Privacy Policy – JULY 21, 2017

This statement outlines the policies and practices of The Hotel Association of New York City (“HANYC”) regarding the collection and use of Your personal information from Your visit to www.hanyc.org. It includes our policies for HANYC Members and non-members. All terms used herein are defined in our Terms of Use. By using the Sites or the services provided through this Site (the “Services”), You acknowledge that we may collect information about you, and use and disclose such information as described in this Privacy Policy. Your use of the Site or Services indicates your acceptance of the terms of this Privacy Policy. This Privacy Policy is incorporated into the HANYC Terms of Use.

THE SITE AND SERVICES ARE HOSTED IN THE UNITED STATES. IF YOU ARE A USER ACCESSING THE SITE OR SERVICES FROM THE EUROPEAN UNION, ASIA, OR ANY OTHER REGION WITH LAWS OR REGULATIONS GOVERNING PERSONAL DATA COLLECTION, USE, AND DISCLOSURE THAT DIFFER FROM UNITED STATES LAWS, PLEASE BE ADVISED THAT THROUGH YOUR CONTINUED USE OF THE SITE OR SERVICES, WHICH IS GOVERNED BY UNITED STATES LAW, THIS PRIVACY POLICY, AND OUR TERMS OF SERVICE, YOU ARE TRANSFERRING YOUR PERSONAL INFORMATION TO THE UNITED STATES, AND YOU CONSENT TO THAT TRANSFER. ADDITIONALLY, YOU UNDERSTAND THAT YOUR PERSONAL INFORMATION MAY BE PROCESSED IN COUNTRIES (INCLUDING THE UNITED STATES) WHERE LAWS REGARDING PROCESSING PERSONAL INFORMATION MAY BE DIFFERENT OR LESS STRINGENT THAN IN YOUR HOME JURISDICTION.

Information We Collect, How We Use It and How You Can Update/Delete It

Browsing

When you browse our Sites, we do not collect personally identifiable information about you, such as your name, address, phone number and email address (“Personal Information”), unless you voluntarily provide it to us. This means that we will not know your Personal Information just because you browse our Sites unless you have created an account and login when you access the Sites or access the Sites from a link in an email that we sent to you.

When we need to collect Personal Information from you to provide you with a particular service, we will ask you to voluntarily supply us with the information we need, as explained below.

General Information Collected

To monitor site usage and improve the quality of our Sites, we gather general information about the use of our Sites. We use web server logs and industry-standard website statistics software to count the number of users who visit our Sites and to count the number of views of particular pages, as well as to track other general statistics about our Sites. We do not track individual users’ visits to our Sites. At times HANYC may share with third parties aggregate, anonymous information about overall usage of our Sites and other Internet services that we collect, to provide general information about our Internet services, sell advertising, or establish sponsorships or other business relationships.

Information Collected from Surveys

We may conduct online surveys via pop-up windows on our Sites. Participation in such surveys is voluntary and you may decline to participate. In general, the data collected in such surveys will be used by HANYC and not shared with any third parties.

Information Collected to Process a Transaction

To conduct a transaction on a HANYC Site, visitors must have, or create, a login account.  Visitors who are Members of HANYC will use their member login (i.e., user name) and password.  More information on Members is detailed below.  Non-members visitors will need to create an account to generate a unique login and password.  Information collected from non-members may include your name, address, telephone and fax numbers, email address, and credit card number or other payment information. More information about account information can be found in the Terms of Use.

Information Payment Method

Payment information, such as your credit card details, is collected only to process a transaction and is stored in an encrypted format. Reasonable measures are taken to ensure your payment information is not vulnerable to theft or interception.  We will not store or distribute your payment information in a manner that is not necessary for processing a transaction.

Members’ Information

HANYC offers members certain services through the restricted-access “Members Only” section of our Sites. In the Members Only section, members can access and update their Member Profiles, which include Personal Information we have collected from each member as part of their membership application. Member Profiles are maintained for the Main and Associate member contacts in our main membership database. This information includes information such as member ID number, name, firm/organization, address, telephone and fax numbers, and email address.

