Privacy Policy
Contents
About Us
Information we collect
How we use the information
What legal basis are we processing the data under?
Family Tree
Sharing your information with third parties
Business transfers/ acquisition
Cookies
How we protect your information
Your rights regarding your Personal Information
How long we hold your data for
Links to third-party websites
Contacting us
Privacy policy
Last updated on 17 March 2024
Oret is a family tree business dedicated to helping you uncover and connect your family’s history. We take your privacy seriously and are committed to protecting your personal information. This Privacy Policy outlines how we collect, use, and disclose your personal data when you use our family tree services.
We regularly review and update our policies and practices to ensure they remain in compliance with data protection laws. By using our family tree services, you acknowledge and consent to the processing of your personal data in accordance with this Privacy Policy.
Our Privacy Principles
Transparency: we are committed to being transparent about how we collect, use, and protect user data. We believe that our users have the right to know what data we collect, why we collect it, and how we use it. We provide clear and concise explanations of our data practices in our privacy policy and other communications.
Data minimization: we only collect the minimum amount of data necessary to provide our services. We do not collect unnecessary or excessive data, and we do not retain data for longer than necessary. We believe that data minimization is critical to protecting user privacy and reducing the risk of data breaches and other security incidents.
Security Oret takes the security of user data very seriously and employs a range of technical, physical, and administrative measures to protect user privacy and prevent unauthorized access, disclosure, or use of personal information. These measures include, access controls, network security, and regular security audits.
User control; Our users have the right to control their data and can delete it at any time. We believe that our users should have control over their data and how it is used. We provide easy-to-use tools for users to manage their data, including the ability to delete their accounts and associated data.
Ethics; we are committed to upholding ethical standards in all of our data practices. We do not engage in activities that could harm our users, such as selling or licensing user data. We believe that ethical data practices are essential to building and maintaining user trust.
Compliance: we comply with all applicable laws and regulations, including GDPR and other privacy laws. We believe that compliance is critical to protecting user privacy and ensuring that our data practices are ethical and transparent. We regularly review and update our privacy policies
Information we collect
We collect personal information from you when you use our website and services, including:
Genealogical: We collect information about individuals, tribes, clans, and their relatives to create a family tree. This information includes names, dates of birth and death, marriage and divorce records, immigration and naturalization records, military service records, census records, and other publicly available information.
Contact: We also collect contact information from users, such as their email address, phone number, and mailing address. This information is used to communicate with users about their accounts, services offered by the company, and other relevant information.
Payment: We may collect payment information from users, such as credit card numbers and billing addresses. This information is used to process payments for services rendered.
Device: We may collect device information, such as IP address, browser type, and operating system, to provide and improve our services and to ensure the security of our website.
Social Media: If a user connects to our services through a social media account, we may collect information from the user’s social media profile.
User Activity: We may collect information about a user’s activity on our website, such as pages visited, searches conducted, and interactions with other users. This information is used to improve the user experience and to provide personalized recommendations and search results.
Location: We may collect location information from users, such as their city, state, or country. This information is used to provide localized content and services.
User-Generated Content: Users may contribute content to our websites, such as family stories, photos, and documents. This content may be used by us to improve our services and to provide additional value to users.
Customer Service Information: We may collect information about user interactions with our customer service team, such as support tickets and chat logs. This information is used to improve customer service and resolve issues with user accounts or services
Survey Responses: We may collect information from users who participate in surveys or other research activities, such as demographic information, and feedback on our services. This information is used to improve our website and to better understand our users’ needs and preferences.
Cookies and Similar Technologies: We may use cookies, web beacons, and other tracking technologies to collect information about users’ browsing behavior on our website. This information is used to personalize the user experience, improve our services, and provide targeted advertising.
Third-Party Information: We may collect information from third-party sources, such as public records, social media platforms, and other websites. This information is used to supplement the information we collect directly from users and to improve
How we use the information
Building and maintaining your family tree: We use the information that we collect to create and maintain a family tree for each user. This information is used to connect users with their ancestors and relatives, to provide insights into their family history, and to help them discover new information about their family
Communicating with you about our services: We use contact information, such as email addresses and phone numbers, to communicate with users about our services. This includes providing updates about new features or services, responding to customer inquiries or support requests, and sending marketing or promotional materials.
Processing your payments: If we offer paid services, we use payment information to process payments for services rendered. This includes processing credit card transactions and managing user accounts.
Personalizing your experience on our website: We use user activity and location information to personalize the user experience on our website. This includes providing personalized recommendations, search results, and content based on a user’s interests and location.
Improving our services and user experience: We use user activity and feedback to improve our services and user experience. This includes analyzing user behavior on our website, identifying areas for improvement, and implementing changes to improve the user experience.
Localizing content and services: We use location information to provide localized content and services. This includes providing content in a user’s preferred language, offering services that are relevant to a user’s location, and tailoring search results based on a user’s location.
