Privacy Policy

 

 Privacy Statement Updated January 1, 2019.

Welcome to MyUSCompanies.com (MUSC). MUSC is a website that provides company and corporation filing/formation and consulting services in the United States.

In Part I of this Privacy Statement we set forth MUSC's Privacy Policy as to Personal Information which we collect online through www.myuscompanies.com or other MUSC websites which link to this Privacy Statement from their site (collectively, "MUSC Websites"). 

In Part II of this Privacy Statement we set forth MUSC's Privacy Policy as to Personal Information which we collect other than through MUSC Websites. 

"Personal Information", is any information that enables us to identify you, directly or indirectly, by reference to an identifier such as your name, identification number, location data, online identifier or one or more factors specific to you. Personal Information includes "sensitive Personal Information" and "pseudonymised Personal Information" but excludes anonymous information or information that has had the identity of an individual permanently removed.

Your use of the MUSC Websites and/or provision of your Personal Information or sensitive Personal Information to MUSC constitutes your consent to the use, storage, processing and transfer of that information in accordance with this Privacy Statement.

The Data controller is MyUSCompanies.com with an office 1223 Cleveland Ave, Suite 200 
San Diego, CA 92116. MUSC is an organization based in the United States.  

QUESTIONS

If you have any questions or complaints regarding this Privacy Statement, please contact us at cristiani@myUSCompanies.com.  If you have any questions about the MUSC Websites, please contact us at cristiani@myUSCompanies.com, by phone at 858-232-2375 

CHANGES TO THIS PRIVACY STATEMENT

We will update this Privacy Statement from time to time, so please check back periodically.

If at any point we decide to use Personal Information in a manner that is materially different from that stated at the time it was collected, we will endeavor to notify you of such changes (e.g., we will post a revised Privacy Statement with a new effective date, display the word "updated" next to the Privacy Policy link on each page on the MUSC Websites, or otherwise), prior to implementing them. 

PART I – MUSC WEBSITES PRIVACY POLICY

Throughout MUSC Websites, there are forms for visitors to request information, products, and services. We use Personal Information from these forms to provide the products, promotional materials, or memberships that you request.

Forms on the MUSC Websites that request financial information do so in order to bill you for products or services ordered. Unique identifiers (specifically, your MUSC member number) are collected from website visitors to verify the user's identity for access to restricted content or features on the MUSC Websites.

This Privacy Policy discloses MUSC's privacy practices and contains detailed information about the following:

  • What information do we collect?

  • What are "cookies" and how does MUSC use them?

  • Do we share information with third parties?

  • How do we use the information we collect?

  • How can you review and modify your Personal Information?

  • What is the opt-out policy for MUSC Websites?

  • Your California privacy rights

  • Your European privacy rights

  • What types of security procedures are in place to protect against the loss, misuse or alteration of your information?

  • How do MUSC Websites use bulletin boards, discussion lists, and moderated chats?

1.     What information do we collect?
MUSC Websites collect the following Personal Information about site visitors:

a)    Site Use Information

MUSC collects technical information relating to each time a visitor comes to a MUSC Website, including IP address, browser type and version, time zone settings, browser plug-in types and versions, operating system and platform type (e.g. Internet Explorer browser on a Windows platform).

We may also collect information about your visit, including pages you viewed or searched for, page response times, download errors, length of visits to certain pages, page interaction information (such as scrolling, clicks, and mouse-overs), methods used to browse away from the page, and any phone number used to call our customer service number.

Gathering this technical information helps us to learn what browsers we need to support and helps us determine what sections of MUSC Websites are most popular and how many visitors come to our site(s). You do not have to register with MUSC Websites before we can collect this information.

b)    Information You Give Us

You may provide Personal Information to us which may include your name, home and/or work email address, postal address, phone number and/or fax number, your employer and job title, demographic information about you including birth year, certification designation, etc., and if you are making a purchase, your credit card information. You are only required to provide such information if you want to take advantage of optional products and services provided through MUSC Websites.

MUSC collects Personal Information in the following ways from different parts of the MUSC Websites:

  • Registration Forms to form companies and/or corporations in the US: When registering for specific services we may ask for Personal Information and Business Information required by Law to form your corporation or company. 

  • Online Purchases: When you make a purchase using the MUSC website we may also ask for the same type of Personal Information. 

2.     What are "cookies" and how does MUSC use them?

A cookie is a small text file containing a unique identification number that is transferred from a website to the hard drive of your computer. This unique number identifies your web browser to MUSC computers whenever you visit MUSC Websites.

The use of cookies is an industry standard, and cookies are currently used on most major websites. Most web browsers are initially set up to accept cookies. If you prefer, you can reset your browser to notify you when you have received a cookie. You can also set your browser to refuse to accept cookies altogether.

