The Effective Date of this Privacy Policy is JAN 1, 2022.
BY USING SURFACE INTEGRITY INSTITUTE’S SERVICES AND BY COMMUNICATING WITH THE SII, YOU AGREE TO BE BOUND BY THE TERMS OF THE THEN-CURRENT SII PRIVACY POLICY. THIS PRIVACY POLICY MAY CHANGE FROM TIME TO TIME, AND THE SII ENCOURAGES USERS TO CHECK IT PERIODICALLY.
The Surface Integrity Institute (referred to as “SII” or “we”) is devoted to preserving surface integrity and related research. A not-for-profit, privately funded institution, the SII is supported in part by the Lambda Technologies Group. The SII provides the website www.surfaceintegrity.org (identified herein as the “Site”) and the content on the Site for the convenience of its users. Please read the following sections carefully, as they contain the privacy policies covering the use of your information obtained by the SII through your interaction with it (the “Privacy Policy”). Additionally, you should review the SII’s website Terms and Conditions that govern use of the Site. Inquiries or concerns regarding the Terms and Conditions of this Privacy Policy may be sent by either of the following: via email to cs@surfaceintegrity.org or by mail to Legal Department, Surface Integrity Institute, 3929 Virginia Avenue, Cincinnati, OH 45227.
STATUTORY OBLIGATIONS OF LIBRARIES. As provided in Ohio Revised Code sections 149.43-149.432, the SII specifically recognizes any document, record, or other method of storing information retained, received, or generated by the SII that identifies a person or persons having requested, used, or borrowed SII material to be confidential, including document delivery requests. The SII shall not divulge such information to anyone other than the borrower or the borrower’s parent organization while using SII services in a professional capacity. Such records shall not be made available to any agency of state, federal, or local government except pursuant to such process, order, or subpoena as may be authorized under the authority of, and pursuant to, federal, state, or local law relating to civil, criminal, or administrative discovery procedures or legislative investigatory power. The SII shall resist the issuance or enforcement of any such process, order, or subpoena until such time as a proper showing of good cause has been made in a court of competent jurisdiction.
NON-PERSONALLY IDENTIFIABLE INFORMATION OBTAINED THROUGH YOUR USE OF THE SITE. The SII records and compiles aggregate demographic data related to our users in order to manage the services offered and to provide aggregate information to potential funders of the SII’s programs. The SII collects and analyzes data about the use of the Site to improve service, and may choose to use an externally hosted service (e.g. Google Analytics) to collect this data. This information is generally not personally identifiable information.
IP ADDRESS. The SII may log all connections to our web servers. Those log files will include your IP address. An IP address is NOT personally identifiable information, but general information about your location, connection to the Internet, and your Internet Service Provider.
COOKIES. “Cookies” are small pieces of information stored in a user’s browser that give that user a unique identification. The Site may insert cookies into your browser that identify you as a previous user of the Site and contain non-personally identifying information regarding you and your navigation of the Site. In some instances, these cookies may be used by other websites during your future navigation of the Internet to target specific advertisements to you based on your previous use of the Site. All cookies are established on a per session basis, and are not permanently stored on your machine.
PERSONALLY IDENTIFIABLE INFORMATION OBTAINED THROUGH YOUR INTERACTION WITH THE SII. The SII uses its best efforts to respect the privacy of its users of the Site. The SII does not collect personally identifiable information from individuals unless they provide it to the SII voluntarily and knowingly. The SII will not sell, trade, or share any personal information by or about a donor or user with anyone else unless the donor or user has given the SII specific permission to do so. The SII does not send mailings to donors or users on behalf of other organizations.
CONTACT FORM. The SII does not require users to register with or provide information to the SII in order to view its Site. Most information contained on the Site is available without supplying personal information. In the event you affirmatively act to provide your personal information to the SII, to contact the SII, or to request additional information via the Site, email, or in person; for document delivery; or through a donation to the SII, you thereby agree to the terms of this Privacy Policy with respect to the collection and use of your contact and personal information. The SII’s contact form, event registration form, or donation form may request that you provide contact and other personal information (such as your name, mailing address, telephone number, and email address).
USE OF PERSONAL INFORMATION. The SII will sometimes send requests to support the SII to people who have expressed interest in the SII’s programs or services. The SII may also use personal and/or contact information to contact users directly. This information is used for internal purposes solely by the SII or other entities who are involved in the operation of the SII or the Site. The SII’s lists are never sold to third parties. The SII will only disclose your contact and personal information when required by law or in response to a request from a law enforcement agency or similar authority.
THIRD-PARTY SERVICE PROVIDERS. The SII does contract with Application Service Providers (ASPs) to provide some services, such as document delivery, but the SII expects ASPs to respect the confidentiality of the information placed on their hosted servers.
CREDIT CARD INFORMATION. The SII receives credit card information via online forms, postal mail, fax, and phone and has measures in place to protect against unauthorized access, use, or disclosure. However, the SII cannot guarantee the performance or adequacy of such measures, and hereby disclaims any liability related thereto.
SII CIRCULATION DATA. SII circulation databases will not be used to collect personal information for mailing lists, and SII cardholders must opt in to electronic or postal mailing lists. SII users and donors may opt out of the SII’s electronic or postal mailing lists at any time.
SECURITY. The Site includes security measures in place to protect against the loss, misuse, or alteration of the information under our control; however, the SII does not guarantee the performance or adequacy of such security measures.
CHILDREN’S SAFETY. The Site allows children to use the Site and request information through the Site. The SII has great concern for protecting the personal information of children, as well as the rest of its patrons and donors. As such, the SII applies the same protective standards set forth above with respect to the handling of information collected from children.
LINKS TO OTHER WEB SITES. The Site may contain links to other websites that are not owned or operated by the SII. The SII is not responsible for the privacy policies or practices of third parties or the content or security of such third-party websites. The User bears all risk associated with viewing a third-party website or employing of any third party and obtaining their goods or services.
CHANGES TO THIS PRIVACY POLICY. This Privacy Policy describes the types of information currently collected from users through their use or support of the SII or through the use of the Site, and the ways that information is protected. From time to time, the SII may collect different types of information and use that information in different ways, for example, when features or services are added to the Site. In these cases, this policy may be edited to explain the new practices. Because protecting your privacy is very important, the SII does not expect major changes in policy. However, if significant changes in SII practices are made, announcements at the SII or on the Site’s home page will advise a user of the revised Privacy Policy.
CONTACT US. To remove or change your contact information, or to opt out of future mailings or other communications, as well as for all other inquiries, please contact us at any time using one of the options below.