Hurst Consulting is committed to protecting and respecting your privacy while using the Hurst Harness App.
This Policy sets out the basis on which any personal data we (Hurst Consulting) collect from you, or that you provide to us, will be used or processed by us.
Please read the following carefully to understand how we will use your ‘personal data’ (‘personal data’ means any information relating to you, through which you can be identified, such as name and contact details, biographical information or information about your interests/qualifications).
Changes to this privacy policy
We keep our Policy under regular review and it may be modified from time to time. Please check back here for further updates. This policy was last updated on 01 April 2021.
Visitors to our website and blog users
When someone visits our websites we use a third party service, currently Google Analytics, to collect standard internet log information and details of visitor behaviour patterns. We do this to find out things such as the number of visitors to the various parts of the website. This information may be processed in a way which can personally identify anyone. If we do want to collect personal data through our website, we will notify you about this. We will make it clear when we collect personal data and will explain what we intend to do with it.
We also use a number of other third party analytics services to assess how people use our websites so that we can make improvements to the sites. On our blogs we sometimes use a third party data processor acting on our behalf and under our instructions to display and process comments that you make using your chosen username.
You have a right to object to this tracking at any time or can protect your privacy by installing a tracking-blocker or by clearing your cookies at the end of every browsing session. For more information on how analysed data is collected and used by these companies, please follow the links to the privacy policies of Google. We hold such data for the periods of: up to 36 months for Google Analytics from the date of your last visit, which resets on new visits to our website.
Social media contacts
We use Hootsuite, a third party provider acting as a data processor, to manage a number of our interactions. We also manage our own social media accounts. If you send us a private or direct message via social media the message will be stored by ourselves and by Hootsuite on our behalf. It will not be shared with any other organisations.
Please see Hootsuite’s privacy policy for further information on how they process your data.
Surveys and competitions
We use both our own and third party surveys online to process feedback, contests, event subscriptions, and survey information that you submit to us. Participation is voluntary and you have a choice whether or not to disclose any information requested.
Information requested may include contact information (such as name and delivery address) and demographic information. If you are a contest winner, we will use your contact information to notify you and award prizes. We collect feedback and diversity monitoring anonymously. We do not store any personal identifiers except for your IP address to monitor our system integrity and do not use your IP address in reporting. Information from our surveys will also be used for the purposes of monitoring or improving the functionality of our website(s) or any of our other products or services. Your data will be retained for up to two years and will be deleted at the earliest possible opportunity.
Where we use a third party, they act as a data processor on our behalf and will not share any information that you submit to us.
Email subscribers
We use our own systems to send email marketing campaigns. You may consent by opting in to our newsletters via our website or at one of our events. We may also send campaigns to your professional email address if we believe you will find them of interest and if this is within the legitimate interests of the company and doesn’t unduly interfere with your privacy. You can let us know at any time if you wish to unsubscribe from these by clicking the unsubscribe link on the email, or change your preferences by clicking ‘update your details’ at the bottom of the email.
We use technology to track when and where emails are opened, as well as when links are clicked. We do this to record how well our campaigns are performing and to ensure we are sending relevant content.
Authors and journal contacts
Depending on your relationship with us, we may process your personal data in the following ways:
- To provide our products, content and services to you or to your employer, university or institution;
- To respond to your requests and enquiries;
- To invite you to peer review and to manage the peer review process;
- To arrange a press release with your consent;
- To administer and manage our relationships with individuals who sit on our journal Editorial Boards;
- To process payments from you, such as article processing charges, page charges, subscriptions or payments for any products or services that you choose to purchase from us;
- To process payments to you, including, but not limited to, refunds or reimbursements, or payments to you for services provided to us;
- To request your participation in surveys or other initiatives which help to inform the development of our products and services;
- To keep you updated about our products and services, latest content, and industry news, where you have opted-in to such communications or are an existing customer/client. Where you have told us about your research interests, we may use this information to tailor the updates to your interests;
- To provide access to restricted parts of our websites.
Marketing activities for publishing
Where we have obtained your consent, we will occasionally send you email updates about our activities including, but not limited to, online content, industry news and developments, events, competitions and surveys. If you have provided information about your disciplinary interests, or have purchased or used our products and/or services, we may use this information to tailor the content of our emails to you. Where you are an existing customer/client who has purchased or enquired about content or services before, we will occasionally send you emails about the same or similar content and services on the basis of legitimate interest. You are free to withdraw consent or opt-out of marketing emails at any time. Any marketing emails we send you will include an unsubscribe link at the end of the email. We will not send you marketing emails if you have withdrawn consent or opted out of receiving them.
If you would like to stop receiving marketing emails from us, you can let us know by:
- Clicking the ‘unsubscribe’ link in any marketing emails you receive from us; or
- Emailing us at hcinfo@hurstconsulting.co.uk (please ensure you tell us if you would like to opt-out from all email marketing communications or just a particular update).
Occasionally we may send you marketing information by post where we have decided that it is beneficial to you as a customer. We will make sure that such marketing is non-intrusive and is done where needed in accordance with our legitimate interests.
