Privacy Policy & Terms of Use

The Lehigh Acres Watchdog, Inc (“we,” “us” or “our”) has created this Privacy Policy to explain why we collect particular information and how we will protect your personal privacy within our Web site, located at the URL www.lehighacreswatchdog.com.  By using our Web site, you consent to the collection and use of your information, consistent with the terms set forth below in this Privacy Policy and our Terms of Use Agreement.

We encourage you to read this Privacy Policy. Lehigh Acres Watchdog, Inc reserves the right at any time and without notice to change this Privacy Policy by posting such changes on our site. Any such change will be effective immediately upon posting.

Questions regarding this Privacy Policy should be directed to Robert Anderson by sending a email to watchdog@lehighacreswatchdog.com . Please reference this Privacy Policy in your subject line. 

What Information We Collect and How We Use That Information: Our subscription, registration and contribution forms require users to give us information that may include name, email address, format preference (HTML vs. Text), address, phone number, interests and other similar information (“Personal Information”).  We request this Personal Information from you when you affirmatively request e-mails, newsletters or other services, and we use that information to process your requests and to provide information that we believe may benefit you.  In addition, we collect Personal Information such as contact and certain financial information (e.g., credit card information) to process contributions.  Our online surveys may ask visitors to provide, on a voluntary basis, contact and demographic information, as well as issue and web content interests.  We use contact data from our surveys to send the user information about the campaign.  We may also use a user’s contact information to contact the visitor when we otherwise believe reasonably necessary.  Users may always opt-out of receiving future mailings; see the opt-out section below. 

Opt-Out: Our site provides users the opportunity to opt-out of receiving communications from us at any point and time.  All emails from our campaign include an "unsubscribe" link.  Users can opt-out from campaign communications by emailing watchdog@lehighacreswatchdog.com.

Correct/Update: All registered users of our site can correct or update their contact information and user profile at any time.  Contact and profile information generally includes name, address, phone number(s), email, issue interests and web content preferences.  Users will not have access to this stored information, and any changes should be emailed to watchdog@lehighacreswatchdog.com.

Aggregate Information: In addition to any information you provide to us directly, we collect demographic information that cannot be associated with you directly.  For example, we collect an IP address from all visitors to our site. An IP address is a number that is automatically assigned to your computer when you use the Internet. We use IP addresses to help diagnose problems with our server, administer our site, analyze trends, track users' movement, gather broad demographic information for aggregate use in order for us to improve the site, and deliver customized, personalized content.  In doing so, we may share aggregate demographic information with our partners and advertisers.

Use of "Cookies": Our site may use cookies to enhance your experience while using our site. Cookies are pieces of information that some Web sites transfer to the computer that is browsing that Web site and are used for record-keeping purposes at many Web sites. Use of cookies makes Web-surfing easier by performing certain functions such as saving your passwords, your personal preferences regarding your use of the particular Web site and to make sure you don't see the same ad or information repeatedly. Many consider the use of cookies to be an industry standard. Your browser is probably set to accept cookies. However, if you would prefer not to receive cookies, you can alter the configuration of your browser to refuse cookies. If you choose to have your browser refuse cookies, it is possible that some areas of our site will not function properly when you view them.

Security: All Personal Information provided to Lehigh Acres Watchdog, Inc is transmitted using SSL (Secure Socket Layer) encryption. SSL is a proven coding system that lets your browser automatically encrypt, or scramble, data before you send it to us. We also protect such information by placing it on a secure portion of our Site that is only accessible by certain qualified employees of Lehigh Acres watchdog, Inc. Unfortunately, however, no data transmission over the Internet is 100 percent secure. While we strive to protect your information, we cannot ensure or warrant the security of such information.  Although these security measures are in place, THE USE OF OUR WEBSITE AND ANY PROVISION OF INFORMATION TO US OR OUR THIRD PARTY SERVICE PROVIDERS IS AT YOUR OWN RISK, AS DESCRIBED IN THE Terms of Use Agreement.

Credit Card and Donation Processing: We use third parties to process our credit card and online donation transactions.  They receive the credit card number and other Personal Information of our donor/users to verify credit card numbers and to process credit card transactions in a secure environment.  For legal and accounting purposes, contribution records will be maintained in our database or our third party service provider’s database.

Sharing of Information: It is our policy not to sell, trade, or rent your personal information to anyone for their commercial use. However, we do use third party companies as subcontractors to assist with hosting our Web site, data management and analysis, and processing contributions. We do not share your information with telemarketing or direct mail vendors-except in exclusive cases where communication services from such vendors are secured by the Lehigh Acres Watchdog, inc and are for the purpose of voter education, fundraising, and get-out-the-vote efforts.  In the event your Personal Information is shared with these third parties, they will use your Personal Information for the sole purpose of providing the specific service for which they are hired, and they will not disclose your Personal Information to any third parties. 