While MUSC does not require you to use cookies, keep in mind that certain services will not function properly if you set your browser to refuse all cookies. To help serve you better, MUSC generally uses cookies to:

  • Identify return visitors. Cookies let us remember your web browser so we can provide personalized member services such as My MUSC and MUSC search agents. Cookies also allow us to identify MUSC members who are returning to the site.

  • Display advertisements. MUSC uses an outside ad company to display MUSC-approved ads on our website and other websites. While we use cookies on other parts of our website(s), the cookies received with banner ads are collected by our ad company. These cookies allow MUSC to manage the delivery of ads.

3.     Do we share information with third parties?

Personal Information collected through MUSC Websites is generally collected and maintained solely by MUSC or its contracted vendors.

We may share Personal Information in the following ways:

a)    Information You Give Us

  1. Personal Information provided when you register for services or products. When you provide Personal Information about you on MUSC Websites to register for a service, buy a product, or take advantage of a promotion MUSC reserves the right to sell or otherwise provide to selected third parties, mailing/information lists derived from such registrations.

    If you wish to opt out of such list sales/distribution at any time, you may do so by following the directions in Item 6 below. 

  2. Sensitive Personal Information.  MUSC does not share with third parties, sensitive Personal Information such as passcodes, social security numbers, credit card numbers, or health information except as necessary to complete transactions requested by you and under strict confidentiality and security protections; nor does MUSC publish such sensitive Personal Information.

b)    Site Use Information

We disclose to third-party sponsors/advertisers aggregate statistics (i.e., impressions and click-throughs on a company's advertisement).

In addition, we may share aggregate website statistics with the media or other third parties. We do not disclose Personal Information to these sponsors/advertisers or other third parties as part of this process, only information in an aggregate form.

4.     How do we use the information we collect?

We use your Personal Information according to the terms of the Privacy Policy in effect at the time of our use. We will only process your Personal Information, including sharing it with third parties, where (1) you have provided your consent which can be withdrawn at any time, one you so choose order or purchase any of our products or services you expressly provide consent to share with third parties information that is necessary and esclusively to complete your ordered transaction (2) the processing is necessary for the performance of a contract to which you are a party (3) we are required by law, (4) processing is required to protect your vital interests or those of another person, or (5) processing is necessary for the purposes of our legitimate commercial interests, provided your interests and fundamental rights do not override those interests.

We use Personal Information for the following purposes:

a)    Information You Give Us

We use the Personal Information you give us:

  1. to carry out our obligations arising from your ORDERED SERVICE or PRODUCT, and any other agreement entered into between you and us

  2. to provide you with the information, products and services you request from us 

  3. to arrange and deliver conferences, events and programming relevant to your job and subjects of interest

  4. to respond to your questions and provide related membership or customer services

  5. to improve the MUSC Websites

  6. to send you MUSC publications, information about member benefits and special offers, and other information that MUSC believes is relevant and useful to its members, where you have not opted out of receiving such information 

  7. to send you third party information that MUSC believes is relevant and useful to you, where you have given your consent

  8. to notify you about changes to your membership or related services or to ask you to provide feedback 

  9. to enable you to partake in a prize draw, competition or complete a survey

  10. to administer and protect our business and websites (including troubleshooting, data analysis, testing, system maintenance, support, reporting and hosting of data)

  11. to comply with all applicable laws or legal processes, including providing information on individual users to the appropriate governmental authorities where required by law enforcement or judicial authorities 

a.   To complete transactions once you have ordered a service or product from our website, exclusively for such purposes and in accordance with all applicable law. By ordering products or services from our website you provide consent for us to carry out such transactions, directly or on your behalf.

 

b)    Site Use Information

As mentioned above, MUSC uses the aggregate, anonymous data collected to let our sponsors/advertisers know the number of impressions or views and the number of "click throughs" on their advertisement(s).

MUSC also uses this aggregate, anonymous data to perform statistical analyses of the collective characteristics and behavior of visitors to MUSC Websites; to measure user interests regarding specific areas of MUSC Websites; and to analyze how and where best to use our resources.

Without such data, we would not know which parts of MUSC Websites are the most popular, and we would not be able to change and update the content and services appropriately.

d)    Exceptions           

On occasion MUSC collects Personal Information through MUSC Websites with the intent to afford a greater degree of privacy for such information than is otherwise set forth in this privacy policy. 

In those relatively rare situations where MUSC does so it will clearly disclose to you at the time it collects such information, what degree of privacy will be afforded to the Personal Information collected at such time; and MUSC will follow a process to assure that the specifically disclosed degree of privacy is in fact afforded to such information. 

