PRIVACY POLICY | K-startup Law

K-startup Law, APC (the “Firm”) provides comprehensive legal services to startup clients of national and international prominence. This Privacy Policy describes how we collect, use and share personal information through our website (“Site”), and in connection with blogs, alerts, newsletters and other communications and events we offer (collectively, the “Services”). The terms “Firm”, “we,” “us,” and “our” include the Firm and our affiliates and subsidiaries. This Privacy Policy explains the kinds of information we may collect and how we intend to use and share that information. This Privacy Policy does not address our processing of personal information in connection with our attorney-client relationships, which are addressed in our engagement agreements with our clients.

PERSONAL INFORMATION WE COLLECT

Our primary goals in collecting personal information are to provide and improve the Services, to administer your use of the Services, and to provide you with information that you request from us via your use of the Services, including, but not limited to, the provision of information about K-startup Law, APC hosted events, the delivery of our email "legal updates" to subscription groups and responding to queries about, or applications for, job listings.

INFORMATION YOU PROVIDE TO US

Your Communications with us. We collect personal information from you such as your email address, phone number, or mailing address when you request information about our legal services and expertise, subscribe to our client alerts, register to attend a webinar or event, request customer or technical support, apply for a job or otherwise communicate with us.

Interactive Features. We may collect personal information that you submit or make available through our interactive features (e.g., messaging and chat features, commenting functionalities, your interactions, (such as likes on articles posted on the portal), videos (such as YouTube and Vimeo videos), and social media pages). Any information you provide using the public sharing features of the Services (referred to herein as “User Content”) will be considered “public,” unless otherwise required by applicable law, and is not subject to the privacy protections referenced herein.

Surveys. We may contact you to participate in surveys. If you decide to participate, you may be asked to provide certain information which may include personal information.

Social Media Content. We may offer forums, blogs, or links to social media pages such as LinkedIn, Facebook and Instagram. Any content you provide on these channels will be considered public, and we may use this information to tailor our engagements with you, for example, providing you with details of events or legal updates we think may be relevant to you.

Conferences, Trade Shows, and Other Events. We may collect personal information from individuals when we attend or host conferences, recruiting events, and other events.

Business Development and Strategic Partnerships. We may collect personal information from individuals and third parties to assess and pursue potential business opportunities.

INFORMATION COLLECTED AUTOMATICALLY OR FROM OTHERS

Automatic Data Collection. We may collect certain information automatically when you use the Services including information collected when you search for a Firm professional, view a video, publication or blog and use our Services. This information may include your Internet protocol (IP) address and inferred information such as company, area code, postal code and country; user settings; cookie identifiers and similar technology; mobile carrier; mobile advertising and other unique identifiers; details about your browser, operating system or device information; location information and inferred metro area and city); and Internet service provider. We may also automatically collect information regarding your use of our Services, such as pages that you visit before, during and after using the Services including information about the links you click, the types of content you interact with, the frequency and duration of your activities, and other information about how you use the Services. Information we collect may be associated with accounts and other devices.

In addition, we may automatically collect data regarding your use of our Services, such as the types of content you interact with and the frequency and duration of your activities. We may combine your information with information that other people provide when they use our Services.

Cookies, Pixel Tags/Web Beacons, Analytics Information, and Interest-Based Advertising. We, as well as third parties that provide advertising and analytics services to us, may use cookies, pixel tags, local storage, and other technologies (“Technologies”) to automatically collect information through the Services. Technologies are essentially small data files placed on your computer, tablet, mobile phone, or other devices that allow us and our partners to record certain pieces of information whenever you visit or interact with our Services.

Cookies. Cookies are small text files placed in visitors’ computer browsers to store their preferences. Most browsers allow you to block and delete cookies. However, if you do that, the Services may not work properly.
Pixel Tags/Web Beacons. A pixel tag (also known as a web beacon) is a piece of code embedded in the Services that collects information about users’ engagement on that web page. The use of a pixel allows us to record, for example, that a user has visited a particular web page or clicked on a particular advertisement. We may also include web beacons in e-mails to understand whether messages have been opened, acted on, or forwarded.
Analytics. We may use Technologies and other third-party tools to process analytics information on our Services. These technologies allow us to process usage data to better understand how our website and web-related Services are used, and to continually improve and personalize our Services.

