Revised November 22^nd, 2019.

Calm Seas Software, LLC, the company that created and owns Tools4Church, understands the importance of your privacy and that of your church’s members and others associated with your church. We collect data in order to provide, evaluate, and enhance the features of Tools4Church. This policy covers what data we collect and how we collect, use, share, and store that data.

1. Information Collection

a. Information You or Others Provide to Us

We may collect information anytime you interact with us including but not limited to through this website / app, in person, or via telephone, e-mail, mail or text messaging.  We also may receive information from other organizations we work with, for example when a church uses Tools4Church as part of their work with Horizons Stewardship or when a church interacts with us via social media or on-line advertising.

The information provided to us depends on the context of your interactions with us and may include: 

• Contact information, such as name, address, phone number and email address.
• Information about or from your interactions with our website / app.
• Payment information.
• Family information.
• Demographic information.
• Church and/or denominational affiliation.
• Job title and functions.
• Financial pledge and contribution details and history.
• Attendance details and history.
• Notes relating to you made by Tools4Church users and/or users of your church’s information system(s).
• Information about your church including contribution funds, pledge drives, giving methods, and facilities where church personnel make visits and other contacts with people associated with your church.
• Survey responses.
• Information from social media.
• Any other information you provide us.

b. Information We Collect Automatically

Similar to many websites and apps, we collect some information automatically when you interact with the website/app, including your IP address, browser and device characteristics, date and time you visit the website/app, which pages on the website/app you visit, and your time zone. This information does not identify you but could be combined with other information in a way that could identify you.

We also use “cookies” on your device. Cookies are small pieces of information stored on your device that identify you and store small bits of information related to your use of Tools4Church, for example, your logged-in status and whether or not you prefer to see usage hints within Tools4Church. We may also allow other parties to place cookies on your device.  For more information see the “Cookies and Similar Technologies” section below. Not all information collected in this way can be used to identify you.

2. How We Use Your Information

We use your information to communicate about, provide, evaluate, and enhance the features and services of Tools4Church including for the following specific purposes:

• Provide the services and features of the Tools4Church website / app;
• Communicate Tools4Church features and use;
• Communicate scheduled and unscheduled service outages and maintenance and/or changes to terms, conditions, and policies;
• Advertise new features and/or products or services;
• Establish and maintain user and church accounts;
• Communicate billing and account information;
• Provide technical and usage support;
• Verify your identity;
• Solicit feedback;
• Analyze Tools4Church usage patterns to understand current usage and plan future development, features, and enhancements;
• Verify that Tools4Church is working properly;
• Match the information with other information about you, for example in your church’s information system(s);
• Create aggregated, anonymized or de-identified information, which we may use and disclose without restriction (for instance, for analysis, research or marketing purposes).
• Investigate, prevent, or take action regarding fraudulent, unlawful or harmful activities, or activities that violate the Tools4Church Terms of Use;
• Facilitate any other purpose for which you provided the information; and
• For any use you otherwise agree to.

3. How We Share Your Information

We share information to comply with laws, to protect your rights, to provide you services, and/or to fulfill business obligations. Our sharing of information includes, but is not limited to, the following specific situations:

• Other Tools4Church users that are associated with your church account may be able to view your information through the services of the Tools4Church website / app such as your name, pastoral care notes you have taken, facility records you have created or modified, and your reminders.
• Third party service providers may be able to view or use your information for software development and maintenance; initial setup of church and user accounts; website hosting; billing, email, advertising and marketing; and other functions. Any of the information described in Section 1 of this Privacy Policy could potentially be shared with a service provider.
• Trusted partners, for example Horizons Stewardship, may be able to view or use your information to conduct statistical or administrative analysis; to provide, evaluate, and improve their services; and/or to match you or your church with services or products.
• A church may be able to view or use your information if both it and your church opt-in to see and share how certain demographics or trends compare to an aggregated average of the same demographics and trends for other churches that have also opted-in – for example, to see how its giving distribution by age compares with the average giving distribution by age of other churches that have opted-in to see and share that information.
• Your information may be shared to help detect and address fraud, credit risk, security or technical issues.
• Your information may be shared when we believe that sharing is necessary to take action regarding possible unlawful activities or to comply with legal process or other legal requirements.
• If Calms Seas Software or Tools4Church changes ownership, we will share information with the new owners.
• Your information may be shared without restriction when the information is aggregated, anonymized or de-identified.
• Your information may be shared in any other circumstances where we have your permission or are otherwise permitted by law to share it.

4. How We Store Your Information

Tools4Church stores certain personal information in order to provide its services and/or to provide them in a fast, efficient manner. For example, the Tools4Church Pastoral Care Tool enables users to record notes related to congregation members and others associated with the church. Tools4Church stores those notes. When Tools4Church is connected to a church’s information system(s) it may make a copy of some information such as first and last names of donors and contribution records to allow for quick retrieval and summarization when we have determined that retrieving the data directly from the church’s information system(s) during the use of Tools4Church would be prohibitively slow. When Tools4Church is not connected to a church’s information system(s) and instead receives its data from the upload of a spreadsheet(s), Tools4Church saves a copy of the data that it needs to provide its functionality.

