Help Inquiry
 

Effective Date: February 26, 2022

If you are a California resident, please click here for specific information about our privacy practices under California law.

Cobski Ruby Sales LLC (“Help Inquiry” or “we” or “us” or “our”) respects your privacy. This Privacy Policy (“Policy”) describes how we collect, use, and disclose your information. We also describe the rights and choices you have regarding our use of your information. This Policy applies to the information we collect when you interact with us, including but not limited to information provided when you access our websites (including helpinquiry.com, ww2.helpinquiry.com, and http://www.helpinquiry.com/) and however else you may interact with us (collectively, the “Platform” or “Help Inquiry Platform”).

Your use of the Platform is subject to this Privacy Policy and our Terms of Service and, if applicable, Expert Agreement (available when you apply to be an Expert).  If you do not agree with this Privacy Policy, please do not use our Platform. Undefined capitalized terms shall have the meaning set forth in the Terms of Service.

For purposes of this Policy, “Personal Information” is any information that identifies, relates to, or describes, directly or indirectly, an individual or household.

In the course of operating our Platform and delivering our products and services, we collect and process the following categories of Personal Information, which we use for typical business and commercial purposes (including compliance with legal obligations and use for auditing, security, and anti-fraud purposes) and as described more specifically below:

Information You Give Us. When you sign up for and use our Platform as a Customer or Expert (including when you use our online chatbot), we may collect and store Personal Information you provide, including:

  • Contact Information & Other Personal Identifiers. We receive the contact information or other personal identifiers you provide (including, for example, information such as your name, email address, mailing address, telephone number, signature, or similar identifiers). 
  • Expert Credentials and Identity Information. If you apply to become an Expert, we also require certain information to verify your identity and determine your eligibility to be an Expert on the Platform through information including date of birth, social security number and a government-issued photo identification such as your driver’s license, state identification card, or passport, resume, and information about your licenses and certifications.  
  • Additional Profile Information. The Platform may enable you to provide additional provide information such as job title, years within a profession, and educational background.
  • Communications, Submissions, and Other User Generated Content. We collect the information and content you submit when you submit questions, respond to questions as an Expert, post information on the Platform (including questions, answers, public testimonials, and forum posts), or otherwise communicate with Help Inquiry. We also collect information you submit through contact, sign-up, and profile forms, email communications, and other submissions (including reviews and surveys), and when you speak with our customer service agents. 
  • Help Inquiry Referral Information. If you use our referral program to recommend potential experts, to tell a friend about Help Inquiry, or to send a copy of a question-and-answer sequence to a friend, you may need to provide information about yourself and the friend, such as contact information. 
  • Financial Information. We receive financial information such as payment card or PayPal™ information, and other related information to process payments for your purchases and to issue expert and referral payments to you. We use third-party payment processors to process payment information.
  • Commercial Information. We collect and generate commercial information and transaction information (such as records of products and services purchased from us). 
  • Audio and Visual Information. We receive any photos you share with us through our Platform. We may also record customer service telephone calls for quality purposes and to meet our legal obligations.

Information Third Parties Provide About You. We may, from time to time, supplement the information we collect about you with information from third parties, including:

  • Social Media Networks. When you “like” or “follow” us on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, or other social media sites, we may collect some information from you including your name, e-mail address, and any comments or content you post relevant to us. We also collect your information if you interact with social media features on our Platform, such as like and share buttons. 
  • Marketing Partners and Data Providers. We may collect information about you from marketing partners and data providers, including but not limited to, personal identifiers, commercial information, usage data, and generally available information that helps us offer you products and services we think may interest you.     
  • Affiliates. We may collect information about you from Help Inquiry affiliates, including but not limited to personal identifiers, commercial information, and other generally available information.
  • Other Users. Other users may provide us with information about you, such as your personal identifiers (e.g., email address). For example, they may provide us with information about you to invite you to use the Help Inquiry Platform or share content from the Help Inquiry Platform with you. 

Other Information We Collect. We also may collect other information about you, your device, or your use of the Platform in ways that we describe to you at the point of collection or otherwise with your consent. You may choose not to provide us with certain types of information but doing so may affect your ability to use some of the Help Inquiry Platform.

