Shalom Task Force Privacy Policy

Last updated: February 20, 2024

This Privacy Policy applies to your access and use of all products and services that are made available through the Shalom Task Force website, located at https://shalomtaskforce.org (the “Site”), including our confidential hotline and chatline, our legal services, our social media pages, our online events and workshops, and our email (collectively, the “Services”). This Privacy Policy is incorporated into and is subject to the Shalom Task Force Terms of Use. Capitalized terms used in this Privacy Policy have the same meaning given to them in the Terms. Shalom Task Force” includes Shalom Task Force and its officers, directors, employees, consultants, affiliates, subsidiaries, and agents, and the terms “we,” “us,” and “our” as used in this Privacy Policy refer to Shalom Task Force.

This Privacy Policy only applies to information collected on the Site and is not intended to fully describe the privacy policies of Shalom Task Force.  It describes the information that we gather from you, how we use and disclose your information, and the steps we take to protect your information.  By using the Site, you consent to the privacy practices described in this Privacy Policy.

We take our clients’ privacy and confidentiality extremely seriously.  Please contact us at info@shalomtaskforce.org if you have any questions or concerns about this Privacy Policy.

The information that is provided by users or is collected:

  • Personal Information
    Generally, you can visit the Site without telling us who you are or revealing any Personal Information (when we use the term “Personal Information,” we mean information that can be associated with a specific person and can be used to identify that person, such as name, e-mail address, mailing address, mobile phone number, age, gender, date of birth, as well as additional sensitive information such as social security number, financial information, financial account information, information related to actual or potential legal claims or services, and other similar types of information).  In addition, if you contact us via our confidential hotline or chatline, you may choose what information you want to provide to us, and you will not be denied access to these Services if you choose not to provide identifying information.  Our confidential hotline and chatline services have been configured to mask your phone number, caller ID, and IP address to enable anonymity.  If you do provide us with Personal Information, we will store and use that information in accordance with this Privacy Policy.  For example, you may provide us with Personal Information when you fill out forms or fields on the Site, interact with us through email or phone, attend our events or webinars, and contact us or request information about us, this Site, and our Services (whether by email, phone, social media, or other means).

  • Cookies and Automatically Collected Information
    When you use the Site, we may automatically receive and record certain information from your computer, web browser, and/or mobile device, including your geolocation, device/browser type, the web pages or sites that you visit just before visiting the Site, the pages you view and your actions on the Site, and the dates and times that you visit, access, or use the Site.  We may receive some of this information through Cookies, which are small text files containing a string of alphanumeric characters sent to your computer or mobile device.  You are always free to decline our Cookies if your browser permits, although doing so may interfere with your ability to use the Site or certain features of the Site.  We also receive information from our hotline and chatline provider, Izzy Platform, regarding the number of calls and chats that we have received or missed for analytics purposes and may use Squarespace, Inc. or a similar service that uses Cookies to help us analyze how users use the Site.  

How we use the information that is provided by users or is collected:

  • We may use any Personal Information that you provide to us in support of our Services, such as our legal services and fundraising and educational events, and to process employment, fellowship and volunteer applications. 

  • We may use non-identifying, aggregated information about users’ use of the Site to understand and analyze the usage trends of our users, to improve the Site and the Services and to improve fraud detection and information security. We may also analyze general location information (e.g., zip codes) and overall demographics for grant reporting purposes.

  • If users opt in to our marketing emails, we may use such users’ e-mail address, mailing address, or other Personal Information to send users promotional materials or to address any concerns or user-experience issues any users may have.  Generally, users can opt-out of receiving promotional communications by following links provided in the messages or by contacting us directly at info@shalomtaskforce.org.  Although such changes are reflected promptly in active user databases, we may retain all information users submit for a variety of purposes, including backups and archiving, prevention of fraud and abuse, and analytics.

  • We may use Cookies and Automatically Collected Information, which does not include Personal Information, to monitor and analyze the effectiveness of the Site and monitor aggregate site usage metrics such as total number of visitors and pages viewed.

When we disclose information:

  • We may disclose users’ information if required to do so by law or in the good-faith belief that such action is necessary to take precautions against liability; to protect Shalom Task Force from fraudulent, abusive, or unlawful uses or activity; to protect the security or integrity of the Site; to investigate and defend ourselves against any third-party claims or allegations; to assist government enforcement agencies; or to comply with state and federal laws, in response to a court order, judicial or other government subpoena, or warrant.  Please note that Shalom Task Force staff may be required by law to report certain situations (such as suspected child abuse or neglect or imminent plan to self-harm) if users provide identifying information such as full name, address and phone number, even if such users do not give them permission to share or report the situation. Staff and volunteers will inform users of any reporting requirements prior to engaging with users and will disclose when they must make a report and what information would be shared.  Even when such reports are made, Shalom Task Force endeavors not to share information beyond what is required by law.

  • We provide certain de-identified information to third parties, including grant providers, to comply with various reporting obligations or requests.  We may disclose information to references or partner institutions where necessary to process employment, fellowship, and volunteer applications.

