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AEIS
PRIVACY STATEMENT
Protecting your
privacy is important to us. We hope the following statement will help
you understand how American Express Incentive Services, L.L.C., a joint
venture of Maritz and American Express, collects, uses, and safeguards
the personal information you provide to us on our websites.
SECURITY
When you send
confidential personal account data to us on an American Express Incentive
Services website, we require that a "secure session" first be established
using Secure Socket Layer (SSL), or Secure Electronic Transaction (SET)
protocol when that is fully available.
Some of our websites
may require that you provide us with confidential personal data. Before
this data is transmitted, these sites will first establish a "secure
session" using Secure Socket Layer (SSL). SSL technology encodes information
as it is being sent over the Internet between your computer and our
systems, helping to ensure that the information remains confidential.
For further information about SSL and how we safeguard personal data
transmission over the Internet, please read our Security
Q & A.
Your browser will
contain an indicator of whether or not you are transmitting data in
a secure session. For example, a broken key symbol may appear in the
bottom bar to indicate you are visiting an insecure site, an unbroken
key a secure site.
American Express
Incentive Services realizes how important security is to you, and we
take seriously our responsibility to protect the personal information
you may provide us over the Internet.
You should be aware
that e-mail is not a completely secure channel of communication at present.
Please do not use e-mail to send us sensitive information such as account
numbers, social security numbers, PIN numbers, mother's maiden name,
or passwords.
We are continually
seeking technical solutions to assure the confidentiality and security
of all the information you provide to us online. We will keep you informed
on our websites when we implement significant new safety enhancements.
INFORMATION
COLLECTION
When you browse any American Express Incentive Services website, you
do so anonymously. Personal information -- including your e-mail address
-- is not collected. Some of our websites, however, may request that
you voluntarily supply us with personal information, including your
e-mail address and account number (if you are an American Express Incentive
Services cardmember), for purposes such as correspondence, site registration,
checking the balance on your card, or participating in online surveys.
Like many other
websites, the American Express Incentive Services website may utilize
a standard technology called a "cookie" to collect information about
how our site is used. Please read About Cookies
for more information.
INFORMATION
USE
If you provide
us with your e-mail address, we may upon occasion send you e-mail offers.
We may use information you have given us to, for example, provide a
service, ensure proper posting of transactions, measure interest in
our various services, and inform you about products and services. These
offers may be based on information you provided in your initial transaction
with us, in surveys, from information that may indicate purchasing preferences
and lifestyle, as well as information available from external sources,
such as census bureau data. Primarily, these e-mail offers will come
from American Express Incentive Services.
All offers are carefully
developed to ensure that they meet our standards. Our goal is to target
offers to people who we believe will find them of value. The lists used
to send you product and service offers are developed and managed under
strict conditions designed to safeguard the security and privacy of
customer personal information.
DECLINING
E-MAIL OFFERS
Although most
customers tell us they appreciate receiving notice of carefully designed
opportunities, we recognize the importance of providing you with choices.
At any time, you may request to discontinue receiving these offers from
us by simply replying to the e-mail and informing us of your preferences
or e-mailing us at webmanager@aeis.com.
CHILDREN
American Express
Incentive Services does not knowingly solicit data from children, and
we do not knowingly market to children.
COMPANY
COMMITMENT TO PRIVACY
American Express
Incentive Services, in conjunction with American Express, is actively
involved with current industry initiatives to preserve individual privacy
rights on the Internet and in all aspects of electronic commerce.
The Internet Privacy
Statement is currently applicable only to our United States customers
and visitors to our website.
ABOUT
COOKIES
Cookies were originally
designed to help a website distinguish a user's browser as a previous
visitor and thus save and remember any preferences that may have been
set while the user was browsing the site. A cookie is a small string
of text that a website can send to your browser. A cookie cannot
retrieve any other data from your hard drive, pass on computer viruses,
or capture your e-mail address. Currently, websites use cookies
to enhance the user's visit; in general, cookies can securely store
a user's ID and password, personalize home pages, identify which parts
of a site have been visited, or keep track of selections in a "shopping
cart."
If you are just
browsing an American Express Incentive Services website, a cookie identifies
only your browser. If you become a registered user on an American Express
Incentive Services website (with a designated user ID and password),
we may use cookies so that we can provide personalized information that
we believe will be of value to you based on preferences you have indicated
while visiting the site. It is possible to set your browser to inform
you when a cookie is being placed -- this way, you have the opportunity
to decide whether to accept the cookie. If you are just browsing our
site and are not a registered user, you do not have to accept a cookie
and you may still continue utilizing the site. However, if you are visiting
a site where you will be accessing your confidential information, you
must accept that site's cookies, as they are essential for site administration
and security. By accepting a cookie, keep in mind that your choice to
decline e-mail offers remains unaffected.
Here is how to set
your cookie preferences:
Netscape Navigator
3: Select Network Preferences from the Options menu. From the Network
Preferences menu, select the Protocols tab and modify your preference
if you wish to be warned before accepting cookies.
