THINGS YOU SHOULD KNOW ABOUT THE INTERNET AND YOUR PRIVACY

Last Updated September 19th, 2003

You should always ask your parents for permission before you send any information about yourself to us or anyone else over the Internet. Did you know that when you go online, sites you visit may be collecting information about you (such as your real name, address, phone number or e-mail address) without your knowledge? At Kidsnewsroom.org, we strive to help our visitors and subscribers protect their privacy while using our services.

KIDSNEWSROOM.ORG'S PRIVACY POLICY

It is our policy to respect and protect the privacy of everyone who uses our site. This policy statement tells you how we gather information from you and how we use it. The personal information you provide to Kidsnewsroom.org is not disclosed to third parties without your consent, except in special cases when we have reason to believe that disclosing this information is necessary to identify, contact or bring legal action against someone who may be causing injury to or interference with (either intentionally or unintentionally) Kidsnewsroom.org's rights or property, other Kidsnewsroom.org users, or anyone else that could be harmed by such activities. Kidsnewsroom.org may disclose user information when we believe in good faith that the law requires it.

Kidsnewsroom.org may share aggregate information about our users with sponsors, and other third parties. For example, we will say Kidsnewsroom.org's audience is x percent female and y percent male. This data is used to customize the Kidsnewsroom.org content to deliver a better experience for our users.

There are cases where Kidsnewsroom.org may ask you for personal information such as your name, e-mail address, and birth date. For example, we request personal information when you submit an article or opinion peice online. Kidsnewsroom.org needs to collect this information for fulfilling prizes, tracking/verifying compliance with Kidsnewsroom.org's policies as well as federal, state, and local laws, and/or for editorial and feedback solicitation purposes.

USE OF IP ADDRESSES

An IP (Internet Protocol) address is a number that's automatically assigned to your computer whenever you're surfing the Web. Web servers -- the big computers that "serve up" Web pages -- automatically identify your computer by its IP address.

Kidsnewsroom.org collects IP addresses for the purposes of system administration, to report aggregate information to our sponsors, and to audit the use of our site. When Guests request pages from Kidsnewsroom.org, our servers log the Guests' IP addresses. We do not normally link IP addresses to anything personally identifiable, which means that a user's session will be logged, but the user remains anonymous to us. We can and will use IP addresses to identify a user when we feel it is necessary to enforce compliance with our house rules or terms of service or to protect our service, site, users, or others. Some services within Kidsnewsroom.org may display IP addresses along with the message poster's name and message. Please review each service prior to use and only use those that disclose information you are comfortable with sharing.

USE OF COOKIES

What are cookies? Cookies are pieces of information that a Web site transfers to an individual's hard drive for record-keeping purposes. Cookies make Web-surfing easier for you by saving your preferences while you're at our site. We never save passwords or credit card information in cookies. The use of cookies is an industry standard -- you'll find them at most major Web sites.

By showing how and when Guests use a site, cookies help us see which areas are popular and which are not. Many improvements and updates to the site are based on such data as total number of visitors and pages viewed. This information is most easily tracked with cookies. We use the information from cookies to provide services better tailored to our users needs.

Kidsnewsroom.org uses cookies to track user trends and patterns. This helps us better understand and improve areas of the Kidsnewsroom.org site that our users find valuable. While this depends on the use of a cookie, visitors to Kidsnewsroom.org always have the option of disabling cookies via their browser preferences.

Most browsers are initially set up to accept cookies. You can reset your browser to refuse all cookies or indicate when a cookie is being sent. However, note that some parts of Kidsnewsroom.org Web site will not function properly or may be considerably slower if you refuse cookies. For example, without cookies, you may have difficulty submitting articles, entering contests, or playing games. You may occasionally get cookies from our sponsors. Kidsnewsroom.org does not control these cookies. The use of sponsorship cookies sent by third-party servers is standard in the Internet industry and is used to track the same type of trends Kidsnewsroom.org follows.

LINKS TO OTHER SITES

Kidsnewsroom.org was designed as a completely contained environment where users could surf within the confines of the URL, on a single platform-server. While Kidsnewsroom.org maitains the highest of standards when adding and editing pages for/on its site, outside links may nonetheless slip through. Thus, users should be aware that when they are in the Kidsnewsroom.org Web site, they could be directed to other sites that are beyond our control. For example, certain programs called "Spyware" load advertisements in pop-up windows while browsing sites of comparable content; if you "click" on a advertisement, the "click" takes you off the Kidsnewsroom.org site. This disclaimer includes links from sponsors and partners that may use the Kidsnewsroom.org logo as part of a co-branding or reciprocal-link agreement. These other sites may send their own cookies to users, collect data, or solicit personal information.

Please keep in mind that whenever you give out personal information online --- for example, via message boards or chat --- that information can be collected and used by people you don't know. While Kidsnewsroom.org strives to protect their users' personal information and privacy, we cannot guarantee the security of any information you disclose online and you do so at your own risk. Kidsnewsroom.org's policy does not extend to anything that is inherent in the operation of the Internet, and therefore beyond Kidsnewsroom.org's control, and is not to be applied in any manner contrary to applicable law or governmental regulation.

SECURITY

The importance of security for all personally identifiable information associated with our Guests is of utmost concern to us. We exercise great care in providing secure transmission of your information from your PC to our servers.

Unfortunately, no data transmission over the Internet can be guaranteed to be 100% secure. As a result, while we strive to protect your personal information, Kidsnewsroom.org can't ensure or warrant the security of any information you transmit to us or from our online products or services, and you do so at your own risk. Once we receive your transmission, we make our best effort to ensure its security on our systems. When personal information is transmitted we use industry standard, SSL (secure socket layer) encryption.

Kidsnewsroom.org uses only the very best in web technology. When you submit an article, play a game, or read a story, we make the highest of efforts to ensure that that the information you provide is being correctly compiled and that your connection is secure. We strive to make it safe for you to personal information on Kidsnewsroom.org.

OUR SPONSORS

In order to allow Kidsnewsroom.org to continue to provide you with quality weekly content, you may see organizations sponsoring our site. Currently, Kidsnewsroom.org allows a sponsor to display themselves through the below paradigm:


Whenever you see a table like this on our site, be assured that it belongs to a Kidsnewsroom.org sponsor, and that they are contributing to the continued operation of Kidsnewsroom.org.

Additionally, Kidsnewsroom.org will occasionally employ text links to sponsor resources and/or websites. Such links will always appear in a dark red font on Kidsnewsroom webpages, and are assured to be kid-safe. For example, while browsing the various resources on Kidsnewsroom.org, you may see a link. Such a link is an aformentioned sponsor link, and has been determined to be kid-safe.

YOUR ACCEPTANCE OF THESE TERMS

By using this site, you signify your assent to the Kidsnewsroom.org Privacy Policy. If you do not agree to this policy, please do not use our sites. Your continued use of the Kidsnewsroom.org site following the posting of changes to these terms will mean you accept those changes. If you have questions or concerns regarding this Web site's privacy statement, you should first contact the company by mail at Kidsnewsroom.org, 666 11th Street NW, Suite 810, Washington, DC 20001, by toll-free telephone at (888) 562-5454 or by e-mail at webmaster@Kidsnewsroom.org.