American Research Institute for Policy Development values individuals' privacy and actively seeks to preserve the privacy rights of those who share information with us. Your trust is important to us and we believe you have the right to know how information submitted through a research institute website is handled.

As explanation of ARIPD's online information policy and practices and to assist you in better protecting your privacy, we provide the following privacy notice.

Privacy Notice

The following information explains the Internet privacy policy and practices the institute has adopted for its official websites. However, in legal terms, it shall not be construed as a contractual promise, and the university reserves the right to amend it at any time without notice. Privacy and public records obligations of the INSTITUTE are governed by applicable Virginia statutes, including, but not limited to, the Virginia Privacy Protection Act of 1976, the Virginia Freedom of Information Act, and by any applicable U.S. federal laws.

Site Definitions

ARIPD Web space includes hundreds of sites with varying levels individual and organizational involvement and commitment as outlined below.

Official University Websites

Except as noted, the information in this privacy notice applies to all official ARIPD websites, which are defined as – the Web pages of journals, associations, forums and any other sites specifically designated for research and publications. Official pages are generally recognizable by a standard page footer carrying the institute logo, contact information and reference to this privacy statement.

Unofficial Websites

Within the American Research Institute for Policy Development domain – signified by the address "aripd.com" or within the range of Internet protocol addresses assigned to American Research Institute for Policy Development – you may find websites over which ARIPD has no editorial responsibility or control. Such sites are considered unofficial and include, but are not limited to, the Web pages of individual EDITOR or AAIR Member and the Web pages of authors and other entities not formally a part of the institute. While ARIPD encourages compliance with this Web Privacy Statement at such sites, in order to better understand the policies and practices under which they operate, please consult the privacy statements of individual sites or seek information directly from the persons responsible for those sites.

The Information We Collect

The Web Privacy Statement of ARIPD speaks generally to the information collected by or submitted to official American Research Institute for Policy Development websites (see the definition above). Still the amount and type of information collected may vary somewhat from site to site. Agains it is wise for you to read page-specific notices to ensure you understand the privacy policies and practices applicable to a particular site.

When you access official ARIPD Web pages, certain client information and essential and nonessential technical information (collectively referred to as access information) listed below is automatically collected. No other information is collected through our official websites except when you deliberately send it to us (for example, by clicking a link to send us an email). Examples of the information you might choose to send us are listed below as "optional information."

Access Information (automatically collected)

• Client information: the Internet domain and Internet address of the computer you are using.
• Essential technical information: identification of the page or service you are requesting, type of browser and operating system you are using; and the date and time of access.
• Nonessential technical information: the Internet address of the website from which you linked directly to our website, and the "cookie information" used to direct and tailor information based on your entry path to the site.

Optional information (deliberately sent)

• When you send us an email: your name, email address, and the content of your email.
• When you complete online forms: all the data you choose to fill in or confirm. This may include user names and passwords or any other data you choose to type into a form on the ARIPD site as well as links you create from third-party sites ARIPD web pages (such as clicking a Facebook 'like' button).

The Way We Use Information

As a general rule, ARIPD does not track individual visitor profiles. We do, however, analyze aggregate traffic/access information for resource management and site planning purposes. ARIPD reserves the right to use log detail to investigate resource management or security concerns.

Access Information

Client information is used to route the requested Web page to your computer for viewing. In theory, the requested Web page and the routing information could be discerned by other entities involved in transmitting the requested page to you. We do not control the privacy practices of those entities.

We may keep client information from our systems indefinitely after the Web page is transmitted, but we do not cross-reference it to the individuals who browse our website. However, on rare occasions when a "hacker" attempts to breach computer security, logs of access information are retained to permit a security investigation. In such cases the logs may be further analyzed or forwarded together with any other relevant information in our possession to law enforcement agencies.

Under the Virginia Freedom of Information Act, records in our possession at the time of a Freedom of Information Request might be subject to inspection by or disclosure to members of the public. As indicated above, client information may be retained after transmission of the requested Web page and might be available for inspection.

Essential and nonessential technical information lets us respond to your request in an appropriate format [or in a personalized manner] and helps us plan website improvements. To expedite this process, some official ARIPD websites use "cookies." Usually a cookie enables the institute website to tailor what you see according to the way you entered the site (i.e., if you entered by pushing a button identifying yourself as an author, your subsequent views of information might be tailored for contributors).

We also use non-identifying and aggregate information to better design our website. For example, we may determine that X number of individuals visited a certain area on our website, or that Y number of men and Z number of women filled out a particular registration form. But we do not disclose information that could identify those specific individuals.

Many ARIPD sites use Google Analytics or other similar services to analyze web traffic for design purposes. In such cases, the access information described above may be shared with the vendor(s) providing the analytical service. ARIPD does not control the privacy policies of these vendors.

Optional Information:

Optional information enables us to provide services or information tailored more specifically to your needs, to forward your message or inquiry to another entity that is better able to do so, and to plan website improvements.

We use the information you provide about yourself or about someone else when placing a request for service only to complete that order or request. We do not share this information with outside parties, except to the extent necessary to complete that order or request.

We generally use return email addresses only to answer the email we receive. By ARIPD and state policy, such addresses are not shared with outside parties.

Finally, we never use or share the optional information provided to us online in ways unrelated to the purpose described without a clear notice on the particular site and without also providing you an opportunity to opt-out or otherwise prohibit such unrelated uses.

Providing Information is Your Choice

There is no legal requirement for you to provide any information at our website. However, our website will not work without routing information and the essential technical information. Failure of your browser to provide nonessential technical information will not prevent your use of our website but may prevent certain features from working. For any optional information that is requested at the website, failure to provide the requested information will mean that the particular feature or service associated with that part of the Web page may not be available to you.

Our Commitment to Data Security

American Research Institute for Policy Development is dedicated to preventing unauthorized data access, maintaining data accuracy, and ensuring the appropriate use of information. We strive to put in place appropriate physical, electronic, and managerial safeguards to secure the information we collect online. These security practices are consistent with the policies of the university and with the laws and regulatory practices of the Commonwealth of Virginia as they are appropriate to ARIPD.

How to Contact Us

Should you have other questions or concerns about these privacy policies and practices, please send us an email at [email protected]. If you wish to review or change information gathered about you via an official American Research Institute for Policy Development website but you do not know how, the institute webmaster will assist in locating the persons responsible for that site so that you may make your request directly to them.