Mapleton‘s Hometown News Site
Privacy Policy

Privacy Notice

Updated and Effective as of September 21, 2023

We have prepared this privacy notice (“Privacy Notice,” “Notice,” “Privacy Policy,” or “Policy”) to explain to you how we collect, use, and share information and Personal Data (as defined under applicable law) we obtain through your use of the Internet sites, applications and online services (“Services”) that are operated by, controlled by or affiliated with Town Talk Media (dba Mail News Group). This Privacy Notice only covers information collected through the Services and via direct communications between you and Town Talk Media (dba Mail News Group), and does not cover any information collected at any other website, application or otherwise by us (unless specifically stated), including when you call us, write to us, or communicate with us in any manner other than through the Services. By using the Services, you consent to such collection, use and sharing of your information and Personal Data and agree to the terms of this Privacy Notice.

We will only process your Personal Data in accordance with applicable data protection and privacy laws. For the purposes of UK and EU data protection legislation, the data controller is Town Talk Media (dba Mail News Group), PO Box 186, Delavan, Illinois 61734.

Table of Contents

  1. Information We Automatically Collect
  2. Cookies/Tracking Technologies
  3. Information You Choose To Submit
  4. Information We Receive From Other Sources
  5. Information Use
  6. Social Network and Platform Integration
  7. Our Information Sharing Practices
  8. Anonymous Data
  9. Public Information
  10. Users Outside of the United States and Consent to Transfer
  11. Important Information for California Residents: Your California Privacy Rights
  12. How We Respond to “Do Not Track” Signals
  13. Advertising
  14. Choice/Opt-Out From Communications
  15. Retaining, Modifying and Deleting Your Personal Data
  16. EU Data Subject Rights
  17. Security
  18. Links
  19. Children’s Privacy
  20. Sensitive Personal Data
  21. Changes
  22. Contact Us

  1. Information We Automatically Collect

    Categories of Information. We and our third-party service providers (including any third-party content, advertising, and analytics providers) automatically collect certain information from your device or web browser when you interact with the Services to help us understand how our users use the Services and to target advertising to you (which we will refer to in this Privacy Notice collectively as “Usage Data”). For example, each time you visit the Services we and our third-party service providers automatically collect your location, IP address, mobile device identifier or other unique identifier, browser and computer type, Internet service provider used, clickstream information, access time, the Web page you came from, the URL you go to next, the Web page(s) that you access during your visit and your interaction with content or advertising on the Services. We may contract with third parties to collect this information on our behalf for analytics purposes. These include companies such as Chartbeat, Comscore and Google.

    Purposes For This Information. We and our third-party service providers use such Usage Data for a variety of purposes including to diagnose problems with our servers and software, to administer the Services, to gather demographic information and to target advertising to you on the Services and elsewhere online. Accordingly, our third-party advertising networks and ad servers will also provide us with information, including reports that will tell us how many ads were presented and clicked on the Services in a manner that does not identify personally any specific individual. The Usage Data we collect is generally non-identifying, but if we associate it with you as a specific and identifiable person, we will treat it as Personal Data.

  2. Cookies/Tracking Technologies

    We use tracking technologies, such as cookies, local storage, and pixel tags.

    Cookies and Local Storage

    Cookies and local storage may be set and accessed on your computer. Upon your first visit to the Services, a cookie or local storage will be sent to your computer that uniquely identifies your browser. “Cookies” and local storage are small files containing a string of characters that is sent to your computer’s browser and stored on your device when you visit a website. Many major Web services use cookies to provide useful features for their users. Each Web site can send its own cookie to your browser. Most browsers are initially set up to accept cookies. You can reset your browser to refuse all cookies or to indicate when a cookie is being sent; however, if you reject cookies, you will not be able to sign in to the Services or take full advantage of our Services. Additionally, if you clear all cookies on your browser at any point after setting your browser to refuse all cookies or indicate when a cookie is being sent, you will have to again reset your browser to refuse all cookies or indicate when a cookie is being sent.

    Our Services use the following types of cookies for the purposes set out below:

