Match Group, LLC Privacy Policy

Last Updated: December 19, 2016

Match Group, LLC, as regards users originating from within the United States, and Match.com Global Services Limited, as regards users originating from outside the United States, ("Match.com") respects the privacy of its users and has developed this Privacy Policy to demonstrate its commitment to protecting your privacy. This Privacy Policy describes the information we collect, how that information may be used, with whom it may be shared, and your choices about such uses and disclosures. We encourage you to read this Privacy Policy carefully when using our website or services or transacting business with us. By using our website, application, or other online services, you are accepting the practices described in this Privacy Policy.

If you have any questions about our privacy practices, please refer to the end of this Privacy Policy for information on how to contact us.

Information we collect about you

In General. We may collect Personal Information, including Sensitive Data, and other information. “Personal Information” means individually identifiable information that would allow us to determine the actual identity of, and contact, a specific living person. Sensitive Data includes information, comments or content (e.g. photographs, video, profile, lifestyle) that you optionally provide that may reveal your ethnic origin, nationality, religion and/or sexual orientation. By providing Sensitive Data to us, you consent to the collection, use and disclosure of Sensitive Data as permitted by applicable privacy laws. We may also collect your geolocation information with your consent. We may collect this information through a website, mobile application or other online service. When you provide personal information, the information may be sent to servers located in the United States and other countries around the world.

  • Information you provide. We may collect and store any personal information you enter on our website or provide to us in some other manner. This includes identifying information, such as your name, address, email address, and telephone number, and, if you transact business with us, financial information such as your payment method (valid credit card number, type, expiration date or other financial information). We also request information about your interests and activities, your gender and age, and other demographic information such as your hometown or your username.
  • Information from other sources. Match.com is a part of the Match Group family of businesses (please see www.mtch.com ),which as of the date of this policy includes websites and apps such as Tinder, OurTime.com, BlackPeopleMeet.com, Twoo, POF, Meetic, FriendScout24, OkCupid.com, HowAboutWe and other companies and websites. We may obtain both personal and non-personal information about you from other Match Group businesses, business partners, contractors and other third parties. We may also receive information about our users from third party social platforms, such as Facebook. When you access or use our website or mobile application through such a site, you allow us to access or collect information made available by the third party site in accordance with its privacy policy. This information may be available from your profile or account with such site or from cookies placed on your device by the third party platform.
  • Information about others. We may collect and store personal information about other people that you provide to us, such as their name, address and email address. If you use our website or application to send others (friends, relatives, colleagues, etc.) a product as a gift, we may store your personal information, and the personal information of each such recipient in order to process those requests or facilitate future activities.

Use of cookies and other technologies to collect information.We use various technologies to collect information from your device and about your activities on our site or application.

  • Information collected automatically. We automatically collect information from your browser or device when you visit our website or application. This information could include your IP address, device ID, your browser type and language, access times, the content of any undeleted cookies that your browser previously accepted from us (See "Cookies" below) and the referring website address.
  • Cookies and Use of Cookie Data. When you visit our website or application, we may assign your device one or more cookies to facilitate access to our site and to personalize your online experience. Through the use of a cookie, we also may automatically collect information about your online activity on our site, such as the web pages you visit, the time and date of your visits, the links you click, and the searches you conduct on our site. During your visits to other websites where we advertise, we (or third parties) may use certain data collected on our site to show you the type of Match.com advertisements likely to be of greater interest to you. Although you may not opt out of receiving online advertisements generally, you may control the collection of data on our site used for targeted Match.com advertising during your visits to other websites. To opt-out of Match.com data collection for targeted advertising on other sites, click here Opt Out Now. Most browsers automatically accept cookies, but you can usually modify your browser setting to decline cookies. If you choose todecline cookies, please note that you may not be able to sign in or use some of the interactive features offered on our website.
  • Other Technologies. We may use standard Internet technology, such as web beacons, pixel tags, local storage and other technologies that facilitate personalization to track your use of our site. We also may use these technologies in advertisements or email messages to determine whether messages have been opened and acted upon. The information we obtain in this manner enables us to customize the services we offer our website visitors to deliver targeted advertisements and to measure the overall effectiveness of our online advertising, content, programming or other activities.
  • Information collected by third-parties. We may allow service providers, Match Group companies, advertising companies and ad networks, and other third parties to display advertisements on our site. These companies may use tracking technologies, such as cookies, to collect information about users who view or interact with their advertisements. Our website does not provide any personal information to these third parties. This information allows them to deliver targeted advertisements and gauge their effectiveness.

