We at The Arc of the United States (“The Arc”) value your privacy whether you are a casual visitor, a registered member, a donor, a constituent, or a professional provider (“you” unless the context applies to a specific category such as donor). In this Privacy Notice (“Notice”), we describe how we collect, use, and disclose information that we obtain through our website www.thearc.org and related sites linking this Notice (individually and collectively, the “Site”), the services available through our Site (collectively, the “Services”), and how we use and disclose that information. This Notice applies only to the Site and not to the websites associated with any of our chapters.

By visiting the Site or using any of our Services, you agree that your personal information will be handled as described in this Notice. Your use of our Site or Services, and any dispute over privacy, is subject to this Notice and our Terms of Service, including its applicable limitations on damages and the resolution of disputes. The Terms of Service are incorporated by reference into this Notice.

What Information Do We Collect About You and Why?

We may collect information about you directly from you and from third parties, as well as automatically through your use of our Site or Services.

Information We Collect Directly From You. When you sign up to receive updates from The Arc or donate to The Arc, , we ask you to fill out a form that requests your name, address and e-mail address, and telephone, as well as some demographic information such as gender, age, and depending on the context some information about your family. We also may collect additional optional information from you, including for example payment details from donors and credentials/experience information from professional providers.

Information We Collect Automatically. When you visit our Site (for example, www.thearc.org) we automatically log your IP address, your browser type and your access times. We utilize this information to conduct Site performance evaluations, to see where visitors are coming from and to keep track of click stream data (the screens our users visit on our Site). This data helps us to determine what content our website visitors find most appealing so that we can maximize your usage of the Site. To opt out of the collection of this demographic information from Google Analytics Demographics and Interest Reporting, you can use the Google Analytics Opt-out Browser Add-on.

We may also automatically collect the following information about your use of our Site or Services through cookies, web beacons, and other technologies: your domain name; your browser type and operating system; web pages you view; links you click; your IP address; the length of time you visit our Site and or use our Services; and the referring URL, or the webpage that led you to our Site. We may combine this information with other information that we have collected about you, including, where applicable, your user name, name, and other personal information. Please see the section “Cookies and Other Tracking Mechanisms” below for more information.

Our Use of Cookies and Other Tracking Mechanisms

We and our third party service providers use cookies and other tracking mechanisms to track information about your use of our Site or Services. We may combine this information with other personal information we collect from you (and our third party service providers may do so on our behalf).

Currently, our systems do not recognize browser “do-not-track” requests. You may, however, disable certain tracking as discussed in this section (e.g., by disabling cookies); you also may opt-out of targeted advertising by following the instructions in the Third Party Ad Network section.

Cookies. Cookies are alphanumeric identifiers that we transfer to your computer’s hard drive through your web browser for record-keeping purposes. Some cookies allow us to make it easier for you to navigate our Site and Services, while others are used to enable a faster log-in process or to allow us to track your activities at our Site and Service. The ability to select or download information on our Site is not cookie-driven. There are two types of cookies: session and persistent cookies.

• Session Cookies. Session cookies exist only during an online session. They disappear from your computer when you close your browser or turn off your computer. We use session cookies to allow our systems to uniquely identify you during a session or while you are logged into the Site. This allows us to process your online transactions and requests and verify your identity, after you have logged in, as you move through our Site.
• Persistent Cookies. Persistent cookies remain on your computer after you have closed your browser or turned off your computer. We use persistent cookies to track aggregate and statistical information about user activity, and to display advertising both on our Site and on third-party sites.

Disabling Cookies. Most web browsers automatically accept cookies, but if you prefer, you can edit your browser options to block them in the future. The Help portion of the toolbar on most browsers will tell you how to prevent your computer from accepting new cookies, how to have the browser notify you when you receive a new cookie, or how to disable cookies altogether. Visitors to our Site who disable cookies will be able to browse certain areas of the Site, but some features may not function.