    Cookies and Local Storage

    Type of cookie Purpose
    Analytics and Performance Cookies These cookies are used to collect information about traffic to our Services and how users use our Services. The information gathered does not identify any individual visitor. The information is aggregated and therefore anonymous. It includes the number of visitors to our Services, the websites that referred them to our Services, the pages that they visited on our Services, what time of day they visited our Services, whether they have visited our Services before, and other similar information. We use this information to help operate our Services more efficiently, to gather broad demographic information and to monitor the level of activity on our Services. We use Google Analytics for this purpose. Google Analytics uses its own cookies. It is only used to improve how our Services works. You can find out more information about Google Analytics cookies here. You can find out more about how Google protects your data here. You can prevent the use of Google Analytics relating to your use of our Services by downloading and installing the browser plugin available here.
    Essential Cookies These cookies are essential to provide you with services available through our Services and to enable you to use its features. For example, they allow you to log in to secure areas of our Services and help the content of the pages you request load quickly. Without these cookies, the services that you have asked for cannot be provided, and we only use these cookies to provide you with those services.
    Functionality Cookies These cookies allow our Services to remember choices you make when you use our Services, such as remembering your language preferences, remembering your login details, remembering which polls you have voted in and in some cases, to show you poll results, and remembering the changes you make to other parts of our Services which you can customize. The purpose of these cookies is to provide you with a more personal experience and to avoid you having to re-enter your preferences every time you visit our Services.
    Social Media Cookies These cookies are used when you share information using a social media sharing button or “like” button on our Services or you link your account or engage with our content on or through a social networking website such as Facebook, Twitter or Google+. The social network will record that you have done this and collect information from you which may be your Personal Data.
    Targeted and advertising cookies These cookies track your browsing habits to enable us to show advertising which is more likely to be of interest to you. These cookies use information about your browsing history to group you with other users who have similar interests. Based on that information, and with our permission, third-party advertisers can place cookies to enable them to show ads which we think will be relevant to your interests while you are on third-party websites. These cookies also store your location, including your latitude, longitude, and GeoIP region ID, which helps us show you locale-specific news and allows our Services to operate more efficiently.

    Flash

    A Flash cookie is a data file placed on a device via the Adobe Flash plug-in that is built into or downloaded by you onto your device. Flash cookies are used for various purposes, including, without limitation, enabling a Flash feature and remembering your preferences. For more information about Flash and the privacy choices Adobe offers, visit here. If you choose to adjust your Flash privacy settings on your device some features of the Services may not function properly.

    Pixel Tags

    We also use “pixel tags,” which are small graphic files that allow us and third parties to monitor the use of the Services and collect Usage Data. A pixel tag can collect information such as the IP address of the computer that downloaded the page on which the tag appears; the URL of the page on which the pixel tag appears; the time (and length of time) the page containing the pixel tag was viewed; the type of browser that retrieved the pixel tag; and the identification number of any cookie previously placed by that server on your computer.

    We use pixel tags, either provided by us or by our third-party advertisers, service providers and ad networks, to collect information about your visit, including the pages you view, the links you click and other actions taken in connection with our sites and Services and use them in combination with our cookies to provide offers and information of interest to you. Pixel tags also enable ad networks to serve targeted advertisements to you when you visit the Services or other websites.

    Log Files

    A log file is a file that records events that occur in connection with your use of the Service, such as your service use data.

    Device Fingerprinting

    Device fingerprinting is the process of analyzing and combining sets of information elements from your device’s browser, such as JavaScript objects and installed fonts, in order to create a “fingerprint” of your device and uniquely identify your device and apps.

    App Technologies, Customization, and Usage

    There are a variety of tracking technologies that may be included in our apps that allow us to collect information about your installation, use, and updating of our apps as well as information about your device, including your unique device identifier (“UDID”) and other technical identifiers. More specifically, these tracking technologies allow us to collect data about your device and your use of our apps, the pages, videos, other content, or ads you see or click on during your visit and when and for how long you do so, and items you download. These tracking technologies are not browser-based like cookies and cannot be controlled by browser settings. For example, our apps may include third party SDKs, which is code that sends information about your use to a server, and is in effect the app version of a pixel. These SDKs allow us to track our conversions and communicate with you across devices, bring you advertising both on and off the Sites, customize the app to your interests and preferences and link such across platforms and devices, and provide you with additional functionality, such as the ability to connect our Site with your social media account.

    Location-Identifying Technologies

    GPS, WiFi, Bluetooth, and other location-aware technologies may be used to collect precise location data when you enable location-based services through your device. Location data may be used for purposes such as verifying your device’s location and delivering or restricting relevant content and advertising based on that location.

    In addition, we use a variety of other technologies that collect similar information for security and fraud detection purposes essential to the operation of our sites and business.

    For more information about the use of cookies and similar technology on our Site, please review Section 13 of this Privacy Notice. You can also find more information about cookies and how they work, what cookies have been set on your computer or mobile device and how to manage and delete them here and here.

  3. Information You Choose To Submit

    You can visit the Services without telling us who you are or revealing any information by which someone could identify you as a specific, identifiable individual (which we will refer to in this Privacy Notice collectively as “Personal Data”). If, however, you wish to register to become a member of the Services, you are required to provide certain Personal Data (for example, your name and email address), and you must also provide a username and password. We use your Personal Data to fulfil your requests for products and services, to improve our Services, to contact you from time to time, with your consent, about us and our products and services, and as otherwise described in this Privacy Notice.

    We refer collectively to all information we collect that is not Personal Data, including Usage Data, demographic data and de-identified Personal Data, as “Non-Personal Data”. If we combine Non-Personal Data with Personal Data, we will treat the combined information as Personal Data under this Privacy Notice.