How we use the information we collect

In General. We may use information that we collect about you to:

  • deliver our products and services, and manage our business;
  • manage your account and provide you with customer support ;
  • perform research and analysis about your use of, or interest in, our products, services, or content, or products, services or content offered by others ;
  • communicate with you by email, postal mail, telephone and/or mobile devices about products or services that may be of interest to you either from us, other Match Group companies or other third parties;
  • develop and display content and advertising tailored to your interests on our site and other sites, including providing our advertisements to you when you visit other sites ;
  • perform ad tracking and website or mobile application analytics ;
  • verify your eligibility and deliver prizes in connection with contests and sweepstakes ;
  • enforce or exercise any rights in our terms and conditions ;
  • perform functions as otherwise described to you at the time of collection; and
  • register you with and display your profile on other online dating and other social websites owned by Match Group, such as websites operated by People Media, chemistry.com and okcupid.com.

Financial information. We may use financial information or payment method to process payment for any purchases, enroll you in the discount, rebate, and other programs in which you elect to participate, to protect against or identify possible fraudulent transactions, and otherwise as needed to manage our business

Job applicants. If your personal information is submitted when applying for a position with our company, the information will be used solely in connection with considering and acting upon your application. We may retain your personal information for a period of time, but only for the purpose of considering your application for current or future available positions. This information, which may include your name and contact information, prior education and experience, and other information you provided to us, may be shared with other Match Group companies for the purpose of evaluating your qualifications for the particular position or other available positions, as well as with third-party service providers retained by us to collect, maintain and analyze candidate submissions for job postings.

Please reviewYour choices about collection and use of your information below.

In all circumstances, we may perform these functions directly or use a third party vendor to perform these functions on our behalf who will be obligated to use your personal information only to perform services for us. Also, if you access our website, mobile applications or other online services from a third party social platform, such as Facebook, we may share non-personal information with that platform to the extent permitted by your agreement with it and its privacy settings.

With whom we share your information

Personal information. We do not share your personal information with others except as indicated below or when we inform you and give you an opportunity to opt out of having your personal information shared. We may share personal information with:

  • Service providers . We may share information, including personal information, with third parties that perform certain services on our behalf. These services may include fulfilling orders, providing customer service and marketing assistance, performing business and sales analysis, ad tracking and analytics, member screenings, supporting our website or application functionality, and supporting contests, sweepstakes, surveys and other features offered through our site. We may also share your name, contact information and credit card information with our service providers who process credit card payments. These service providers may have access to personal information needed to perform their functions but are not permitted to share or use such information for any other purposes.
  • Business partners. When you register or make purchases on our website or click-through our advertisements offered on third party websites or applications, we may share personal information with the businesses with which we partner to offer you the applicable products, services or any advertisements. When you elect to engage in a particular merchant's offer or program, you authorize us to provide your email address and other information to that merchant. To opt-out of cookies that may be set by third party data or advertising partners, please go to https://www.aboutads.info/choices/.
  • Other Match Group Businesses. Match.com is part of the Match Group family of businesses, which as of the date of this policy includes websites and apps such as Tinder, OurTime.com, BlackPeopleMeet.com, Twoo, POF, Meetic, FriendScout24, OkCupid and HowAboutWe. We may share information we collect, including your profile and personal information such as your name and contact information, photos, interests, activities and transactions on our website, with Match Group companies. As part of our online service, your profile may be registered on and/or appear in search results or other areas of other online dating websites owned by the Match Group. Each Match Group company complies with its Privacy Policy.
  • Other Situations . We also may disclose your information, including personal information:
    • In response to a subpoena or similar investigative demand, a court order, or a request for cooperation from a law enforcement or other government agency; to establish or exercise our legal rights; to defend against legal claims; or as otherwise required by law. In such cases, we may raise or waive any legal objection or right available to us.
    • When we believe disclosure is appropriate in connection with efforts to investigate, prevent, or take other action regarding illegal activity, suspected fraud or other wrongdoing; to protect and defend the rights, property or safety of our company, our users, our employees, or others; to comply with applicable law or cooperate with law enforcement; or to enforce our website terms and conditions or other agreements or policies.
    • In connection with a substantial corporate transaction, such as the sale of our business, a divestiture, merger, consolidation, or asset sale, or in the unlikely event of bankruptcy.