We reserve the right to disclose any Personal Information you share when required to do so by law including but not limited to federal or state election laws, or where we have a good-faith belief that disclosure is necessary to comply with a court order or other legal process.  Further, any information other than the Personal Information you provide to us including but not limited to comments, questions, or suggestions will be treated as non-confidential and non-proprietary, and we may use that information for any purpose, including but not limited to reproduction, disclosure, transmission, publication, broadcasting and posting.

Other Web Sites: Our Site contains links to other Web sites. Please note that when you click on one of these links, you are entering another Web site for Lehigh Acres Watchdog, Inc has no responsibility. We encourage you to read the privacy and/or terms of use statements on all such sites as their policies may be different than ours.

Children’s Privacy: Because we care about the safety and privacy of children online, we comply with the Children's Online Privacy Protection Act of 1998 (COPPA). COPPA and its accompanying FTC regulations establish United States federal law that protects the privacy of children using the Internet. We do not knowingly contact or collect personal information from children under 13. Our site is not intended to solicit information of any kind from children under 13, and we have designed our site to block our knowing acceptance of information from children under 13 whenever age-related information is requested.

If we are notified that we have received information related to a child under 13, we will attempt to verify that information and promptly obtain parental consent or otherwise delete the information from our servers. Any such notice should be sent to watchdog@lehighacreswatchdog.com.

Contacting the Web Site: If you have any questions about this Privacy Policy, the practices of this site, or your dealings with this site, you can send an email to: watchdog@lehighacreswatchdog.com.

Terms of Use

Welcome to the Web site of Lehigh Acres Watchdog, Inc (“we,” “us,” “our”), found at the URL http://www.lehighacreswatchdog.com.  Use of this Web site, and information distributed in conjunction with this Web site, is offered to you on your acceptance of these Terms of Use, our Privacy Policy and other notices posted on this Web site. Your use of this Web site or of any content presented in any and all areas of the Web site indicates your acknowledgment and agreement to these Terms of Use, our Privacy Policy and other notices posted on this Web site.  Please also review our Privacy Policy, which also governs your use and visit to www.lehighacreswatchdog.com. 

Lehigh Acres Watchdog, Inc shall have the right, at its sole discretion, to modify, add or remove any terms or conditions of these Terms of Use without notice or liability to you. Any changes to these Terms of Use shall be effectively immediately following the posting of such changes on this Web site. You agree to review these Terms of Use from time to time and agree that any subsequent use by you of this Web site following changes to these Terms of Use shall constitute your acceptance of all such changes.

INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY OWNERSHIP

The Lehigh Acres Watchdog, Inc respects the intellectual property of others, and we ask our visitors to do the same.  Lehigh Acres Watchdog, Inc has no responsibility for content on other Web sites to which you may link via our site.  The materials used and displayed on our site including but not limited to text, photographs, graphics, illustrations and artwork, video, music and sound, and names, logos, trademarks and service marks, are the property of Lehigh Acres watchdog, Inc or its affiliates or licensors and are protected by copyright, trademark and other laws of the United States and/or other countries.  Any such content may be displayed solely for your personal, non-commercial use. You agree not to modify, reproduce, retransmit, distribute, disseminate, sell, publish, broadcast or circulate any such material without the written permission of The Lehigh Acres Watchdog, Inc or the appropriate affiliate.  Our site may contain certain licensed materials, and Lehigh Acres watchdog, Inc licensors may protect their rights in the event of any violation of this Agreement.

Should you believe that your work has been copied and is accessible on this Web site or any of the links contained herein, or should you be aware of any potential copyright infringement by others of materials contained on this Web site, any notifications should be sent to:

Lehigh Acres Watchdog, Inc
P.O. Box 1778
Lehigh Acres, Florida 33970
watchdog@lehighacreswatchdog.com

All content of our Web site is: Copyright 2006, Lehigh Acres Watchdog, Inc All rights reserved.

RESTRICTIONS ON USE

You may use our Web site only for purposes expressly permitted by our Web site. As a condition of your use of our Web site, you warrant that you will not use our Web site for any purpose that is unlawful or prohibited by this Terms of Use Agreement. For example, you may not (and may not authorize any party to) (i) co-brand our Web site, or (ii) frame our Web site, or (iii) hyper-link to our Web site, without our express prior written permission. For purposes of this Terms of Use Agreement, “co-branding” means to display a name, logo, trademark, or other means of attribution or identification of any party in such a manner as is reasonably likely to give a user the impression that such other party has the right to display, publish, or distribute our Web site or content accessible within our Web site. You agree to cooperate with us in causing any unauthorized co-branding, framing, or hyper-linking immediately to cease.

