Your privacy is important to the Trail Conference. This statement discloses the information practices for this Web site, including what type of information is gathered and tracked, how the information is used, and with whom the information is shared. 

To be very clear: We will not obtain personally-identifying information about you when you visit our site, unless you choose to provide us with such information when you fill out forms or become a registered user of the site.

Information gathered

In general all the information gathered is anonymous except when you send us email, fill out forms that contain personal information, or buy things from the Hiker's Market Place. A few forms are available to anonymous users, e.g. Feedback, and will reveal your email address to us so we can reply if you supply it.

If you are not a registered user, you cannot post anything that is visible on the website and hence remain completely anonymous except that our server collects the usual anonymous data about what URL you came from, your IP address, your domain, etc. We run Google Analytics which records a lot of information about the transitions from one page to the next as you browse, but not identified by user.

If you use the search box, information about what search terms are used is recorded. Only lists of words and counts are recorded without any tracking as to who did the query.

Information use

The anonymous statistical information gathered by the server, hit counters and search mechanism is only used to improve the site by noticing which areas are actually used heavily and might warrant improvement.

If you contact us by postal mail, telephone, or electronically, via an on-line form, the material you submit may be seen by various staff or office volunteers. We may enter the information you send into our electronic database. In limited circumstances, including requests from courts or private individuals, we may be required by law to disclose information you submit. (Freedom of Information Act)

Information sharing

If you join as a member, you can opt-out of sharing addresses with other organizations. We do exchange mailing labels with other hiking/environmental organizations (primarily for soliciting new members).

Information security

E-mail is not necessarily secure against interception. If your communication is very sensitive, or includes personal information like your bank account, charge card, or social security number, you might want to send it by postal mail instead.

Online store connections are via SSL and hence secure.

Other issues

External links

If you use our site to reach other sites via links on our pages, they may collect more or less information and you should consult their privacy policy. If you use the Barnes and Noble links or other affiliates to browse or order from them, on which we earn a small commission, we may have access to other information about what was ordered and when but not by who. This information will be used only for accounting purposes and improving our affiliate links.

Cookies

Cookies are required to logon and purchase from the Hiker's Market Place. There is a technology call "cookies" which can be use to provide you with tailored information from a Web site. A cookie is an element of data that a Web site can send to your browser, which may then store it on your system and retrieve it when you return to the Web site at some later time. This cookie contains only information you supplied to our server and is not available to other Web sites (except possibly via bugs in your browser). We do not store the cookie on the server. You can set most browsers to either accept, reject or prompt for attempts to store a cookie on your system. See links below for more information.

Web beacons, etc.

Our bulk email programs use web bugs to tell if you have opened the email. We may use that information to not send you further reminders.

Children's data

While few pages of this site are directed towards children, we are committed to comply with applicable laws and requirements, such as the United States' Children's Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA). Specifically:

• You may Contact operator of web site for resolution of problems.
• No information is requested from children under 13, nor is any attempt made to ascertain the age of respondents. Such requests may be made incidentally and children may fill out forms that reveal private information. Children are encouraged to read the information on the web site and to respond via forms or email if appropriate. They should not give out any private information about themselves other than that necessary to respond to them.
• Any private information collected will be kept internally or discarded and not given to third parties. It will only be used to respond to requests. Information posted to the Viewpoint forum will be monitored and if we know that the information is from a child under 13, we may delete it (and reply privately) or modify it to contain less private information. 
• Parents may request that we delete any information submitted by their children.
• Copy of FCC Child Protection Policy Rules

General links for more information about privacy

• FTC Privacy Initiatives
• Electronic Privacy Information Center
• Privacy.org
• Privacy Rights Clearinghouse
• US Legislation
• Electronic Frontier Foundation
• Cookie Central
• The EPIC Cookies Page
• Bruce Scheier on Privacy