UPDATE 25 January 2023

Privacy policy

Effective as of Apr 02, 2020
content

The Gold Standard Foundation (“GSF”) is committed to protecting your privacy and providing a safe online experience. This Privacy Policy applies to the www.goldstandard.org website and any other web properties which are owned or operated by GSF (collectively, the "Site") and governs data collection and usage by GSF.  By using the Site, you consent to the collection, storage, use and disclosure of your personal information as described in this Privacy Policy.  If you do not agree to the practices in this Privacy Policy, please do not use this Site.  Each time you use this Site, the current version of the Privacy Policy will govern your use.  Accordingly, when you use this Site, you should check the date of this Privacy Policy (which appears at the top) and review any changes since the last version.

COLLECTION OF YOUR PERSONAL DATA

GSF may collect and store personally identifiable information disclosed by you, such as your e-mail address, name, home or work address or telephone number. GSF may also collect and store anonymous demographic information, which is not unique to you, such as your ZIP code, age, gender, preferences, or interests.  Other information that may be gathered from you and stored by GSF include, but is not limited to, community discussions, chats, correspondence through the Site, and correspondence sent to us. GSF also automatically collects and stores information about your computer hardware and software.

This information may include: your IP address, browser type, domain names, access times and referring website addresses. This information is used by GSF solely to provide general statistics regarding use of the Site. This Privacy Policy only applies to information that is collected through the GSF site; it does not apply to any information that may be collected by other Site users, such as through email communications between you and another user. If you disclose your information to other Site users, different rules may apply to their use or disclosure of your personal information.

GSF does not guarantee the privacy or security of the personal information you provide to others. We therefore encourage you to evaluate the privacy and security policies of the other Site user before sharing your information. You should also review the privacy statements of websites that have links within the GSF Site and which you choose to navigate to from the GSF Site so that you understand how those websites collect, use and share your information. GSF is not responsible for the privacy statements or other content on websites outside of the Site.

HOW WE COLLECT YOUR DATA

We collect data when you:

  • Place an order within the project marketplace
  • Voluntarily sign-up to our newsletter or for technical updates
  • Voluntarily complete a survey or provide feedback
  • Sign-up to our Platform
  • Complete a VVB exam
  • Sign-up to become an NGO Supporter
  • Open an account in the Gold Standard Impact Registry

USE OF YOUR PERSONAL DATA

The principal purpose of the collection your personal data is to offer you a safe, optimum, efficient and personalized experience. To this end, you agree and accept that GSF may use your personal data to:

  • operate and improve the Site,  
  • process your order and manage your account,
  • provide our services,
  • inform you of other products or services available from GSF and its marketing partners
  • comply with legal and regulatory obligations,
  • deliver any information you request,
  • deliver any information that you disclose to third parties through the Site, and
  • contact you to conduct research about your opinion of current services or of potential new services that may be offered.


GSF may share your personal information with service providers under contract with GSF to help with our business operations. Such service providers will be required to maintain the privacy of your information in a manner at least as restrictive as this Privacy Policy. 

GSF may share data with third parties assisting Gold Standard in providing you the service(s). Sub-processors are listed below and are given access to data reasonably necessary to provide the service(s) and will be subject to confidentiality obligations in their service agreements.

List of sub-processors:

  • Pantheon (website hosting services) – USA
  • Drupal (website CMS services) – USA
  • WordPress (CMS service for standard documentation) – USA
  • Digital Ocean (hosting service for standard documentation) – USA
  • MailChimp (communications service provider) – USA
  • Formstack (service provider for forms and surveys) – USA
  • Freshdesk (email support services) – USA
  • Shopify (online purchases) – USA

GSF may share data with third party payment processes who process your credit card and other payment information for Gold Standard, but are otherwise not permitted to store, retain or use such information.

GSF will not sell your personal information to third parties.  If you do not wish to receive communications from GSF, simply send us an email indicating your preference at [email protected].

If, through the use of the Site, you receive personal information about another Site user, for instance, when interacting on the Gold Standard Engagement Platform, you agree to (a) keep such information confidential and protect the personal information of such user in a manner at least as restrictive as the manner in which GSF protects such information as set forth herein; (b) use the information only for Site transaction-related purposes; or (c) use the information for other purposes expressly authorized by the information owner.  

GSF may keep track of the pages our users visit within the Site, in order to determine what GSF services are the most popular.  This data may be used to deliver customized content and advertising within GSF to users whose behavior indicates that they are interested in a particular subject area.

GSF will disclose your personal information if required to do so by law or in the good faith belief that such action is necessary to: (a) conform to legal requirements or comply with legal process served on GSF or the Site; (b) protect and defend the rights or property of GSF; (c) enforce our policies; (d) respond to claims that a listing or other content violates the rights of others; (e) protect the personal safety of users of GSF or the public; or (f) to report suspected illegal activity.  All such information will be disclosed in accordance with applicable laws and regulations.

USE OF COOKIES

The Site uses "cookies" to help you personalize your online experience. A cookie is a piece of text that is placed on your hard disk by a Web page server.  Cookies cannot be used to run programs or deliver viruses to your computer. Cookies are uniquely assigned to you, and can only be read by a web server in the domain that issued the cookie to you.

You have the ability to accept or decline cookies. Most Web browsers automatically accept cookies, but you can usually modify your browser setting to decline cookies if you prefer. If you choose to decline cookies, you may not be able to fully experience the interactive features of the Site.

You can set your browser not to accept cookies and you can remove cookies from your browser. However, in a few cases, some of our website features may not function as a result.

SECURITY OF YOUR PERSONAL INFORMATION

GSF will take reasonable precautions to protect your personal information from unauthorized access, use or disclosure.  Individuals who have been granted access to personal information are aware of their responsibilities to protect the security, confidentiality and integrity of that information.  As effective as modern security practices are, no physical or electronic security system is impenetrable.  We cannot guarantee the security of our database, nor can we guarantee that the information you supply will always remain private.  GSF retains your personal information to comply with the law, prevent fraud, collect any fees owed, resolve disputes, troubleshoot problems, enforce our General Terms of Use, and take other actions as permitted by law.

GDPR COMPLIANCE

GSF may process Personal Data as both a Processor and a Controller, as those terms are defined in the EU General Data Protection Regulation (“GDPR”). GSF adheres to GDPR. As a result:

  • You have the right to request access to the information we have on you. You can do this by contacting us at [email protected]. In order to comply with your request, we may ask you to verify your identity.
  • If you believe the information we have on you is incorrect, you can send us an email at [email protected] so we can keep update it.
  • If at any time you would like us to delete your information, please contact us at [email protected].

CONTACT INFORMATION

GSF welcomes your comments regarding this Privacy Policy. If you believe that GSF has not adhered to this Privacy Policy, please contact GSF at [email protected] or write to us at The Gold Standard Foundation, Chemin de Balexert 7-9, 1219 Chatelaine, International Environment House 2, Geneva, Switzerland.  We will use commercially reasonable efforts to promptly determine and remedy the problem.

CHANGES TO THIS POLICY

GSF reserves the right to modify or amend this Policy at any time by posting the amended Policy on this Site.  All amended terms take effect upon posting.  Each time you use the Site, the current version of the Policy will govern your use. Accordingly, when you use the Site, you should check the date of this Policy (which appears at the top) and review any changes since the last version.

Gold Standard Newsletter Subscription

Stay updated on our latest news and more.