    Personal Data, Non-Personal Data, and User Submissions are referred to in this Privacy Notice collectively as “User Information.”

    You may choose to enter contests, sweepstakes, competitions, participate in surveys, subscribe to newsletters, comment articles, use message boards, chat rooms, reader photo upload areas, reader ratings and reviews, save articles or other content on our Sites, reader-created content upload areas, contact us and customer support areas, and areas that allow you to register for SMS text messaging and mobile alerts, or otherwise interact with us in similar ways (“Interactive Areas”). These Interactive Areas may require that you provide Personal Data corresponding with the activities. You understand and agree that the Interactive Areas are voluntary and that your providing Personal Data for those activities will be collected and used by us to identify and communicate with you. In certain circumstances, we may share that Personal Information with sponsors, advertisers, affiliates or other partners. If you have questions about a specific Interactive Area, please contact us and reference that specific Interactive Area.

    In addition, you are required to provide certain Personal Data when you submit a job application and supporting materials. Where you submit a job application on behalf of another person, you confirm that you have made that person aware of how we collect, use and share their Personal Data, the reason you have provided it, how they can contact us, the terms of this Privacy Notice and related policies and that they have consented to such collection, use and sharing. You can also choose to submit or we may collect additional information about yourself, such as demographic information (for example your gender, birth date, or zip code) and information about your preferences and interests. Failure to provide any required Personal Data will prevent us from being able to provide the Services you request (e.g., member registration or submission of job application) or otherwise inhibit our ability to provide the Services.

    Here are examples of User Information we may collect:

    • Contact Data. We collect your first and last name, email address, postal address, phone number, and other similar contact data.
    • Credentials. We collect passwords, password hints, and other information for authentication and account access.
    • Demographic Data. We collect demographic information including your age, gender, and country.
    • Payment Data. We collect data necessary to process your payment if you make a purchase, including your payment instrument number (such as a credit card number), and the security code associated with your payment instrument.
    • Profile Data. We collect your username, interests, favorites, and other profile data.
    • Contacts. We collect data about your contacts in order to fulfill a request by you, such as fulfilling a gift subscription. Such functionality is only intended for United States (“U.S.”) residents. By using this functionality, you acknowledge and agree that both you and your contacts are based in the U.S. and that you have your contacts’ consent for us to use their contact information to fulfill your request.
    • Content. We collect the content of messages you send to us, such as feedback and product reviews you write, or questions and information you provide to customer support. We also collect the content of your communications as necessary to provide you with the services you use.
    • Resume Data. We collect data to consider you for a job opening if you submit an application to us, including your employment history, writing samples, and references.
    • Survey Data. We may also survey visitors about various topics, including events and experiences, media consumption preferences and how we can improve our Sites and services. Response to our surveys is entirely voluntary.
    • Public Postings. We collect information when you submit something to be displayed on our Sites. Any communication you submit or that may be posted to a publicly viewable area of our Sites, such as a comment on an article or a review, is a public communication and may be viewed by the general public. Therefore, you acknowledge and understand that you have no expectation of privacy or confidentiality in the content you submit to such areas via our Sites, whether or not your submission includes personal information. These submissions would include newsletter sign-ups and any area of our site that requires a login or registration prior to use. If at any time you display your personal information in any communication submitted to such areas, other individuals may collect and use your personal information. We are not responsible for, nor can we guarantee the protection of, any personal information you disclose in a communication submitted to such areas for posting or contained in an email or other communication submitted to us for such posting, and thus, you acknowledge that if you disclose personal information in any such material, you do so at your own risk.

  4. Information We Receive From Other Sources

    We supplement the information we collect with outside records in order to learn more about our users, to better tailor the content and offers we show you, and for other purposes. We receive this information about you from public sources or third parties, including without limitation consumer data resellers, social networks, and advertisers. We combine the information we receive from those other sources with information we collect through the Services. In those cases, we will apply this Privacy Notice to the combined information.

  5. Information Use

    We use the information we collect, including Personal Data and Usage Data:

    • To enable you to use our Services, to create an account or profile, to process information you provide via our Services (including verifying that your email address is active and valid) and to process your transactions;
    • To provide related customer service and care, including responding to your questions, complaints, or comments and sending surveys and processing survey responses;
    • To provide you with information, products, or services that you have requested;
    • To offer SMS text message mobile alerts for specific purposes;
    • To offer an “Email This” feature that allows visitors to email a link to another person to inform them about an article or feature on the Sites. We do not retain telephone numbers or email addresses collected for these purposes after sending the SMS text message or email;
    • To receive and process job applications for jobs with us;
    • To provide you with information, products, or services that we otherwise believe will interest you, including special opportunities from us and our third-party partners;
    • To tailor content, recommendations, and advertisements we and third parties display to you, both on the Services and elsewhere online;
    • for internal business purposes, such as to improve our Services and content;
    • To administer and process contests, sweepstakes, promotions, conferences and special events (collectively “Events”). Information collected through our Sites in conjunction with such Events is also used for marketing additional products, services and events by us and/or by our advertisers, sponsors, and marketing partners. Please see the rules of each individual Event and any applicable privacy policies for those Events for additional information on the choices you may exercise with respect to the use of your personal information collected in connection with that Event. To the extent there is a conflict between this Privacy Notice and the rules or policies applicable to an Event, the rules and policies associated with the Event shall govern.;
    • To contact you with administrative communications and, in our discretion, changes to our Privacy Notice, Terms of Use, or any of our other policies;
    • To comply with regulatory and legal obligations; and
    • For purposes as disclosed at the time you provide your information and as further described in this Privacy Notice.

