Privacy Policy

Elizabeth City Privacy Policy

The Elizabeth City-Pasquotank County Tourism Development Authority (the “TDA,” “Visit Elizabeth City,” or “we”) is committed to ensuring the privacy of visitors. In this Privacy Policy, we will share with you the type of information we gather and how we may use that information.  This Privacy Policy applies to Personal Information you provide to us through any means including, without limitation, through our Site, via e-mail, and over the telephone.  Any reference to our “Site” includes our website located at www.visitelizabethcity.com, any mobile applications and other software we may offer now or in the future, and any reference to our “Services” includes our Site, visitor information phone line and other product or service offered by us.

By using our Services, you agree that your use of the Services constitutes your acceptance of and agreement to this Privacy Policy.

1. Personal Information.

For the purposes of this Privacy Policy, “Personal Information” means any information that by itself or in connection with other information we collect allows us or anyone to identify you. Personal Information includes, without limitation, first names and last names, telephone numbers, addresses, and email addresses.

2. Privacy and Protection of Children and Teens.

Our Site is not directed at children, and we will not accept or request personal information from individuals we know to be under 13. In accordance with the Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act (“COPPA”), if we learn that a child under 13 has provided personal information, we will either (i) delete this information from our databases or (ii) obtain verifiable parental consent in accordance with COPPA.

3. Cross-Border Data Transmission.

The TDA is headquartered in the United States of America (“USA”) and all of our primary data storage and processing facilities are in the USA. If you are accessing the Services from another country, please note that all data we collect will be transmitted outside of your country and into the USA, where it will reside and be processed. In addition, your data may pass through or be temporarily stored or processed in countries beyond your country and the USA. By continuing to access this Site, or by providing your Personal Information, you explicitly consent to have your data so transmitted and stored.

4. Information We May Collect Automatically.

Information About Your Computer. When you visit the Site, we automatically receive and store certain types of information, such as the name of the domain and host from which you access the Internet; the IP address of the computer you are using and the browser and operating system you are using; the date and time you access the Sites; the Internet address of the website from which you linked to the Sites; any search terms you used to find the Sites; the device identifiers and mobile and network information, and your actions on the Sites. We may retain this information to assist us in analyzing the behavior of visitors to our Site, to resolve problems with our network and, in general, to administer the Site.

Cookies. We may use cookies or similar programs, such as web beacons or web bugs, to collect the information described above, including tracking your device’s browsing habits on the Site or your interaction with one of our advertisements. We may also use cookies to maintain session information you provide to us, so that when you leave the Site and return, the Site will recognize your device. A cookie is a small text file that is sent to your computer to collect information about your activities on the Site. The cookie transmits this information back to the applicable Site each time your browser requests a page from the Site. “Web beacons” are small pieces of code placed on websites used to collect advertising metrics, such as counting page views, promotion views, or advertising responses. We may also use cookies or web beacons to measure aggregate web statistics, including the number of monthly visitors, number of repeat visitors, most popular webpages and other information. We may allow our third-party service providers to use cookies for the same purposes that we can and we may otherwise allow third-parties to use cookies as set out in this Privacy Policy.  Cookies do not generally contain any Personal Information. We use that information to provide measurement services and monitor the effectiveness of our advertisements to inspire you to visit Elizabeth City. If you wish to opt out of cookies allowing this Site to serve advertisements while you are in Elizabeth City, and collect aggregate information upon arrival, click Here. You always have a choice with regard to cookies. You can modify your browser preferences to allow you to accept or reject all cookies or to notify you when a cookie is set. However, because information we obtain may be combined, we may still be able to identify your web browser, computer or mobile device when you access our Services even if you disable cookies. If you choose to reject all cookies, you may be unable to use certain areas of the Site. Please consult your browser instructions for information on how to modify your choices about cookies. Finally, you may delete any existing cookies manually from the hard drive of your device. For more information about cookies, please visit allaboutcookies.org.

