Overview

The Urological society of India and our affiliated foundation Indian Journal of Urology and Indian school of Urology value and respect your individual privacy and are committed to protecting it at all times. This Privacy Policy explains how the USI collects, uses and safeguards information collected through the following websites:

www.usi.org.in, www.iju.org.in

Information Collection

When you browse the Websites and do not interact with the site for any online service or product from the USI, you browse anonymously. Personally identifiable information is not collected as you browse. We do, however, collect Web Information and other non-personally identifiable information for the purposes described below.

Data You Provide Through Our Websites

When you choose to interact with our Websites (i.e., subscribing to USI publications, purchasing an USI product or service, registering for a course or event or requesting information and materials), we will collect certain personally identifiable information from you. The type of information collected will be determined based on the type of product or service you seek, but may include your name, address, phone number billing and delivery information, email address or other demographic information. Examples of information we collect in specific circumstances include:

• Registration: If you register to participate in an USI event, course, program or promotion using online or paper registration forms, we collect and store your name, phone number, email address, and any additional information you voluntarily provide on the registration form.
• Membership Application: We collect identifying and demographic information about each of our members, including your name, address, phone number, email address, and any additional information you voluntarily provide on the membership application or renewal form.
• Requests: We collect information volunteered by website users, including from surveys or requests submitted via “Contact Us” links. We also may collect the email addresses of those who communicate with us via email.
• USI Member Directory: We collect and disclose the contact information, including email addresses, that USI members provide in the USI Member Directory. The directory is a reference tool for USI members only.
• Financial Information – When you place an order online with us, register for a conference, or make any other electronic payment through our website, standard credit card information (card number, card type, expiration date, etc.) is collected through a third-party processor who is compliant with Payment Card Industry (PCI) data security standards. The third-party processor provides us with, and we store, the last four digits of your credit card number, which are retained for purposes of issuing applicable refunds.

Automatically Collected Data

As you interact on our Websites, we may collect information about your computer or device and visits to one or more of our Websites (“Web Information”) through cookies, web beacons, pixel tags and other technologies, Internet Protocol (IP) address tracking/URL tracking, and other tools (collectively, “Tracking Technologies”). The types of Automatically Collected Data collected on our Websites through the use of these and other tools, which we may add from time to time, may include: the search terms you used, new or returning user information, browser information, computer or device type, operating system, internet service provider, website usage, referring/exit pages, platform type, date/time stamp, number of clicks, and ads viewed.

Banner Advertising

Banner advertisements on the Websites do not collect any personally identifiable information on individual visitors. The USI does collect aggregate data on visitors such as time of day and Web browser type, which is shared with advertisers to determine their advertising effectiveness.

Information Use

In general, we process your information to advance the USI legitimate interest in communicating with members, meeting attendees, product purchasers and other website users and providing these individuals with access to high-quality educational, scientific information via our wide array of in-person meetings, online learning resources, publications and other products and services. The USI exists to advance the collective interests of our members and the urologic community, and processing your information for the purposes described in this policy is necessary for us to continue to serve your needs.

When we use your information based on our legitimate interest, we strive to strike an appropriate balance between USI’s need to collect, use and retain your information and how such processing may impact you. We will ask for your consent before using your information for a purpose that extends beyond what you may reasonably expect from the USI and/or that has a more significant privacy impact.

Once collected, we may use your personally- and non-personally identifiable information for the following purposes:

• Ensure network and information security
• Prevent fraud or misuse of USI’s services
• Register you or complete a transaction for programs and services you have requested
• Deliver services, such as information, newsletters or other content that may be relevant to your association with the USI
• Allow you access to limited-entry (i.e., member-only) areas of the Sites
• Answer your emails or online requests

Except as described in this Privacy Policy or at the time we request the information, we do not otherwise use, share or otherwise disclose your personally identifiable information to any third parties.

Use of Cookies

We use cookies to enable you to more easily use our Websites by remembering and using contact information, purchasing information and registration information. We also use cookies to evaluate, monitor and analyze the use of our site and its traffic patterns to help improve our Websites and services. And, we use cookies to assist us with ad reporting functions such as to learn which advertisements bring users to our Websites.

If you prefer not to accept any cookies, you can set your Internet browser to notify you when you receive a cookie or to prevent cookies from being placed on your hard drive. If you consent to our collection of cookies and you subsequently wish to withdraw your consent, you will need to manage the settings on your web browser to delete all cookies and disallow further acceptance of cookies. Please note that disabling cookies on your browser will prevent us from tracking your activities in relations to our Websites, however, it may also disable some of the functions and features of the Sites and the Sites may not work properly.