Conducting research: We may use aggregated user data to conduct research on family history and genealogy. This research may be published or shared with third parties, but it will never include personal identifying information.
Resolving issues with user accounts or services: We use customer service information to resolve issues with user accounts or services. This includes responding to support tickets, providing technical assistance, and addressing user concerns.
Complying with legal obligations: We may use user information to comply with legal obligations, such as responding to court orders, or to investigate and prevent fraud or illegal activity
What legal basis are we processing the data under
There exist several grounds on which we process your personal information, including:
Contractual: We require your information to fulfill the contract for the goods or services you have ordered, such as payment and delivery.
Legal: We may need to contact you regarding a purchase or service as required by law.
Legitimate interest: This type of processing is beneficial to oret , allowing us to manage our customer relationships effectively and improve our goods and services by understanding how our online provisions are used and identifying which products are popular with specific groups of individuals.
Consent: We will process your information for marketing purposes only if you have given us your consent.
Account Deactivation and Reactivation
we understand that you may need to take a break from using our services for a while, or even permanently deactivate your account. We respect your privacy and want to make it easy for you to control your data. That’s why we offer a simple process for deactivating and reactivating your account, as described below.
To deactivate your account, log in to your account and go to the “Privacy Settings” page. There, you will find an option to “Deactivate Account”. Clicking this option will prompt you to confirm your decision, and provide an opportunity to provide feedback on why you are deactivating your account.
Once you confirm your decision, your account will be immediately deactivated. Your profile and personal information will no longer be visible to other users, and you will no longer receive notifications or updates from us However, we may retain certain information about your account in accordance with our data retention policies
Reactivating Your Account If you change your mind and want to reactivate your account, simply log in to your account using your existing login credentials. You will be prompted to reactivate your account and confirm your decision. Once you do so, your account will be immediately reactivated, and your profile and personal information will become visible to other users once again.
Note that if you reactivate your account after a period of deactivation, we may need to refresh certain information (e.g., your account preferences, settings, or activity) to ensure that you have an up-to-date experience. Additionally, some data may have been permanently deleted in accordance with our data retention policies, and may not be recoverable.
In case you need extra assistance, you may email us at privacy@oret.africa to request us to help delete any information that you wish to have deleted, and your request shall be carried out promptly by our staff unless it is examined and believed to be illegitimate.
Disclosing Information to Third Parties
We will not share, rent, sell, or otherwise disclose any personal information that we collect about you through our websites, except in any of the following situations or otherwise described in this Privacy Policy:
You request or authorize the release of your personal information.
We may disclose personal information to our third-party contractors and payment processors who perform services for us in connection with the Websites, or to complete or confirm a transaction or series of transactions that you conduct with us. We may also disclose personal information to service providers or suppliers if the disclosure will enable that party to perform business, professional, or technical support for us.
We may disclose personal information to comply with the law, applicable regulations, governmental and quasi-governmental requests, court orders, to enforce our Terms of Use or other agreements; or to protect our rights, property, or safety or the rights, property, or safety of our users or others. We reserve the right to release information that we collect to law enforcement or other government officials, as we, in our sole and absolute discretion, deem necessary or appropriate.
We may also share aggregated or anonymous information that cannot identify you with third parties. For example, we may disclose the number of visitors to our websites or the number of people who have downloaded a particular document.
Research purposes. We may use your data for the purpose of doing general research on genealogy
How we protect your information
We have taken measures to safeguard your personal information from unauthorized access, alteration, loss, disclosure or misuse. Our security measures include technical, physical, and administrative safeguards. We regularly review and update our privacy practices to ensure our Service’s security, restrict access to personal information to authorized personnel only, and collaborate with labs and third parties that adhere to our security standards.
Our technical security measures include the use of firewalls, encryption, and intrusion detection systems to protect against unauthorized access to our systems and networks.
Our administrative security measures include the implementation of policies and procedures that govern the collection, storage, use, and disclosure of personal information. We also provide training to our employees on how to handle personal information and require them to sign confidentiality agreements.
In the event of a data breach or security incident, we have established protocols in place to respond quickly, investigate the incident, and notify affected individuals as required by law.
We also conduct regular audits and assessments of our security measures to ensure that they remain effective and up-to-date with evolving threats and industry best practices.
Modifications to this Privacy Policy
In the event that changes are made to our Privacy Policy, we will provide a revised version with an updated date label, and we will also send an email notification if the changes are significant. If you do not wish for us to use or store your information according to the updated policy, you can delete your account or contact us at privacy@oret.africa and request that we do it for you.