5. Cookies and Similar Technologies

We and third parties use automated means to collect information about you and your device when you use our website /app.  These automated means include technologies such as cookies, server logs, Web beacons, invisible pixels, and JavaScript, as well as functionality that can collect data from a mobile device.

Cookies.  Your internet browser may be able to notify you when you receive certain types of cookies, or be able to restrict, delete, or disable certain cookies. Please note that without cookies you may not be able to use any or all of the features of Tools4Church.

Server Logs. Our servers may log information such as your device type, operating system type, browser type, domain, and other system settings, as well as the language your system uses and the country and time zone where your device is located. They also may log information about your interaction with our website / app, such as which pages you visit.

Web Beacons, Invisible Pixels, and JavaScript. We may place certain elements on our website and in e-mails called "Web beacons" or “invisible pixels”. These allow Calm Seas Software and third party service providers to track when you use Tools4Church and/or open e-mail messages. This information may be anonymous, such as when counting how many people visit the Tools4Church website each day, or it may personally identify you such as when tracking when an e-mail message has been opened. JavaScript is a programming language attached to web pages that can record and/or send similar information to Calm Seas Software or third parties. You can disable image loading and JavaScript in web browsers and e-mail software to prevent this type of information-sharing. Disabling JavaScript in the web browser will prevent Tools4Church from functioning properly.

Do Not Track Signals. Tools4Church does not look for or respond to do not track signals. 

6. Access to Personal Information

Accessing Your Information. You may have a right to request that we give you access to your information, delete or modify your information, or opt out of having your information sold. You may exercise your rights by contacting us using the information provided in this policy. We do our best to consider all requests of this nature, even if we are not legally required to do so.

Tools4Church may source some or even most of your personal information from your church’s information system(s). In those instances you will also need to contact your church to ensure that any corrections or removal of data happens in the system(s) in which the data originates.

Other Opt-Out Choices.  We may provide you additional choices regarding our communications with you.  For example, we may send e-mails about Tools4Church features, additional functionality or services to which you may want to subscribe, and other information in which we think you may have an interest. These e-mails will include a way to opt out or unsubscribe if you do not wish to receive them. You may not unsubscribe from certain e-mails necessary to your use of Tools4Church such as billing notices.

7. Children’s Information

We do not knowingly solicit data from or market to children under 13 years of age.  If we learn that personal information from users less than 13 years of age has been solicited, we may immediately take measures to delete such data from our records.  If you believe we might have solicited any information from your children or any other child under 13, please contact us using the information below. We do store information about children under 13 years of age, because the data we receive from churches sometimes contains information about children (i.e. ages, family relationships, addresses, giving history).

8. Data Security

We take the security of your data very seriously. We encrypt all data transmissions between browsers and Tools4Church servers as well as between Tools4Church servers and church information systems. When we store your data we segregate each church’s data from every other church’s data and employ unique access requirements for each church. We use a separate system with independent controls that may store data related to multiple churches when that data pertains to account information or the automatic sending of reminders. We restrict access to information to those employees, contractors, and agents who need to know that information in order to complete assigned duties. Financial transactions and billing information are processed by a third party. Payment information such as credit card numbers is not stored by Tools4Church.

No organization can provide complete assurances that its security measures will avoid all risks or breaches.  If a breach occurs, we will contact you using any means available to us within 7 business days insofar as consistent with 1) needs of law enforcement and 2) measures necessary to determine the scope of the breach and restore the reasonable integrity of the Tools4Church system.

You should carefully protect the personal information you submit on the website / app — including your passwords, username, location, images, and videos — so that third parties cannot manipulate your accounts or assume your identity. You should not disclose any sensitive information in the public domain.

9. Third Party Links, Programs and Services

Our website / app may contain links to third party websites or services.  When you interact with these websites or services, those parties’ privacy policies – not ours – will apply. We are not responsible for the content, security, or practices of any third parties.  We do not vet, endorse or make any representations about third parties or their websites, applications, or services.

10. Updating User Information

You are permitted to correct, update, or change your personal information, or adjust or cease the frequency with which you receive company communications. You also have the ability to disable your account, in accordance with the Terms of Use. You can update your personal information including disabling your account, and users with administrative privileges can update church-related information and disable a church account by contacting us using the information below. Personal or church information sourced from your church’s information system(s) must be corrected in those systems. Non-required e-mail communications will include a link for adjusting their frequency or unsubscribing.

11. Changes to this Privacy Policy

We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time. The updated version will be indicated by an updated “Revised” date and the updated version will be effective as soon as it is accessible. Your continued use of this website / app after we make changes is acceptance of those changes, so we encourage you to review this Privacy Policy frequently to be informed of how we are protecting your information. We may also notify you of material changes via email or through a notice on the website / app.

12. Contact Us

If you have any questions about this Privacy Policy or about how we use your information, please contact us at privacy@Tools4Church.com.