Information from Other Sources. We may obtain information about you from other sources, including through third party services and organizations to supplement information provided by you. For example, if you access our Services through a third-party application or site, such as an app store or a social networking site, we may collect information about you from that third-party site that you have made public via your privacy settings. This supplemental information allows us to verify information that you have provided to us and to enhance our ability to provide you with information about our business, and Services.

HOW WE USE YOUR INFORMATION

We use your information for a variety of business purposes, including to:

Provide you with our Services, such as:

Managing your information and accounts;
Allowing you to register for events and communicating with you about events;
Providing access to certain areas, functionalities, and features of our Services;
Communicating with you about your account, activities on our Services and policy changes;
Undertaking activities to verify or maintain the quality or safety of a service or device;
Providing Services on behalf of our clients, such as maintaining or servicing accounts, providing client service, and verifying information; and
Processing applications and transactions.

Analyze and improve our Services pursuant to our legitimate interest, such as:

Authenticating and verifying individual identities, including requests to exercise your rights under this policy;
Measuring interest and engagement in our Services;
Undertaking research for technological development and demonstration;
Researching and developing the Services, marketing or security procedures to improve their performance, resilience, reliability or efficiency;
Improving, upgrading or enhancing our Services;
Developing new content and Services;
Ensuring internal quality control;
Verifying your identity and preventing fraud;
Detecting security incidents, protecting against malicious, deceptive, fraudulent or illegal activity;
Debugging to identify and repair errors that impair existing intended functionality;
Enforcing our terms and policies; and
Complying with our legal obligations, protecting your vital interest, or as may be required for the public good.

Provide you with additional content and Services, such as:

Furnishing you with promotional information or materials about our legal services and expertise, including events we are holding, where we think that these may be of interest to you. Where required to do so by applicable law, we will obtain your consent in order to send you these promotional materials;
Auditing relating to interactions, transactions and other compliance activities; and
Other purposes to which you consent that are clearly disclosed to you when you provide personal information.

Where European Union data protection laws apply, such as the General Data Protection Regulation, we will process your personal information for the purposes described above and for marketing (described below) where we have a lawful basis to do so, as described above. For example, for processing necessary to provide you with the Services, the lawful basis will generally be that it is necessary for the purposes of performing our contract with you. For marketing (described below), we may send you marketing based on it being in our ‘legitimate interests’ to do so (where you are a corporate customer) or based on consent where you are acting in an individual capacity. Other processing we do, such as that for service development and improvement, may not be ‘necessary’ to provide the Services but may still be necessary for our ‘legitimate interests’ of running a business and offering the Services. If you have any questions about our marketing practices, you may contact us at any time as set forth in “Contact Us” below.

Use De-identified and Aggregated Information. We may use personal information and other data about you to create de-identified and aggregated information, such as de-identified demographic information, de-identified location information, information about the computer or device from which you access our Services, or other analyses we create. If we create or receive personal data that has been de-identified or aggregated, we will not attempt to reidentify it, except to comply with applicable law.

Process Information on Behalf of Our Clients. Our clients may choose to use our Services to process certain data of their own, which may contain personal information. The data that we process through our Services is processed by us on behalf of our client, and our privacy practices will be governed by the engagement letters or other arrangements that we have in place with our clients, not this Privacy Policy.

If you have any questions or concerns about how such data is handled or would like to exercise your rights, you should contact the person or entity, who has contracted with us to use the Service to process this data. Our clients control the personal information in these cases and determine the security settings within the account, its access controls and credentials. We will, however, provide assistance to our clients to address any concerns you may have, in accordance with the terms of our contract with them.