Aggregated and/or non-personal information. We may share non-personal information we collect under any of the above circumstances. We may also share it with Match Group companies and third parties to develop and deliver targeted advertising on our site and on websites or applications of third parties, and to analyze and report on advertising you see. We may combine non-personal information we collect with additional non-personal information collected from other sources. We also may share aggregated, non-personal information, or personal information in hashed, non-human readable form, with third parties, including advisors, advertisers and investors, for the purpose of conducting general business analysis, advertising, marketing or other business purposes. For example, we may engage a data provider who may collect web log data from you (including IP address and information about your browser or operating system), or place or recognize a unique cookie on your browser to enable you to receive customized ads or content. The cookies may reflect de-identified demographic or other data linked to data you voluntarily have submitted to us (such as your email address), that we may share with a data provider solely in hashed, non-human readable form. We may also share your geolocation information in de-identified form with Match Group companies and third parties for the above purposes. To opt out of the sharing of your geolocation information, please visit the 'Account Settings' page for your account.

If you would like to opt-out of third-party mobile application ad tracking and analytics, please visit here.

Do Not Track Disclosure

Do Not Track ("DNT") is a privacy preference that users can set in their web browsers. DNT is a way for users to inform websites and services that they do not want certain information about their webpage visits collected over time and across websites or online services. We are committed to providing you with meaningful choices about the information we collect and that is why we provide the opt-out links in the Privacy Policy. However, we do not recognize or respond to any DNT signals as the Internet industry works toward defining exactly what DNT means, what it means to comply with DNT, and a common approach to responding to DNT.

Third-party websites

There are a number of places on our website where you may click on a link to access other websites that do not operate under this Privacy Policy. For example, if you click on an advertisement on our website, you may be taken to a website that we do not control. These third-party websites may independently solicit and collect information, including personal information, from you and, in some instances, provide us with information about your activities on those websites. We recommend that you consult the privacy statements of all third-party websites you visit by clicking on the "privacy" link typically located at the bottom of the webpage you are visiting

How you can access your information

If you have an online account with us, you have the ability to review and update your personal information online by logging into your account and clicking on your account settings.

Applicable privacy laws may allow you the right to access and/or request the correction of errors or omissions in your personal information that is in our custody or under our control. Our Privacy Officer will assist you with the access request. This includes:

  1. Identification of personal information under our custody or control; and
  2. Information about how personal information under our control may be or has been used by us.

We will respond to requests within the time allowed by all applicable privacy laws and will make every effort to respond as accurately and completely as possible. Any corrections made to personal information will be promptly sent to any organization to which it was disclosed. In certain exceptional circumstances, we may not be able to provide access to certain personal information we hold. For security purposes, not all personal information is accessible and amendable by the Privacy Officer. If access or corrections cannot be provided, we will notify the individual making the request within 30 days, in writing, of the reasons for the refusal.