Third-party services
We will never sell, trade or rent your personal data to others. However, we may share your personal data with third-parties who provide services to us and process data on our behalf under our instructions (called ‘data processors’). Those data processors may only use your personal data as necessary to provide the relevant services, and are bound by contracts with us that limit their use of your personal data. Depending on your relationship with us and your use of our websites, it is likely that your personal data will be disclosed to third party data processors who provide the following types of services to us:
- Online hosting partners providing the secure storage and transmission of your personal data;
- Database software providers for the management and tracking of your personal data;
- Marketing services that send communications on our behalf regarding our products and services;
- Payment solution providers for the secure processing of payments you make to us;
- Technology partners who assist in the development and management of our websites;
- Subscription agents, fulfilment and postal vendors for the fulfilment of our products and services;
- Marketing consultants who act as data processors, carrying out certain mailing campaigns under our direction;
- Survey and research providers who perform studies on our behalf;
Data retention
We may retain certain records for legitimate reasons (including after your relationship with us has ended), for example to maintain records of articles published in our journals, to resolve any potential disputes and to comply with regulatory reporting obligations.
We have a data retention policy that sets out the different periods we retain personal data for in respect of relevant purposes, in accordance with our duties under applicable data protection law.
The criteria we use for determining these retention periods are based on:
- Various legislative requirements (for example, duties to hold transaction details or employee data to comply with certain requirements of tax or employment legislation);
- The purpose for which we collected that personal data and where we have identified a continued need to hold that personal data to serve a compelling legitimate purpose; and
- Relevant codes or guidance on data retention issued by regulatory authorities including the UK Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO).
Personal data we no longer need to hold is securely disposed of and/or anonymised so you can no longer be identified from it.
Your rights
Data protection law gives you the following rights:
(a) Your right to make a ‘subject access request’ relating to the personal data that we hold and process about you (see section below headed ‘Access to personal data’);
(b) That we correct personal data that we hold about you which is inaccurate or incomplete;
(c) That we erase your personal data without undue delay if we no longer need to hold or process it;
(d) Your right to object to any automated processing (if applicable) that we carry out in relation to your personal data, for example if we conduct any automated credit scoring;
(e) To object to our use of your personal data for direct marketing;
(f) To object and/or to restrict the use of your personal data by us for a purpose which is not based on your consent unless we have a compelling legitimate reason for continuing to process that data; or
(g) That we transfer personal data to another party where the personal data has been collected with your consent or is being used to perform contract with you and is being processed by means.
If you wish to exercise any of the rights please contact us at the email hcinfo@hurstconsulting.co.uk or by post at Radius House, 51 Clarendon Road, Watford. Please note that we may have to ask for further information or evidence to verify your identity before we can proceed with your request.
If you believe that any data we hold about you is incomplete or inaccurate, as well as informing us using the above contact details, you may be able to complete or correct such data using personalisation options that are available on our website.
Access to personal data
Hurst Consulting tries to be as open as it can be in terms of giving people access to their personal data. You can find out if we hold any personal data about you by making what’s known as a ‘subject access request’. If we do hold data about you we will:
- Give you a description of it;
- Tell you why we are holding it;
- Tell you whom it could be disclosed to; and
- Let you have a copy of the information in an intelligible form, subject to any legal exemptions or limitations that may apply.
To make a request for any personal data we may hold please write to our Data Protection Team, either at hcinfo@hurstconsulting.co.uk or at Radius House, 51 Clarendon Road, Watford. As above, we may have to ask for further information or evidence to verify your identity before we can proceed with your request and may ask for further information to help us locate any specific information you seek.
If you agree, we will try to deal with your request informally, for example by providing you with the specific information you need over the telephone.
Usually we will have one month to respond to a subject access request. However, in case of complex requests, we may require a further two months to respond. We may also charge for administrative time in dealing with any manifestly unreasonable or excessive requests.
Complaints or queries
Hurst Consulting aims to meet the highest standards when collecting and using personal data. For this reason, we take any complaints we receive about this very seriously. We encourage people to bring it to our attention if they think that our collection or use of information is unfair, misleading or inappropriate. We would also welcome any suggestions for improving our procedures.
This privacy notice was drafted with brevity and clarity in mind. It does not provide exhaustive detail of all aspects of our collection and use of personal data. However, we are happy to provide any additional information or explanation needed regarding our data processing practices. Any requests for this should be sent to our Data Protection Team at Radius House, 51 Clarendon Road, Watford.
If you want to make a complaint about the way we have processed your personal data, you can also contact us at hcinfo@hurstconsulting.co.uk
If you are not happy with the way we have handled your data, or deal with any request above and are unable to resolve the issue with us personally, you can lodge a complaint with the UK data protection regulator who is the Information Commissioner’s Office.
Information Commissioner’s Office
Wycliffe House
Water Lane
Wilmslow
Cheshire, SK9 5AF
Helpline: 0303 123 1113 (local rate) or ++44 1625 545 745
See: https://ico.org.uk/concerns/