Log Data. Our web servers may also collect “log data.” Log data provides aggregate information about the number of visits to different pages on the Sites. We use log data for troubleshooting purposes and to track which pages people visit in order to improve the Site. We do not link log data collected to Personal Information. Third-party vendors may also collect aggregate log data independently from us.

Tracking Images. We may use tracking images (such as GIFs), which are small image files that we embed into our e-mail newsletters, to learn whether you opened or forwarded the newsletter or clicked on any of the content. This information tells us about our newsletter’s effectiveness and helps us ensure that we’re delivering information that you find interesting.

5. Information You May Provide to Us. 

Generally. We may require you to provide certain Personal Information in order to access or use certain functions, products or services on the Site or otherwise provided as part of our Services, such as requesting information about Elizabeth City, commenting on our blog or requesting that your event be added to our event calendar. We may collect Personal Information from you offline, such as when you visit our office or request information over the phone. You can choose not to provide such Personal Information, in which case you may not be able to access or use such functions, products or services.

If you submit any Personal Information relating to other people to us or to our service providers in connection with the Services, you represent that you have the authority to do so and to permit us to use the information in accordance with this Privacy Policy.

By Email. If you choose to email Visit Elizabeth City, we may retain your email addresses and copies of your email(s)—including whatever content is in such emails—either separately or in the same database. Also, we (or our third-party providers) may use tools to help prevent and block “spam” e- mail, viruses, and other harmful or unwanted communications and programs that may be attached to or in the text of e-mails. These tools may automatically scan your e-mails, file attachments, and other files and communications to help us protect you and Visit Elizabeth City against these harmful or unwanted communications and programs. However, these tools do not collect or disclose Personal Information about you.

6. How We Use and Share Your Personal Information.

Generally. We will use any information that you provide to us to provide you the Services that you have requested. We will share Personal Information as needed to fulfill your request, as discussed below.

We may also use Personal Information for our internal business purposes that include, but are not limited to, improving our Services, to comply with our own legal obligations, and communicating with you about Elizabeth City, activities and other offerings that we believe may be of interest to you, changes to this Privacy Policy or the Terms and other topics related to our business.

Third-Party Service Providers. We may use third-party service providers to perform services on our behalf, including: analytics, marketing, mailing, and emailing.  We will only permit them to access your Personal Information as necessary to allow them to perform their services or the services that you request.

We may use Google Analytics to help analyze how users use the Site and we may use other third-party service providers to perform similar functions. Google Analytics uses cookies and other technologies to collect information such as how often users visit the Site, what pages they visit, and what other sites they used prior to coming to the Site. We use the information we get from Google Analytics only to improve our Site and Service. From our Site, Google Analytics collects only the IP address assigned to you on the date you visit the Site, rather than your name or other personally identifying information. Although Google Analytics plants a persistent Cookie on your web browser to identify you as a unique user the next time you visit the Site, the Cookie cannot be used by anyone but Google. Google’s ability to use and share information collected by Google Analytics about your visits to the Site is restricted by the Google Analytics Terms of Use and the Google Privacy Policy

Our Affiliates and Members. If you request information or offers about particular areas of interest to you, we may share your email address or other Personal Information with those affiliates or members of our association who will best be able to provide you the information you request.

Site Host. The Site, and therefore the information we collect in connection with it, is hosted by our technology service provider and stored on a third-party server. Therefore, our technology service provider technically has access to your Personal Information and other information; however, we control their actual access to this information by agreement and they are not permitted to access it, unless we permit them to do so. We will only permit them to access your Personal Information as necessary to repair, maintain, host or improve the Site and they will never be permitted to contact you as a result of this access.

Legal Process. We may disclose any information, including Personal Information, about you without your consent if we are required to do so under a lawfully executed subpoena, search warrant or similar legal document, or otherwise to comply with law.

Emergencies and Rights Enforcement. We may also use or disclose information, including Personal Information, about you without your consent in emergency situations that require us to protect our customers, employees or property immediately, or to enforce our rights in court.

Otherwise With Your Permission. We may use or disclose Personal Information as you may otherwise request or agree.