Data retention

If you have an online account with us, you may close your account at any time by visiting the 'Account Settings' page for your account. After you close your account, you will not be able to sign in to our website or access any of your personal information. However, you can open a new, separate account at any time or re-activate your previous account by following instructions we will give you at the time you close your account. If you close your account, we may still retain certain information associated with your account for analytical purposes and recordkeeping integrity, as well as to prevent fraud, collect any fees owed, enforce our terms and conditions, take actions we deem necessary to protect the integrity of our website or our users, or take other actions otherwise permitted by law. In addition, if certain information has already been provided to third parties as described in this Privacy Policy, retention of that information will be subject to those third parties' policies

Your choices about collection and use of your information

  • You can choose not to provide us with certain information, but that may result in you being unable to use certain features of our site because such information may be required in order for you to register as a member; purchase products or services; participate in a contest, promotion, survey, or sweepstakes; ask a question; or initiate other transactions.
  • When you register on our site, you consent to receive email messages from us. You may modify this consent later by visiting the "Account Settings" page associated with your account. At any time you can choose to no longer receive commercial or promotional emails from us by visiting the "Account Settings" page associated with your account. You also will be given the opportunity, in any commercial email that we send to you, to opt out of receiving such messages in the future. It may take up to 10 days for us to process an opt-out request. We may send you transactional and relationship emails, such as service announcements, administrative notices, and surveys, without offering you the opportunity to opt out of receiving them. Please note that changing information in your account, or otherwise opting out of receipt of promotional email communications, will only affect future activities or communications from us. If we have already provided your information to a third party (such as a service provider) before you have changed your preferences or updated your information, you may have to change your preferences directly with that third party.
  • Our applications may also deliver notifications to your phone or mobile device. You can disable these notifications in your device’s settings in your Match.com account under "Account Settings" or by deleting the relevant application.
  • You can also control information collected by cookies. See below for information about declining or deleting cookies.

How we protect your personal information

We take appropriate security measures (including physical, electronic and procedural measures) to help safeguard your personal information from unauthorized access and disclosure. We want you to feel confident using our website to transact business. However, no system can be completely secure. Therefore, although we take steps to secure your information, we do not promise, and you should not expect, that your personal information, searches, or other communications will always remain secure. Users should also take care with how they handle and disclose their personal information and should avoid sending personal information through insecure email. Please refer to the Federal Trade Commission's website at https://www.ftc.gov/bcp/menus/consumer/data.shtm for information about how to protect yourself against identity theft.

You agree that we may communicate with you electronically regarding security, privacy, and administrative issues, such as security breaches. We may post a notice on our Service if a security breach occurs. We may also send an email to you at the email address you have provided. You may have a legal right to receive this notice in writing. To receive free written notice of a security breach (or to withdraw your consent from receiving electronic notice), please notify us at privacy@match.com.

Information you provide about yourself while using our service

We provide areas on our site where you can post information about yourself and others and communicate with others or upload content such as photographs. Such postings are governed by our terms of use.In addition, such postings may appear on other websites or when searches are executed on the subject of your posting. Also, whenever you voluntarily disclose personal information on publicly-viewable web pages, that information will be publicly available and can be collected and used by others. For example, if you post your email address, you may receive unsolicited messages. We cannot control who reads your posting or what other users may do with the information you voluntarily post, so we encourage you to exercise discretion and caution with respect to your personal information

Children's privacy

Although our website is a general audience site, we restrict the use of our service to individuals age 18 and above. We do not knowingly collect personal information from children under the age of 13.

Onward transfer and consent to international processing

We are a growing corporation with users and operations in multiple countries, including the European Union. We have developed data practices designed to assure information is appropriately protected but we cannot always know where personal information may be accessed or processed. While our primary data centers are in the United States, we may transfer personal information or other information to our offices outside of the United States. In addition, we may employ other companies and individuals to perform functions on our behalf. If we disclose personal information to a third party or to our employees outside of the United States, we will seek assurances that any information we may provide to them is safeguarded adequately and in accordance with this Privacy Policy and the requirements of applicable privacy laws.