You agree to follow all applicable laws and regulations when using this Web site. Furthermore, you agree that you shall not:

1. upload, post or otherwise transmit through or to this Web site any content that:
   1. is unlawful, abusive, threatening, harmful, obscene, lewd, offensive, defamatory or otherwise objectionable;
   2. might infringe the intellectual property rights, privacy rights, rights of publicity, or other proprietary rights of others;
   3. contains any viruses, trojan horses, time bombs, or any other harmful programs or elements;
2. use our Web site in any manner that could disable, disrupt, place unreasonable burdens or excessive loads on, interfere with or attempt to gain unauthorized access to any portion of our Web site, its computer systems, servers or networks, or any materials, content or information contained thereon;
3. provide false information about yourself to us, impersonate any other person, or otherwise attempt to mislead others about your identity or the origin of any content, message or other communication;
4. transmit junk mail, chain letters, or other unsolicited bulk e-mail or duplicative messages;
5. collect information about other visitors to our Web site without their consent or otherwise systematically extract data or data fields, including without limitation any financial data or contact information.

LIMITATION OF LIABILITY/DISCLAIMER OF WARRANTIES

We do not guarantee or warrant that files available for downloading from our Web site or from our third party service providers will be free of viruses, worms, Trojan horses, or other code that may manifest contaminating or destructive properties. You are responsible for implementing sufficient procedures and checkpoints to satisfy your particular requirements for accuracy of data input and output, and for maintaining a means external to our Web site for any reconstruction of any lost data. We do not assume any responsibility or risk for your use of our Web site or for the services provided herein or by any third party service providers that we may use.

You expressly understand and agree that Lehigh Acres Watchdog, www.lehighacreswatchdog.com, or any of its third party service providers, affiliates, employees, agents, or licensors shall not be liable to you for any direct, indirect, incidental, special, consequential or exemplary damages resulting from the access and use or inability to use any or all of the Web site and its contents, whether based in contract, tort, or any other legal theory, and whether or not Lehigh Acres Watchdog, Inc is advised of the possibility of such damages.  By using the site and its contents, you understand and acknowledge that Lehigh Acres Watchdog, Inc will not be liable for any direct or indirect damages that occur through the access, use, or misuse of the Web site, its contents, and any third party content, including any interruption of business, loss or damages of any sort incurred as a result of your access to this Web site or any other the links contained therein, or any computer viruses or malfunctions that may occur in connection with your use of this Web site or any links contained therein.  You hereby waive any and all claims against Lehigh Acres Watchdog, Inc, www.lehighacreswatchdog.com or any of its third party service providers, affiliates, employees, agents, or licensors arising out of your use of the site and the sites and information linked-to or available thereon.

These Terms of Use and any disputes arising out of or related to the Web site shall be governed by, and construed and enforced in accordance with, the laws of the State of Florida.  You and Lehigh Acres Watchdog, Inc agree to submit to the personal and exclusive jurisdiction of the courts located within Lee County, Florida.

This Web site and the links contained in it contain information, facts and opinions from various individuals and organizations. The Web site and links are provided on an “as is” basis without warranties of any kind, either express or implied, including but not limited to warranties of title, implied warranties of merchantability, noninfringement, or fitness for a particular use, other than those warranties which are imposed by and incapable of exclusion, restriction or modification under, the laws applicable to these Terms of Use.  Neither Lehigh Acres Watchdog, Inc nor its affiliates are responsible for the accuracy or reliability of any opinion, advice or statement on this Web site.

INDEMNIFICATION

You agree to defend, indemnify and hold harmless Lehigh Acres Watchdog, Inc, www.lehighacreswatchdog.com, or any of its third party service providers, affiliates, employees, directors, agents, or licensors from and against all claims and expenses, including attorneys' fees, arising out of your use of this Web site (or any links contained herein) or for any breach of the terms of these Terms of Use.  Lehigh Acres Watchdog, In reserves the right, at its own expense and in its sole discretion, to assume the exclusive defense and control of any matter otherwise subject to indemnification by you. In that event, and only in such event, shall you have no further obligation to provide indemnification for Lehigh Acres Watchdog, Inc in that matter.

WAIVER AND SEVERABILITY OF TERMS

The failure of Lehigh Acres Watchdog, Inc to exercise or enforce any right or provision of the Terms of Use shall not constitute a waiver of such right or provision. If any provision of the Terms of Use is found by a court of competent jurisdiction to be invalid, the parties nevertheless agree that the court should endeavor to give effect to the parties' intentions as reflected in the provision, and the other provisions of the Terms of Use remain in full force and effect.

TERMINATION

We reserve the right, in our sole discretion, to terminate your access to www.lehighacreswatchdog.com and any related services at any time, without notice. You shall comply immediately with any termination or other notice, including, as applicable, by ceasing all use of our Web site.