Effective as of October 22, 2019
TheBiteLine (“TheBiteLine,” “we,” “us,” or “our”) provides this Privacy Policy because we know that you care about how your information is collected, used, shared and retained. This Privacy Policy applies to information collected when you visit our website (www.thebiteline.com) (our “Website”).
By visiting our Website, you are agreeing to the terms of this Privacy Policy and the accompanying Terms of Use. Capitalized terms not defined in this Privacy Policy have the meaning ascribed to them in the Terms of Use.
The information that we collect, and how we use and share that information:
Registered User Information. When you sign up to make contact, you will be required to provide us with personal information about yourself, such as your name, e-mail address, zip code, and Unique Identifiers. If you contact us, you will need to provide your name and e-mail address. If you use such third-party logins, you are authorizing TheBiteLine to collect, store, and use, in accordance with this Privacy Policy, any and all information that you agreed that Facebook or such other third parties could provide to us through their application programming interface. You control the information that we receive from Facebook or other similar social media sites, and such information may include, without limitation, your first and last name, Facebook username, Facebook profile picture, unique Facebook identifier, and access token, and e-mail address.
Billing Information and Transaction Information. If you purchase a Product through our Website, you will be required to provide certain information to our third-party payment processors pursuant to the terms and conditions of their privacy policies and terms of use. Such information may include a debit card number, credit card number, expiration date, billing address, activation codes, and similar information. You authorize our third-party payment vendors to collect, process, and store this information. We do not store or process this information.
If you purchase a Product through the Platform, you will be required to provide us with your name, billing address, and shipping address. We use this information to process and ship your Product order(s), and you authorize us to share this information with suppliers of the Product(s) that you order so that they can process and ship your order(s).
Geo-locational Information. Certain features and functionalities of the Platform may be based on your location. In order to provide these features and functionalities while you are using a mobile device, we may automatically collect geo-locational information from your mobile device or wireless carrier and/or certain third-party service providers. The collection of this information occurs only when the Platform is running on your device. You may decline to allow us to collect such information by adjusting your browser settings, in which case we will not be able to provide certain features or functionalities to you.
Cookies. Like most websites, we use automatic data collection technology when you visit our Website to collect information that identifies your computer. This comprises information about your operating system, your IP addresses, browser type and language, referring pages and URLs, keywords, date and time, and what sections of our Website and Platform you visit (the “usage information”). We collect this usage information by using cookies. Cookies are small packets of data that a website stores on your computer’s hard drive so that your computer will “remember” information about your visit. You can reject cookies by following the directions provided by your browser vendor or by your Internet provider’s “help” file. If you reject cookies, you may still visit our Website and use the Platform, but may not be able to use some areas of our Website and Platform. We use cookies (and the usage information collected) to help us identify you and analyze how you use our Website and Platform. For more information on how we use cookies, please see our Cookie Policy.
Analytics and Remarketing. We use one or more third-party analytics services (such as Google Analytics) to evaluate your use of the Website and the Platform, compile reports on activity (based on our third-party partners’ collection of IP addresses, internet service provider, browser type, operating system, and language, referring and exit pages and URLs, date and time, amount of time spent on particular pages, what sections of the Website you visit, number of links clicked while on the Website, search terms and other similar usage information, and analyze performance metrics. These third-party partners use cookies to collect this usage information. By accessing and using the Website and/or the Platform, you consent to the processing of data about you by these third-party service providers in the manner and for the purposes set forth in this Privacy Policy. The third-party analytics service providers that we currently work with include those listed below. These third parties may change from time to time, but in each case, we will provide you with the links to view these organizations’ privacy policies and find out more about what data they hold about you, what they do with it, and how to opt-out from certain data collection.
Google Analytics – http://www.google.com/analytics We also use one or more third-party remarketing services (for example, Google Adwords) to advertise to users of our Website and Platform on third party websites. This means that we advertise to previous visitors to the Website who have not completed a task on the Website, such as leaving un-purchased items in your shopping cart. These third-party remarketing service providers use cookies to serve ads based on a past visit to our Website or Platform. Any data collected by such third party remarketing service providers will be used in accordance with this Privacy Policy and the privacy policy of such third party remarketing services provider. These third-party remarketing services may change from time to time, but in each case, we will provide you with information to access these organizations’ privacy policies to find out more about what data they hold about you, what they do with it, and how to opt-out from certain data collection. For more information on such third party remarketing service providers, including how to opt-out from certain data collection, please see below.
For Google Adwords, you can set preferences for how Google advertises to you using the Google Ad Preferences page, and if you want to you can opt-out of interest-based advertising entirely by cookie settings or permanently using a browser plugin.
Cross-device Advertising. We may use data we receive from advertising technology partners to match multiple devices associated with the same identifier as devices belonging to the same user or household. Where we are able to make such a match, we may use this information to deliver targeted advertisements across multiple devices on behalf of ourselves or third parties.
