Findacriminaldefenseattorney.com Privacy Policy

Last Revised: August 29, 2011

This privacy policy ("Policy") applies to the Web site owned and operated by Attorney Web Directories ("AWD" "we" or "us") located at Findacriminaldefenseattorney.com (the "Site"). The Policy is designed to tell you how we collect and use personal information (as defined below) so you can make an informed decision about using our Site. Please read this statement before using our Site or submitting any personal information to us. By using our Site, you represent that you are 13 years old or older and you consent to the information collection and use practices described herein. We reserve the right to change the provisions of this privacy policy at any time. We will notify you of these changes by posting a revised privacy policy on the Site and indicating on the privacy policy the date it was last updated. Your use of the Site following the posting of such changes or revised statement shall constitute your consent to any such changes. We encourage you to review our privacy policy whenever you visit our Site to determine if any changes have been made and to make sure that you understand how any personal information you provide will be used.

What is Personal Information

As used herein, the term "personal information" generally means information that specifically identifies an individual (such as user's name, address, telephone number, e-mail address, credit card or other account number) or that is associated with an identifiable person (such as demographic information or information about a person's activities when such information is linked to personally identifying information). However, personal information does not include, and this policy does not cover, any publicly available information and public records about professionals, including without limitation information obtained from licensing authorities, associations, accrediting bodies, courts, law enforcement agencies, and websites that are available to the public. Personal information also does not include "aggregate" information, which is data we collect about the use of the Site or categories of Site users, from which any personal information has been removed. This policy in no way limits or restricts our collection of aggregate information.

What Personal Information Do We Collect?

Personal information may be collected from you in a number of ways when you visit our Site or use the various services and activities available on our Site. At several places on our Site, we may collect certain information you voluntarily provide to us which may contain personal information. For example, if you register for the Site, send us an email, contact or recommend a criminal defense attorney, or submit ratings or reviews, we may collect your name, address, phone number, email address, and other personal, professional, demographic and business information that you provide. If you are a professional and claim or update your profile ("Profile"), we may also collect your credit card information, photographs and professional and business information about you, your practice or specialty areas and your educational background. In addition, from time to time we may collect demographic, contact or other personal or demographic information you provide in connection with your participation in surveys, promotional offers, forums and other interactive areas of the Site.

When you visit our Site, some information is also automatically collected through the use of log files, such as your computer's Internet Protocol (IP) address, your computer's operating system, the browser type, the address of a referring web site and your activity on the Site. We use this information for purposes such as analyzing trends, administering the Site, improving customer service, diagnosing problems with our servers, tracking user movement, and gathering broad demographic information for aggregate use. We may also automatically collect certain information through the use of "cookies." Cookies are small data files that are stored on a user's hard drive at the request of a Web site to enable the site to recognize users who have previously visited them and retain certain information such as customer preferences and history. If we combine cookies with or link them to any of the personally identifying information, we would treat this information as personal information. If you wish to block, erase, or be warned of cookies, please refer to your browser instructions or help screen to learn about these functions. However, if your browser is set not to accept cookies or if a user rejects a cookie, you will not be able to sign in to your AWD account and will not be able to access certain Site features or services.

We may also use third parties to serve ads on the Site, provide certain functionalities (such as maps), or to collect, track and analyze non-personally identifiable usage and volume statistical information from users, such as the user's browser type, operating system, browsing behavior and demographic information. These third parties may collect personal information from you in connection with the services they provide and may place cookies, web beacons or other devices on your computer to collect nonpersonal information which may be used, among other things, to deliver advertising targeted to your interests and to better understand the usage and visitation of our Site and the other sites tracked by these third parties. We are not responsible for, and do not control, any actions or policies of any third party service providers. Without limiting the generality of the foregoing, Google Maps imagery is supplied by Google, Inc., and use thereof is subject to the Google Privacy Statement.

Usage and Disclosure

In general, we use personal information we collect from you through the Site to facilitate your use of the Site, to process your requests or transactions, to provide you with information, products and services you request, to administer and assist us with the operation of the Site and of our business, and for the purpose for which the information was provided. For example, we may use the information we collect:

  • to send you a welcoming email and to contact you about your use of the Site, such as for administrative purposes or to provide you with customer service;
  • to respond to your emails, submissions, comments, requests or complaints;
  • to request feedback and to enable us to analyze, develop, customize and improve the Site and our information and services; and
  • for the specific purpose for which the information was provided.

In addition, we may use the information we collect to send you news relevant to your profession, product and service updates, notifications of activity in your profile, and AWD Q&A and AWD Guides alerts, to contact you about special events, promotions or offers and for other marketing, informational, product development and promotional purposes;

We may also receive information from third parties with whom we have business relationships, and may combine this information with the other personal information we have about you. In such cases, this Policy governs our use and disclosure of such information.

What Personal Information Do We Share With Third Parties?