For example, MUSC may collect survey information through a survey where MUSC's use of any Personal Information from that survey is more limited than the general MUSC Privacy Statement would otherwise allow; in such a case, MUSC will disclose the stricter privacy policy governing that survey information at the time such Personal Information is collected from the survey respondent.

5.     How can you review and modify your Personal Information?

You have the following options for modifying or causing to be deleted Personal Information or demographic information previously provided by you to MUSC.

  1. E-mail: cristiani@myUSCompanies.com

  2. Call: 858-232-2375

6.     What is the opt-out policy for MUSC Websites?

MUSC provides members and customers with the opportunity to opt-out of receiving communications from us and our partners. If you no longer wish to receive specific communications or services, you have the following options:

  1. You can send an e-mail to: MUSC@MUSC.org

  2. You can send mail to the following postal address: MUSC, 1800 Duke Street, Alexandria, Virginia, 22314, ATTN: Customer Care Department.

  3. You can call the following telephone numbers: +1-800-283-7476 or 703-548-3440.

Instructions for opting out of any MUSC e-mail newsletter you receive are included with each e-mail.

7.     Your California Privacy Rights

For California Residents Only.  MUSC may disclose your Personal Information to our subsidiaries or other third parties who may use that information to market directly to you.  As a California resident, you have the right to opt-out of having your Personal Information licensed to such third parties.  We will not share your information after we have received your notification that you are opting out.  If you wish to opt-out you have the following options:

  1. You can send an e-mail to: MUSC@MUSC.org

  2. You can send mail to the following postal address: MUSC, 1800 Duke Street, Alexandria, Virginia, 22314, ATTN: Customer Care Department.

  3. You can call the following telephone numbers: +1-800-283-7476 or 703-548-3440. 

8.     Your European Privacy Rights

For European Residents Only. If you are based in the EU, in certain circumstances, you have rights under the GDPR in relation to your Personal Information.

  • Request access to your Personal Information.  You may have the right to request access to any Personal Information we hold about you as well as related information, including the purposes for processing the Personal Information, the recipients or categories of recipients with whom the Personal Information has been shared, where possible, the period for which the Personal Information will be stored, the source of the Personal Information, and the existence of any automated decision making.

  • Request correction of your Personal Information. You may have the right to obtain without undue delay the rectification of any inaccurate Personal Information we hold about you.

  • Request erasure of your Personal Information. You may have the right to request that Personal Information held about you is deleted.

  • Request restriction of processing your Personal Information. You may have the right to prevent or restrict processing of your Personal Information.

  • Request transfer of your Personal Information. You may have the right to request transfer of Personal Information directly to a third party where this is technically feasible.

9.     What kinds of security procedures are in place to protect against the loss, misuse or alteration of your information?

MUSC Websites have security measures equal to or better than those reasonably expected in the industry, such as firewalls, in place to protect against the loss, misuse and alteration of your Personal Information under our control. While we cannot guarantee that loss, misuse or alteration to data will not occur, we take reasonable precautions to prevent such unfortunate occurrences. Certain particularly sensitive information, such as your credit card number, collected for a commercial transaction is encrypted prior to transmission.

You are ultimately responsible for the security of your MUSC login credentials. You may not share your MUSC login credentials with colleagues or friends so they can access content or features that are restricted to MUSC members only. You should log out of your browser at the end of each computer session to ensure that others cannot access your Personal Information and correspondence, especially if you share a computer with someone else or are using a computer in a public place like a library or Internet cafe.

PART II – MUSC PRIVACY POLICY FOR INFORMATION COLLECTED OTHER THAN THROUGH MUSC WEBSITES

If you submit Personal Information to MUSC through any channel other than MUSC Websites, the same privacy rules set forth at Part I above for MUSC Websites will be applied to such Personal Information you submit through channels other than MUSC Websites (including without limitation your opt-out rights at Part I, Section 6 above), except as follows:

  1. The "cookies" and other tracking devices used by MUSC Websites and described in Part I above do not apply to Personal Information gathered through channels other than MUSC Websites.

  2. Hardcopy Personal Information provided to MUSC which is not converted to electronic media and hosted by MUSC will be subject to different security procedures than will stored electronic Personal Information. MUSC has security measures equal to or better than those reasonably expected in the industry, in place to protect against the loss, misuse and alteration of your hardcopy Personal Information under our control.

  3. When MUSC collects Personal Information through channels other than MUSC Websites it may in some instances apply a different privacy policy to such information; but where it does so it shall conspicuously disclose to you at the time of collection what privacy policy will apply to such information.  For example, MUSC may collect survey information through a survey where MUSC's use of any Personal Information from that survey is more limited than the general MUSC Privacy Statement would otherwise allow; in such a case MUSC will disclose the stricter privacy policy governing that survey information at the time such Personal Information is collected from the survey respondent.