Automatic Collection Technologies. We, as well as third parties that provide content, advertising, or other functionality on the Services, may use cookies, pixel tags, local storage, and other technologies to automatically collect information through the Services. Our uses of these Technologies fall into the following general categories:

Operationally Necessary. This includes Technologies that allow you access to our Services, applications, and tools that are required to identify irregular site behavior, prevent fraudulent activity and improve security or that allow you to make use of our functionality;
Performance-Related. We may use Technologies to assess the performance of our Services, including as part of our analytic practices to help us understand how individuals use our Services;
Functionality-Related. We may use Technologies to assess the performance and offer you enhanced functionality of our Services. This may include identifying you when you sign into our Services or keeping track of your specified preferences, interests, or past content viewed;
Advertising- or Targeting-Related. We may use first party or third-party Technologies to deliver content, including ads for Firm on third party sites.

Cross-Device Tracking. Your browsing activity may be tracked across different websites and different devices or apps. For example, we may attempt to match your browsing activity on your mobile device with your browsing activity on your laptop. To do this our technology partners may share data, such as your browsing patterns, geo-location and device identifiers, and will match the information of the browser and devices that appear to be used by the same person.

Notice regarding Third Party Websites and Social Media Platforms. The Services may contain links to other websites, and other websites may reference or link to our website or other Services. These other websites are not controlled by us. We encourage our users to read the privacy policies of each website and application with which they interact. We do not endorse, screen or approve and are not responsible for the privacy practices or content of such other websites or applications. Visiting these other websites or applications is at your own risk.

Our Services may include publicly accessible blogs, forums, social media pages, and private messaging features. As such information will be public, the personal information provided by you may be viewed and used by third parties for any number of purposes. In addition, social media buttons such as Facebook, LinkedIn, and Instagram (that might include widgets such as the “share this” button or other interactive mini-programs) may be on our site. These features may collect your IP address, which page you are visiting on our site, and may set a cookie to enable the feature to function properly. These social media features are either hosted by a third party or hosted directly on our site. Your interactions with these features apart from your visit to our site are governed by the privacy policy of the company providing it.

DISCLOSING YOUR INFORMATION TO THIRD PARTIES

Except as provided below, we do not disclose or sell your personal information with the following categories of third parties.

Service Providers. We may share any personal information we collect about you with our third-party service providers. The categories of service providers (processors) to whom we entrust personal information include: IT support, hosting, website development and operation, and related services; payment processors; customer service providers; and vendors to support the provision of the Services.

Business Partners. We may provide personal information to business partners with whom we jointly offer products or services. In such cases, our business partner’s name will appear along with ours.

Affiliates. We may share personal information with our affiliated companies.

Advertising Partners. Through our Services, we may allow third party advertising partners to set Technologies and other tracking tools to collect information regarding your activities and your device (e.g., your IP address, mobile identifiers, page(s) visited, location, time of day). We may also combine and share such information and other information (such as demographic information) with third party advertising partners. These advertising partners may use this information (and similar information collected from other websites) for purposes of delivering targeted advertisements for Firm to you when you visit third party websites within their networks. This practice is commonly referred to as “interest-based advertising” or “online behavioral advertising. We may allow access to other data collected by the Services to share information that may be useful, relevant, valuable or otherwise of interest to you. If you prefer not to share your personal information with third party advertising partners, you may follow the instructions below.

APIs/SDKs. We may use third-party Application Program Interfaces (“APIs”) and Software Development Kits (“SDKs”) as part of the functionality of Alumni Network. For more information about our use of APIs and SDKs, please contact us as set forth in “Contact Us” below.

Disclosures to Protect Us or Others. We may access, preserve, and disclose any information we store associated with you to external parties if we, in good faith, believe doing so is required or appropriate to: comply with law enforcement or national security requests and legal process, such as a court order or subpoena; protect your, our or others’ rights, property, or safety; enforce our policies or contracts; collect amounts owed to us; or assist with an investigation or prosecution of suspected or actual illegal activity.