  6. Social Network and Platform Integration

    The Services contain integration with social networks and other platforms in which information is shared between us and such platforms. For example, if you create or log into your account through a third-party social media site, we may have access to certain information from that site, such as your name, email address, account information, photo and friends lists, and other information in accordance with the authorization procedures determined by such social media site. If you visit our Services on a device through which you also interact with social networks or if you interact with us through a social media function such as a plug-in (for example, a Facebook “like” button) then you permit us to have on-going access to, to use and to store information from your social network profile (such as your name, email address, your friend list, photo, age, gender, location, birthday, social networking ID, current city, and the people/sites you follow) in accordance with this Privacy Notice. If you don’t want a social network to collect the information about you as described above, or you don’t want a social network to share it with us, please review the privacy policy, privacy settings and instructions of the applicable social network before you visit and use our Services.

  7. Our Information Sharing Practice

    Generally

    We share Non-Personal Data, including Usage Data, de-identified Personal Data and aggregated user statistics, with third parties in our discretion. Information collected via the Sites is shared among our affiliates. For example, we may share your information with our related entities including our parent and sister companies for customer support, marketing, and technical operations. We share User Information, including Personal Data, as otherwise described in this Policy, and under the following circumstances.

    Service Providers

    From time to time, we enter into relationships with third parties who provide services to us (for example, analytics and research companies, advertisers and ad agencies, data management and storage services, credit card processing services, merchandise sales facilitators, sweepstakes or contest prize fulfillment). We share your information with third parties for the purposes of facilitating your requests (such as when you choose to share information with a social network about your activities on the Sites) and in connection with tailoring advertisements, measuring and improving our Sites and advertising effectiveness, and other enabling enhancements. We share aggregate information about our visitors with our advertisers, sponsors, and promotional partners, such as how many persons visited a particular page or activity, the average age of our visitors on the Site(s) or page(s), or the likes and dislikes of our visitors, but this information is not specific to any individual visitor. We obtain geographic information such as zip code clustering from other sources, but this aggregate information will not reveal the precise location of a specific visitor. We also obtain other demographic information from third parties to improve our products and services, for marketing purposes or to display more relevant advertising. In those circumstances, we disclose User Information so that such service providers perform those services. These service providers are only permitted to use your Personal Data to the extent necessary to enable them to provide their services to us. They are required to follow our express instructions and to comply with appropriate security measures to protect your Personal Data. And our sites use certain Google analytics and other services, and certain pages use the Google AMP Client ID API, each of which enable collection and sharing of your information (including Personal Data) with Google for further use. For specific information on Google usage and how to control it, please see How Google uses data when you use our partners’ sites or apps and Google’s Privacy Notice.

    Operational Providers

    For your convenience, we may provide the opportunity to purchase certain goods, merchandise and services through the Sites (including, without limitation, retail purchases, print and digital magazine subscriptions and special event tickets). Companies other than Town Talk Media (dba Mail News Group), its parents, partners, affiliates or subsidiaries may process these transactions. We call these companies that conduct our e-commerce operations, order and contest fulfillment and/or contract services “operational providers.” They are third parties that perform services on our behalf. If you choose to use these optional services, our operational providers will request your personal information to fulfill your order or request. The voluntary submission of your personal information to these operational providers, including your order or request, will be governed by the specific provider’s terms of use and privacy policies. To facilitate an order or request from you, we may share your personal information with the provider. The operational provider may also share your personal information and information about your purchases with us. We may store this information in our membership database. In most instances, we request that our operational providers adhere to the provisions in our Privacy Notice and that such providers only share visitors’ personal information with us, unless necessary to complete a visitor’s request or order. Operational providers are only permitted to use any personal information for the purpose of conducting the sale or fulfilling your requested service or order. However, you must read an operational provider’s privacy policy to determine the extent of use and disclosure of your personal information collected online. We are not responsible for the collection, use and disclosure practices of operational providers, nor are we responsible or liable for their services.