We do not sell, share, or rent any personal information we collect from you through the Site in ways different from what is disclosed in this Policy, although we may provide aggregate information or other nonpersonal information to third parties without your authorization. We may share your personal information with third parties if you have indicated to us that you wish to receive information from such parties or if you otherwise give us your consent to do so, including if we notify you on the Site that the information you provide will be shared in a particular manner and you provide such information. In the event that we engage or partner with third party vendors, consultants or other service providers in connection with the operation of the Site and our business ("Service Providers"), we may share personal information with such Service Providers who need access to such information to carry out their work for us. For example, we may use credit card processing or verification service companies to verify credit card information. In addition, we may offer various features through a third party service provider. For example, mapping services are provided by Google Maps. When you use these services, you are providing information directly to the provider of these services, and the provision of such information is subject to such party's own privacy policy. We are not responsible for the actions of Service Providers or other third parties or for any information you provide to these parties directly, and we encourage you to become familiar with their practices before disclosing information directly to such third parties with which you come into contact.

You should also note that personal information that you post to public areas of the Site, may become publicly available. For example, information you post in your Profile or in a rating, forum, blog or any other interactive areas, or other information that is provided for the purpose of being shared may be made publicly available and can potentially be viewed by anyone. Your posting to such public areas of the Site constitutes your consent to share such information publicly.

We also may disclose personal information when we are required to or we believe it is appropriate to comply with the law (e.g., a lawful subpoena, warrant or court order); to enforce or apply this privacy policy or our other policies or agreements; to initiate, render, bill, and collect for amounts owed to us; to protect our or our customers' rights, property or safety; to protect our customers from fraudulent, abusive, or unlawful use of our Site; or if we believe that an emergency involving the danger of death or serious physical injury to any person requires disclosure of communications or justifies disclosure of personal information. In addition, information about our customers, including personal information, may be disclosed as part of any merger, acquisition, debt financing, sale of company assets, as well as in the event of an insolvency, bankruptcy or receivership in which personally identifiable information could be transferred to third parties as one of the business assets of the Company.

Please note: The Site may contain links to other sites or other interactive forums hosted by a third party. Please be aware that although we may participate in or utilize such other sites, we are not responsible for the privacy practices of such other sites. We encourage you to be aware when you leave our Site and to read the privacy policies of any Web site that collects personally identifiable information. Similarly, if you entered this Site through another Web site, we are also not responsible for the privacy practices of that site, and you should review the privacy policy of the originating site before providing any personal information to that site. This privacy policy applies solely to information collected by us.

What Steps Do We Take To Protect Your Information Online?

AWD endeavors to secure your personal information from unauthorized access, use or disclosure by putting into place physical, electronic and managerial procedures to safeguard the information we collect through this Site. For example, when we collect credit card information, we use a secure server with Secure Socket Layer (SSL) encryption software and store such credit card information using encryption methods designed to prevent unauthorized access. Additionally, your account information is accessible online only through the use of a password. Please be aware, however, that despite our efforts, no security measures are perfect or impenetrable. To protect the confidentiality of your personal information, you must keep your password confidential and not disclose it to any other person. You are responsible for all uses of the Site by any person using your password. Please advise us immediately by emailing us if you believe your password has been misused. You should also note that email is not secure, and you should not send any confidential or sensitive information to us via an unsecured email.

What Choices Do You Have Regarding The Use of Your Information?

We may automatically enroll you in one or more of our email subscription programs. However, you will have the opportunity to select whether or not you wish to continue to receive each category of subscription email by changing your account settings on the email and notifications page of the My Account section of the website. In addition, you may "opt out" of receiving any category of subscription, marketing or promotional email from AWD by following the unsubscribe instructions or using the unsubscribe links within the emails we send. Please note, however, that as long as you maintain an account, you may not "opt out" of receiving service or account-related emails from AWD.

How Can You Correct and Update Your Personal Information or Obtain Additional Information

If you have any questions or comments about this Policy or the practices relating to this Site, or you wish to verify, correct or delete any personal information we have collected, please contact us, and we will endeavor to respond to your inquiry or to correct, update or remove the personal information you have provided us as you indicate to the extent possible. You can correct certain information by logging into your account and changing the information, and you may also delete certain information by closing your account. In addition, you may change certain information contained in their Profile by claiming their Profile and editing the information contained therein, or by sending us an email. However, please note that in certain circumstances, we may not, or may not be able to, remove or change certain information, even in the event an account is closed. For example, we may retain certain information, such as credit card information, for a certain period of time, and we also may retain and continue to display any information you provided in connection with a Profile or a blog or other interactive forum. In lieu of email, you may also contact us by mail at the following address:

Attorney Web Directories
28480 Avenue Stanford
Suite 140
Valencia, CA 91355
Attn: Findacriminaldefenseattorney.com Privacy Policy