Information We Automatically Collect from Your Use of The Help Inquiry Platform. We automatically collect information about your use of the Help Inquiry Platform such as when you open one of our emails or view and interact with our ads and content (collectively, “Usage Information”). Usage Information includes:

  • Device Information and Related Identifiers. We and our service providers collect your IP address and device-specific information (such as your hardware model, operating system version, unique device identifiers, and mobile network information, including phone number).
  • Browsing Information. When you use the Platform, we and our service providers collect and analyze information about your usage activity such as the URL that referred you to the Platform, the areas within the Platform that you visit, how long you spend on the Platform, and the time of day of your visit and upload or post content, error logs, language preferences, and other similar information.
  • Location Information. When you use the Platform, we and our service providers collect general location information from your computer or mobile device. “General” location information means information about the city and state in which your device is located based on its IP address. We may also obtain general location when you input your zip code or use location features or through Wi-Fi access points.  Many mobile devices permit applications to access real-time precise geolocation information. If we collect and use such information, we will ask your permission.
  • Inferences from the Information Listed Above. We may use the information listed above to draw inferences about your preferences to help us provide you with personalized content and offers and help us develop and provide better products and services.

Automatic Collection of Information from Cookies and Other Technology. To collect the information through automated means as outlined above, we and our partners use web server logs, cookies, tags, tracking pixels, and other similar tracking technologies (“Cookies”).

  • Cookies. A cookie is a small file containing a string of characters that is sent to your computer when you visit a website. When you visit the website again, the cookie allows us to: (i) recognize your computer; (ii) store your preferences and settings; (iii) understand the web pages of the Platform you have visited; (iv) enhance your user experience by delivering and measuring the effectiveness of content and advertising tailored to your interests; (v) perform searches and analytics; and (vi) assist with security and administrative functions. You can reset your browser to refuse all cookies or to indicate when a cookie is being sent. However, some website features or services may not function properly without cookies.
  • Mobile Identifiers. We may use software development kits (“SDKs”) that make use of mobile advertising identifiers (i.e., IDFA on Apple mobile devices or Advertising ID on Android mobile devices), which function similarly to cookies on mobile devices. You may reset your IDFA or Advertising ID in the settings on your mobile device.
  • Web Beacons. Small graphic images or other web programming code called web beacons (also known as “1×1 GIFs,” “one pixel GIFs,” or “clear GIFs”) may be included in our web pages and e-mail messages. Web beacons may be invisible to you, but any electronic image or other web programming code inserted into a web page or e-mail can act as a web beacon. Web beacons or similar technologies may be used for a number of purposes, including, without limitation, to count visitors to the Help Inquiry Platform, to monitor how users navigate the Help Inquiry Platform, to make cookies more effective, and to analyze how our emails, articles, and links were opened, viewed, and used.

Most browsers will tell you how to stop accepting new cookies, how to receive notification of new cookies, and how to disable existing cookies. For more information about cookies and how to disable them or restrict the categories of cookies you wish to accept, you can consult the information at www.allaboutcookies.org/manage-cookies/.

Please note that rejecting cookies does not mean that you will no longer see ads when you visit the Help Inquiry Platform. Also, without cookies, you may not be able to take full advantage of all of the Help Inquiry Platform, and some parts of the Help Inquiry Platform may not function properly.

Anonymous or Aggregated Information. We de-identify or aggregate data we receive and may use and disclose it for any business purpose.

How We Use Personal Information

We and our service providers use the information described above to accomplish the following business and operational purposes:

  • Administer your Account, including to process your registration and, for Experts, process your application to participate in the Platform; 
  • Provide, manage, and improve the Platform;
  • Respond to and complete your requests (including providing notifications and answers related to questions you submit);
  • Process payments;
  • Respond to your requests for information and provide you with more effective and efficient customer service, including through our interactive chat functions;
  • Conduct internal business operations in support of our Platform, such as auditing, security, resolving crashes, preventing fraud, invoicing and accounting, sales and marketing, analytics, and research and development;
  • Contact you regarding our Platform, promotions, special events, and other subjects that we think may be of interest to you;
  • Customize content, preferences, and advertising on or for the Platform;
  • Comply with laws, regulations, and other legal process and procedures;
  • Establish, exercise, or defend our legal rights; and
  • Take steps that we reasonably believe to be necessary to protect the safety, security, and rights of Help Inquiry, its employees, service providers, and others.

