Privacy

Privacy Policy for IBM Coremetrics

Our Principles. IBM Coremetrics adheres to industry best privacy principles with respect to the data collection practices on our web site. IBM Coremetrics is committed to clearly and readily disclosing our data collection practices so that you can make informed decisions about your activities at our web site. IBM Coremetrics provides you with a choice to participate in its data collection activities either anonymously or not at all.

Highest Industry Standards. We believe in the strength of an industry concerned with and proactive about privacy and confidentiality. In addition to our own stringent policies, IBM Coremetrics adheres to the policies and reviews required by TRUSTe. IBM Coremetrics is a licensee of the TRUSTe Privacy Program..The TRUSTe program covers only information that is collected through this web site, and does not cover information that may be collected through software downloaded from the site.

If you have questions or concerns about IBM Coremetrics' collection, use, or disclosure of your personal information, please email us at yrabun@us.ibm.com . If IBM Coremetrics does not respond or your inquiry has not been addressed to your satisfaction, you should then contact TRUSTe online at http://watchdog.truste.com/pvr.php?page=complaint if your matter relates to our US Web sites. TRUSTe will then serve as a liaison to help resolve your concerns.

IBM Coremetrics has also certified its privacy practices as consistent with the U.S. Department of Commerce's Safe Harbor Principles: Notice, Choice, Onward Transfer, Access and Accuracy, Security, and Oversight/Enforcement. The European Commission recognizes the Safe Harbor Principles as a framework that provides adequate protection for personally identifiable information sent to Safe Harbor certified companies from the European Union. More information about the U.S. Department of Commerce Safe Harbor Principles can be found at http://www.export.gov/safeharbor/.

What We Collect and How We Use It. When you visit this web site, we collect certain non-personally-identifiable information such as your IP address, what pages you visited, and the time that you visited. We will also collect any personally identifiable information that you may send to us or provide to us on our forms which may include registration for white papers, sales contact and newsletter subscription forms, or resume submissions. During registration you may be asked to provide contact information (such as name and email address). We use this information to contact you about services on our site in which you have expressed interest and for our own marketing purposes. We do not sell or rent your personal information to anyone, ever.

To review and/or update your personally identifiable information please see the "Update Your Information" section below.

We may forward to our vendors (e.g. an email service provider) information that you provide to us, but only so they can provide us services, such as responding to your request to receive information.

As with the data collected on behalf of our clients, we reserve the right to disclose any data we collect at our sites if required by law or valid order of a court or other governmental authority or to protect the health and safety of IBM employees or the general public.

Cookies. IBM Coremetrics uses cookies to collect data regarding the performance of our web sites and to continuously improve the user experience for our visitors. A cookie is a unique text file that a web site can send to your browser software. Cookies enable a web site to tailor information presented to you based on your browsing preferences. IBM Coremetrics may use cookies to personalize web pages during your visit to our web site, and/or to remember you for easy navigation and access during your return visits after registering for product and service information, sales contacts and other offers including but not limited to White Papers, Webcasts, events, evaluation software, ROI calculators, etc.

IBM Coremetrics may also use cookies to track your visit to our web site. We may collect information, including your IP address, in a form that may be personally identifiable. However, this information will only be used for analytical purposes and will be limited to the minimum necessary to perform the analysis.

If you do not want IBM Coremetrics to deploy cookies in your browser, you can set your browser to reject cookies or to notify you when a web site tries to put a cookie in your browser software. Rejecting cookies may affect your ability to use of some of the products and/or services at our web site.

Web Beacons. IBM Coremetrics uses Web Beacons – also known as single pixel or clear GIFs – on our web site to analyze traffic patterns such as the frequency of use of particular parts of the site. The data collected helps us learn what information is of most interest to our customers and what offers our customers would most like to see.

IBM Coremetrics may also use web beacons in promotional email messages to determine whether the message was opened and acted on. We may use this information on email response to develop future promotions you may enjoy. Except for the email address you have previously provided, the information we collect does not identify you.