  • We work with third-party service providers who provide website development, hosting, data storage, maintenance, payment, and other services for us.  For example, we process donations through our payment processor, Stripe, Inc.; our website is hosted on Squarespace, Inc.; our hotline and chatline services are provided through Izzy Platform; we maintain notes through Salesforce, Inc. and Ignite; and we manage our marketing emails through Constant Contact, Inc.  To the extent it is necessary for these third-party service providers to complete their contractual obligations to us, these third parties may have access to or process your information.

Your Choices:

·      You may, of course, decline to share certain information with us, in which case we may not be able to provide to you some of the features and functionality of the Site.  Please note that our chatline and hotline services are anonymous and declining to share information with us will not interfere with your use of those services.

·      If you would like for us to delete your information, please send us a request at info@shalomtaskforce.org.

·      If you do not wish to receive email offers or newsletters from us, you can opt-out of receiving email information from us (except for emails related to the completion of donations and other similar communications essential to your transactions through the Site) by using the unsubscribe process at the bottom of the email. Although your changes are reflected promptly in active user databases, we may retain all information you submit for a variety of purposes, including backups and archiving, prevention of fraud and abuse, and analytics.

Our Commitment to Children’s Privacy:

Protecting the privacy of young children is especially important.  For that reason, we do not knowingly collect or maintain information from persons under 13 years of age, and no part of the Site or Services are directed to such persons.  However, if we learn that information has been collected through the Site from persons under 13 years of age and without verifiable parental consent, and we can particularly identify and delete such information, then we will take the appropriate steps to delete this information.  If you are a parent or guardian and discover that your child under 13 years of age has obtained provided us with information, please alert us at info@shalomtaskforce.org to request such deletion.

Our Commitment to Data Security:

We use certain physical, managerial, and technical safeguards that are designed to protect the integrity and security of your information; however, no security measures are perfect or impenetrable, so we cannot ensure or warrant the security of any information you transmit to us through the Site, and you do so at your own risk. We also cannot guarantee that such information may not be accessed, disclosed, altered, or destroyed by breach of any of our physical, technical, or managerial safeguards.  We cannot control the actions of other users or other third parties with whom you may choose to share your information and therefore we cannot and do not guarantee that information you post through the Site will not be viewed by unauthorized persons.  We are not responsible for circumvention of any privacy settings or security measures contained on the Site.  Even after removal, copies of information that you have posted may remain viewable in cached and archived pages or if other users have copied or stored such information.

We retain information as long as it is reasonably necessary and relevant for our operations and/or to comply with the law, prevent fraud, resolve disputes, troubleshoot problems, assist with any investigation, or enforce our Terms or other agreements.

Visitors from Outside the United States:

This Site is controlled and operated by Shalom Task Force in the United States.  If you choose to access the Site from outside the United States, you acknowledge that you will be transferring your information, including Personal Information, outside of those regions to the United States for storage and processing, as necessary to provide to you the Services available through the Site.  Where required, we comply with applicable legal frameworks relating to the collection, storage, use, and transfer of personal information.

Depending on the jurisdiction in which you reside, you may have the right to access, correct, delete, or restrict use of certain Personal Information covered by this Privacy Policy.  Depending on the jurisdiction, you may also have the right to request that we refrain from processing your Personal Information.  Please bear in mind that if you exercise such rights this may affect our ability to provide our Services.  For inquiries about your Personal Information, please contact us by e-mail at info@shalomtaskforce.org.  While Shalom Task Force will make reasonable efforts to accommodate your request, we also reserve the right to impose certain restrictions and requirements on such requests, if allowed or required by applicable laws.  Please note that it may take some time to process your request, consistent with applicable law.

Limitation of Liability:

By accessing this Site and/or providing us with Personal Information and other data, you expressly and unconditionally release and hold us harmless from any and all liability for any injuries, loss, or damage of any kind arising from or in connection with the use and/or misuse of such information.  In addition, while we take efforts to ensure the proper and appropriate use of data by our service providers that may receive your information from us, we are not responsible for any injuries, loss, or damage of any kind arising from or in connection with the use and/or misuse of your information caused by those service providers.

Changes and Updates to this Privacy Policy:

We reserve the right to make changes to this Privacy Policy at any time.  We will notify you about significant changes in the way we treat your information, including by placing a prominent notice on the Site or by sending you an email so that you can choose whether to continue using the Site.  Material modifications are effective 30 calendar days after our initial notification or upon your acceptance of the modified Terms.  Immaterial modifications are effective upon posting of the updated Privacy Policy or Terms on the Site.  Please revisit this page periodically to stay aware of any changes to this Privacy Policy.  For the avoidance of doubt, disputes arising hereunder will be resolved in accordance with the Privacy Policy in effect at the time the dispute arose.

Do Not Track Disclosures:

Third parties such as advertising networks, analytics providers, and widget providers may collect information about your online activities over time and across different websites when you access or use our Site.  Currently, various browsers offer a “Do Not Track” option, but there is no standard for how DNT should work on commercial websites.  Please note, for example, that the DNT setting may vary from browser to browser, and that we may inadvertently receive certain information about your browsing activity even if such setting is enabled. 

Our Contact Information:

Please contact us with any questions or comments about this Privacy Policy, your Personal Information, our use and disclosure practices, or your consent choices by e-mail at info@shalomtaskforce.org.