Privacy Policy

This Privacy Policy (this “Policy”) is intended to explain the privacy practices of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Dallas (the “Diocese”) concerning your access and use of this website, https://www.cathdal.org (the “Site”), and provide you, the person accessing or using the Site and any person helping you access or use this Site (collectively, “you” or “your”), with an overview of the following:

1.  The categories of information Diocese collects about you through the Site;

2.  How Diocese collects such information;

3.  How Diocese uses such information;

4.  Who will have access to such information; and

5.  Diocese’s security measures for protecting such information.

Carefully read each and every term and condition of this Policy in its entirety.

This Policy only applies to information collected through the Site.

By accessing or using the Site, you are automatically accepting and agreeing to the most-recent version of both this Privacy Policy and the Site’s Terms of Use (which governs your access and use of the Site), and your continuing access or use of the Site reaffirms your acceptance and agreement in each instance.

1.             Categories of Information Collected Through the Site.

Diocese may collect personal and non-personal information about you through the Site.  The term “personal information” means information that would allow someone to contact you physically or online, including your name, physical address, telephone number, e-mail address, or social security number.  The term “non-personal information” means any information other than personal information that Diocese may collect from you.  The categories of personal and non-personal information that Diocese collects from you through the Site may include your:

• Name (first, last, and/or middle);
• Title;
• Address (street address, city, state, zip code, and country);
• Telephone number;
• Facsimile number;
• E-mail address;
• Organization or affiliation;
• Information to schedule tour of Diocesan Museum;
• Information to apply for a grant;
• Information for the Online Screening Form Program (including name, email, place of birth, date of birth, gender, telephone number, personal references, background information, authorization for criminal background check, social security number, driver’s license number and state);
• Feedback, comments or other submitted content; and/or
• Interaction with the Site (We may receive information about you when you interact with the Site.  We may also receive information from the mobile phone, tablet, computer or other device that you use to access the Site.  This information may include, but is not limited to, your domain and/or IP address, geo-location, device, browser type, telephone number, mobile carrier, operating system, language, access times and history, the referring or exiting website address, browser history, information relating to the content you access or visit, images or other content that you post, content that you download, communications on the Site with other users, posts in public forums, and information from cookies or other technology. We do not respond to “DO NOT TRACK” signals.)

2.             A Special Note About Minors.

The Site is not designed or intended to attract children under thirteen (13) years of age.  Diocese does not collect personal information through the Site from any person Diocese actually knows to be under thirteen (13) years of age.  If Diocese obtains actual knowledge that it has collected personal information through the Site from a person under thirteen (13) years of age, then Diocese will permanently delete such personal information from its records.  The foregoing is a description of Diocese’s voluntary practices concerning the collection of personal information through the Site from persons under thirteen (13) years of age, and is not intended to be an admission that Diocese is subject to the Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act or the Federal Trade Commission’s Children’s Online Privacy Protection Rule(s).

3.             How Information Is Collected Through the Site.

Diocese may collect personal and non-personal information from you whenever it asks you for such information, such as, for example, when you fill out a form, subscribe to a newsletter or other service, or answer an online survey or questionnaire.

In addition, if you or a third party send Diocese a comment, message or other communication (such as, by way of example only, e-mail, letter, fax, phone call, or voice message) about you or your activities on the Site, then Diocese may collect any personal or non-personal information provided therein or therewith.

By accessing or using the Site, you acknowledge and agree in each instance that you are giving Diocese permission to monitor or otherwise track your activities on the Site, and that Diocese may use the aforementioned tracking, data aggregation, and data analysis technologies in any e-mails it sends you.

4.             Use of Information Collected Through the Site.

Diocese may use your personal and non-personal information in a variety of ways, such as, for example, to:

• Fulfill your requests;
• Send you communications like, for example, e-mails, and answers to your questions;
• Provide you with information about Diocese;
• Provide you with information about third-party businesses, products, and services;
• Improve the Site’s content and features;
• Improve Diocese’s services;
• Improve Diocese’s marketing efforts;
• Analyze traffic to the Site;
• Analyze user behavior and activity on the Site;
• Conduct research and measurement activities;
• Monitor the activities of you and others on the Site;
• Protect Diocese’s rights and properties; and/or
• Protect the rights and properties of others (which may include you).