7. Third-Party Content and Links to Third-Party Sites.

Third-Party Cookies and Web Beacons. We may allow third-parties to display advertisements or other content on the Site. These third-parties may also use cookies other technologies each time you view or click on or through their advertisements or content. As with the cookies and similar technologies used by Visit Elizabeth City itself, these advertisers may be able to compile information about where you, or others who are using your computer, viewed or clicked on the advertisements they display. Please remember that we have no access to or control over the cookies or other tracking technologies third-parties may place on your computer. This Privacy Policy applies to the use of cookies by Visit Elizabeth City only, and does not apply to the use of cookies or other tracking technologies by any of the third-parties.

Social Media.  The Site may also contain plug-ins and other features that integrate third party social media platforms into the Site. You will be able to activate them manually. If you do so, the third parties who operate these platforms may be able to identify you, they may be able to determine how you use this website and they may link and store this information with your social media profile. Please consult the data protection policies of these social media platforms to understand what they will be doing with your personal data. If you activate these plug-ins and other features, you will be doing so at your own risk.

Third-Party Websites. The Site may contain links to other parties’ websites, for example, if you visit our site and decide to book a hotel or other reservation, you may be seamlessly linked to websites maintained by third parties with whom we have contracted to make these services available through the Site.  This Privacy Policy, and our responsibility, is limited to our own collection practices. We do not review the privacy practices of these other websites and recommend that you review their privacy policies before sharing your personal information. We do not have any control over such third-party websites and are not responsible for their privacy policies or practices. In addition, we cannot ensure the content of the websites maintained by these third parties, even if accessible using a link from our websites. We urge you to read the privacy and security policies of any external websites before providing any Personal Information while accessing those websites.

8. Storage of Data.

Visit Elizabeth City stores Personal Information for only as long as reasonably necessary to fulfill the purposes described in this Privacy Policy, as we determine is necessary for our business records, and as required under applicable law.

9. Protection of Your Data.

While we cannot guarantee the security of anyone’s data (including our own), we understand the importance of data security and therefore take reasonable measures to protect your Personal Information in an effort to prevent loss, misuse and unauthorized access, disclosure, alteration and destruction.

You should also be aware of how you handle and disclose your own Personal Information and should avoid sending Personal Information through insecure email. Please refer to the Federal Trade Commission’s website at http://www.business.ftc.gov/privacy-and-security/consumer-privacy for information about how to protect yourself against identity theft.

10. Commercial Electronic Message Consent.  

By providing your email address to Visit Elizabeth City through the Site or otherwise, you affirmatively and expressly consent to receiving commercial emails from Visit Elizabeth City. Visit Elizabeth City may send you commercial emails in order to deliver a newsletter, to provide you with more information about tourism in the Elizabeth City Area, and to provide you with updates, special offers, and other information, including but not limited to Site updates. You may unsubscribe from these commercial emails at any time by clicking on the “unsubscribe” link included in any email or by contacting Visit Elizabeth City via email at [email protected].

11. Corrections and Updates.

If you want to view, delete, or modify your Personal Information, you may do so by sending an email to [email protected]. Please note that we may be required to keep this information and not delete it (or to keep this information for a certain time, in which case we will comply with your deletion request only after we have fulfilled such requirements). When we delete any information, it will be deleted from the active database, but may remain in our archives.

You may also choose to opt-out of receiving future newsletters or any other email communications from Visit Elizabeth City by following the unsubscribe instructions included in email communications, or by contacting Visit Elizabeth City via email as provided above.

We reserve the right to verify the identity of any person making a request to opt-out or to delete or modify Personal Information; provided, however, that we will have no liability of any kind resulting from false or erroneous requests or any change or deletion made by us for any reason.

12. Changes to Our Privacy Policy.

We reserve the right to change or modify this Privacy Policy as we deem necessary or appropriate due to changes in our business practices or changes in the law. If you have provided us with your email address, we will attempt to notify you by that address of any material changes to how we use your Personal Information.