Please note that we may combine the information we collect through the Platform with information that we collect automatically or receive from other sources and use such combined information in accordance with this Privacy Policy.

We may also aggregate, de-identify, and/or anonymize any information collected through the Platform in such a way that we cannot reasonably link information to you or your device. We may use such aggregate, de-identified, or anonymous information for any purpose, including without limitation for research and marketing purposes.

How We Disclose Personal Information

  • Service Providers. We share any of the Personal Information described above with service providers (including but not limited to payment processors, fraud detection vendors, service-related technology providers, and survey administrators) that provide services to you and us, including to help us maintain our databases and websites, administer emails, display content, and analyze website usage activity. For example, we may provide your personal identifiers and commercial information to communications and marketing vendors so they can send you marketing communications and other communications on our behalf. 
  • Our Partners from Whom You Have Requested Information. We may share your personal identifiers and commercial information with other companies from whom you request to receive a specific product or service so they can market their products or services to you. If you do not want your Personal Information shared with these companies, you may contact us using the information in our “How to Contact Us” section below.
  • Advertising Partners. We may share your personal identifiers and commercial information and usage information with advertising partners that use various technologies to send (or serve) relevant ads to you as you browse the internet. We may share your Personal Information or your non-personally identifying information with ad networks for online behavioral advertising purposes.
  • Within Our Organization. We may share any of your Personal Information with parents, subsidiaries, joint venture partners, and other entities under common control subject to this Privacy Policy.
  • Social Networks. You may interact with certain features of the Help Inquiry Platform that cause certain categories of Personal Information to be published to your social networks. To understand the precise categories of Personal Information shared in this manner, please review the privacy policies of the relevant social networks and/or log out of the applicable service before you use our Platform.
  • Public Disclosures Using the Platform. Information you provide in the content of your questions, answers, and other communications on our websites and through the Platform (including testimonials and community forum posts you submit), in Expert profiles describing your experiences and qualifications, and in signatures attached to postings on our websites (“Posts”) may be available to other users and/or may not be private or confidential. Posts may be collected, copied, or used by others without your or our knowledge, and the security and other protective provisions of this Policy will not apply. Exercise caution and good judgment when disclosing any Personal Information to any public services, including in Posts on the Help Inquiry Platform. 
  • Third Party Partners to Provide Co-Branded or Jointly Offered Products and Services and Contests. We may from time-to-time partner with another brand or retailer or other third party to offer services, products, events, and promotions on a co-branded or cross-promotional basis. The information you provide in connection with such services may be collected directly by or shared with that third party. Help Inquiry may offer sweepstakes, contests, and other promotions (“Promotion(s)”) that may require registration. If you choose to enter a Promotion, Personal Information may be disclosed to any sponsor or co-sponsor of the promotion, third parties, or the public in connection with the administration of such Promotion, as required by law, or permitted by the Promotion’s official rules, such as on a winners list. These third parties will use your information in accordance with their own privacy policy.
  • Business Transfers. In the event of a merger, acquisition, financing due diligence, reorganization, bankruptcy, receivership, sale of company assets (whether by private sale, through operation of law, as part of a divestiture plan, or otherwise), your Personal Information, and any other information that we have collected, may be disclosed to the persons and/or entities assuming control of the relevant business unit or as otherwise necessary to review or complete the transaction.
  • Protection of Help Inquiry and Others & Legal Compliance: We may access, retain, and disclose the information we collect and maintain about you if required to do so by law or in a good faith belief that such access, retention, or disclosure is reasonably necessary to: (i) comply with law or legal process (e.g., a subpoena or court order); (ii) enforce our Terms of Service, Expert Agreement, this Privacy Policy, or other contracts with you, including investigation of potential violations thereof; (iii) respond to your requests for customer service; and/or (iv) protect the rights, property, or personal safety of Help Inquiry, its agents and affiliates, its users, and/or the public. This includes exchanging information with other companies and organizations for fraud protection, spam/malware prevention, and similar purposes.
  • Otherwise with Your Consent or at Your Direction. In addition to the sharing described in this Privacy Policy, we may share information about you with third parties whenever you consent to or direct such sharing.