USI Emails

The USI sends “transactional or relational email messages,” which include, but are not limited to, electronically transmitted news, informational bulletins, meetings and member-benefit announcements, and surveys. You may opt-out of a specific email list by communicating your preferences to [email protected] of any email message sent to you from the USI or its component or affiliated organizations. Additionally, the USI will:

• Ensure it uses email and mailing lists for USI operational activities. Additionally, it ensures this email policy—including unsubscribe requests—is strictly enforced.
• Target its email promotional announcements to recipients with an interest in the subject matter.
• Timely honor all “unsubscribe” requests by properly coding the database.

Email addresses are captured during the USI Annual Meeting registration process. This information is made available to USI Annual Meeting exhibitors. Registrants may opt out of making this information available to exhibiting companies.

USI member email addresses are made available to other USI members through the USI Member Directory.

Information Sharing

We share your Personal Data with third parties who provide certain services to us to assist us in meeting business operation needs. These parties are authorized to process your Personal Data, on our behalf and pursuant to our instructions, only as necessary to provide these services to us. We share your Personal Data with the following service providers:

• Providers of payment processing and accounting, as necessary to process payment from our members or customers
• Providers helping us fulfill subscription services
• Providers of cloud computing infrastructure services

The USI may disclose your personal information if required to do so by law or in the good-faith belief that such action is necessary to: (a) conform to legal requirements or comply with legal process served on the USI; (b) protect and defend the rights or property of USI; or (c) protect the personal safety of USI personnel or members of the public in urgent circumstances. The Websites use interfaces with social media websites or platforms that are owned and/or controlled by third parties, such as Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter and others (“Social Media Sites”). If you choose to “like”, “tweet” or share information from a website through any Social Media Sites these Social Media Sites may collect your Personal Data. The information you share with the Social Media Sites will be governed by the specific privacy policies and terms of service of the Social Media Sites and not by this Privacy Policy. You should review the privacy policy of that Social Media Site before choosing to access and use any Social Media Sites, including interacting with our pages on those sites.

User ID and Password

Aspects of the Sites require the use of a user ID and password. The user ID and password enables the USI to verify your identity and thereby, allows you access to member information such as your my USI account, and prevents unauthorized access.

When you have finished using a secure area of the Websites, make sure you always click on the “Log Out” link which appears on every secure page. When you click on the “Log Out” link, you will be given the option to end your secure session. No further secure transactions can be conducted without re-entering your user ID and password. You should be aware, browser software often “caches” a page as you look at it, meaning some pages are saved in your computer’s temporary memory. Therefore, you may find when clicking on your “Back” button it shows you a saved version of a previously viewed page. Caching in no way affects the security of your confidential user ID or password.

Links

Our Sites may contain links to or from other websites, such as those of members, other medical associations, etc. Please be aware the USI is not responsible for the privacy practices of other websites. This Privacy Policy applies only to the information we collect on the USI Sites. We encourage you to read the privacy policies and any other terms of other websites you link to from our Sites.

SSL Technology

The USI realizes the importance of security, so we’ve taken a number of steps to enhance the protection of information sent to or from the USI over the Internet. We require a “secure session” be established, using Secure Socket Layer (SSL) technology. This is done any time you supply or access information in one of our secure online areas. You will know you are in a secure online area because the URL in your browser will start with “https”. SSL technology creates a private conversation only your computer and the USI systems can understand. The SSL technology encodes information as it is being sent over the Internet between your computer and USI systems, helping to ensure the transmitted information remains confidential.

No Guarantee

Unfortunately, no data transmission over the Internet can be guaranteed to be 100 percent secure. Accordingly, and despite our efforts, the USI cannot guarantee or warrant the security of any information you transmit to us, or to or from our online products or services.

Your Access To Your Information

USI acknowledges that you have the right to access your Personal Data. Our Websites currently allow you to access, correct, amend, or delete inaccurate data on your myUSI profile page. In case you request us to remove data, we will respond within a reasonable timeframe.

Upon request, USI will provide you with information about whether we hold any of your Personal Data. You may access, update or correct your Personal Data or remove it from our system by making a request to us at [email protected]., Requests typically receive a response within three working (3) days. If access cannot be provided within that time frame, we will provide the requesting party with an estimated date by which the information will be provided. If for some reason access is denied, we will provide an explanation of why access has been denied. We may not accommodate a request to change information if we believe the change would violate any law or legal requirement or cause the information to be incorrect.