    Events

    Our Events and promotions may be jointly managed, sponsored or offered by third parties. If you voluntarily choose to enter or attend an Event, we may share your information with third parties as set forth in the official rules that govern the Event as well as for administrative purposes and as required by law (e.g., on a winners list). By entering a contest or sweepstakes Event, you agree to the official rules that govern that Event, and may, except where prohibited by applicable law, allow the sponsor and/or other parties to use your name, voice and/or likeness in advertising or marketing materials. Some events may be managed wholly by a third party and will be governed by any rules or terms they provide for that event and it is your responsibility to review and comply with those terms.

    Third-Party Direct Marketing

    We may share your information with third parties for our own direct marketing purposes (for example, email blasts, special offers, discounts, etc.). If you have not opted out of us sharing your information with third parties for marketing purposes, we may also share your information (including Personal Data) with third parties for their own direct marketing purposes. Please note, messages delivered from a third-party will subject you to the third-party’s privacy policy. We may also match your email address with third parties and use such match to deliver custom offers or emails to you on the Services and off the Services.

    Third Party Features

    We may allow you to connect our Sites to a third party service or offer our Sites through a third party service (“Third Party Features”). If you use a Third Party Feature, both we and the applicable third party may have access to and use information associated with your use of the Third Party Feature, and you should carefully review the third party’s privacy policy and terms of use. Some examples of Third Party Features include the following:

    Liking, Sharing, and Logging-In. You may choose to log in, create an account or enhance your profile on the Sites through the Facebook Login feature. By doing this, you are asking Facebook to send us certain information from your Facebook profile, and you authorize us to collect, store, and use in accordance with this Privacy Notice any and all information available to us through the Facebook interface. After you have connected, Facebook also sends us additional information from your profile that allows us to display a Facebook Friends module on your profile page. The Facebook Friends that are displayed only include your Friends that also have accounts with our Sites.

    Brand Pages. We offer our content on social networks such as a Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram. Any information you provide to us when you engage with our content (such as through our brand page) is treated in accordance with this Privacy Notice. Also, if you publicly reference our Sites on a third party service (e.g., by using a hashtag associated with us in a tweet or post), we may use your reference on or in connection with our Service.

    Change of Control

    In the event we go through a business transition (such as a merger, acquisition by another company, bankruptcy, or sale of all or a portion of our assets, including, without limitation, during the course of any due diligence process), your Personal Data will likely be among the assets transferred. By providing your Personal Data, you agree that we can transfer such information in those circumstances without your further consent. Should such a business transition occur, we will make reasonable efforts to request that the new owner or combined entity (as applicable) follow this Privacy Notice with respect to your Personal Data. If your Personal Data would be used contrary to this Privacy Notice, we will request that you receive prior notice.

    Other Disclosure Scenarios

    We reserve the right, and you hereby expressly authorize us, to share User Information: (i) in response to subpoenas, court orders, or legal process, or to establish, protect, or exercise our legal rights or defend against legal claims; (ii) if we believe it is necessary in order to investigate, prevent, or take action regarding illegal activities, fraud, or situations involving potential threats to the safety of any person or property; (iii) if we believe it is necessary to investigate, prevent, or take action regarding significant abuse of the Services infrastructure or the Internet in general (such as voluminous spamming, denial of service attacks, or attempts to compromise the security of information); (iv) to protect and defend our legal rights or property, our services or their users, or any other party, and to protect the health and safety of our users or the general public; and (v) to our parent company, subsidiaries, joint ventures, or other companies under common control with us (in which case we will require such entities to honor this Privacy Notice).

  8. Anonymous Data

    When we use the term “anonymous data,” we are referring to data and information that does not permit you to be identified or identifiable, either alone or when combined with any other information available to a third-party. We may create anonymous data from the Personal Data we receive about you and other individuals whose Personal Data we collect. Anonymous data will include analytics information and information collected by us using cookies. We make Personal Data into anonymous data by excluding information (such as your name or other personal identifiers) that makes the data personally identifiable to you. We use this anonymous data to analyze usage patterns in order to make improvements to our Services.

  9. Public Information

    If you identify any User Information as public, you are authorizing us to share such information publicly. For example, you can elect to make certain of your User Submissions (such as your alias, bio, email or photos) publicly available. Also, there are areas of the Services (for example, message boards, discussion rooms, and other online forums) in which you are able to post information that automatically will be available to all other users of the Services. By choosing to use these areas, you understand and agree that anyone can access, use, and disclose any information that you post to those areas.

  10. The Services are operated in the United States. If you are located in another jurisdiction, please be aware that information you provide to us will be transferred to, stored and processed in the United States. By using the Services or providing us with any information, you consent to this transfer, processing, and storage of your information in the United States, a jurisdiction in which the privacy laws are not as comprehensive as those in the country where you reside or are a citizen such as the European Union. You understand that the U.S. government can obtain access to the Personal Data you submit if necessary for investigative purposes (e.g., terrorism investigation). We will take all steps reasonably necessary to ensure that your data is treated securely and in accordance with this Privacy Notice. We use appropriate and suitable safeguards for transferring your Personal Data to the U.S. (e.g., standard contractual clauses issued by the European Commission, which can be accessed here).