Online Analytics and Advertising

Analytics

We may use third-party web analytics services (such as those of Google Analytics) on our Platform to collect and analyze usage information through cookies and similar tools; engage in auditing, research, or reporting; assist with fraud prevention; and provide certain features to you. To prevent Google Analytics from using your information for analytics, you may install the Google Analytics Opt-out Browser Add-on by clicking here.  If you receive email from us, we may use certain analytics tools, such as tracking pixels, to capture data such as when you open our message or click on any links or banners our email contains. This data allows us to gauge the effectiveness of our communications and marketing campaigns.

Online Advertising

The Platform may allow third-party advertising technologies to place cookies or other tracking technologies on your computer, mobile phone, or other device to collect information about you to assist in the delivery of relevant advertising about the Platform on other websites you visit and other services you use.   We neither have access to, nor does this Privacy Policy govern, the cookies or other tracking technologies that may be placed on the device you use to access the Platform by such non-affiliated third parties. Please see Your Rights & Choices below for information about your choices regarding tailored advertising.

Notice Concerning Do Not Track

Do Not Track (“DNT”) is a privacy preference that users can set in certain web browsers. We are committed to providing you with meaningful choices about the information collected on our website for third-party purposes, which is why we describe a variety of opt-out mechanisms above. However, we do not currently recognize or respond to browser initiated DNT signals. Learn more about Do Not Track.

Your Rights & Choices

We offer you choices regarding the collection, use, and sharing of your Personal Information on the Help Inquiry Platform.

Privacy Rights

Depending on where you live, you may have certain rights with respect to your Personal Information. You have the right not to be discriminated against (as provided for in applicable law) for exercising your rights under some local laws such as in California. For example, under local laws, including in the European Union, you may be able to ask us to:

  • provide access to certain information we hold about you;
  • update or correct your information;
  • delete certain information; and
  • restrict the use of your information

If you wish to verify, correct, update, or delete any of the Personal Information provided to us in connection with your Account on the Help Inquiry Platform, you may do so through the Edit Profile page when you log in to your Account. California residents may also contact us as set forth below. Please note that we may be required (by applicable law or otherwise) to keep certain information and not delete it, in which case we will comply with your deletion request only after we have fulfilled such requirements. Please note that many of the above rights are subject to exceptions and limitations. Certain aspects of the Platform are only accessible if we have your information, therefore deletion of your information will result in termination of such services. We will take reasonable steps to verify your identity.

It may not always be possible to completely remove or delete all of your information from our databases without some residual data remaining in our archives because of backups and other reasons. If you would like to make a request related to the Personal Information, we have about you, you may contact us at [email protected].

Email Communications. When you receive promotional communications from us, you may indicate a preference to stop receiving further promotional communications from us, and you will have the opportunity to “opt-out” by following the unsubscribe instructions provided in the promotional email you receive or by contacting us directly at [email protected]. Regardless of your indicated email preferences, we may send you administrative emails regarding the Help Inquiry Platform, including, for example, notices of updates to our online terms or this Privacy Policy, registration, expert application-related communications (as appropriate), and communications and updates related to questions you are asking or answering, posts you make, and other information related to your Account.

Personalized Advertising. You can also opt-out of some network advertising programs that use your information. Below are other steps you can take to opt-out:

  • Visit the Digital Advertising Alliance (DAA) Opt-Out Page (http://www.aboutads.info/choices). The DAA Opt-Out Page provides a tool that identifies its member companies that have Cookies on your browser and provides links to those companies.
  • Update the privacy settings in the Help section of your browser, or in the Settings tab on your mobile device.
  • You may also click on the Ad Choices icon in certain advertisements.
  • You may opt out of additional third-party advertising networks by going to the Network Advertising Initiative’s Website (http://www.networkadvertising.org/managing/opt_out.asp) and following the directions provided.
  • Additionally, many network advertising programs allow you to view and manage the interest categories they have compiled from your online browsing activities. These interest categories help determine the types of personalized advertisements you may receive.

Please note that these opt-outs apply per device, so you will have to opt-out for each device through which you access our Platform. Please note that even if you choose to remove your information or “opt out,” you may continue to see advertisements while you are browsing online; however, those advertisements will no longer be tailored to your interests. Additionally, information regarding your usage may still be collected for research, analytics, or internal operations purposes.

California Privacy Rights

Under the California Consumer Privacy Act of 2018 (“CCPA”) and subject to exceptions set forth in the CCPA, California residents have the right to request:

  • the deletion of the Personal Information we have about them;
  • to know additional information about whether and how we have collected, used, and disclosed Personal Information about them; and
  • to know specific pieces of Personal Information we have about them.