The Member Profiles are used by HANYC to distribute certain marketing materials by mail, fax or email. If you are a member and wish to elect not to be included in any of these communications, you may opt-out using the methods listed below.

Information Collected to Access Members Only Section

HANYC collects a password for each member who uses the online Members Section. This information is used to verify members’ identities in order to prevent unauthorized access to the Members Only section and members’ Personal Information. Only a small number of HANYC employees and employees at our third-party software vendor have access to this information. It is accessed only when necessary to provide members with online account-related information, provide technical support, or diagnose or repair problems with the Members Only section. You may update your Personal Information if you have registered at the Site by emailing us at info@hanyc.org from your email address on record or, if you have access to the Members Only section of the Site, by editing your profile within that section. We may not be able to update any information previously disclosed to a third party. Your Personal Information is necessary in order for us to send you newsletters or other communications or to provide you access to the Members Only section of the Site. Therefore, if you delete such necessary information we may not be able to provide you certain Services.

Emails/Newsletters

It is our intention to only send you email communications that you want to receive. When you provide us with your email address by creating a login account, we will periodically contact you via email about HANYC programs and services. Every time you receive an email, you will be provided the choice to opt-out of future emails by following the instructions provided in the email. You may also opt-out by emailing info@hanyc.org or sending a letter to:

Hotel Association of New York City

320 Park Avenue, 22nd FL

New York, NY 10022

United States of America

Please allow 10 business days for us to process your opt-out and include your email address if you opt-out via postal mail. Note that even if you unsubscribe or opt-out, we may still send you transactional, relationship or service-related emails.

Please note that HANYC will never send you an email requesting your password, credit card number, social security number or other similar personal or private identification information. If you receive an email that looks like it is from HANYC, but asks you for personal information, it is a fraudulent email and you should not reply or provide such information.

Posting Information to Site

Please be aware that whenever you voluntarily post information to public areas on the Site or any other public forums, such information can be accessed by the public.

Disclosure of Information to Third Parties

HANYC uses the services of third parties, such as interactive marketing agencies, market researchers and email service providers, to assist us with marketing and promoting our Sites. These parties are contractually prohibited from using personally identifiable information for any purpose other than for the purpose HANYC specifies. We do provide non-personally identifiable information to certain service providers for their use on an aggregated basis for the purpose of performing their contractual obligations to us. We do not permit the sale of Personal Information, with a limited exception for Member-related and IPW transactions. We also may disclose Personal Information in certain situations. You hereby consent to our sharing of Personal Information for the following purposes:

•               To third party vendors who help us make the Site or Services available or who support our business;

•               To third parties to whom you ask us to send Personal Information;

•               If we believe in good faith that such disclosure is necessary to: (a) resolve disputes, investigate problems, or enforce our Terms of Use; (b) comply with applicable laws or respond to requests from law enforcement or other government officials; or (c) protect or defend the rights or property of HANYC, you, or third parties; . This includes, without limitation, exchanging information with other companies and organizations for fraud protection.

We may also share your information otherwise with your consent: Except as set forth in this Privacy Policy, you will be notified when your Personal Information may be shared with third parties, and will be given the option to prevent the sharing of this information.

Cookies and Pixel Tags

Our Sites use “Cookie” technology. “Cookies” are encrypted strings of text that a website stores on a user’s computer. Our Sites require the use of a “Session” Cookie when accessing the online traveler community. “Session” Cookies are temporary and are automatically deleted once you close your internet browser. Session Cookies allow you to log-in and then view and update your content throughout the Site during the same session or visit. Our Sites use a “Persistent” Cookie to direct you to the correct country/language version of our Sites for subsequent visits. Persistent Cookies remain on your computer until you delete them or are otherwise removed upon expiration. We do not use Cookies to ascertain any personally identifiable information about you apart from what you voluntarily provide us. Cookies do not corrupt or damage your computer, programs, or computer files. Most browsers have an option to reject or disable cookies, which will prevent your browser from accepting new cookies, as well as (depending on the sophistication of your browser software) allowing you to decide on acceptance of each new cookie in a variety of ways. Although you can block cookies and similar technology, your experience of the Site and Services could be affected by doing so.

