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Internet Privacy Policy

This is the internet privacy policy for www.forthconnect.io (the “Site”)

This Site is the property of Humankind Ventures Limited (‘Humankind’ or ‘we’), a company registered in England and Wales under company number 9082827 and with our registered office at Basepoint Business Centre, Beaufort Park, Chepstow, NP16 5UH.

We are a data controller. This means that we are responsible for deciding how we hold and use personal data about you, and for explaining this clearly to you.  We take the privacy of all visitors to this Site very seriously and therefore set out in this privacy and cookies policy our position regarding certain privacy matters and the use of cookies on this Site.

This policy covers all data that is shared by a visitor with us whether directly via www.forthconnect.io or via email. This policy is occasionally updated by us so we suggest you review it from time to time. This policy applies to visitors to our Site who do not register as well as those who do.

This policy provides an explanation as to what happens to any personal data that you share with us, or that we collect from you either directly via this Site or via email. Certain businesses are required under the Data Protection Act 2018 to have a Data Protection Officer. Our Data Protection Officer is Christopher Baines and can be contacted via email at help@forthsupport.co.uk

Information we collect from you

Personal data, or personal information, means any information about an individual from which that person can be identified.   

We collect personal data from users of the Site (“Users”) in a variety of ways, including, but not limited to, when Users visit our Site, place an order, and in connection with other activities, services, features or resources we make available on our Site.

If you order a test via the Site we collect, as appropriate, name, email address, postal address, phone number, sex, menopause status and date of birth (DOB).  This information is necessary to enable us to perform the test.  Without this information we cannot provide our service to you.

We process special categories of more sensitive personal data which require a higher level of protection, including biometric information and data concerning your physical or mental health.  We collect and share special category data solely as necessary to carry out a particular test.  Such information is voluntarily provided by you at the point of ordering a test, and you consent to our use of that information (and to the third party providers identified in this notice) for the purpose of carrying out the test and reporting the results back to you.

We, and third parties performing services on our behalf, may process special category data for the purpose of medical diagnosis, pursuant to a contract with a regulated health professional under an obligation of professional secrecy.

We may process special category data without your consent to the extent necessary as required by law or to protect your (or another person’s) vital interests where you are not able to give consent.

Users may visit our Site anonymously. With the exception of information collected in accordance with our Cookies Policy (below), we collect personal data from Users only if they voluntarily submit such information to us. Users can always refuse to supply personal data, except that it may prevent them from engaging in certain Site related activities.

Non-personal identification information

We may collect non-personal identification information about Users whenever they interact with our Site. Non-personal identification information may include the browser name, the type of computer and technical information about Users means of connection to our Site, such as the operating system and the Internet service providers utilized and other similar information.

Web browser cookies

Our Site may use “cookies” to enhance User experience. User’s web browser places cookies on their hard drive for record-keeping purposes and sometimes to track information about them. User may choose to set their web browser to refuse cookies, or to alert you when cookies are being sent. If they do so, note that some parts of the Site may not function properly.

For more information click here to view our Cookie Policy.

How we use collected information

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 the contract we are about to enter into or 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.
  • Where we need to comply with a legal obligation.

Generally, we do not rely on consent as a legal basis for processing your personal data although we will get your consent before sending third party direct marketing communications to you via email or text message. You have the right to withdraw consent to marketing at any time by contacting us. 

Humankind Ventures Ltd may collect and use Users personal data for the following purposes:

  • To improve customer service
    Information such as name and order reference number you provide, helps us respond to your customer service requests and support needs more efficiently. This is necessary for the legitimate interest of improving our Site and our services.  We only do this to the extent that your right to privacy does not override our legitimate interests.
  • To improve our Site
    We may use feedback you provide to improve our products and services. This is necessary for the legitimate interest of improving our Site and our services.  We only do this to the extent that your right to privacy does not override our legitimate interests.
  • To perform the contract between us and process payments
    We may use the information Users provide about themselves when placing an order only to provide the service that you have ordered. We may share this information with third parties described in more detail below, to the extent necessary to provide the service or otherwise with our consent, our use of information for this purpose is necessary to perform the contract between us.
  • To run a promotion, competition, survey or other Site feature
    We may use your name and contact details for this purpose, this is necessary for the legitimate interest of providing these features on our Site.  We only do this to the extent that your right to privacy does not override our legitimate interest and you can opt out of participating in promotions, competitions and surveys at any time by contacting help@forthsupport.co.uk
     
