SERVICE PRIVACY POLICY
Protecting the Privacy of Our Members

Table of Contents

1. Overview
2. Individual Member Information
3. Reviewing and Correcting Individual Member Information
4. Monitoring Member Online Activity
5. Online Marketing and Promotions
6. Marketing Preferences
7. Your Responsibilities to Protect Personal Information
8. Legal Responsibilities of the Service
9. Privacy of Your Personal Communications
10. Unsolicited Commercial E-Mail
11. Privacy in Chat Rooms, Forums and Bulletin Boards
12. Backing Up the Service System for Business Purposes
13. Minors


1. Overview

This statement describes the privacy practices of this online service ("the Service"). America Online, Inc. ("AOL") and its respective parent corporations, subsidiaries (including Netscape), provide you the Service. When you see references in this policy to the term "we" it means the Service, AOL and their respective subsidiaries and affiliates that will manage and operate the Service.

We will review and update this Privacy Policy from time to time and make any revisions available to the members on this page. By signing up for the Service, you are responsible for reviewing this Privacy Policy periodically to inform yourself of any such changes.

The Service offers members the opportunity to communicate privately and publicly with others online. We also provide members with many informational and transactional resources and opportunities that may involve the sharing of personal information.

The sharing of this information allows us to provide the kind of online experience that some consumers want. It also enables businesses to deliver information about their products or services efficiently. At the same time, however, the collection of personal information makes it important for members to be aware of our privacy policies and our procedures for collecting and using personal information. You also need to know what you as a member can do, and what the Service will do, to protect that information and your rights of access to that information.

2. Individual Member Information

When you join the Service, we ask you to provide your name, address, telephone number, and billing information (including the credit card, checking account, or debit card used to pay for your account) and the various screen names you want to use on your account. All of this information that you provide during the sign-up process is "Individual Member Information" for purposes of this Privacy Policy.

Individual Member Information will be used for business requirements such as billing, collection and accounting; or for research on usage patterns and product development; online site customization and targeted marketing. We will on occasion share such information, in aggregate form (that is, in a form that does not identify you individually), with advertisers so that they can target advertisements to groups of members. If you cancel your account, we will keep your Individual Member Information accessible to customer service for approximately six months after cancellation. Thereafter, it is placed in the Service's service bureau archives. Walmart.com, AOL and their respective subsidiaries that operate the Service will have access to Individual Member Information and such access will be subject to the terms of this Privacy Policy. Other than for these reasons and those described below, we will not share your Individual Member Information with any third parties.

We will not give out to third parties your telephone number, mailing or billing address or screen names (e-mail addresses), except where needed to deliver a product or service you ordered.

We will not give out to third parties your credit or debit card number or checking account information unless you authorize it, for example, during an online purchase.

We will not give out to third parties information that would link your screen names with your actual name.

We also collect and use other information for internal purposes. For example, we keep records in your account history of your complaints about other members' online behavior, your contact with Member Services and any reported violations of our Terms of Service (TOS) that you or someone using your account or subaccounts may have committed. We automatically query your computer for information about your computer system, such as the speed of your modem, error messages you may have received, or whether you use Macintosh(TM) or Windows(TM) software. We collect this information to help us fit the service to your individual needs and to help us diagnose problems you may be having with your system. Finally, we sometimes use information about your geographical location to provide localized service. For example, we may use your zip code or the time zone you are in to make sure the weather information or TV listings you see are accurate for you.

It is possible that we could merge with or be acquired by another business entity. Should such a combination occur, you should expect that we would share some or all of your information with that party.

We have two exceptions to these policies: other than as described above, we will release specific information about your account only to comply with valid legal process such as a search warrant, subpoena or court order, or in special cases such as a physical threat to you or others.

3. Reviewing and Correcting Individual Member Information

You have a right to review and correct personally identifiable member information that we have collected from you. To review the address and phone numbers that you have previously entered, simply KEYWORD MEMBER and select "Accounts & Billing." Click on "Update Your Billing Address" and your current address and phone numbers will be displayed. You may then update whatever records you choose. Your billing method and credit card information will not be displayed for security reasons, but you may type in new information to update your records.


