Privacy Policy and Terms of Use

Privacy Policy

This website or mobile application is operated by the American Federation of Teachers ("AFT," "we" or "us"). This privacy policy ("Policy") explains how personal information is collected, used and disclosed by the AFT with respect to your use of the AFT.org website, affiliate websites, and other AFT websites and mobile applications that display this Policy (the "Sites"), so you can make an informed decision about using the Sites. This Policy also applies to personal information collected on other websites on our behalf by third-party vendors. We reserve the right to change the provisions of this Policy at any time. We will alert you that changes have been made by indicating on the Policy the date it was last updated. We encourage you to review this Policy from time to time to make sure you understand how any personal information you provide will be used.

What is personal information?

As used herein, the term "personal information" means information that specifically identifies an individual (such as a name, address, telephone number, mobile number, e-mail address or credit card number) and information about that individual or his or her activities that is directly linked to personally identifying information. Personal information does not include "aggregate" information, which is data we collect about the use of the Sites or about a group or category of services or users, from which individual identities or other personal information has been removed. This Policy in no way restricts or limits our collection and use of aggregate information.

What personal information do we collect?

Active Collection:

Personal information may be collected in a number of ways when you visit our Sites. We collect certain information you voluntarily provide to us, such as information provided when you create an account or a profile, make a donation, make a purchase, send us an e-mail, sign up to receive e-mail or text message updates, fill out a form, connect through a social feed, sign up to be a volunteer or host an event, request information, apply for an internship or use a registration form tool. Such information may include personal information, such as your name, mailing address, e-mail address, phone number, geographic location and credit card information. From time to time, we also may collect demographic information you voluntarily provide, such as information provided in response to questionnaires and surveys, including gender, ethnicity, education and interest information. If this information is tied to personally identifying information, it will be treated as personal information. Personal and demographic information also may be collected if you provide such information in connection with creating a profile or group, leaving a comment, posting a blog comment or other content, sending an e-mail or message to another user, or participating in any interactive forums or features on the Sites. In addition, from time to time, we may collect demographic, contact or other personal information you provide in connection with your participation in surveys, contests, games, promotions and other activities on the Sites. We also may obtain information from other sources and combine that with information we collect on our Sites. The AFT makes every effort to ensure the secure collection and transmission of your sensitive information using industry-accepted data collection and encryption methodologies, such as SSL (Secure Sockets Layer).

In addition, the federal government may require us to collect personal information from those who donate to COPE or those who make dues payments online.

Passive Collection:

When you use the Sites, some information is collected automatically, such as your Internet Protocol (IP) address, your operating system, the browser type, the address of a referring website and your activity on our Sites. If you access the Sites from a mobile device, we also may collect information about the type of mobile device you use, your device's unique ID, the type of mobile Internet browsers you use, and the location of your device. We treat this information as personal information if we combine it with or link it to any of the identifying information mentioned above. Otherwise, it is used in the aggregate only.

We also may automatically collect certain information through the use of cookies. Cookies are small data files stored on your hard drive at the request of a website. Among other things, cookies help us improve our Sites and your experience. Information obtained from cookies and linked to personally identifying information is treated as personal information. If you wish to block, erase or be warned of cookies, please refer to your browser manufacturer to learn about these functions.

How do we use the personal information we collect?

We use personal information collected through our Sites for the purposes described in this Policy or elsewhere on the Sites. For example, we may use personal information we collect:

to provide the services, products or information you request, and to process and complete such requests and any related transactions;
to send you confirmations, receipts, updates, alerts, and support and administrative messages, and to otherwise facilitate your use, and our administration and operation, of the Sites;
to notify you about important changes to the Sites;
to send you newsletters and otherwise provide you with information or services you request or we think will be of interest to you, such as information to keep you informed about various campaigns, candidates, issues, events, resources, promotions, contests, products and services;
to contact you if other information is necessary under federal law;
to request feedback and to otherwise contact you about your use of the Sites;
to respond to your e-mails, submissions, questions, comments and requests, and to provide customer service;
to monitor and analyze site usage and trends; to personalize and improve the Sites and our users' experiences on the Sites, such as providing content or features that match your profiles or interests; and to increase the Sites' functionality and make them more user-friendly;
to serve ads, on this Site or other websites or media, based on the information you provide and the actions you take;
to notify and contact contest or sweepstakes entrants; and
for any other purpose for which the information was collected.
We may store and process personal information in the United States and other countries.

What personal information do we share with third parties?