Your Rights

Subject to applicable law, you have the following rights in relation to your Personal Data:

• Right of access: If you ask us, we will confirm whether we are processing your Personal Data and, if so, provide you with a copy of that Personal Data (along with certain other details). If you require additional copies, we may need to charge a reasonable fee.
• Right to rectification: If your Personal Data is inaccurate or incomplete, you are entitled to have it rectified or completed. If we have shared your Personal Data with others, we will tell them about the rectification where possible. If you ask us, where possible and lawful to do so, we will also tell you with whom we shared your Personal Data so that you can contact them directly.
• Right to erasure: You may ask us to delete or remove your Personal Data and we will do so in some circumstances, such as where we no longer need it (we may not delete your data when other interests outweigh your right to deletion). If we have shared your data with others, we will tell them about the erasure where possible. If you ask us, where possible and lawful to do so, we will also tell you with whom we shared your Personal Data so that you can contact them directly.
• Right to restrict processing: You may ask us to restrict or ‘block’ the processing of your Personal Data in certain circumstances, such as where you contest the accuracy of that Personal Data or object to us processing it. We will tell you before we lift any restriction on processing. If we have shared your Personal Data with others, we will tell them about the restriction where possible. If you ask us, where possible and lawful to do so, we will also tell you with whom we shared your Personal Data so that you can contact them directly.
• Right to object:
  • If we are relying on a legitimate interest to process your Personal Data — unless we demonstrate compelling legitimate grounds for the processing; or
  • If we are processing your Personal Data for direct marketing.
• Rights in relation to automated decision-making and profiling: You have the right to be free from decisions based solely on automated processing of your Personal Data, including profiling, that affect you, unless such processing is necessary for entering into, or the performance of, a contract between you and us or you provide your explicit consent to such processing.
• Right to withdraw consent: If we rely on your consent to process your Personal Data, you have the right to withdraw that consent at any time. This will not affect the lawfulness of processing based on your prior consent.

You may exercise your rights by contacting us at [email protected].

Changes to the Privacy Policy

The USI reserves the right to modify, alter, or otherwise update this Privacy Policy at any time and for any reason; however, in no event will future changes to the Privacy Policy jeopardize or negate the assurances now stated in the Policy. You should visit this page from time to time to review the current terms. To assist you in knowing when the Privacy Policy was last updated, the month and year of the most recent updated Policy will appear at the bottom of this page.

Defined Terms

For the purposes of this Privacy Policy, the following terms are defined:

• Non-Personally Identifiable Information – information that may relate to an individual but does NOT identify you personally. This may include demographic information such as age, gender, city and physical location, or Web Information.
• Personal Data – any information relating to an identified or identifiable natural person (“data subject”).
• Personally Identifiable Information – any and all information identifying you personally, such as your name, address, telephone number(s), email address, or company name.
• Tracking Technologies — cookies, web beacons, pixel tags and other technologies, Internet Protocol (IP) address tracking/URL tracking, and other tools used to collect Web Information
  • Cookies, Web Beacons or Pixel Tags – A “cookie” is a small text file that web servers typically send to a user’s computer when they visit a website. Cookies are stored as text files on the user’s hard drive, and can be accessed by web servers when the user visits a website or views an advertisement. Cookies often are used to make the site easier to use. For example, if you check a box to ask that we store your username on your computer so that you don’t have to enter it each time you visit the site, that information is stored in a Cookie on your computer.
  • A session cookie is a cookie that stores information as a user is using the site, but is deleted once the browser session is finished. A persistent cookie is a cookie that stores information as a user utilizes the site and stores and uses that information in connection with future visits of the user to the site.
  • Cookies may be “essential” for the use of a website, such as for example session-id cookies, authentication cookies, or user centric security cookies, or “non-essential” for the use of a website, such as for example, third party advertising cookies or other tracking cookies.
  • Third-party cookies and/or pixel tags are cookies or pixel tags provided by our technology and/or advertising partners. Any third-party cookie or web beacon that we authorize for use on the site only collects the information described in this Privacy Policy for the same stated purposes as if USI were directly collecting the information. For a third-party cookie or web beacon, the third-party will have access to the collected information in order to provide us with information or services to enhance the performance and functionality of the site.
• Web Information- Information about your activities on the Website and the technology you use to access the Website, including information about the date and time you visit the Website, the services you accessed from the site or from an email, how you arrive at the Website (through referral or exit links or otherwise), which pages you view, any files you download, for how long you visit the Website and view pages, when you last visited the site, your IP address, your location, your connection, your search terms, the type of browser and operating system you use, mobile device make and model, mobile device carrier information, and mobile device support specifications such as screen size, color, video, and image support.