  11. Important Information for California Residents: Your California Privacy Rights

    These additional disclosures for California residents apply only to individuals who reside in California. The California Consumer Privacy Act of 2018 (“CCPA”) provides additional rights to know, delete and opt out, and requires businesses collecting or disclosing personal information to provide notices and means to exercise those rights. The words used in this section have the meanings given to them in the CCPA, which may be broader than their common meaning. For example, the definition of “personal information” under the CCPA includes your name, but also more general information such as age.

    Notice of Collection

    Although the information we collect is described in greater detail in Sections 1-6 above, the categories of personal information that we have collected – as described by the CCPA – in the past 12 months are:

    • Identifiers, including name, email address, phone number account name, IP address, and an ID or number assigned to your account.
    • Customer records, billing and shipping address, and credit or debit card information.
    • Demographics, such as your age or gender. This category includes data that may qualify as protected classifications under other California or federal laws.
    • Commercial information, including purchases and engagement with the Services.
    • Internet activity, including your interactions with our Service.
    • Audio or visual data, including pictures or videos you post on our Service.
    • Geolocation data, including location enabled services such as WiFi and GPS.
    • Employment and education data, including information you provide when you apply for a job with us.
    • Inferences, including information about your interests, preferences and favorites.

    For more information on our collection practices, including the sources we receive information from, please review the different forms of information collected through various means as described in more detail in Sections 1 – 6 above. We collect and use these categories of personal information for the business purposes also described in Sections 1 – 6, as well as our sharing practices described in Section 7.

    We do not generally “sell” personal information as the term “sell” is traditionally understood. However, to the extent “sale” under the CCPA is interpreted to include advertising technology activities such as those disclosed in the Advertising (Section 13) as a “sale,” we provide you the option to request that we not “sell” your personal information. We do not sell the personal information of minors known to be under the age of 16 without affirmative authorization.

    We sell or disclose the following categories of personal information for commercial purposes: identifiers, demographic information, commercial information, internet activity, geolocation data and inferences. We use and partner with different types of entities to assist with our daily operations and manage our Service. Please review Our Information Sharing Practices in Section 7 above, Advertising in Section 7 below.

    Right to Know and Delete

    If you are a California resident, you have the right to delete the personal information we have collected from you and the right to know certain information about our data practices in the preceding 12 months. In particular, you have the right to request the following from us:

    • The categories of personal information we have collected about you;
    • The categories of sources from which the personal information was collected;
    • The categories of personal information about you we disclosed for a business purpose or sold;
    • The categories of third parties to whom the personal information was disclosed for a business purpose or sold;
    • The business or commercial purpose for collecting or selling the personal information; and
    • The specific pieces of personal information we have collected about you.

    To exercise any of these rights, please submit a request through our online form or email us at privacy@towntalk.media. In the request, please specify which right you are seeking to exercise and the scope of the request. We will confirm receipt of your request within 10 days.

    We have a duty as the holder of certain personal information to verify your identity when making requests to know or delete personal information and to ensure that dissemination of that information would not cause harm to you if it were distributed to another person. To verify your identity, we will request and collect additional personal information from you to match it against our records. We may ask for additional information or documentation if we feel it is necessary to confirm your identity with the necessary degree of certainty. We may communicate with you through email, a secure message center, or other reasonably necessary and appropriate means. We do have the right to deny requests under certain circumstances. In such cases, we will notify you of the reasons for denial. We will not provide you with specific pieces of personal information if the disclosure creates a substantial, articulable, and unreasonable risk to the security of that personal information, your account with us, or the security of our systems or networks. In no event will we disclose, if we have collected it, your Social Security number, driver’s license number or other government-issued identification number, financial account number, any health insurance or medical identification number, an account password, or security questions and answers.

    Right to Opt-Out

    To the extent we sell your personal information as the term “sell” is defined under the California Consumer Privacy Act, you have the right to opt-out of the sale of your personal information by us to third parties at any time. You may submit a request to opt-out of by clicking Do Not Sell My Personal Information. You may also submit a request to opt-out by emailing us at privacy@towntalk.media.

    Authorized Agent

    You may submit a request through a designated agent. You must instruct that agent that they will need to state that they are acting on your behalf when making the request, have reasonably necessary documentation, and be prepared to provide the necessary personal information to identify you in our database.

    Right to Non-Discrimination

    You have the right not to receive discriminatory treatment by us for the exercise of any your rights.

    Financial Incentives

    Financial incentives are programs, benefits, or other offerings, including payments to consumers as compensation, for the disclosure, deletion, or sale of personal information about them.

    We may offer discounted prices to consumers who sign up to be on our mailing lists or join our loyalty programs. Such programs will have additional terms that require your review and agreement. Please review those terms for the details of those programs, how to withdraw or cancel, or to assert your rights specific to those programs.