13. Contact; Complaints.

We take your privacy seriously, and invite you to contact us at the address below with any questions or concerns you may have regarding this Privacy Policy or our collection, storage, and use of your Personal Information:

Visit Elizabeth City
Attn: Privacy
501 S. Water Street
Elizabeth City, NC 27909

14. Terms Applicable to Data from EU Member Countries.

We are based in the United States.  In most cases, the Personal Information we collect is stored and used in the United States.

If we collect Personal Information from EU residents in a manner subject to the General Data Protection Regulation then, in addition to the above, the following terms shall also apply to our collection, use and retention of that information

Basis for Collection:  As set out above, we collect and process Personal Information for which you have given your express consent at the time of collection.  For example, we collect Personal Information when you elect to participate in one of our promotions.  We also collect and process Personal Information in order to improve our services, to deliver services and perform obligations under contracts we have with you, and to comply with our own legal obligations.

Sensitive Data:  We do not collect sensitive data, for example, biometric data, health data, or data revealing racial or ethnic origin, from visitors to the Sites

Onward Transfer:  Except as otherwise provided in this Privacy Policy, we only disclose Personal Information to third parties who reasonably need to have access to it for the purpose of the transaction or activity for which it was originally collected or to provide services to or perform tasks on our behalf or under our instruction. All such third parties must agree to use such Personal Information we provide to them only for the purposes for which we have engaged them and they must either: (a) comply with the EU-US Privacy Shield Principles or another mechanism permitted by the applicable EU & Swiss data protection law(s) for transfers and processing of Personal Information; or (b) agree to provide adequate protections for the Personal Information that are no less protective than those set out in this Privacy Policy.  Where we have knowledge that an entity to whom we have provided Personal Information is using or disclosing Personal Information in a manner contrary to this Privacy Policy, we will take reasonable and appropriate steps to prevent, remediate or stop the use or disclosure.

Authorized Transfer:  We also may disclose Personal Information for other purposes or to other third parties when you have consented to or requested such disclosure. Please be aware that we will disclose Personal Information in response to lawful requests by public authorities, including to meet national security or law enforcement requirements. We are not liable for appropriate onward transfers of Personal Information to third parties

Data Processors:  We may retain third parties to process or analyze Personal Information we collect from the Websites.  For example, a Site may be maintained or hosted by a third-party service provider, a promotion may be administered by a sales promotion agency, and/or products may be fulfilled by a wholesaler.  These suppliers and other third parties who provide services for us are contractually obligated not to use Personal Information about you except as we authorize.

Profiling:  We may analyze Personal Information we have collected about you to create a profile of your interests and preferences so that we can contact you with information that is relevant to you.  We may make use of additional information about you when it is available from external sources to help us do this effectively.  We may also use Personal Information about you to detect and reduce fraud and credit risk.

Your Rights:  Your rights include: (a) a right to withdraw your consent to the processing of Personal Information about you to which you have previously given consent; (b) a right to object to processing of Personal Information about you for the purpose of direct marketing; and (c) a right to have any incorrect part of the Personal Information about you corrected or removed.

If you request to have incorrect Personal Information removed, we may retain some of your Personal Information as necessary for the purposes of our legitimate business interests or in furtherance of public interests in accordance with applicable law. Any Personal Information you have shared publicly with others may continue to be publicly visible on the Sites.

You also have the right to obtain a copy of the Personal Information we have about you, although we reserve the right to charge a reasonable fee for this depending on the nature and frequency of your request(s) and our cost to provide the information.

Questions and Complaints:  If you have questions or complaints regarding this Privacy Policy or our handing of Personal Information about you, please contact [email protected].  We will promptly investigate and attempt to resolve complaints and disputes in a manner that complies with the principles described in this Privacy Policy.

All content including copy, images and other materials is copyrighted. This website is designed and maintained by the staff of the TDA. The images on this Site are owned by the TDA (unless otherwise stated) and may not be used without the permission of the TDA.

We appreciate the time you have spent reviewing the Site. We hope that we can continue to build a long-term relationship with you and encourage you to contact us with your questions or comments. Thank you.

Updated: 6/27/2018