Diocese also reserves the right to use your personal and non-personal information when required by applicable law, court order, or other governmental authority (including, without limitation and by way of example only, in response to a subpoena), or when Diocese believes in good faith that such use is necessary or advisable (including, without limitation and by way of example only, to identify, contact, or bring legal action against someone who may be causing injury to or interfering with the rights, obligations, or properties of Diocese, a user of the Site [which may include you], or anyone else who may be harmed by such activities).

5.             Sharing of Information Collected Through the Site.

Except as provided in this Policy, we do not disclose or sell any non-public personal information about you to anyone except as permitted by law or when required by subpoena or other legal process; however, we may choose to disclose all of the information we collect, as described above, with Diocese’s affiliates, related programs or other trusted entities, organizations or persons for the purpose of processing personal information in connection with the Site’s objective, including without limitation to review grant requests and screen individuals for volunteer positions.  We require that these parties agree to process such information based on our instructions and in compliance with this Policy and any other appropriate confidentiality and security measures.

As we develop and grow, we may buy or sell some or all of our assets and, depending on the transaction, your personally identifiable information may be one of the transferred assets.  Similarly, if Diocese should ever merge with another entity, we may share your personal information with any entity resulting from such transaction and if Diocese should ever file for bankruptcy, the bankruptcy trustee has the right to sell the information you provide to us to a third party.

6.             Disclaimer: Third Party Advertisements, Websites, and Platforms.

The Site and/or e-mail messages sent through or as a function of the Site may contain links to third-party websites and platforms.  To the fullest extent permitted by law, Diocese is not responsible for, and you hereby release Diocese from any liability which may arise from, such third party websites and platforms (including, without limitation, the privacy policies and practices of such third-party websites and platforms).

7.            Third Party Advertisements.

Diocese may permit advertisements to be placed on the Site by various third party companies. We do not permit these companies to collect any personal information, such as your name, address, or email address.  However, these companies may set and use cookies, web beacons, pixels, or other technologies to collect your IP address, anonymous information about you, and may otherwise aggregate and analyze that data.

8.             Security.

We use what we believe to be appropriate procedures to protect information against unauthorized access and disclosure, including Hypertext Transfer Protocol Secure (HTTPS).

However, you should be aware of the limitations of security and privacy measures used in connection with the Internet and that any information you transmit through the Site may be damaged, corrupted, “sniffed” and/or accessed by another person without your permission.  Regardless of the precautions taken by you or by us, “perfect security” does not exist on the Internet.  Third parties may unlawfully intercept or access transmissions or private communications, and other users may abuse or misuse your personal information that they collect from the Site.  Therefore, although we work very hard to protect your privacy, we do not promise, and you should not expect, that your personal information or private communications will always remain private.  We cannot ensure or warrant the ultimate security of any information you transmit.

Payment processing will be performed by third party vendors which have their own security policies that relate to the data it processes.  For information about how third party vendors’ collect, maintain and use your payment information, please view that third party vendor’s Terms of Service and Privacy Policy.

To help maintain the security of your personal information, Diocese asks that you please notify it immediately of any unauthorized access or use of the Site, its features, or its content.

9..            Cookies/Tracking Technologies

We may use cookies, log files, clear gifs, web beacons or other technology.  We may use these technologies in a variety of ways, including but not limited to:

• providing custom, personalized content and information
• remembering information so that you will not have to re-enter it during your visit or the next time you visit the Site
• keeping count of return visits to our Site
• accumulating and reporting anonymous, aggregate, statistical information on Site usage
• determining which features users like best
• assessing the popularity and effectiveness of the Site
• determining whether and when an email was opened
• improving our Site and creating new services

You can refuse cookies by turning them off in your browser.  However, if you turn off cookies, then you may not be able to utilize certain features of the Site. 

10.          Choice / Opt Out.

If you wish to opt out of receiving Diocese emails, you can select the “unsubscribe” link in our email correspondence.  Please note the information that you disclosed in public areas may remain after your account is deleted.