4. Monitoring Member Online Activity

Generally

Our system automatically gathers certain information about the areas that you visit on the Service and the Internet ("Navigational Data"). We will use the Navigational Data for programming, promotions about the Service, research on usage patterns, product development and account administration and billing. This will let us develop a better product for you. When we use this data for programming purposes, we do not disclose to third parties your name, address, and telephone number or e-mail address.

The Navigational Data are also aggregated, meaning the information from many members is compiled in a manner that does not disclose identifying personal information about any one member. Aggregated information includes descriptive or demographic data, usage patterns and preferences.

We may share statistical information of how our members use the Service in an aggregate form with our partners or other outside companies, but in doing so, we don't disclose individual names, addresses, telephone numbers or e-mail addresses.


5. Online Marketing and Promotions

We and third parties affiliated with us, such as content providers who manage the Forums on the Service or who host an affiliated Internet site, may send postal and electronic mailings or make telemarketing calls to members who have chosen to receive these marketing efforts. These efforts might include announcements of new services and features, or tips for using a particular service more effectively. These communications could come from Forum operators, vendors in the shopping channel or Internet site partners. For instance, a camera equipment manufacturer might offer the members of photography-related Forums a new product or service in which they might be interested.


6. Marketing Preferences.

As a member of the Service, you may make the following choices about your privacy:

Choose whether you want to receive promotional or marketing information from us; and

Choose whether you want to receive promotional or marketing information from third parties affiliated with us.

When you sign up for the Service, you automatically and implicitly "opt in" to receive the promotional and marketing choices described above. Anytime after sign-up, you can change your preferences (i.e., "opt out" of one or both of the marketing choices described above) in the Marketing Preferences area (KEYWORD: MARKETING PREFERENCES). Please note that, as the preference lists are updated quarterly, it may take a number of weeks to process and implement any change in preference. Regardless of the selected preferences, we reserve the right to communicate with members regarding matters pertaining to the Service, its features and its use.


7. Your Responsibilities to Protect Personal Information

Within the Service, your personal information is not accessible to other members unless you choose to share it. You should never give your password to anyone under any circumstances. None of our employees will ever ask for your password online. Take care when providing personal identifying information (e.g., name, address, and telephone number) about yourself to others when online.

The Service is connected to the Internet and is in many ways accessible from the Internet. We have only limited control over your online environment. The simple act of maintaining an e-mail address in your name may expose your e-mail address to people and companies who have no direct relationship to the Service. Further, directing your browser software to access a site on the Internet may expose your e-mail address and other information. We are not responsible for the contacts that members make online, or for the results of those contacts.

While the Internet offers an exciting array of informative and entertaining sites, you should be aware that the Internet lies beyond the community provided by the Service. No uniform privacy practices are in force when you access the Internet. Thus, Internet site operators are under no obligation to honor this privacy policy when you visit their Internet sites.

Some Internet sites may automatically gather certain information about those who visit their sites, including your computer's operating system, your browser, your online/Internet service provider and your online activity at the Internet site. Other Internet sites require you to register certain information before you can enter that particular site.

Please be aware that an Internet site operator might be able to collect your e-mail address, particularly if you've communicated in some way with that Internet site. Internet site operators vary regarding what they do with the information they collect, and we do not control the collection or use of any information an Internet site may collect.

Furthermore, some Internet site operators can transfer a file, called a "cookie," to your computer's hard drive--with or without your knowledge. Some browsers have a preference setting that will notify you if a cookie is about to be deposited on your hard drive so you can make an informed decision before accepting it.

Internet site operators can use cookies to recognize that you have previously visited an Internet site, to track the areas within the site that you have visited, or to provide a more customized interface to suit your interests, based on your previous visits to the site. If you have registered to enter a site, it is likely that your registration information has been stored on your computer as a cookie so that you will not have to re-enter the information each time you visit that particular site.


8. Our Legal Responsibilities

The Service is obligated by law to provide any Individual Member Information in the Service's possession if served with proper legal documentation in connection with law enforcement or legal action.


9. Privacy of Your Personal Communications

The Service does not retain or save a copy of e-mail messages once you have deleted them.

Provided that you have set your mail preferences accordingly, the Service does not retain a copy of your incoming e-mail messages on its host computers once you have downloaded them to your hard drive. If you do not set this mail preference, a copy of the message will be downloaded to your hard drive (at your direction), and the original message will remain in your mailbox. You may then read or download it again until you either delete the message, or the Service automatically deletes it approximately 30 days later. The Service does not retain a copy of e-mail messages that you send to others, although you can save a copy on your hard drive for your future reference.