It is our policy not to share the personal information we collect from you through our Sites with third parties, except as described in this Policy or as otherwise disclosed on the Sites. For example, we may share personal information as follows:

with vendors, consultants, and other service providers or volunteers who are engaged by or working with us and need access to such information to carry out their work for us;
when you give us your consent to do so, including if we notify you on the Sites that the information you provide will be shared in a particular manner and you provide such information;
when we believe in good faith that we are lawfully authorized or required to do so or that doing so is reasonably necessary or appropriate to comply with the law or legal processes or respond to lawful requests, claims or legal authorities, including responding to lawful subpoenas, warrants or court orders;
when we believe in good faith that doing so is reasonably necessary or appropriate to respond to claims or to protect the rights, property or safety of the AFT, our users, our employees, our volunteers, copyright owners, third parties or the public, including, without limitation, to protect such parties from fraudulent, abusive, inappropriate or unlawful activity or use of our Site;
to enforce or apply this Policy or our other policies or agreements; and
in connection with, or during negotiations of, any merger, reorganization, acquisition, asset sale, financing or lending transaction, or in any other situation where personal information may be disclosed or transferred as one of the assets of the AFT.
We are not responsible for the actions of any service providers or other third parties, nor are we responsible for any additional information you provide directly to any third parties, and we encourage you to become familiar with their privacy practices before disclosing information directly to any such parties. Nothing herein restricts the sharing of aggregated or "anonymized" information, which may be shared with third parties without your consent.

Cookies:

A cookie is a piece of data stored on the user's hard drive containing information about the user. The AFL-CIO website uses a cookie for measuring aggregate statistics, including number of monthly visitors, number of repeat visitors, most popular Web pages and other information. The AFT will use cookies to facilitate your online visit by maintaining data that you provide for online activism activities so you will not need to resubmit certain information. The AFT does not use cookies to track what specific pages an individual site visitor views.

Online Petitions

When you sign an online petition, you understand that such petition is public information and that we may make the petition, and your name, city, state and any comments provided in connection therewith, publicly available. In addition, we may provide such petitions or compilations thereof, including your comments, name, city and state to national, state or local leaders, or to the press.

Links to Other Websites

Our Sites may contain links to other websites. Any personal information you provide on the linked pages is provided directly to that third party and is subject to that third party's privacy policy. This Policy does not apply to such linked sites, and we are not responsible for the content, or the privacy and security practices and policies, of these websites or any other sites that are linked to from our Sites. We encourage you to learn about their privacy and security practices and policies before providing them with personal information.

What steps do we take to protect your information online?

We take reasonable measures to protect your personal information in an effort to prevent loss, misuse and unauthorized access, disclosure, alteration and destruction. Please be aware, however, that despite our efforts, no security measures are perfect or impenetrable, and no method of data transmission can be guaranteed against any interception or other type of misuse. To protect the confidentiality of personal information, you must keep any passwords confidential and not disclose them to any other person. You are responsible for all uses of our Sites by any person using your password. Please advise us immediately if you believe your password has been misused.

What choices do you have regarding the use of your information?

You may "opt out" of receiving text messages, e-mail updates and newsletters by following the instructions in those text messages and e-mails. Please note that we may still send you other types of e-mails, such as e-mails about your use of our Sites, or use information as otherwise described in this Policy, even if you opt out of receiving e-mail updates and newsletters. Changes to information in your account do not affect information provided to others as set forth in this Policy, including in connection with petitions or donations.

Corrections/Updating Personal Information:

If your personal information changes (such as your ZIP code) or you wish to have your information removed from our database, contact us and we will endeavor to provide a way to correct, update or remove that personal data. 

Questions?

If you have any questions about this Policy, please contact us at socnet@aft.org.

Terms of Use

By accessing the AFT website, you are indicating your acceptance to be bound by the provisions of these Terms of Use. If you do not accept the Terms of Use stated here, do not access the site. The AFT may revise these Terms of Use at any time by updating this posting. You should visit this page periodically to review the Terms of Use because they are binding on you. The terms "you" and "User" as used herein refer to all individuals and/or entities accessing this website for any reason.

1. Eligibility.
By accessing the AFT website, you represent and warrant that you are 18 years of age or older, and that you have the right, authority and capacity to agree to and abide by these Terms of Use. You also represent and warrant that you will use the website in a manner consistent with any and all applicable laws and regulations.