11.          Modifications of this Policy.

Diocese may supplement, amend, or otherwise modify this Policy at any time without notice to you.  Such supplements, amendments, and other modifications will be posted on this or a similar page of the Site, and shall be deemed effective as of their stated effective date.  It is your responsibility to carefully review this Policy each time you access or use the Site.

Again, by accessing or using the Site, you are automatically accepting and agreeing to the most-recent version of this Policy, as well as the most-recent version of the Site’s Terms of Use, and your continuing access or use of the Site reaffirms your acceptance and agreement in each instance.

12.          Severability.

If any term or condition of this Policy is deemed invalid or unenforceable by a court of law with binding authority, then the remaining terms and conditions shall not be affected, and the court shall reform the invalidated or unenforceable term or condition to the maximum extent permitted under the law and consistent with the original intent of this Policy.

13.          Contact Us.

Please direct any questions or comments you may have about this Policy to Cynthia Bates.

14.          Effective Date.

The effective date of this Policy is May 1, 2015.

15.       IF YOU ARE A CALIFORNIA RESIDENT.

 California Privacy Rights.

Under California Civil Code Section 1798.83, if you are a California resident and Diocese has an established business relationship with you, you have the right to request information from Diocese, free of charge, regarding the manner in which Diocese shares certain categories of your personal information with third parties (whether collected online or offline), for the third parties’ direct marketing purposes.  California law provides that you have the right to submit a request to Diocese at its designated address and receive the following information: 1) the categories of information Diocese disclosed to third parties for the third parties’ direct marketing purposes during the preceding calendar year; 2) the names and addresses of third parties that received such information; and 3) if the nature of a third party’s business cannot be reasonably determined from the third party’s name, examples of the products or services marketed, subject to certain exceptions. You are entitled to receive a copy of this information in a standardized format and the information will not be specific to you individually. For purposes of this paragraph:

1. “Diocese” means Diocese and the Site, and
2. “Third Party” means:
   • a business that is outside the Diocese family, and
   • Affiliates of Diocese. 

You will notice that the “third parties” listed in this notice may include Diocese affiliates. These affiliates are listed as “third parties” because, under Section 1798.83, any business that is a separate legal entity must be listed as a “third party.”  

This same California law permits Diocese to provide you, in response to your written request, with a cost-free means to choose not to have your information shared rather than providing the above described information.

Please submit these requests to any one of the following:

By mail:                                ____________________, with a subject line of “California Privacy Rights”.

By e-mail:                            ____________________, with a subject line of “California Privacy Rights”.

Each such request must be labeled “Your California Privacy Rights” on the e-mail or letter subject line.  For each such request, please clearly state the nature of your request; that the request is related to “Your California Privacy Rights”; your name, street address, city, state, zip code, and e-mail address; and whether you prefer to receive a response to your request by e-mail or postal mail.  Diocese will not accept any such requests via telephone or fax.  Diocese is not responsible for any requests which are incomplete, incorrectly labeled, or incorrectly sent.

Further, Diocese does not respond to “do not track” (DNT) signals.

Finally, as explained further above, Diocese does not authorize third parties to collect your personal information when you use the Site, except as expressly stated in this Policy.  To the fullest extent permitted by law, Diocese and any of its parishes or other affiliated civil or canonical entities and their respective officers, employees, agents, representatives, volunteers, assigns, transferee, and licensees, including without limitation the Bishop of Dallas (collectively “Affiliated Parties”) are not responsible for, and you hereby release Diocese and Affiliated Parties from any liability which may arise from, such third parties’ unauthorized collection of your personal information.

In the lower left corner is a star, it represents the Lone Star of Texas. Running diagonally is a wavy line with three blue fleurs-de-lis. The fleur-de-lis, or flower of life, is a symbol of the Holy Trinity and is also the national symbol of France. In the crest both symbols are meaningful. The wavy line represents the Trinity River, whose original name was Most Holy Trinity. Three fleurs-de-lis represent the Trinity. They also recall the French priests who first served the diocese.