Update Your Information. We provide all visitors to our web site with the opportunity to review and modify any personally identifiable information that has previously been provided. The fastest and most direct method of doing this is via the IBM Coremetrics Profile Center using the email address used when you submitted your information. Access to the Profile Center requires your email address and a password. While a profile record is automatically created for you at the time you submit your information (including any registration forms) your password is provided at your request via email, the first time you access the Profile Center.

If you prefer, you can send an email to cmpriv@us.ibm.com, or call us toll free at 866.493.2673. Coremetrics shall respond to requests from visitors to its website for information on collected personally identifiable information within thirty (30) days.

Unsubscribe from Our Mailing List. If you have previously subscribed to IBM Coremetrics' mailing list, or come to be on our mailing list by having filled out a registration form, you may at any time ask us to remove you from our mailing list by visiting our Subscribe Page and selecting the "Unsubscribe from all email communication" option, or by calling us toll free at 866.493.2673. Insert proper information.

Other Web Sites. This privacy statement applies solely to information collected by this website, which contains links to other sites. Please be aware that we are not responsible for the privacy practices of these other sites. We encourage our visitors to read the privacy statements of each and every web site that they visit.

How We Notify You of Changes to this Policy. If we decide to change our privacy policy, we will post those changes to this privacy statement, and other places we deem appropriate so our users are always aware of what information we collect, how we use it, and under what circumstances, if any, we disclose it. If, however, we are going to use visitors' personally identifiable information in a manner different from that stated at the time of collection we will notify visitors by posting a notice on our web site for thirty (30) days in advance of such use.

Privacy Policy for Our Provision of Services

The statement below regarding our provision of services is applicable only to those clients utilizing the IBM Coremetrics online analytics services.

Our Relationships with Our Clients.

IBM Coremetrics is an agent for its clients. IBM Coremetrics receives visitor information collected from or by its clients but it does not own the information it receives. Our clients use our services to understand more about visitors to their web sites. Clients then apply this understanding to their web sites to provide web environments that save visitors time and make the sites easier to use. Each client instructs us as to what type of data it would like to collect or have IBM Coremetrics receive on its behalf. This data could include search engine referral, affiliate referrals, traffic driven by banner ads or other promotions, visitor navigation around the site, popular pages, which items are placed in shopping carts and which are abandoned, conversions and what purchases were made. We may also receive certain technical information, such as the visitor's browser version and operating system. We may, upon a client's request, collect or receive personally identifiable information such as a visitor's email address. In each client agreement, we agree that we will not make use of any data that collected by clients or received on the client's behalf except as necessary to provide our services to that client. All information about individual visitors to a web site belongs to the client, not IBM Coremetrics. IBM Coremetrics does not allow individual information collected for one client to be accessed by any other IBM Coremetrics client.

The only time that any client would see data from other client web sites is if that client is a part of IBM Coremetrics' benchmarking service. In that case the information shared is summary data only and contains no information that personally identifies any visitor. This benchmarking service provides IBM Coremetrics' clients with the ability to compare the performance of their web sites against peer groups.

We do, however, reserve a limited right to disclose any data we receive if required by law or valid order of a court or other governmental authority or to protect the health and safety of IBM employees, a client's employees or the general public.

Our Clients' Use of Our Services. We require all of our clients to abide by all applicable laws, rules and regulations, and we promise our clients that we will do the same. We also recommend that each client obtain all necessary consents from visitors to its web site during IBM Coremetrics' provision of any service, post on its web site and abide by a visitor privacy policy providing each visitor with the client's data collection and use practices; provide notice that cookies are being placed on the visitor's computer; an explanation of the purpose and utilization of such cookies; and provide on its web site an opt-out (or a link to an opt-out) so that any visitor may choose not to have his/her data collected.

Our Clients can Combine their Existing Data with Data Collected or Received. Our clients can send us data that they have previously collected and add that data to the data collected or received on their behalf by IBM Coremetrics. Also, a client that purchases our services may view and combine data collected on its behalf with data that has been collected by an IBM Coremetrics business partner.