The Service is legally obligated to provide individual member e-mail information (including actual e-mail messages, if stored during a normal backup procedure) if served with proper legal documentation as defined by the Electronic Communications Privacy Act of 1986 in connection with law enforcement or legal action.

If your employer pays for your account on the Service, you should be aware that your employer may be entitled to review your e-mail through its corporate e-mail policy. Check with your employer regarding its e-mail privacy policy.


10. Unsolicited Commercial E-Mail; Viruses

The Service's Member Agreement does not allow the distribution of mass unsolicited commercial e-mail (sometimes called junk e-mail or spam) by third parties to its members. If there are attempts to send unsolicited e-mail to you from other member accounts or from over the Internet, it is the Service's policy to take action to try to block such solicitations from reaching your e-mail mailbox. The Service also may take any and all legal and technical remedies to prevent viruses from entering the Service system or network.

It is a violation of the Member Agreement for members to send unsolicited advertising and promotional material to other members. When we receive member complaints about unsolicited e-mail from other members, a warning letter is sent to the offending member ordering a stop to such solicitations or the account will be terminated.

Reporting E-Mail Solicitations

Members can report unwanted e-mail solicitations by sending an e-mail to "ActionTeam" or by sending a message through the Service's feedback system (KEYWORD: NOTIFY US).


11. Privacy in Chat Rooms, Forums and Bulletin Boards

The Service may monitor its Forums, bulletin boards and other services to confirm that they are operating properly and that service operating rules and procedures are maintained.

Some of the Forums on the Service may offer private chat capabilities. Conversations in private chat rooms are, however, private. No conversations or messages are stored or maintained by the Service except if captured in the periodic back-up process. The Service is legally obligated to provide any individual member information available if served with proper legal documentation in connection with law enforcement or legal action or for health and safety reasons.


12. Backing Up the Service System for Business Purposes

To maintain the integrity of the Service in case of a system failure, the Service periodically backs up its entire system by taking a moment-in-time "snapshot." An incidental byproduct of this backup process is that these snapshots include all content on the system, including e-mail. These snapshots are kept for a period of time ranging up to eight weeks before being erased.


13. Minors

Young people need special safeguards and privacy protection.

We are committed to complying with the Children's Online Privacy Protection Act ("COPPA") and protecting children's privacy online. Accordingly, the Service will obtain verifiable parental consent as required by COPPA before knowingly collecting personal information from children using the Service.

COPPA defines personal information to include a child's full name, home address, email address, telephone number, and navigational (where you go) or transactional (what you buy) information collected through cookies or other types of tracking mechanisms where such information is linked to other individually identifiable information.

Because master account members must be at least 18 years old and provide a credit card at registration, children can use the Service only when master account members create subaccounts and screen names for them and enables such persons to have access to the subaccounts. We collect screen names and navigational and transactional information. However, we do not collect from master account members or subaccount members the name, address, and telephone number information of the subaccount member. A master account gives verifiable consent to the collection of a child's screen name and navigational and transactional information by providing a credit card during the registration process.

Screen names are used to communicate with others primarily via e-mail, instant message, and forums, and are displayed to others during such communications. We do not make lists of subaccount members' screen names available to third parties.

Unless parents have provided verifiable consent to such postings, we will delete the postings in chat rooms or forums of members about whom it acquires actual knowledge are children under the age of 13.

For more information, you can go to KEYWORD: KIDSPRIVACY to review the Netscape Connect Children's Privacy Policy. If you have any questions about our Children's Privacy Policy or the information that we collect and maintain about children, please contact:

By Telephone: 1-888-206-6088

By US Mail:
Netscape Connect Children's Online Privacy
P.O. Box 10810
Herndon, VA 20170

Another way parents can control their child's experience online is through Adult and Parental Controls on the Service (KEYWORD: PARENTAL CONTROLS). These simple, flexible tools allow parents to customize content and functionality to their child's maturity level. Since one master account may have up to seven screen names, we encourage all parents to use their master account to create separate screen names for each child.

Unsolicited e-mail is a problem for everyone, but it is particularly a problem for children. This includes mail that could contain content you may not want your children to see, or mail that may ask for information you would not want your children to give out.