Local Storage Objects. We may use Flash Local Storage Objects (“Flash LSOs”) to store your Site preferences and to personalize your visit. Flash LSOs are different from browser cookies because of the amount and type of data stored. Typically, you cannot control, delete, or disable the acceptance of Flash LSOs through your web browser. For more information on Flash LSOs, or to learn how to manage your settings for Flash LSOs, go to the Adobe Flash Player Help Page, choose “Global Storage Settings Panel” and follow the instructions. To see the Flash LSOs currently on your computer, choose “Website Storage Settings Panel” and follow the instructions to review and, if you choose, to delete any specific Flash LSO.

Clear GIFs, pixel tags and other technologies. Clear GIFs are tiny graphics with a unique identifier, similar in function to cookies. In contrast to cookies, which are stored on your computer’s hard drive, clear GIFs are embedded invisibly on web pages. We may use clear GIFs (a.k.a. web beacons, web bugs or pixel tags), in connection with our Site to, among other things, track the activities of Site visitors, help us manage content, and compile statistics about Site usage. We and our third party service providers also use clear GIFs in HTML e-mails to our customers, to help us track e-mail response rates, identify when our e-mails are viewed, and track whether our e-mails are forwarded.

Third Party Analytics. We use automated devices and applications, such as Google Analytics, to evaluate usage of our Site and, to the extent permitted, our Application. We also may use other analytic means to evaluate our Services. We use these tools to help us improve our Services, performance and user experiences. These entities may use cookies and other tracking technologies to perform their services. We do not share your personal information with these third parties. To opt out of the collection of this demographic information from Google Analytics Demographics and Interest Reporting, you can use the Google Analytics Opt-out Browser Add-on.

How We Use Your Information

We use your information, including your personal information, for the following purposes:

• To provide our Services to you, to communicate with you about your use of our Services, to respond to your inquiries or request for a referral, to process your donations, and to fulfill your orders.
• To tailor the content and information that we may send or display to you, to offer location customization, and personalized help and instructions, and to otherwise personalize your experiences while using the Site or our Services.
• For marketing, issue awareness and fund raising purposes. For example, we may use your information, such as your email address, to send you news and newsletters, to solicit your support, or to otherwise contact you about products or information we think may interest you. From time to time we may send out email messages soliciting your support, prompting a call to action, or alerting you of what’s new at The Arc. In addition, you may receive communications from us if you have contacted us for a particular reason, and/or to receive the information or service you have requested.
• To better understand how you access and use our Site and Services, both on an aggregated and individualized basis, in order to improve our Site and Services and respond to your desires and preferences, and for other research and analytical purposes.
• Your name and address information is used solely to process your membership, donation, order, account registration, newsletter sign-up, or request for information and referral.
• Your demographic information (gender, age, etc.) is used for several purposes: Demographic information may be provided back to our corporate partners (companies that provide member benefit opportunities) in an aggregated way. For example, we may tell a partner that 25% of you are male, while 75% are female. We never release individual demographics to any party. The Arc also uses demographic information in aggregate terms for reporting purposes – annual reports, funding sources, charity-watch agencies.

How We Share Your Information

Your personal information will never be sold, given, rented or traded to others. We may share your information, including personal information, as follows:

• Affiliates. We may disclose the information we collect from you to our affiliates or subsidiaries; however, if we do so, their use and disclosure of your personally identifiable information will be subject to this Notice.
• Service Providers. We may disclose the information we collect from you to third party vendors, service providers, contractors or agents who perform functions on our behalf. The Arc utilizes the services of intermediaries – United Parcel Service (UPS), FedEx, and various direct mail firms to process and/or send out to our member renewals, solicitations, newsletters and orders. To our knowledge, these intermediaries do not store, retain or use the information in any way. These parties are contractually obligated with The Arc to use your information only for the purpose of communicating these opportunities.
• Business Transfers. If we are acquired by or merged with another organization, if substantially all of our assets are transferred to another organization, or as part of a bankruptcy proceeding, we may transfer the information we have collected from you to the other organization.
• In Response to Legal Process. We also may disclose the information we collect from you in order to comply with the law, a judicial proceeding, court order, or other legal process, such as in response to a court order or a subpoena.
• To Protect Us and Others. We also may disclose the information we collect from you where we believe it is necessary to investigate, prevent, or take action regarding illegal activities, suspected fraud, situations involving potential threats to the safety of any person, violations of our Terms of Use or this Notice, or as evidence in litigation in which The Arc is involved.
• Aggregate and De-Identified Information. We may share demographic information in aggregate terms for reporting purposes (such as annual reports, funding sources, charity-watch agencies), research, or similar purposes.