Aggregate Data. In an ongoing effort to better understand users of our Website, we might analyze your information in aggregate form to operate, maintain, manage, and improve our Website, or Products. This aggregate information does not identify you personally. We may share this aggregate data with our affiliates, agents, and business partners. We may also disclose aggregated user statistics in order to describe our Website, to current and prospective business partners and to other third parties for other lawful purposes.
Purpose of Collection and Use. We use the information that we collect from you under this Privacy Policy to provide our Website, and related support; to process and ship Product orders; to respond to general inquiries; to solicit feedback regarding our Website, and related support and the Products; to provide relevant content on our Website, including advertisements regarding products and services of ours or third parties; to send invoices and receive payments, and to communicate with you regarding our current and future product and service offerings.
Onward Transfer to Third Parties. Like many businesses, we hire other companies to perform certain business-related services. We may disclose personal information to certain types of third party companies but only to the extent needed to enable them to provide such services. The types of companies that may receive personal information and their functions are: direct email and regular mail marketing assistance, billing, Product order fulfillment and shipping, customer service, data storage, hosting services, disaster recovery services, sales support, logistics support companies, event registration, book, and media publishers (for the purpose of verifying your identity and providing you with attribution for any contributions). All such third parties function as our agents, performing services at our instruction and on our behalf pursuant to contracts that require they provide at least the same level of privacy protection as is required by this Privacy Policy and implemented by us. You may opt-out of having your personal information transferred to any or all of our categories of agents by emailing us at privacy@thebiteline.com. Please allow us a reasonable time to process your request.
With regard to the Principle of Accountability for Onward Transfer, we remain liable if our agent possesses such personal information in a manner inconsistent with the Privacy Shield Principles, unless we prove that we are not responsible for the event giving rise to the damage.
Opt-In to Certain Onward Transfers. We will not transfer your personal information to a third party acting as a controller without first providing you with information regarding the identity of such controller or the nature of such controller’s business, and obtaining your opt-in consent. You may grant such consent by emailing us at privacy@thebiteline.com.
We will not disclose your sensitive personal information to any third party without first obtaining your opt-in consent. You may grant such consent by emailing us at privacy@thebiteline.com.
In each instance, please allow us a reasonable time to process your response.
Business Transfers. In the event of a merger, reorganization, dissolution or similar corporate event, or the sale of all or substantially all of our assets, we expect that the information that we have collected, including personal information, would be transferred to the surviving entity in a merger or the acquiring entity. All such transfers shall be subject to our commitments with respect to the privacy and confidentiality of such personal information as set forth in this Privacy Policy.
Disclosure to Public Authorities. We may be required to disclose personal information in response to lawful requests by public authorities, including for the purpose of meeting national security or law enforcement requirements. We may also disclose personal information to other third parties when compelled to do so by government authorities or required by law or regulation including, but not limited to, in response to court orders and subpoenas.
Opt-Out for Direct Marketing; Email Management. You may opt-out at any time from the use of your personal information for direct marketing purposes by emailing us at privacy@thebiteline.com. Please allow us a reasonable time to process your request.
You may manage your receipt of marketing and non-transactional communications by clicking on the “Manage Email Preferences” link located on the bottom of any TheBiteLine marketing email and following the instructions found on the page to which the link takes you. You cannot opt-out of receiving transactional e-mails related to your Registered User account or any Product orders.
Information Collected by or Through Third-Party Companies
We may share your usage information with third parties for ad distribution and ad optimization (defined as the tailoring, targeting (i.e., behavioral, contextual, and retargeting), analyzing, managing, reporting, and optimizing of ads). These third parties may use cookies, pixel tags (also called web beacons or clear gifs), and/or other technologies to collect such usage information for such purposes. Pixel tags enable us, and these third-parties, to recognize a browser’s cookie when a browser visits the site on which the pixel tag is located in order to learn which advertisement brings a user to a given site. You may opt-out of the tailoring of advertising based on the information we collect. To learn more about the use of this information, or to choose not to have this information used by our providers or third-party advertising partners by opting out, please visit the Network Advertising Initiative by clicking http://www.networkadvertising.org/managing/opt_out.asp.
INFORMATION THAT YOU SHARE THROUGH THE PLATFORM
Please keep in mind that whenever you voluntarily make your personally identifiable or other information available to third parties (including other Registered Users) — for example, through your public profile, on message boards, through email or other direct messages, or in comment or chat areas — that information can be seen, collected, heard, and/or used by others besides us. We cannot be responsible for any third-party use of your information, and this Privacy Policy does not apply to any information that you share in any of the foregoing ways.
ACCESS TO YOUR PERSONAL INFORMATION
Upon request by sending an email to privacy@thebiteline.com, we will provide you with confirmation as to whether we are processing your personal information, and have the data communicated to you within a reasonable time after your request. You have the right to correct, amend or delete your personal information where it is inaccurate or has been processed in violation of this Privacy Policy. We may require payment of a non-excessive fee to defray our expenses in this regard. Please allow us a reasonable time to respond to your inquiries and requests.