Netscape Navigator
4: Select Preferences from the Edit menu. From the Preferences menu,
select Advanced, and several options for cookies will be listed in the
lower right of the menu. Additionally, you may select Help for more
details. For further information about the Netscape browser and use
of cookies, visit Netscape's website.
Microsoft Internet
Explorer 3: Select Options from the View menu. Choose the Advanced
menu to modify your preference if you wish to be warned before accepting
cookies.
Microsoft Internet
Explorer 4: Select Options form the View menu. Chose the Advanced
menu and scroll to the section labeled "Cookies," where several options
are listed. For further information about the Microsoft Internet Explorer
browser and use of cookies, visit Microsoft's
website.
AOL: If you
are using AOL v3.0 for Windows 95: Select Preferences from the Members
menu. Click on the WWW icon and select Advanced. Modify your preference
if you wish to be warned before accepting cookies.
If you are using
the following AOL browsers, you will not be able to set cookie preferences
since these browsers automatically accept cookies:
- AOL v3.0 for
Windows 3.0, using AOL's proprietary browser or AOL's version
of Microsoft Internet Explorer v3.0;
- AOL for the
MAC, using AOL's version of Microsoft Internet Explorer 2.1
All other
earlier versions of AOL browsers do not support cookies, and therefore
cannot authenticate you as a registered user on American Express Incentive
Services websites that involve sending or receiving personal account
information.
SECURITY
Q & A
American Express
Incentive Services realizes how important security is to you, so
we've taken a number of steps that help enhance the safety and confidentiality
of transmissions of private information sent from American Express Incentive
Services over the Internet.
Q.
Is my confidential information secure?
A. Whenever American
Express Incentive Services asks you to send confidential information
over the Internet, including personal account data, we require that
a "secure session" using SSL first be established.
Q.
What is a "secure session" and how does it help keep my information
safe?
A. During a secure
SSL session, data passed back and forth between your computer and American
Express Incentive Services systems is secured by using public key cryptography.
Your computer exchanges key information with American Express Incentive
Services computers to create a private conversation that only your computer
and American Express Incentive Services systems can understand.
Q.
What specifically is SSL?
A. Any time you
access or supply card account information or personal information in
one of our secure online areas, that information is encrypted by a technology
called Secure Sockets Layer, often abbreviated as SSL. SSL technology
secretly encodes information as it is being sent over the Internet between
your computer and American Express Incentive Services systems, helping
to ensure that the information remains confidential. The use of SSL
requires two components: an SSL-compatible browser and a web server
to perform the "key-exchange" that establishes an SSL connection to
American Express Incentive Services web server systems.
Q.
What type of browser do I need?
A. To benefit from
SSL technology, you will need a browser with SSL capabilities. Examples
of SSL browsers include Netscape 2.0, Microsoft's Internet Explorer
2.0, and the web browser for American Online version 3.0 for Windows.
(Note that some older versions of browsers will not support SSL sessions.)
If you don't already have a browser with SSL capabilities, you can download
an SSL browser from either of the links below.
Q.
What type of connection do I need?
A. Nearly all Internet
Service Providers (ISPs) automatically enable the SSL session described
above, as do most online services such as America Online, CompuServe,
and Prodigy. If you use your company's internal connection to access
the Internet and you find you cannot access American Express Incentive
Services secured pages with an SSL browser described above, your company
may be blocking access via a "firewall." Please speak to your firm's
Internet access systems administrator for further details on your network's
Internet access.
Q.
When do I enter into a "secure SSL session?"
A. Secure SSL sessions
are established in American Express Online Services areas where your
personal information is being transmitted, including: · Getting Your
Account/Point Balance · Online Services Registration · Lead Inquiry
Information · Account Activity Statement
Q.
Why do I need an ID and password?
A. Some areas require
the use of an ID and password as an additional security measure that
helps protect your confidential information. This lets American Express
Incentive Services verify exactly who you are, thereby allowing you
access to your account information, and helping prevent unauthorized
access.
Q.
Why can I still see some of my secured information even after I have
pressed the "Exit Secure Area" link?
A. Browser software
often "caches" pages as you look at them, meaning that some pages are
saved in your computer's temporary memory. Therefore, you may find that
clicking on your back button shows you a saved version of a previously
viewed page. Please keep in mind that caching in no way affects the
security of your confidential User-ID or password. If you use your computer
in a public place, please read "What should I do if I am using a 'public'
computer?" below.
Q.
What should I do if I am using a "public" computer?
A. If you use a
computer that others also work on and you are uncomfortable that they
may view "cached" pages after you have left the station, then please
quit/exit your browser software before leaving. This will decrease the
possibility of anyone viewing confidential information. No other users
will be able to access your card account information online without
your User-ID and password.
Q.
What are "Cookies?" Do I need to accept them?
A. A cookie is a
text file on your computer that reminds our system of your particular
browser preferences and security requirements and lets American Express
Incentive Services know exactly who you are. If your browser prompts
you when a cookie is "served," you must accept it or access to confidential
information will be denied, because we will not be able to ensure that
the data is being sent to the proper parties. Because cookies are site
specific, only American Express Online services can access, decode,
and make use of the information.
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