If you are visiting from the European Union or other regions with laws governing data collection and use, please note that you are agreeing to the transfer of your personal data, including sensitive data, by Match.com from your region to countries which do not have data protection laws that provide the same level of protection that exists in countries in the European Economic Area, including the United States. By providing your personal information, you consent to any transfer and processing in accordance with this Policy.

No Rights of Third Parties

This Privacy Policy does not create rights enforceable by third parties or require disclosure of any personal information relating to users of the website

Changes to this Privacy Policy

We will occasionally update this Privacy Policy. When we post changes to this Privacy Policy, we will revise the 'last updated' date at the top of this Privacy Policy. We recommend that you check our website from time to time to inform yourself of any changes in this Privacy Policy or any of our other policies.

How to contact us

If you have any questions about this Privacy Policy, please contact us by email or postal mail as follows:

Privacy Officer
P. O. Box 25458
Dallas, Texas 75225
privacy@match.com

Linked information :

1. Cookies:

A cookie is a small text file that is stored on a user's computer for record keeping purposes. Cookies can be either session cookies or persistent cookies. A session cookie expires when you close your browser and is used to make it easier for you to navigate our website. A persistent cookie remains on your hard drive for an extended period of time. Cookies on our website do not link to or store your personal information.

For example, when you sign in to our website, we will record your user or member ID and the name associated with your user or member ID in the cookie file on your computer. We also may record your password in this cookie file, if you indicated that you would like your password saved for automatic sign-in. For security purposes, we will encrypt any usernames, passwords, and other user or member account-related data that we store in such cookies. In the case of sites and services that do not use a user or member ID, the cookie will contain a unique identifier. We may allow our authorized service providers to serve cookies from our website to allow them to assist us in various activities, such as doing analysis and research on the effectiveness of our site, content and advertising.

We may allow third-parties, including advertising companies, analytics companies, and ad networks, to display advertisements on our site. These companies may use tracking technologies, such as cookies, to collect information about users who view or interact with their advertisements or our website or mobile applications. We do not provide any non-masked or non-obscured personal information to these third parties, but they may collect information about where you, or others who are using your device, saw and/or clicked on the advertisements they deliver (such as click stream information, browser type, time and date, subject of advertisements clicked or scrolled over, etc.), and possibly associate this information with your subsequent visits to the advertised websites or other data they have collected. They also may combine this information with personal information they collect from you to provide advertisements about goods and services likely to be of greater interest to you. The collection and use of that information is subject to the third-party's privacy policy. Some of these third-party advertising companies may be advertising networks that are members of the Network Advertising Initiative, which offers a single location to opt out of ad targeting from member companies and provides information about this behavioral advertising practice (www.networkadvertising.org).This policy covers the use of cookies by Match.com only and does not cover the use of cookies by any advertisers.

Opting-Out of Advertising Cookies.

You may opt out of our data collection for use by third party ad companies to provide targeted Match.com advertising to you when you visit other sites. Cookies are unique to each computer. Therefore, you must opt out separately on all computers you use. If you delete all of your cookies (specifically, the "Opt-Out" cookie), you will have to go through the opt-out process again to reactivate your opted-out status. You can opt out of receiving such advertising-related cookies by clicking below.

Opt Out Now.

Web Beacons:

Web beacons (also known as clear gifs, pixel tags or web bugs) are tiny graphics with a unique identifier, similar in function to cookies, and are used to track the online movements of web users or to access cookies. Unlike cookies which are stored on the user's computer hard drive, web beacons are embedded invisibly on the web pages (or in email) and are about the size of the period at the end of this sentence.

Web beacons may be used to deliver or communicate with cookies, to count users who have visited certain pages and to understand usage patterns. We also may receive an anonymous identification number if you come to our site from an online advertisement displayed on a third-party website. Third parties may use anonymous information about your visits to our site and other websites in order to improve its products and services and provide advertisements about goods and services of interest to you.