RETENTION OF PERSONAL INFORMATION
We will retain your personal information in a form that identifies you only for as long as it serves the purpose(s) for which it was initially collected as stated in this Privacy Policy, or subsequently authorized. We may continue processing your personal information for longer periods, but only for the time and to the extent such processing reasonably serves the purposes of archiving in the public interest, journalism, literature and art, scientific or historical research and statistical analysis, and subject to the protection of this Privacy Policy. After such time periods have expired, we may either delete your personal information or retain it in a form such that it does not identify you personally.
HOW WE PROTECT YOUR INFORMATION
We take very seriously the security and privacy of the personal information that we collect pursuant to this Privacy Policy. Accordingly, we will implement reasonable and appropriate security measures to protect your personal information from loss, misuse, and unauthorized access, disclosure, alteration, and destruction, taking into account the risks involved in the processing and the nature of such data, and comply with applicable laws and regulations.
CHILDREN
We do not knowingly collect any personal information from children under the age of 13 through our Website. If you are under the age of 13, please do not give us any personal information. We encourage parents and legal guardians to monitor their children’s Internet usage and to help enforce our Privacy Policy by instructing their children never to provide personal information to us without their permission. If you have reason to believe that a child under the age of 13 has provided personal information to us, please contact us at privacy@thebiteline.com, and we will endeavour to delete that information from our databases.
LINKS TO EXTERNAL WEBSITES
Our Website may contain links to third-party websites (“External Sites”). We have no control over the privacy practices of these External Sites. As such, we are not responsible for the privacy policies of those External Sites. You should check the applicable third-party privacy policy and terms of use when visiting any External Sites, and before providing any personal information to such External Sites.
IMPORTANT NOTICE TO NON-US RESIDENTS
Our servers are located in the US. If you are located outside of the US, please be aware that any information provided to us, including personal information, will be transferred from your country of origin to the US. Except in the case of data transfers under the EU-US and Swiss-US Privacy Shield Frameworks, your decision to provide such data to us, or to allow us to collect such data through our Website, App or Platform, constitutes your consent to this data transfer.
IMPORTANT NOTICE FOR RESIDENTS OF THE EUROPEAN ECONOMIC AREA and Switzerland
TheBiteLine complies with the EU-US and Swiss-US Privacy Shield Frameworks as set forth by the US Department of Commerce regarding the collection, use, and retention of personal information from the European Union member countries (including Iceland, Liechtenstein, and Norway) and Switzerland, respectively. We have certified that we adhere to the Privacy Shield Principles of Notice, Choice, Accountability for Onward Transfer, Security, Data Integrity and Purpose Limitation, Access, Recourse, Enforcement, and Liability (the “Privacy Shield Principles”). If there is any conflict between the policies in this Privacy Policy and the Privacy Shield Principles, the Privacy Shield Principles shall govern. To learn more about the Privacy Shield program, and to view our certification page, please visit https://www.privacyshield.gov/ .
In compliance with the Privacy Shield Principles, we commit to resolve complaints about your privacy and our collection or use of your personal information. EU and/or Swiss individuals with inquiries or complaints regarding this Privacy Policy should first contact us at privacy@thebiteline.com. We have further committed to refer unresolved privacy complaints from EU and/or Swiss individuals under the Privacy Shield Principles to BBB EU PRIVACY SHIELD, a non-profit alternative dispute resolution provider located in the United States and operated by the Council of Better Business Bureaus. If you do not receive timely acknowledgment of your complaint, or if your complaint is not satisfactorily addressed by us, please visit www.bbb.org/EU-privacy-shield/for-eu-consumers/ for more information and to file a complaint. If these processes do not result in a resolution, you may also contact your local data protection authority, the US Department of Commerce, and/or the Federal Trade Commission for assistance.
Please note that if your complaint is not resolved through these channels, under limited circumstances, a binding arbitration option may be available before a Privacy Shield Panel.
TheBiteLine is subject to the investigatory and enforcement powers of the Federal Trade Commission.
CALIFORNIA PRIVACY RIGHTS
Pursuant to Section 1798.83 of the California Civil Code, residents of California have the right to obtain certain information about the types of personal information that companies with whom they have an established business relationship (and that are not otherwise exempt) have shared with third parties for direct marketing purposes during the preceding calendar year, including the names and addresses of those third parties, and examples of the types of services or products marketed by those third parties. If you wish to submit a request pursuant to Section 1798.83 of the California Civil Code, please contact us via email at privacy@thebiteline.com.
We do not monitor, recognize or honour any opt-out or do not track mechanisms including general web browser, “Do Not Track” settings and/or signals.
CHANGES TO THIS PRIVACY POLICY
This Privacy Policy is effective as of the date stated at the top of this Privacy Policy. We may change this Privacy Policy from time to time, and will post any changes on our Website as soon as they go into effect. By accessing or using our Website after we make any such changes to this Privacy Policy, you are deemed to have accepted such changes. Please refer back to this Privacy Policy on a regular basis.
HOW TO CONTACT US
If you have questions about this Privacy Policy, please contact in one of the following ways: E-mail us at privacy@thebiteline.com