Data retention
We will only retain your personal information for the duration required to accomplish the purpose for which it was collected and to adhere to applicable laws. This means that we will store your personal information for as long as necessary to provide our services, except where we have a legitimate reason for keeping it for an extended period (such as using your contact details for marketing our services after your subscription expires). Additionally, we will hold on to the personal information necessary for the completion of outstanding tasks and to protect our legal rights and claims. We may also retain some personal information for a legally mandatory period (in which case, we limit the processing of such data).
In certain cases, when you or we delete your content, copies of that data may continue to be visible elsewhere, to the extent that any such copy has been shared with others, was distributed according to your privacy settings, or was copied or saved by other users. For example, a portion of your family tree may have been reproduced by other users in their own family tree. While deleted and removed information may persist in backup copies for a limited period for our internal business purposes, it will not be available to you or other users.
Your rights regarding your Personal Information
Regarding your personal information, you have the right to modify it through your account settings, and you can also request Oret to correct any inaccurate or misleading information they have about you. To ensure that the request is made by the correct person, If you wish to request any changes to your personal information held by Oret, you must submit a written request to Oret
Withdrawing Consent
You have the right to withdraw your consent to any processing that is currently being done under your consent, such as marketing. Consent can be withdrawn by updating your preferences in the email preference center
Obtaining a copy of your Information; You have the right to receive a copy of the personal information we hold about you
Correcting your Information; You are entitled to have your personal information updated to ensure it is up to date and accurate. In order to maintain the accuracy of the information we hold; you can update your personal
Cookies
We use browser cookies and similar automated technologies to collect data that can enhance your experience when visiting our website. This includes features like avoiding repeated messages, saving your login details, and remembering your display language preference. If you choose to disable or delete cookies from your computer, certain parts of our services may not function correctly or at all.
We utilize cookies and other similar automated data collection technologies to improve your browsing experience on our website. These technologies help us to prevent displaying certain messages multiple times, store your login details for easy access, and remember your preferred language settings so that you don’t have to choose them every time you visit the website.
To learn more about our use of cookies and other automated data collection technologies and how you can manage them, please refer to our Cookie Policy.
If you are using a web browser (e.g., Google Chrome, Mozilla Firefox or Microsoft Edge), you have the ability to accept or decline cookies by modifying the settings in your browser. Please refer to your browser instructions or help screen to learn more about the functions which your browser provides to manage cookies. If you use different browsers and/or different devices you may need to ensure that each browser is adjusted to suit your cookie preferences.
Non-personal information we collect
When you browse our website, we may automatically collect non-personal information, including but not limited to the source website, computer specifications, screen resolution, operating system version, mobile device details (if applicable), internet browser, and demographic data such as your location.
Non-personal information also includes personal information that has been aggregated in a way that it cannot identify you or any other user of the Website. For example, we may use personal information to determine the percentage of our users from a particular country or gender. Since non-personal information does not reveal your identity, we can use it for any purpose, and we may share it with others. Although some web browsers and devices offer an option to avoid online tracking, we do not alter your online experience based on this signal
Third parties
We collaborate with third-party service providers to assist us in running, enhancing, integrating, customizing, supporting, and promoting our service. We may share some personal data with specific parties for specific purposes, these third-party service providers may include:
Cloud storage providers, such as Amazon
Payment processing service providers, like M-Pesa;
Delivery service providers, including G4s;
Data analytics providers, such as Facebook, Google
Marketing partners, which may include social media networks, marketing agencies, and email delivery services, such as Facebook, Google, and MailChimp;
Age consent
The services offered are not intended for or designed to attract individuals under the age of 18, and as a policy, we do not knowingly collect any personally identifiable information from children under the age of 18. If we become aware that a child under 18 has provided us with personal information, we will take reasonable steps to remove it from our records. If you, as a parent or legal guardian, provide information regarding a child, you consent to our processing and use of that information in accordance with this Privacy Policy.
If We need to rely on consent as a legal basis for processing Your information and Your country requires consent from a parent, we may require Your parent’s consent before We collect and use that information.
Business transfers/ acquisition
Our business may undergo changes such as expansion or reduction, which could involve selling or transferring control of all or part of our business. We may also merge with or acquire other businesses. If any of these scenarios occur and your data is relevant to the transferred part of our business, it may be transferred or merged along with that part, and the new owner or controller will be permitted to use the data for its original purpose as outlined in this Policy.
If your data is to be transferred in any of these situations, we will notify you in advance of the changes.
Managing your privacy
You have the ability to manage your personal information sharing by adjusting your privacy settings in specific areas such as a Privacy Preferences you can control your privacy the types of emails you receive, including marketing emails and other non-transactional emails, by turning them off or on through the conveniently provided in the settings. For Family site emails, there is a link at the footer to the site preferences page where you can unsubscribe from or re-subscribe to event reminder emails and family site activity newsletter emails.
Contacting us
If you need to get in touch with us regarding privacy matters, you can contact or by sending an email to privacy@oret.africa , which is our dedicated privacy email address.