You Can Choose Not to Participate in Our Services. IBM Coremetrics is a proponent of consumer online privacy and provides visitors to this web site with the ability to opt out of having their data collected when they visit. As noted above, IBM Coremetrics encourages all of its clients to disclose their data collection practices and to adopt the opt-out standard provided by IBM Coremetrics. When visiting one of our clients' sites, you may be able to deactivate that clients' ability to analyze your web browsing and purchasing behavior by electing to opt-out of the services as may be set forth in each individual web site. You also have the option to continue to benefit from the improved shopping experience enabled by our services, but maintain anonymity. To learn more about opting out, see below.

General Guidelines

IBM Coremetrics and Its Clients Use Cookies to Collect Data. IBM Coremetrics and its clients use "cookies" and "web beacons" to collect data. A cookie is a small text file containing a random and unique alphanumeric identifier that either of Coremetrics or our clients transfer to your computer's hard drive through your web browser (unless you set your browser to reject cookies) that enables our, or our clients', systems to recognize your browser. Neither IBM Coremetrics nor its clients store any personally identifiable information in cookies. A web beacon (also known as a "clear GIF", "pixel tag", "data tag" or "image tag") is a mechanism by which a small section of code that our clients place on their web site pages executes an image request to our data collection servers. Web beacons facilitate the transfer of data by requesting and delivering the transparent graphic GIF image from IBM Coremetrics to our client's web site pages.

How We Secure the Data Collected or Received. IBM Coremetrics has taken proactive measures to protect against the loss, misuse, or alteration of data that its clients collect or IBM Coremetrics or receives on its clients' behalf. Every step has been taken with the view to ensuring maximum security for data transfer and storage. Our infrastructure employs leading technology solutions for end-to-end security, which protects data at each point of transfer; from receipt to storage to reporting. We use multiple back-up systems to reduce the chance of data loss, and for up-to-date and accurate information. We also employ internal policies and procedures limiting our employees' and vendors' access to client data and other client confidential information, so that access is permitted only to fulfill our contractual agreements with our clients and consistent with this Privacy Statement.

If You Contact Us. We answer the email we receive by sending an email response to the sender. We also store the email we receive for archival purposes and for our own marketing purposes if we feel that it is consistent with the nature of the inquiry. We will not use return email addresses for any other purpose unless you give us permission to do so.

Visitor Opt-Out

IBM Coremetrics offers you the ability to opt-out of:

1. The IBM Coremetrics Marketing/Ad Impression Cookie – used to collect information about my viewed marketing and advertising impressions on behalf of the IBM Coremetrics' web site or any IBM Coremetrics client web site for which IBM Coremetrics collects data using its own cookie, and
2. The IBM Coremetrics Site Analytics Cookie – used to collect information about my experience at IBM Coremetrics' web site or on any IBM Coremetrics client web site for which IBM Coremetrics collects data using its own cookie.

Please be aware that IBM Coremetrics' data collection methods allow for our clients to control the implementation of the IBM Coremetrics Site Analytics Cookie opt-out function on their sites and the process for opting-out originates on each of their web sites. As a result, opting out of one client's collection of data will not opt you out of any other client's collection of data and if you have previously opted out you should do so again on each client site for which you do not wish to have data collected about your activities. As with any web site you visit, you should refer to that web site's privacy policy for information on managing personal information.

Opt-Out Options. IBM Coremetrics offers two (2) methods by which visitors can opt-out of data collection associated with their online activities is - 1) "Anonymous Visitor" and 2) "Total Opt-Out" (which are both discussed below). For either of these options to take effect, you must first accept a cookie from this site which will allow us to recognize you with a random and unique alphanumeric identifier so that we can honor your opt-out selection. If you do not accept this cookie, or later delete it, we cannot honor your request to opt-out and you will continue to be served cookies.

Opt-Out Instructions.

