Introduction
The MIT Press is committed to supporting the privacy of our website users. This Privacy Statement explains how we handle and use the personal information we collect about users.
What personal information we collect
While specific information may vary for particular individuals, we may collect, use, store and transfer different kinds of personal information about you, which we have grouped together as follows:
- Basic biographic/contact information – name, user name, home and/or business address, institutional affiliation, phone number, email address, and social media contact information
- Your IP address and unique device identifier
- Usage data that is generated when you connect with us, such as date and time stamp, referring and exit pages, and pages that you have visited
- Product preferences – what book, journal, and newsletter topics you are interested in
- Data about your search history (saved searches), if you have created a personal profile with respect to any of our products or services
- Analytical information – aggregated information related to web visitor activity and email marketing actions
How we collect personal information about you
We obtain information directly from you when you give us your information in order to purchase or use our publications, services, or marketing materials, or when you otherwise interact with our web pages. We may obtain personal information from scholarly societies and other entities with whom we collaborate on publishing projects. We also collect information through our servers by means of cookies, web beacons, and other tools. You can control technologies such as cookies through your browser settings. However, changing your browser settings may impact your experience with our site.
How we use your personal information
We collect and process your personal information only to fulfill contractual obligations to you, to facilitate our interactions with you, to comply with our legal obligations, and/or in furtherance of legitimate MIT Press interests. We do not sell your personal information to third parties. Without limitation of the foregoing, we may use your personal information as follows:
- To fulfill orders and subscriptions for our publications,
- To send you announcements and other promotional information concerning MIT Press books, journals, and other products,
- To conduct surveys, and
- To analyze usage of our website so as to improve our site, our user experience, and our products and services.
If you have concerns about any of these purposes, please contact us at mitp-dpo@mit.edu
When we share your personal information
To perform the functions listed above, it may be necessary to share your personal information with third party software or service providers, on a confidential basis and, where feasible, in anonymized or pseudonymized form. We may share your personal information with scholarly societies or other entities with whom we collaborate on publishing projects, if you are a subscriber or other authorized user of the publication(s) concerned.
How your information is stored and secured
MIT uses reasonable, risk-assessed administrative, technical and physical security measures to protect against the loss, misuse, and alteration of the information under our control. However, no method of transmission over the Internet or method of electronic storage is 100% secure.
Correction or deletion of your information
You may at any time request that we correct any incorrect personal information in our records, or complete personal information that is incomplete. You may at any time request that we delete your personal information from our records, and we will honor your request without undue delay, subject to the following:
- Deletion of your information may make it impossible for us to provide you with products or services you have paid for or are eligible for, and you will not necessarily be entitled to a refund.
- We will maintain a core set of personal data to ensure we do not contact you inadvertently in the future.
- We will maintain any information necessary for our archival purposes.
- We will retain information for at least as long as is necessary to comply with legal obligations, including but not limited to US IRS compliance.
- In the event of an actual or threatened legal claim, we may retain your information for purposes of establishing, defending against or exercising our rights with respect to such claim.
Any request to correct or delete information should be made through our customer support portal.
Opting out of marketing
You have the option to unsubscribe to marketing emails and/or mailings at any time. Any opt-out request should be made through our customer support portal.
Rights for Individuals in the European Economic Area and the United Kingdom
In addition to the rights described elsewhere in this Policy Statement, you have the right in certain circumstances to (1) access your personal information; (2) restrict the processing of your information; and (3) object to communications or profiling. To the extent applicable, the EU’s General Data Protection Regulation provides further information about your rights. You also have the right to lodge complaints with your national or regional data protection authority. If you are inclined to exercise these rights, we request an opportunity to discuss with you any concerns you may have. To protect the personal information we hold, we may also request further information to verify your identity when exercising these rights.
By providing personal information directly to us, you are transferring or consenting to the transfer of that information outside of the European Economic Area or the United Kingdom, as the case may be, to the United States. You understand that the current laws and regulations of the United States may not provide the same level of protection as the data and privacy laws and regulations of the EEA and UK.
You are under no statutory or contractual obligation to provide any personal data to us. Failure to provide data that we request may, however, make it impossible to obtain goods or services from us.
The controller for your personal information is Massachusetts Institute of Technology. If you are in the EEA or UK and wish to assert any of your applicable GDPR rights, please contact dataprotection@mit.edu.
Amendments to this Privacy Statement
We may change this Privacy Statement from time to time. If we make any significant changes in the way we treat your personal information we will make this clear on our website or by contacting you directly.