  • To send Users information about topics we think will be of interest                         
    We only send marketing materials by email with your consent. You can opt out of receiving this information at any time at  help@forthsupport.co.uk
  • To manage product reviews and ratings
    Your email address may be shared with Trustpilot (https://www.trustpilot.com/) who may contact you via email to provide a service/product review. You can opt out of participating in product reviews at any time at help@forthsupport.co.uk
  • To send periodic emails
    We may use the email address to send User information and updates pertaining to their order. It may also be used to respond to their inquiries, questions, and/or other requests. Such contact is necessary to perform our contract with you and otherwise for the legitimate interest of managing our business provided that your right to privacy does not override those interests.

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 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, where this is required or permitted by law. information without your knowledge or consent, where this is required or permitted by law.

Sharing your personal data

We may use your personal data for our own business analysis, product development and marketing. We do not sell, trade, or rent Users personal data to others. 

We may share generic (anonymised) aggregated information not linked to any personal data with our business partners, trusted affiliates and other third parties. Aggregated data is not considered Personal Data in its statistical long form as it does not directly or indirectly reveal your identity. We will not sell or pass on your personal information to third parties to enable them to contact you directly or market their products or services to you. 

We use third party service providers to help us operate our business and the Site or administer activities on our behalf, such as sending out newsletters or surveys.  All of our third-party service providers are required to take appropriate security measures to protect your personal data in line with our policies. We do not allow our third-party service providers to use your personal data for their own purposes.

Upon purchasing, your personal data will be shared with applicable third parties to ensure the running of the service we provide. These include:

  • Your email address and order reference number will be shared with a third party payment gateway; Stripe (https://stripe.com/) who will securely administer the payment of our service on our behalf. When making a payment, you’re entering your information such as card number, CSV number and postcode directly into Stripe and is not stored within the Humankind Ventured Ltd database.
  • Your name and address will be shared with a third party dispatch company who will administer the dispatch of your kit on our behalf.
  • If a phlebotomy service has been requested, your name, telephone, email, DOB and home/office address will be provided to our third party medical service provider who will administer the phlebotomy service on our behalf.
  • Your name, sex and DOB will be shared with our accredited labs. This is required to provide results specific to you. As the lab is conducting the analyses, they will have access to your results once completed.
  • Your name, sex, menopause stage, DOB, Email address, telephone number, profile information and results may be shared with a registered healthcare professional who may view and comment on your results.
  • Your name and email address will be shared with a third party customer support software; FreshDesk (Freshworks.com).

Disclosing your information

Where applicable, we may disclose your personal data to any member of our group. This includes, where applicable, our subsidiaries, our holding company and its other subsidiaries.

We may also disclose your personal data to third parties:

  • Where we sell any or all of our business and/or our assets to a third party.
  • Where we are legally required to disclose your information.
  • To assist fraud protection and minimise credit risk.

Storing your personal data

We have put in place appropriate security measures to prevent your personal data from being accidentally lost, used or accessed in an unauthorised way, altered or disclosed. We have put in place procedures to deal with any suspected data security breach and will notify you and any applicable regulator of a suspected breach where we are legally required to do so.

Personal data that is provided to us is stored on our secure servers inside the EEA. Details relating to any transactions entered into via our Site will be encrypted to ensure its safety against unauthorized access, alteration, disclosure or destruction of your personal data.

The transmission of information via the internet is not completely secure and therefore we cannot guarantee the security of data sent to us electronically and the transmission of such data is entirely at your own risk. Where we have given you (or where you have chosen) a password so that you can access certain areas of our Site, you are responsible for keeping this password confidential.