If you choose to opt-out:

1. Verify your browser acceptance settings.
   • If you have your browser set to automatically accept cookies, proceed to the step 2.
   • If you set your browser to prompt you for permission to receive a cookie, and have not already accepted a IBM Coremetrics cookie, please click "Refresh" and accept the cookie from this page when prompted.
   • If you set your browser or cookie-blocking software so as to block cookies, please change these settings then click "Refresh" and accept the cookie from this page when prompted.
2. Select one of the opt-out choices available to you and click Submit.
3. Once you click "Submit" below, your submission will take effect immediately.
4. For the Off-Site/Ad Impression cookie, you only need to make this selection on this site.
5. For the Site Analytics cookie, you need to make this selection on each client web site from which you wish to opt out. You will need to follow the applicable instructions as explained on the client web site. For those sites employing IBM Coremetrics opt-out technology, you will need to complete a similar process as detailed here for our web site.

What Happens After You Select Your Opt-Out Option?

Your IBM Coremetrics cookie contains a random and unique alphanumeric identifier. If you select the "Anonymous Visitor" option, at either of this web site or a client web site, then for such web site your cookie will be modified to read "anonymous", meaning that IBM Coremetrics will continue to collect or receive data about your experience at the site you visit. However, such data will be presented as part of a pool of general, anonymous visitors. If you select "Total Opt-Out" at either of this web site or a client web site then for such web site your cookie will be modified to read "opt-out", meaning that no data will be collected about you at that site. IBM Coremetrics will in such cases record that a "Total Opt-Out" election has been made, so that aggregated totals of "Total Opt-Out" elections can be calculated and recorded. Once you make your selection, a dialog box should appear to confirm that your opt-out choice was successful. The opt-out will remain in effect for as long as the cookie remains on your hard drive. If you remove this cookie from your hard drive (for instance, if you reinstall or update your browser or choose to delete all cookies), you will need to renew your opt-out selection.

Remember, if you choose to opt out of the Site Analytics cookie you will need to do so the first time you visit any of our clients' sites which provide opt-out to avoid having your information collected by that site. Further, if you use more than one web browser or computer, you will need to opt-out in each one. Please note that if you upgrade your browser to a new version (including, but not limited to, Microsoft's Internet Explorer 8.0), you may need to opt out again. For your convenience, you can check your current opt-out status for this site at any time as described below.

Marketing/Ad Impression Cookie Opt-Out Form

Click Here to View Your Current Opt-Out Status

Anonymous Visitor

I understand that IBM Coremetrics will continue to collect and have access to certain data about the marketing impressions or ads presented to me; however, such data will be presented as part of a pool of general, anonymous visitors.

Total Opt-Out

I understand that no data about my marketing impression or ad views will be collected by IBM Coremetrics. I understand IBM Coremetrics will record that a "Total Opt-Out" election has been made, so that aggregated totals of "Total Opt-Out" elections can be calculated and recorded.

Cancel Opt-Out

I understand that I will be issued a new IBM Coremetrics cookie to enable data collection.

Site Analytics Cookie Opt-Out Form

Click Here to View Your Current Opt-Out Status

Anonymous Visitor

I understand that IBM Coremetrics will continue to collect and have access to certain data about my experience at IBM Coremetrics' web site or on any IBM Coremetrics client web site for which IBM Coremetrics collects data using its own cookie. However, such data will be presented as part of a pool of general, anonymous visitors.

Total Opt-Out

I understand that no data about my experience will be collected by IBM Coremetrics on its web site or on any IBM Coremetrics client web site for which IBM Coremetrics collects data using its own cookie. I understand IBM Coremetrics will record that a "Total Opt-Out" election has been made, so that aggregated totals of "Total Opt-Out" elections can be calculated and recorded.

Cancel Opt-Out

I understand that I will be issued a new IBM Coremetrics cookie to enable data collection.

Contacting IBM Coremetrics

If you have any questions about this privacy statement or the practices of this site, you can contact:

Yolanda Rabun
Counsel, Chief Privacy Officer, IBM Coremetrics
3039 Cornwallis Road
Research Triangle Park, NC 27709
yrabun@us.ibm.com