Disclosure in the Event of Merger, Sale, or Other Asset Transfers. If we are involved in a merger, acquisition, financing due diligence, reorganization, bankruptcy, receivership, purchase or sale of assets, or transition of service to another provider, then your information may be sold or transferred as part of such a transaction, as permitted by law and/or contract.

International Data Transfers. Information processed by us may be transferred, processed, and stored anywhere in the world, including but not limited to, the United States or other countries, which may have data protection laws that are different from the laws where you live. Where required by applicable law, we will ensure that appropriate safeguards are in place to protect your personal information. If we engage a third party to process personal information on our behalf, we will also contractually require them to handle your personal information appropriately. Further details can be provided upon request.

YOUR PRIVACY CHOICES AND RIGHTS

Your Privacy Choices. You have certain choices about your personal information. Where you have consented to the processing of your personal information, you may withdraw that consent at any time and prevent further processing by contacting us as described below. Even if you opt out, we may still collect and use non-personal information regarding your activities on our Services and for other legal purposes as described above.

Email and Telephone Communications. If you receive an unwanted promotional email from us, you can use the unsubscribe link found at the bottom of the email to opt out of receiving future emails. Note that you will continue to receive transaction-related emails regarding our Services you have requested. We may also send you certain non-promotional communications regarding us and our Services, and you will not be able to opt out of those communications (e.g., communications regarding the Services or updates to our terms or this Privacy Policy).

“Do Not Track”. Do Not Track (“DNT”) is a privacy preference that users can set in certain web browsers. Please note that we do not respond to or honor DNT signals or similar mechanisms transmitted by web browsers.

Cookies and Interest-Based Advertising. You may stop or restrict the placement of Technologies on your device or remove them by adjusting your preferences as your browser or device permits. However, if you adjust your preferences, our Services may not work properly. Please note that cookie-based opt-outs are not effective on mobile applications. Please note you must separately opt out in each browser and on each device.

Your Privacy Rights. In accordance with applicable law, you may have the right to:

Access personal information about you consistent including: (i) confirming whether we are processing your personal information; (ii) obtaining access to or a copy of your personal information in a structured, commonly used, and machine readable format; and (iii) receiving an electronic copy of personal information that you have provided to us, or asking us to send that information to another company in a structured, commonly used, and machine readable format (the “right of data portability”).
Request correction of your personal information where it is inaccurate or incomplete. In some cases, we may provide self-service tools that enable you to update your personal information or we may refer you to the controller of your personal information who is able to make the correction.
Request deletion of your personal information, subject to certain exceptions prescribed by law.
Request restriction of or object to processing of your personal information, including the right to opt in or opt out of the sale of your personal information to third parties, if applicable, where such requests are permitted by law.
Withdraw your Consent to our processing of your personal information. Please note that your withdrawal will only take effect for future processing, and will not affect the lawfulness of processing before the withdrawal.

If you would like to exercise any of these rights, contact us as set forth below. We will process such requests in accordance with applicable law. To protect your privacy, we will take steps to verify your identity before fulfilling your request.

DATA RETENTION

We store the personal information we receive as described in this Privacy Policy for as long as you use our Services or as necessary to fulfill the purpose(s) for which it was collected, provide our Services, resolve disputes, establish legal defenses, conduct audits, pursue legitimate business purposes, enforce our agreements, and comply with applicable laws.

SECURITY OF YOUR INFORMATION

We take steps to ensure that your information is treated securely and in accordance with this Privacy Policy. Unfortunately, no system is 100% secure, and we cannot ensure or warrant the security of any information you provide to us. To the fullest extent permitted by applicable law, we do not accept liability for unintentional disclosure.

By using the Services or providing personal information to us, you agree that we may communicate with you electronically regarding security, privacy, and administrative issues relating to your use of the Services. If we learn of a security system’s breach, we may attempt to notify you electronically by posting a notice on the Services, by mail or by sending an e-mail to you.