Pixel tags are not visible to the user of the Site and consist of a few lines of computer code. Pixel tags are not used to collect any personally identifiable information about you. Our Sites use pixel tags to track the aggregate number of page views made on our Sites by all Site visitors. Our email service provider uses pixel tags to determine your ability to receive HTML-based email messages. This capability helps our service provider send email in a format you can read. The sensor does not collect or use any other information. Pixel tags also allow us to know how many users open an email and allow our service provider to compile aggregated statistics about an email campaign for us.

Promotions

We have strategic marketing relationships with select third party organizations  to offer certain products and services at discounted prices. As part of the purchase process for these products and services you will be required to provide Personal Information such as your name, address, email address, telephone number and credit card information. This information will be used by us and will be provided to the associated third party organizations (e.g., hotel, credit card processor) to execute the transaction. As part of these promotions you will also be given a choice to opt-in into periodic emails from HANYC and the organizations we have selected to offer promotions so that we can keep you informed of future offers and promotions that may be of interest. Please note that there are specific terms and conditions that will be unique to each promotion. An example is the requirement to be a member of the loyalty program for a hotel brand that is included in the promotion. You should carefully review the terms and conditions associated with each promotion before making a purchase.

Securing Your Information

The Personal Information you provide is encrypted and sent to us using a secure method.  We treat personal information you provide as confidential information, and we use commercially reasonable security measures to protect personal information from unauthorized access, alteration, disclosure or destruction. After Personal Information reaches HANYC, it is stored on a secure server that resides behind firewalls designed to block unauthorized access.

However, please understand that no one can provide an absolute guarantee that information intended to be maintained as private, whether transmitted via the Internet or otherwise, cannot be accessed inappropriately or unlawfully by third parties. We have taken and will continue to take reasonable steps to ensure the secure and safe transmission of your personal information. You understand and agree that such steps do not guarantee that use of the Site is invulnerable to all security breaches, and that HANYC makes no warranty, guarantee, or representation that use of any portion of our Site is protected from viruses, security threats or other vulnerabilities.

Other Sites

HANYC is only responsible for the privacy policy and content of its Sites. We are not responsible for the privacy practices or the use of cookies on websites from which you have accessed this Site, or non-HANYC websites that you may access from this Site. HANYC encourages you to review the policies of other websites that you may access from this Site.

Legal Issues

This is a United States website and is subject to laws of the United States and the District of Columbia. HANYC may disclose personally identifiable information without your permission if required by law or in the good faith belief that such action is necessary to (a) comply with legal requirements or legal process served on HANYC or one of its affiliates, or (b) investigate or protect against harmful activities to HANYC or its associates, property (including our Sites) or to others.

Personal Information of Children

By using the Site, You represent that You are at least 18 years old. The Site is not directed to children and children are not eligible to use our Services. We do not knowingly collect Personal Information from children under the age of 18.  No part of the Site or Services is designed to attract people under 18 years old.  If we later obtain actual knowledge that a user is under 18 years old, we will take steps to delete that user’s account and remove any of that user’s Personal Information from our databases.

Changes to HANYC’s Privacy Policy

In the future, we may need to change this privacy policy. All changes will be made here so that you will always know what information we gather, how we might use that information and whether we will disclose it to anyone..

Your California Privacy Rights

California Civil Code Section 1798.83, also known as the “Shine The Light” law, permits our users who are residents of the State of California in the United States to annually request and obtain, at no charge, information about the personal information (if any) we have disclosed to third parties for direct marketing purposes in the preceding calendar year. This information would include a list of the categories of personal information that was shared and the names and addresses of all third parties with which we shared information in the immediately preceding calendar year. If you are a California resident and would like to make such a request, please submit your request to info@hanyc.org.

Contacting HANYC About Privacy Issues

If you have any comments, suggestions or questions about privacy policy, please contact us:

By email at: info@hanyc.org

By phone at: 212.754.6700

By fax at: 646.850.7023

By mail at:

Privacy Issues

Hotel Association of New York City

34 E 51ST, 8TH FL

New York, NY 10022