Electronic newsletters

If the User decides to opt-in to our mailing list, they will receive emails that may include company news, updates, related product or service information, etc. We use the third party service Brevo (Brevo.com) to help to administer activities on our behalf, such as sending out newsletters or surveys. Your personal data such as name and email address is shared with the third party but you will not be contacted unless you opt-in to receive such communications.

Email

If a User purchases a test, they will receive emails with regards to their order such as a receipt, dispatch notification and notification when results are ready. This is actioned automatically by the Humankind Ventures Ltd system however you may also be communicated directly by a member of Humankind Ventures Ltd. To send and receive emails, we use the third party service Google Mail (mail.google.com) to help to administer these activities. Depending on the purpose of the communication, your information such as name, email address and details of your order may be transmitted through this third party.

Third-party websites

You might find links to other websites on our Site. These websites should have their own privacy policies which you should check. We do not accept any responsibility or liability for their policies whatsoever as we have no control over them.

Compliance with children’s online privacy protection act

Protecting the privacy of the very young is especially important. For that reason, we do not collect personal data at our Site from those we actually know are under 18, and no part of our Site is structured to attract anyone under 18.

Your rights

You have the following rights in connection with your personal data:

  • the right to be informed about what we are doing with your personal data. This notice sets out how we use it.
  • the right to object to the processing of your personal data.
  • the right to request access to your personal data (commonly known as a “data subject access request”). This enables you to receive a copy of the personal data we hold about you and to check that we are lawfully processing it.
  • the right to request us to update the personal data we hold about you.
  • the right to request us to delete the personal data we hold about you. (the right to be forgotten).
  • the right to ask us to stop processing personal data where we are relying on a legitimate interest and there is something about your particular situation which makes you want to object to processing on this ground.
  • the right to ask us to restrict how we use your personal data for a period of time. If you ask us to restrict our use of your personal data, we may not be able to provide you with our services. 
  • the right to request us to send to another organisation, information that you have provided to us in a format that can be read by computer. 

If you want to exercise your rights please contact help@forthsupport.co.uk

We may need to request specific information from you to help us confirm your identity and ensure your right to access the information (or to exercise any of your other rights).

If you exercise the right to be forgotten the process set out below will apply.  Please note that if you ask us to delete your personal data the process is not reversible, once your information is deleted, we will not be able to provide our services to you and you will no longer be able to access your results on our Site.   To delete your personal data we will:

  • Remove your first name
  • Remove your last name
  • Remove your contact details such as email address, telephone number and home address
  • Remove profile picture (if provided)
  • Reset the password
  • Set your DOB to the 01/01/[Year of your birth]
  • Change reference numbers to any tests your may have purchased

This will anonymise the data and will no longer contain any information or data identifiable to the User.

Any personally identifiable data stored in the ‘changes log’ will be removed however your data may still be included within back-ups of up to 12 months.

Accuracy of your data and data retention

Personal data is supplied and managed by the User and is the responsibility of the User to ensure it is accurate and kept up-to-date.

We will only retain your personal data for as long as reasonably necessary to fulfil the purposes we collected it for, including for the purposes of satisfying any legal, regulatory, tax, accounting or reporting requirements. We may retain your personal data for a longer period in the event of a complaint or if we reasonably believe there is a prospect of litigation in respect to our relationship with you.

To support the accuracy of the personal data held in the Humankind Ventured Ltd database, your information will be kept for up to 7 years from the last point of contact on our main systems after which time it will be anonymised or deleted. We will endeavour to contact you via email before this is actioned.

Changes to this privacy policy

Humankind Ventures Ltd has the discretion to update this privacy policy at any time. We encourage Users to frequently check this page for any changes to stay informed about how we are helping to protect the personal information we collect. You acknowledge and agree that it is your responsibility to review this privacy policy periodically and become aware of modifications.

Your acceptance of these terms

By using this Site, you signify that you have read and understood this policy.

Contacting us

If you have any questions about this Privacy Policy, the practices of this Site, or your dealings with your data, please contact us via help@forthsupport.co.uk

If you would prefer to write to us then our contact address is Basepoint Business Centre, Beaufort Park, Chepstow, NP16 5UH.

This document was last updated on 8th July 2024.