SUPPLEMENTAL NOTICE FOR CALIFORNIA RESIDENTS

This Supplemental Notice for California Residents only applies to our processing of personal information that is subject to the California Consumer Privacy Act of 2018 (“CCPA”). The CCPA provides California residents with the right to know what categories of personal information we have collected about them, and whether we disclosed that personal information for a business purpose (e.g., to a service provider) in the preceding 12 months. California residents can find this information below:

CATEGORY OF PERSONAL INFORMATION COLLECTED BY THE FIRM :

CATEGORY OF THIRD PARTIES INFORMATION IS DISCLOSED TO FOR BUSINESS PURPOSE

Identifiers (A real name, postal address, unique personal identifier, online identifier, Internet Protocol address, email address, account name, or other similar identifiers) : Social networks, Service providers

Personal information categories listed in the California Customer Records statute (Cal. Civ. Code § 1798.80(e))(A name, employment, employment history, Personal Information does not include publicly available information that is lawfully made available to the general public from federal, state, or local government records. Note: Some personal information included in this category may overlap with other categories) : Service providers

Commercial information (Records of services purchased, obtained, or considered, or other purchasing or consuming histories or tendencies) : Service providers

Internet or other electronic network activity (Browsing history, search history, information on a consumer's interaction with an internet website, application, or advertisement) : Service providers

Professional or employment-related information (Current or past job history or performance evaluations) : Service providers

Non-public education information (per the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (20 U.S.C. Sec. 1232g, 34 C.F.R. Part 99))(Education records directly related to a student maintained by an educational institution or party acting on its behalf, such as grades, transcripts, class lists, student schedules, student identification codes, student financial information, or student disciplinary records) : Service providers

Inferences drawn from other personal information to create a profile about a consumer (Profile reflecting a consumer's preferences) : Service providers

The categories of sources from which we collect personal information and our business and commercial purposes for using personal information are set forth in “Personal Information We Collect” and “How We Use Your Information” above, respectively.

For purposes of the CCPA, we do not “sell” personal information, nor do we have actual knowledge of any “sale” of personal information of minors under 16 years of age.

ADDITIONAL PRIVACY RIGHTS FOR CALIFORNIA RESIDENTS

Non-Discrimination. California residents have the right not to receive discriminatory treatment by us for the exercise of their rights conferred by the CCPA.

Authorized Agent. Only you, or someone legally authorized to act on your behalf, may make a verifiable consumer request related to your personal information. You may also make a verifiable consumer request on behalf of your minor child. To designate an authorized agent, please contact us as set forth in “Contact Us” below and provide written authorization signed by you and your designated agent.

Verification. To protect your privacy, we will take the following steps to verify your identity before fulfilling your request. When you make a request, we will ask you to provide sufficient information that allows us to reasonably verify you are the person about whom we collected personal information or an authorized representative.

If you are a California resident and would like to exercise any of your rights under the CCPA, please contact us as set forth in “Contact Us” below. We will process such requests in accordance with applicable laws.

Accessibility. This Privacy Policy uses industry-standard technologies and was developed in line with the World Wide Web Consortium’s Web Content Accessibility Guidelines, version 2.1. If you wish to print this policy, please do so from your web browser or by saving the page as a PDF.

CHILDREN’S INFORMATION

The Services are not directed to children under 18 (or other age as required by local law), and we do not knowingly collect personal information from children. If you learn that your child has provided us with personal information without your consent, you may contact us as set forth below. If we learn that we have collected any personal information in violation of applicable law, we will promptly take steps to delete such information and terminate the child’s account.

CHANGES TO OUR PRIVACY POLICY

We may revise this Privacy Policy from time to time in our sole discretion. If there are any material changes to this Privacy Policy, we will notify you as required by applicable law. You understand and agree that you will be deemed to have accepted the updated Privacy Policy if you continue to use the Services after the new Privacy Policy takes effect.

If you have any questions about our privacy practices or this Privacy Policy, or if you wish to submit a request to exercise your rights as detailed in this Privacy Policy, please contact us at:

K-startup Law, APC
300 Spectrum Center Drive Suite 400, Irvine, CA 92618
info@k-startuplaw.com
949-229-1335