Privacy Policy

Privacy Policy

The Alliance for Telecommunications Industry Solutions, Inc. (ATIS) is committed to protecting privacy and security of the personal information of our website visitors. Please read this Privacy Policy carefully before using our websites or submitting information to us.  By accessing or visiting our domains and websites, you indicate your understanding and agreement that the collection, use, and sharing of your information is subject to the terms of this Privacy Policy.   

This Policy applies to all websites in ATIS’ domain including:

We may update this policy from time to time and any changes will be posted on our websites. Questions or comments regarding ATIS’ privacy policy or ATIS’ use or handling of personal information, including any requests to exercise your legal rights, should be directed to privacy@atis.org

For the purposes of the General Data Protection Regulation ((EU) 2016/679) (“EU GDPR”), the retained EU law version of the EU GDPR (“UK GDPR”) and the Data Protection Act 2018 (“DPA 2018”), ATIS is the data controller and responsible for your personal data. If you are based in the UK or European Economic Area (“EEA”), please have particular regard to the “Additional information for individuals in the UK and EEA” section below.

Data We Collect and How We Use It

Visitors can visit ATIS’ websites without providing any personal information to ATIS. However, ATIS does collect personally identifiable information, like first and last name, postal addresses, e-mail addresses, etc., only if specifically and knowingly provided by visitors who voluntarily do certain activities on ATIS’ websites such as join one of ATIS’ distribution (“exploder”) lists, purchase a document from the online ATIS document store, or register for an ATIS webinar or event. The information a visitor provides is used to fulfill a specific request, unless the visitor grants ATIS permission to use the information in another manner, for example to add the visitor to a mailing list.

We will only use your personal data when the law allows us to. Most commonly, we will use your personal data in the following circumstances:

  • Where we need to perform a service or contract we have entered into with you.
  • Where it is necessary for our legitimate interests (or those of a third party) and your interests and fundamental rights do not override those interests, including: (i) where we keep you informed about our activities or relevant news or information as contained in newsletters, press releases etc., for the receipt of which you have explicitly signed up; and/or (ii) where it is necessary for authentication, navigation within and use of ATIS websites.
  • Where we need to comply with a legal or regulatory obligation.

Visitors may submit e-mail inquiries or comments to ATIS websites. Any information collected within the context of an e-mail inquiry or comment made in connection to the ATIS websites is used only for the expressed purpose of responding to that inquiry or comment. Except as specifically indicated, ATIS does not give, sell, or rent visitor information to third parties for commercial marketing. Notwithstanding the foregoing, ATIS reserves the right to access and/or disclose user information as required by courts and/or administrative agencies and to the extent required to permit ATIS to investigate suspected fraud, harassment, or other violations of law or of the ATIS’ website policies.

ATIS collects non-personal information (such as the number of visitors) for various reasons, including site management or for statistical purposes. These statistics include no personal information.

ATIS generally does not receive personal data about you from third parties or public sources. However, ATIS has in the past received personal data by purchasing email addresses from marketing firms for the sole purpose of marketing ATIS events, goods, and services.

ATIS does not share your personal data with third parties. However, ATIS may include certain personal information, including the name, company and/or email address of those ATIS participants that contribute to the development of an ATIS deliverable in the deliverable, which may be publicly available. ATIS will occasionally send visitors that have specifically and knowingly provided personal data information on products or events that may be of value. Visitors may opt out of ATIS’ mailing list(s) by sending an e-mail to privacy@atis.org

Where we need to collect personal data by law, or, for example, under the terms of a contract we have with you or a service obligation we have towards you and you fail to provide that data when requested, we may not be able to perform the contract or service. In this case, we may have to cancel a product or service you have with us; we will notify you if this is the case at the time.

Change of Purpose

We will only use your personal data for the purposes for which we collected it, unless we reasonably consider that we need to use it for another reason and that reason is compatible with the original purpose. If you wish to get an explanation as to how the processing for the new purpose is compatible with the original purpose, please contact us via privacy@atis.org

If we need to use your personal data for an unrelated purpose, we will notify you and we will explain the legal basis which allows us to do so.

Please note that we may process your personal data without your knowledge or consent, in compliance with the above rules, where this is required or permitted by law.

Children’s Privacy

ATIS’ websites are intended for adults. ATIS does not knowingly collect personal information from children under the age of 13. If ATIS obtains knowledge that it has personally identifiable information about a child under 13 in retrievable form in its files, ATIS will delete that information from our existing files.

Use of Cookies

“Cookies” are small text files that are stored by your browser or other application on your computer’s browser or hard drive and that a website can use to recognize repeat users, facilitate ongoing access to and use of the website, and allow a website to track usage and collect aggregate data in order to improve the website. ATIS websites may set cookies to automatically track data and non-personal information about users.

ATIS’ websites use cookies to store and track passwords. ATIS does not use cookies to disseminate information about visitors or to analyze any information visitors have provided outside that collected by ATIS’ cookies. Visitors may refuse these cookies by choosing to modify the settings of their web browser. The “help” portion of the toolbar on most browsers will tell you how to prevent your browser from accepting new cookies, how to have the browser notify you when you receive new cookies or how to disable cookies altogether.  ATIS websites do not control and do not guarantee the effectiveness of browser-based tools for managing cookies.  While visitors do not need to have cookies turned on to access ATIS’ web sites, certain features of the websites may not be available without cookies.