    We generally do not treat consumers differently if they exercise a right under California law. However, in certain circumstances, discounted prices will require you to be on our mailing list or a member of our loyalty program. In such circumstances, we may offer a price difference because the price is reasonably related to the value of your data. The value of your data will be explained in the terms of such incentivized programs.

    Shine the Light

    California’s “Shine the Light” law permits customers in California to request certain details about how certain types of their information are shared with third parties and, in some cases, affiliates, for those third parties’ and affiliates’ own direct marketing purposes. Under the law, a business should either provide California customers certain information upon request or permit California customers to opt out of this type of sharing.

    To exercise a Shine the Light request, please contact us at privacy@towntalk.media or Town Talk Media (dba Mail News Group) c/o Legal Department , PO Box 186, Delavan, Illinois 61734. You must put the statement “Your California Privacy Rights” in the body of your request, as well as your name, street address, city, state, and zip code. In the body of your request, please provide enough information for us to determine if this applies to you. Please note that we will not accept inquiries via the telephone, email, or by facsimile, and we are not responsible for notices that are not labelled or sent properly, or that do not have complete information.

    Important Information for Nevada Residents-Your Nevada Privacy Rights

    If you are a resident of Nevada, you have the right to opt-out of the sale of certain Personal Data to third parties who intend to license or sell that Personal Data. You can exercise this right by contacting us here or email us at privacy@towntalk.media with the subject line “Nevada Do Not Sell Request” and providing us with your name and the email address associated with your account.

  12. How We Respond to “Do Not Track” Signals

    Internet browsers can be configured to send “Do Not Track” signals to the online services that you visit. California Business & Professions Code Section 22575(b) (as amended effective January 1, 2014) provides that California residents are entitled to know how Town Talk Media (dba Mail News Group) responds to “Do Not Track” browser settings.

    There currently is no consensus among industry participants as to what “Do Not Track” means in this context. Therefore, like many websites and online services, the Services do not alter their practices when they receive a “Do Not Track” signal from a visitor’s browser. To find out more about “Do Not Track,” please visit here.

  13. Advertising

    Generally

    We use other companies under agreements with us to serve third-party advertisements when you visit and use the Services. These companies collect and use click stream information, browser type, time and date, subject of advertisements clicked or scrolled over during your visits to the Services and other Web sites in order to provide advertisements about goods and services likely to be of greater interest to you. These companies typically use tracking technologies to collect this information. Other companies’ use of their tracking technologies is subject to their own privacy policies, not this one. In addition, we share with these third parties any personal information you voluntarily provide, such as an email address, in response to an advertisement or sponsored content link.

    Targeted Advertising

    In order to serve offers and advertisements that may be of interest to our users, we display targeted advertisements on the Services, or other digital properties or applications in conjunction with our content, based on information provided to us by our users and information provided to us by third parties that they have independently collected.

    Your Ad Choices

    Some of the third-party services providers and/or Advertisers may be members of the Network Advertising Initiative (“NAI”) or the Digital Advertising Alliance (“DAA”) Self-Regulatory Program for Online Behavioral Advertising. You can visit here, which provides information regarding targeted advertising and the “opt-out” procedures of NAI members. You can opt-out of the use of your behavioral data used by DAA members to serve you interest-based advertising on third-party sites here.

    If you are accessing the Services through an application (i.e., mobile phone or tablet) you can download the AppChoices application from your device’s application store (i.e., Google Play, Apple App Store, and Amazon Store). This DAA application allows participating companies to offer an opt-out of customized advertisements that are based on predictions about your interests generated from your application usage. For more information, visit here.

    Please note opting out through these mechanisms does not opt you out of being served advertising. You will continue to receive generic ads while online or on your device.

    Mobile

    We may from time to time offer certain location or pinpoint based services, such as location assisted navigation instruction. If you elect to use such location-based services, we must periodically receive your location in order to provide such location-based services to you. By using the location-based services, you authorize us to: (i) locate your hardware; (ii) record, compile and display your location; and (iii) publish your location to third parties designated by you by means of location publication controls available within the applications (for example, settings, user preferences). As part of the location-based services, we also collect and store certain information about the users who elect to use such location-based services, such as a device id. This information will be used to provide you the location-based services. We use third-party providers to help provide location-based services through mobile systems (unless you opt out of such location-based services with such providers) and we provide the information to such providers to enable them to provide their location-based services, provided that such providers use the information in accordance with our Privacy Notice.

  14. Choice/Opt-Out From Communications

    We offer you the opportunity to manage your communications from us. Even after subscribing to one or more newsletters and/or opting in to one or more offers to receive marketing and/or promotional communications from us or our third-party partners, users may elect to modify their preferences by going to the “Communications Preferences” and/or “Unsubscribe” link provided in an email or communication received. You may also be able to change your preferences by updating your profile or account, depending on which of our Services you are using. Please be aware that if you wish to remove yourself from a newsletter and/or other marketing emails from third parties that you consented to through the Services, you must do so by contacting the relevant third-party. Even if you do opt-out of marketing emails, we reserve the right to send you transactional and administrative emails including those related to the Services, service announcements, notices of changes to this Privacy Notice or other Services policies, and to contact you regarding any goods or services you have ordered.

