Privacy Policy

At the Cleaning Is Caring Blog, we take online privacy seriously and we respect the concerns of our community of users.  In this policy we describe our privacy practices with regard to information we may collect through your use of CleaningIsCaring.org (the “Site”).  We encourage you to read this policy to help you make informed decisions about how you share information when you visit or use the Site. We may amend this policy from time to time to reflect changes to our privacy practices.  We will indicate at the bottom of this policy the date when it was most recently updated, so you should check back periodically to see the current Privacy Policy.

UNDERSTANDING HOW INFORMATION IS COLLECTED ON CLEANING IS CARING:

Information You May Choose to Provide Us

If you choose to contact us, we may keep a record of that correspondence including any personally identifiable information you submit such as your name and email address. You may choose to provide us with your name and email address to sign up to receive blog updates or other news from us.

In addition, you may choose to post content when commenting to a blog post on the Site.  To post such content, you will have to provide your name and email address.  Only your name will be publicly viewable with your comment.  Please be aware that information you post in these blog comments will be considered “public” and will not be covered by the privacy protections described in this policy or any other privacy regulations.  Therefore, you should avoid posting sensitive personal information you would not want to be available to the public. We encourage you to exercise caution when making decisions about what information you disclose in such public areas. For more information about posting content on our Site, please read our Comment Blog Policy.

Information That Is Automatically Collected When You Visit Cleaning Is Caring

When you access the Site, certain information may be collected automatically about your visit using tools such as cookies and similar technologies.  For example, we may receive information such as your browser type, IP address, the type of device you use, operating system version, the date and time of your visit and files you viewed on our site (e.g., HTML pages, graphics, etc.), Internet service provider, clickstream data (which shows the page-by-page path you take as you browse the Site) and other details that generally are not considered personally identifiable.

Cookies are a small amount of data sent to your browser from a web server and stored on your computer.  We use cookies to provide a more personalized service to you.  Cookies also assist us in tracking visits to the Site, measuring visitor patterns, and analyzing general traffic patterns.  This information is not personally identifiable and is used by us only to improve the Site.  We do not use cookies to retrieve personal information from your computer, and we do not use cookies to retrieve other information from your computer for purposes that are unrelated to the Site or your interaction with the Site.

Analytics.  We also use third-party web analytics services, such as Google Analytics and SmarterStats, to provide us with statistics and other information about website activity and Internet usage.  Click here to learn more about Google Analytics: http://www.google.com/analytics/, including a link to Google’s privacy policy.  You can find more information on Web-Stat here.

How We May Use Information We Collect

We may use the information collected on Cleaning Is Caring for operational and business purposes.  For example, if you were to contact us with a question and provide your email address, we would use the email address you provided to respond to your inquiry.  In addition, we use information we collect from you and through the Site to:

  • Provide information you request (such as when you sign up to receive our news);
  • Respond to requests and questions and provide other types of technical user support;
  • Communicate regarding your participation in surveys about the Site or similar initiatives;
  • Carry out, evaluate and improve our business (which may include developing new features for the Site; analyzing and enhancing the user experience on the Site; improving the information and content provided through the Site; and managing our communications);
  • Perform data analytics regarding usage of the Site (including consumer research, trend analysis, and anonymization of personal information);
  • Guard against, identify and prevent fraud and other criminal activity, claims, and other liabilities; and
  • Comply with applicable legal requirements, law enforcement requests, and our company policies.

How We May Share Information

Our consultants and other service providers may have access to information we collect through the Site to carry out work on our behalf.  Those parties are restricted from using personal information collected through the Site for purposes other than to provide the requested assistance.  In addition, certain service providers may collect or access information through the Site to enable or provide tools or features available on the Site.  We also may share information:

  • For internal business purposes;
  • If we are required to do so by law, regulation or legal process (such as a court order or subpoena); and,
  • In the event we sell or transfer all or a portion of our business or assets (including a reorganization, sale or merger); and,

Your Choices

Unsubscribe from emails.  To opt out of receiving our news, click the “opt-out” link at the bottom of any news email.  If you do not want to receive any communications from us, please send an email to communications@cleaninginstitute.org with “Unsubscribe” in the subject line.

Please note that there might be a brief delay between when you submit your request to “opt-out” or “Unsubscribe” and when it is processed and reflected in our systems.  Because of this, you may continue to receive communications from us for a limited time after you opt out.

Blocking cookies.  Certain browsers may be configured to notify you when you receive cookies, or allow you to restrict or disable certain cookies.  If you choose to disable cookies, however, that could affect certain features of the Site that use cookies to enhance their functionality.

How We Protect Personal Information

We maintain appropriate administrative, technical, and other safeguards to help protect the personal information you provide us against accidental, unlawful or unauthorized access and disclosure. That said, it is not possible to guarantee the security of information transmitted online, and you assume some risk with regard to the security of information you provide through any website, including CleaningIsCaring.org.

Links From Cleaning Is Caring To Other Sites

This policy only addresses the use and disclosure of your personal information in connection with your use of CleaningIsCaring.org.  On the Site we may provide links to other websites that are controlled by third parties.  Please be aware that we are not responsible for the privacy practices of websites that we do not own or control.  We encourage you to be aware that when you go to another website you should carefully read any privacy statements and terms of use that may be posted there.

Children’s Privacy

Cleaning Is Caring is not designed or intended for use by children, and we do not knowingly collect personal information from children under the age of 13.  If you are under the age of 13, you are not authorized to access or submit any content or information to this Website.

Governing Law

This policy and our legal obligations are subject to the laws of the District of Columbia in the United States of America, regardless of your location.  By accessing the Site you are consenting to the exclusive jurisdiction and venue of Washington, DC.

How To Contact Us

If you have questions about this policy or about our privacy practices, you may contact us by emailing legal@cleaninginstitute.org.

This Privacy Policy was last updated on March 28, 2022.