2. AFT Restrictions.
You may not use the AFT website to submit, transmit, distribute, store or destroy material, including, without limitation, this website's content (a) in violation of any applicable law or regulation; (b) in a manner that will infringe the copyright, trademark, trade secret or other intellectual property rights of others, or that will violate the privacy, publicity or other personal rights of others, reveal confidential information or otherwise violate third-party proprietary rights without permission; or (c) in a manner that is profane, defamatory, violent, obscene, threatening, abusive or hateful, or that is potentially libelous or inflammatory. You also are prohibited from violating or attempting to violate the security of the AFT site, including, without limitation, the following activities: (a) attempting to probe, scan or test the vulnerability of a system or network, or to breach security or authentication measures without proper authorization; (b) attempting to interfere with communication to any user, host or network, including, without limitation, by submitting a virus to this or any AFT site, overloading, "flooding," "spamming," "mailbombing" or "crashing"; or (c) solicitation or advertisement. Violations of system or network security may result in civil or criminal liability. The AFT will investigate possible violations, and may involve, and cooperate  with, law enforcement authorities in prosecuting users who are involved in such violations.

3. Use of Submissions.
Submissions may be used by the AFT for any purpose in any form without the permission of the submitter and without any consideration apart from participation in accordance with these Terms of Use. By providing submissions to the AFT, you are: (a) giving the AFT the nonexclusive right to use your name, voice, appearance and likeness, as well as any additional information you have provided about yourself in any material prepared by or for the AFT in any form or media, now known or hereafter devised, in all languages throughout the world; (b) giving the AFT a worldwide, nonexclusive, royalty-free, sublicensable and transferable license to use, reproduce, distribute, prepare derivative works of and display your submission in connection with the AFT website and the AFT activities, including, without limitation, for promoting and redistributing part or all of the AFT website (and derivative works thereof) in any form or media, now known or hereafter devised, in all languages throughout the world; (c) agreeing and representing that, unless you are the owner of such rights or have permission from the rightful owner, you have not submitted material that (i) is copyrighted or protected by trademark or trade secret or other intellectual property rights of others; (ii) violates the privacy, publicity or other personal rights of others; or (iii) reveals confidential information or otherwise violates the third-party proprietary rights of others; (d) agreeing and representing that you have not submitted material that is  profane, defamatory, violent, obscene, threatening, abusive or hateful, or that is potentially libelous or inflammatory; (e) affirming, representing and/or warranting that you own or have the necessary licenses, rights, consents and permissions to use and authorize the AFT to use all patent, trademark, trade secret, copyright or other proprietary rights in and to any and all submissions to enable inclusion and use of the submissions in the manner contemplated by these Terms of Use. The AFT reserves the right to not post submissions and to remove submissions without prior notice, at the sole discretion of the AFT.

4. Disclaimer of Warranty.
The AFT does not warrant that the AFT website will operate error-free or that the servers are free of computer viruses or other harmful mechanisms. If your use of the website results in the need for servicing or replacing equipment or data, the AFT is not responsible for those costs. In no event shall the AFT be liable for any damages whatsoever (including, without limitation, incidental and consequential damages, lost profits or damages resulting from lost data or business interruption) resulting from the use or inability to use the site, whether based on warranty, contract, tort or any other legal theory, and whether or not the AFT is advised of the possibility of such damages. The AFT, to the fullest extent permitted by law, disclaims all warranties, whether express or implied, in connection with the website and your use thereof. The AFT makes no warranties or representations about the accuracy or completeness of this site’s content or the content of any sites linked to this site, and assumes no liability or responsibility for any direct or indirect, incidental, special, punitive or consequential damages whatsoever resulting from (a) any errors, mistakes or inaccuracies of content; (b) personal injury or property damage of any nature whatsoever resulting from your access to or use of AFT websites; (c) any unauthorized access to or use of AFT secure servers and/or any and all personal information and/or financial information stored therein; (d) any interruption or cessation of transmission to or from AFT websites; (e) any bugs, viruses, Trojan horses or the like, which may be transmitted to or through AFT websites by any third party; and/or (f) any errors or omissions in any content, or any loss or damage of any kind incurred as a result of the use of any content posted, e-mailed, transmitted or otherwise made available via AFT websites. The AFT shall not be liable for user submissions or the defamatory, offensive or illegal conduct of any third party, and the risk of harm or damage from the foregoing rests entirely with you.

5. Indemnity.
You agree to defend, indemnify and hold harmless the AFT, its officers, employees and agents from and against any and all claims, damages, obligations, losses, liabilities, costs or debt, and expenses (including but not limited to attorneys' fees) arising from: (a) your use of the AFT website for the purpose of accessing videos and from making submissions to the AFT websites; (b) your violation of any term of these Terms of Use; (c) your violation of any third-party right, including, without limitation, any copyright, property or privacy right; or (d) any claim that one of your submissions caused damage to a third party. This defense and indemnification obligation will survive these Terms of Use and your use of the AFT websites.