This Privacy Policy describes the online information collection and use practices of BankNews.com, the website operated by BankNews Publications. This Policy does not describe BankNews Publications’ offline information collection and use practices, or the practices it employs when collecting information online through means other than the BankNews.com website (for example, if you send us an email message).

This Privacy Policy is current as of January 1, 2007. If we make any substantive changes to this policy, we will announce it on our website. If you have any questions or concerns regarding this policy, contact us by phone at 800-336-1120 or write to us at BankNews Publications, P.O. Box 29156, Shawnee Mission, KS 66201. Once the changes have been made, your continued use of the site will constitute your acceptance of the revised Policy.

Information Collected and How It Is Used
Our website collects information when you register for the Online Reference Library, subscribe to a magazine, purchase a product, or participate in an online survey. The information we request for you to participate in these features may include personally identifiable information, such as name, title, company, address, telephone and fax numbers, and email address, or demographic information, such as hobby, place of birth, etc. We will tell you at the time we collect information whether the information requested is necessary for you to participate in a particular feature.

The information we collect is used to respond to your specific requests, to send you periodic information and special offers from BankNews Publications and our sponsors, to provide you with updates on BankNews Publications’ offerings and features, to provide you with product information from manufacturers in our database, and to provide our sponsors with aggregate data about our users.

BankNews Publications also uses cookies and other electronic information collection mechanisms to obtain information from you, such as your computer's IP address. IP addresses are collected for system administration purposes and for studying how people use our site and how we can improve it. BankNews Publications uses cookies to identify registered website users and to automatically give them access to "member only" content areas such as the Reference Library, and to provide them with access to previously-stored information. BankNews Publications also uses cookies to estimate our audience size and usage patterns and to track the aggregate number of customer returns at our website. Finally, BankNews Publications uses cookies to help simplify the process of filling out certain forms on our website. You may choose whether or not you accept cookies by changing the settings of your browser.

Sharing Your Information
BankNews Publications shares your information with third parties in whose products or services we believe you may be interested. When sharing your information with these third parties, BankNews Publications requires that the third parties follow practices substantially similar to those of BankNews Publications, and that your information not be further shared with any other third parties. BankNews Publications will also share your information if required by law to do so, to comply with applicable laws or valid legal process, or to protect the rights or property of BankNews Publications.

BankNews Publications may provide users with the opportunity to request additional information from product manufacturers in our Online Buyer’s Guide or from our advertisers. If you specifically request information from a manufacturer or from one of our advertisers, your contact information will be given to that manufacturer or advertiser, to allow them to decide the best way to fulfill your request.

Options on Use of Information
If you no longer wish for us to share your mailing address or other contact information with our sponsors or other third parties in whose products or services we believe you may be interested, please send us an email at unsubscribe(at)banknews.com. For us to be able to locate your record, your email must include your name, mailing address, and email address. Your request will be processed within 10 days, and we will no longer share your contact information with third parties. Please note that we will not be able to stop third parties from sending you information about their products or services if your information was shared with them before we received your request.

Regarding email specifically, you have the opportunity to elect to stop receiving advertising messages from BankNews Publications about our products or services each time you receive such a communication from us. To unsubscribe from such advertising email messages, please follow the directions included in that email message. Your request will be processed within 10 days. Please note that during that time, you may continue to receive email messages from us. Additionally, regardless of whether you have unsubscribed from receiving advertising and promotional material from BankNews Publications, you will continue to receive transactional information from us, such as information relating to your account or payment or bill information.

Verification of Information
BankNews Publications reserves the right to contact all persons with regard to online ordering to verify the information given during order processing.  This is to protect you as a consumer against credit card fraud.  Any persons found committing fraud of any kind while taking part in purchasing will face criminal and civil litigation.   

Links to Third-Party Websites
Note that our website contains links to non BankNews.com websites. Although we try to link only to websites that share our respect for customer information privacy, we are not responsible for their content or their privacy practices.