will add a link to it on our home page or as a minimum, on the first significant page after entering our website.
Our Privacy Policy link includes the word 'Privacy' and can easily be found on the page specified above.
You will be notified of any Privacy Policy changes on our Privacy Policy Page.
COPPA (Children Online Privacy Protection Act)
When it comes to the collection of personal information from children under the age of 13 years old, the Children's Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA) puts parents in control. The Federal Trade Commission, United States' consumer protection agency, enforces the COPPA Rule, which spells out what operators of websites and online services must do to protect children's privacy and safety online.
We do not specifically market to children under the age of 13 years old.
Fair Information Practices
The Fair Information Practices Principles form the backbone of privacy law in the United States and the concepts they include have played a significant role in the development of data protection laws around the globe. Understanding the Fair Information Practice Principles and how they should be implemented is critical to comply with the various privacy laws that protect personal information.
In order to be in line with Fair Information Practices we will take the following responsive action, should a data breach occur:
We will notify you via email within 7 business days
Updates to This Policy
This Privacy Policy is effective as of 10/12/2017 and updated on 11/21/2018 and 06/21/2019, and will remain in effect until any changes in its provisions in the future, which would then take effect immediately upon being posted on this page.
From time to time we may modify this Policy. We will announce material changes to the Policy by posting the revised Policy prominently on the site, and where required by applicable law, notifying you on our home page, by information collection forms or via e-mail. You can determine when this Policy was last revised by checking the “Last Modified” legend at the bottom of this Policy. Your continued use of the Sites and our services after any modification constitutes your agreement to the new terms.
To be in accordance with CANSPAM, we agree to the following:
• Not use false or misleading subjects or email addresses.
• Identify the message as an advertisement in some reasonable way.
• Include the physical address of our business or site headquarters.
• Monitor third-party email marketing services for compliance, if one is used.
• Honor opt-out/unsubscribe requests quickly.
• Allow users to unsubscribe by contacting us via info@us-tours.net.
Our use of Wix
Wix is a leading cloud-based development platform with millions of users worldwide. Their website creation templates and management interfaces allow Universal Studies to edit and run www.universalstudies.us. Wix is not responsible or liable for any information we collect on www.universalstudies.us, they are merely the platform we use to create our website.
As customers and users of Wix it is our responsibility to inform you about the collection, processing and use of your personal information via the WixHive API, that allows Universal Studies to download and use third-party apps on our website. Here is a section from the Wix Privacy Policy explaining in more detail the WixHive API:
“We [Wix] contractually prohibit all Third Party Developers from combining Personal Information collected across different User Websites and Services, and from sharing Users-of-Users’ Personal Information other than with other Apps installed on the same User Website or Services, for the purposes of such specific User Website or Services. Wix however may still access and use information collected and stored via the WixHive API across different User Websites and Apps, as necessary for providing and improving its Services.” (Wix privacy policy as of October 23, 2018, section 8.6)
You have the right to be erased, meaning, your personal information collected through any on our website installed Wix Apps will be deleted upon your request. If you desire for this to happen, simply contact us at info@us-tours.net.
For further details regarding the Personal Information that may be collected and shared via the WixHive API, please see the Wix App Market Terms of Use. For more information about Wix’s privacy policy, how it affects us and you as a “user-of-user” please see the Wix Privacy Policy (www.wix.com/about/privacy).
Newsletters
The legal basis for the data processing for the purpose of the newsletter dispatch is your consent. We process your data for the purpose of the newsletter dispatch until the revocation of your consent. The newsletters are sent directly from us, form both within and outside the EU. You have the right to information, rectification, restriction and opposition to data processing as well as the deletion and transferability of your data stored with us. If you believe that we violate data protection regulations, you can send a formal complaint to us (info@us-tours.net) or to a data protection authority.
Contacting Us
If there are any questions regarding this privacy policy, you may contact us using the information below.
Universal Studies
430 Merritt Ave #203
Oakland, California 94610
United States of America
Phone: 001-510-469-1490
Email: info@us-tours.net
Legal representative: Mr. Patrick Ray Pittman
Last Modified: 10/01/2019.