Updating Personally Identifiable Information

Any visitor may opt out of ATIS’ mailing list(s), or change, update, or delete an email address by contacting privacy@atis.org

International Transfers

ATIS is located in the United States and is subject to the applicable laws of the United States. When we receive your personal information, your personal information may be transferred, processed and stored outside of your country of residence, including in the United States. In addition, some of the recipients of your personal information may be located in countries (including the United States) that do not provide a level of data protection equivalent to that set forth by other jurisdictions. If you choose to access or use the programs or services offered by ATIS, you consent to the transfer, use and disclosure of information in accordance with this Privacy Policy and subject to such applicable laws.

Additional information for individuals in the UK and EEA

This section is for individuals based in the UK or the EEA. Please read this entire Privacy Policy for information regarding what personal data we may process about you and the purposes for which, and lawful bases on which, we process such data. As explained above, for the purposes of the EU GDPR, UK GDPR and DPA 2018, ATIS is the controller of your personal data. The relevant contact details for ATIS can be found at the bottom of this Privacy Policy.

As ATIS is based in the United States, any data that you provide to us will be transferred to and held in the United States. The US is a third country that has not been given an “adequacy decision” by the European Commission or the UK’s Information Commissioner’s Office. If a third country has not been given an adequacy decision it means that it does not provide adequate protection under the UK/EU GDPR, and that there are no adequate safeguards aimed at providing protection for personal data currently implemented. You will not have the rights in respect of your personal data that you have under the UK/EU GDPR. As explained in this policy, however, ATIS has put into place appropriate physical, electronic, and managerial procedures to safeguard and secure the information it collects online. We have put in place procedures to deal with any suspected personal data breach and will notify you and any applicable regulator of a breach where we are legally required to do so.   If you choose to access or use the programs or services offered by ATIS, you consent to the transfer, use and disclosure of information in accordance with this Privacy Policy and subject to applicable laws.

Security

To prevent unauthorized access, maintain data accuracy, and ensure the appropriate use of information, ATIS has put into place appropriate physical, electronic, and managerial procedures to safeguard and secure the information it collects online. We have put in place procedures to deal with any suspected personal data breach and will notify you and any applicable regulator of a breach where we are legally required to do so.

Links to Other Sites

ATIS websites contain links to other websites, including professional networking forums, bulletin boards, etc. If you use ATIS’ websites to link to these outside websites, please be aware that any personal information you submit can be read, collected, or used by other users of these forums, including to send unsolicited messages. ATIS is not responsible for access to or use of personal information you choose to submit or share with others.

ATIS does not control the accuracy, relevance, timeliness, or completeness of this outside information and does not warrant, guarantee, or make any representations regarding the accuracy, completeness, efficacy, timeliness, merchantability, or fitness for a particular purpose of the content or data located on such sites. ATIS is not responsible for, and expressly disclaims all liability for, damages of any kind arising out of use, reference to, reliance on, or performance of such content or data. Further, the inclusion of links to particular items is not intended to reflect these items’ importance, nor is it intended to endorse any views expressed or products or service offered on these outside sites, or the organizations sponsoring the sites.

Data Retention

We will only retain your personal data for as long as necessary to fulfil the purposes we collected it for, including for the purposes of satisfying any legal, accounting, or reporting requirements. To determine the appropriate retention period for personal data, we consider the amount, nature, and sensitivity of the personal data, the potential risk of harm from unauthorised use or disclosure of your personal data, the purposes for which we process your personal data and whether we can achieve those purposes through other means, and the applicable legal requirements. Details of retention periods for different aspects of your personal data are available in our retention policy which you can request from us by contacting us via privacy@atis.org

Your Legal Rights

Under certain circumstances, you have rights under data protection laws in relation to your personal data. These include the right to:

  • Request access to your personal data.
  • Request correction of your personal data.
  • Request erasure of your personal data.
  • Object to processing of your personal data.
  • Request restriction of processing your personal data.
  • Request transfer of your personal data.
  • Withdraw consent.

If you wish to exercise any of the rights set out above, please contact us via privacy@atis.org.  You will not have to pay a fee to access your personal data (or to exercise any of the other rights). However, we may charge a reasonable fee if your request is clearly unfounded, repetitive or excessive. Alternatively, we could refuse to comply with your request in these circumstances. We may need to request specific information from you to help us confirm your identity and ensure your right to access your personal data (or to exercise any of your other rights). This is a security measure to ensure that personal data is not disclosed to any person who has no right to receive it. We may also contact you to ask you for further information in relation to your request to speed up our response. We try to respond to all legitimate requests within one month. Occasionally it could take us longer than a month if your request is particularly complex or you have made a number of requests. In this case, we will notify you and keep you updated.

You have the right to make a complaint at any time to the relevant data protection authority in your country. We would, however, appreciate the chance to deal with your concerns before you approach the authority so please contact us in the first instance.

Disclaimer of Liability

No data transmission over the Internet can ever be 100% secure and ATIS cannot guarantee the security of the information that visitors transmit via ATIS’ online services. ATIS shall not be liable for losses related to information transmitted via ATIS’ online services. ATIS does not accept any responsibility for any loss, disruption or damage to data or computer systems which may occur while using material derived from ATIS websites and does not warrant that the functions contained in the material in this site will be uninterrupted or error free. The user of the information available for public use on the ATIS’ websites assumes the risk of using or relying on such information. ATIS shall not be liable for any damages, including indirect, special, incidental, or consequential damages a user incurs as a result of viewing, distributing, or copying materials made available to the public, even if advised of the possibility of such damages.

Questions

For additional information about ATIS’ privacy policy, please contact privacy@atis.org


Last updated: October 12, 2023.