  15. Retaining, Modifying and Deleting Your Personal Data

    You may request access to the information you have provided to us. If you wish to make a request, please contact us using the details in the Contact Us section below. If you would like to update, correct, modify or delete from our database any Personal Data you previously submitted to us, please let us know by logging in and updating your profile. If you delete certain information you may not be able to order services in the future without re-submitting such information. We will comply with your request as soon as reasonably practicable. Also, please note that we will maintain Personal Data in our database whenever we are required to do so by law, for necessary operational reasons, or to maintain uniform business practices.

    Please note that we need to retain certain information for recordkeeping purposes and/or to complete any transactions that you began prior to requesting such change or deletion (for example, when you enter a promotion, you may not be able to change or delete the Personal Data provided until after the completion of such promotion). We will retain your Personal Data for the period necessary to fulfil the purposes outlined in this Policy unless a longer retention period is required or permitted by law.

  16. EU Data Subject Rights

    If you are a resident of the European Economic Area (EEA), you have the right to: (a) request access to your Personal Data and rectification of inaccurate Personal Data; (b) request erasure of your Personal Data; (c) request restrictions on the processing of your Personal Data; (d) object to processing your Personal Data; and/or (e) the right to data portability (collectively, “EU Requests”).

    We can only process EU Requests from a user whose identity has been verified. To verify your identity, please provide your email address or [URL] when you make an EU Request. For more information about how to get access to Personal Data and for exercising your rights, you can submit a request here by selecting the “I am an EU resident and would like to exercise my individual rights” option. You also have the right to lodge a complaint with a supervisory authority. To view additional information about behavioral advertising and manage your preferences, you can do so by visiting: http://www.youronlinechoices.eu/.

    If you have accepted our use of cookies and other tracking technologies, we will collect your information in accordance with this Privacy Notice based on your affirmative informed consent, which you may withdraw at any time through the methods provided herein. If you have not accepted, then we only collect your personal data based on our legitimate interests.

  17. Security

    We have implemented commercially reasonable and appropriate technical and organizational security measures to help protect your Personal Data from accidental or unlawful destruction, loss, alteration, misuse, or unauthorized access or disclosure; unfortunately, however, no data transmission over the Internet can be guaranteed to be 100% secure. As a result, while we strive to protect your User Information, we cannot guarantee its security. You use the Services and provide us with information at your own initiative and risk. If you have reason to believe that your interaction with us is no longer secure (for example, if you feel that the security of any account you have with us has been compromised), please immediately notify us of the problem by contacting us using the details in the Contact Us section below.

  18. The Services contain links to other websites that we do not control, and the Services contain videos, advertising and other content hosted and served by third parties. We are not responsible for the privacy practices of any third-party. We may also integrate with third parties who will interact with you under their terms of service. One such third party is YouTube. We use YouTube API Services and by using the Sites or Services, you agree to be bound by the YouTube Terms of Service located here.

  19. Children’s Privacy

    The Services are intended for a general audience and are not intended for and should not be used by children under the age of 13. We do not knowingly collect information from children under the age of 16 and we do not target the Services to children under the age of 16. If a parent or guardian becomes aware that his or her child has provided us with information without their consent, he or she should contact us using the details in the Contact Us section below. We will delete such information from our files as soon as reasonably practicable.

  20. Sensitive Personal Data

    Subject to the following paragraph, we ask that you not send us, and you not disclose, any sensitive Personal Data as this term is defined under applicable data protection and privacy laws (for example, social security numbers, information related to racial or ethnic origin, political opinions, religion or other beliefs, health, biometrics or genetic characteristics, criminal background or trade union membership) on or through the Services or otherwise to us.

    If you send or disclose any sensitive Personal Data to us, you consent to our processing and use of such sensitive personal data in accordance with this Privacy Notice. If you do not consent to our processing and use of such sensitive Personal Data, you must not submit such content to our Services.

  21. Changes

    We update this Privacy Notice from time to time in our discretion and will notify you of any material changes to the way in which we treat Personal Data by posting a notice on relevant areas of the Services. We will also provide notice to you in other ways in our discretion, such as through contact information you have provided. Any updated version of this Privacy Notice will be effective immediately upon the posting of the revised Privacy Notice unless otherwise specified. Your continued use of the Services after the effective date of the revised Privacy Notice (or such other act specified at that time) will constitute your consent to those changes. However, we will not, without your consent, use your Personal Data in a manner materially different than what was stated at the time your Personal Data was collected.

  22. Contact Us

    If you have any questions about this Privacy Notice, please feel free to contact us by email at: privacy@towntalk.media.