User Generated Content

We may invite you to post content on our Site and provide responses to our blog, including your comments, pictures, and any other information that you would like to be available on our Site. If you post content to our Site, all of the information that you post will be available to other users. If you post your own content on our Site or Services, your posting may become public and we cannot prevent such information from being used in a manner that may violate this Notice, the law, or your personal privacy.

Third-Party Links

Our Site and Services may contain links to third-party websites. Any access to and use of such linked websites is not governed by this Notice, but instead is governed by the privacy policies of those third party websites. These sites may independently collect or request information about you and we encourage you to read the privacy statements of these linked sites as their privacy Notice may differ from ours. We are not responsible for the information practices of such third party websites.

Security of My Personal Information

We have implemented commercially reasonable precautions to protect the information we collect from loss, misuse, and unauthorized access, disclosure, alteration, and destruction. All employees must learn and obey our security policies. Access to your personal information is limited to key management personnel and relevant staff. The information is ID and password protected. Our Site security is reviewed regularly. Please be aware that despite our efforts, no data security measures can guarantee 100% security.

You should take steps to protect against unauthorized access to your password, phone, and computer by, among other things, signing off after using a shared computer, choosing a robust password that nobody else knows or can easily guess, and keeping your log-in and password private. We are not responsible for any lost, stolen, or compromised passwords or for any activity on your account via unauthorized password activity.

When you make a financial or in-kind donation, you provide your name and contact information. Financial donors provide standard payment information, which may include credit card information. We use industry standard safeguards to protect your credit cards information and comply with the Payment Card Industry Data Security Standard (PCI DSS). We take a number of measures to protect the security of credit card transactions such as encryption, access controls, network firewalls, and physical security. These measures make it extremely difficult for anyone to intercept the credit card information you send to us. When we work with other companies to process credit card transactions, those companies also use encryption and other appropriate security measures.

Access To My Personal Information

You may modify personal information that you have submitted by logging into your account and updating your profile information. Please note that copies of information that you have updated, modified or deleted may remain viewable in cached and archived pages of the Site for a period of time.

What Choices Do I Have Regarding Use of My Personal Information?

If you do not want your personally identifiable information collected or stored, please do not submit it to us. If you have already submitted personal information and would like us to correct or remove your information from our records, please contact us at info@thearc.org.

We may send periodic solicitations or informational emails to you. You may opt-out of such communications by following the opt-out instructions contained in the e-mail. Please note that it may take up to 10 business days for us to process opt-out requests. If you opt-out of receiving emails about recommendations or other information we think may interest you, we may still send you e-mails about your account or any Services you have requested or received from us.

Special Notification for California Residents

If you reside in California and you have provided us with personal information, you may request information about our disclosures of certain categories of your personal information (if any) to third parties for their direct marketing purposes. Such requests must be submitted to us at info@thearc.org. Within thirty days of receiving such a request, we will provide a list of the categories of personal information disclosed to third parties (if any) for third-party direct marketing purposes during the immediately preceding calendar year, along with the names and addresses of these third parties. This request may be made no more than once per calendar year. We reserve our right not to respond to requests submitted other than to the email address specified in this paragraph.

Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act

The Site is not directed at and should not be used by children under the age of 13. We support and comply with the Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA). The Arc does not solicit or collect personal information from children under the age of 13. By registering for the Site and/or Services, you represent and warrant that you are over 13 years of age.

Changes to this Notice

This Notice is current as of the Effective Date set forth above. We may change this Notice from time to time, so please be sure to check back periodically. If we make any material changes in our privacy practices or in how we use your personally identifiable information, we will post a prominent notice in The Arc’s e-newsletter, and on our Site prior to implementation of the change.

Contact Us

If you have questions about the privacy aspects of our Services, would prefer not to receive updates or requests for donations, or would like to make a complaint about this Notice, please contact us at:

toll-free at 1-800-433-5255 or

e-mail us at info@thearc.org; or

write us at

The Arc of the United States

1825 K Street NW, Suite 1200

Washington, DC 20006.