California residents also have the right not to receive discriminatory treatment if they exercise the rights listed above.

As set forth above, we may require that you provide information and follow procedures so that we can verify the request and your jurisdiction before responding to it, which may include matching the information that you provide in your request to information we already have on file to verify your identity.

California law permits California residents to use an authorized agent to make privacy rights requests. We require the authorized agent to provide proof of the California resident’s written permission (for example, a power of attorney) to act on such resident’s behalf. We will additionally require the authorized agent to verify his/her own identity.

You may submit a request to us by:

Other California Requirements

If you are a California resident under the age of 18, and a registered user of any site where this policy is posted, you may request and obtain removal of content or information you have publicly posted to the Help Inquiry Platform by contacting us at [email protected].  In addition, California gives the right under certain circumstances to request information from us regarding the manner in which we share certain categories of personal information (as defined in the Shine the Light law) with third parties for their direct marketing purposes. We do not share your personal information with third parties for their own direct marketing purposes.

The CCPA requires us to provide you with some additional information regarding how we collect, use, and share your “personal information” (as defined in the CCPA). Throughout our Privacy Policy, we discuss in detail the specific pieces of personal information we collect from and about our users. Under the CCPA, we are also required to provide you with the “categories” of personal information we collect as defined by California law. Depending upon your use of the Platform, the categories we collect are: Identifiers (such as name, address, email address); commercial information (such as transaction data); financial information (such as credit card information); education information; employment information; internet or other network or device activity (such as browsing history); demographic information; location information; user-generated content; inference data about you; and other information that identifies or can be reasonably associated with you.  We use the above categories of information that we collect as set forth in How We Use Personal Information. We may share any of the above categories of information as detailed in How We Disclose Personal Information.

The CCPA sets forth certain obligations for businesses that “sell” personal information to third parties. The CCPA defines “sale” broadly potentially to include allowing third parties to receive certain information such as cookies, IP address, and/or browsing behavior in order to enable us to market our Services to you on other websites or apps. Depending on what Services you use, we may share (and over the past 12 months may have shared) the following categories of information for such advertising:

  • identification and demographics; device information and identifiers, such as IP address, and unique advertising identifiers and cookies; connection and usage information, such as browsing history or app usage; geolocation information, such as city; and inference data.

During the past 12 months, we have not provided and we do not currently provide personal information to third parties for monetary payment.

If you or your authorized agent would like to opt out of our sharing of your information for such purposes (to the extent this is considered a sale), you may do so as outlined on the following page: Do Not Sell My Personal Information.

Nevada Privacy Rights

We do not sell consumers’ covered information for monetary consideration (as defined in Chapter 603A of the Nevada Revised Statutes). However, if you are a Nevada resident, you have the right to submit a request directing us not to sell your Personal Information. To submit such a request, please contact us using the information in the “How to Contact Us” section below.

European Union Economic Area, United Kingdom & Brazilian Residents

Legal Bases for Use of Your Information

Some countries require that companies only process your “Personal Data” (as that term is defined in the applicable law like the EU General Data Protection Regulation) if they have a “legal basis” (or justifiable need) for processing your Personal Data. To the extent those laws apply, our legal bases for processing Personal Data are as follows:

  • Where your Personal Data is necessary to perform our obligations pursuant to a contract (or pending contract) with you. For example, we will process your Personal Data to comply with our agreements with you, and to honor our commitments in any contracts that we have with you.
  • Where your Personal Data is necessary for our legitimate interests or the legitimate interests of others. For example, we will process your Personal Data: to operate our business and our Platform; identify and fix any issues with our Platform; provide security for our Platform; learn more about how our customers use the Platform; perform internal analytics concerning the Platform; improve the Platform and users’ experiences with the Platform; provide you with information about new products, special offers, or other information that we think you may find interesting using the email address which you have provided; make and receive payments; comply with legal requirements and defend our legal rights; prevent fraud; and know the customer to whom we are providing our Platform.
  • Where use of your Personal Data is necessary for us to comply with our legal obligations.
  • Where we have your consent. For example, where a country requires that we obtain your consent before we process certain data, we will seek your consent in accordance with those countries’ requirements.

Information Processing and Transfer

Help Inquiry is a United States company, and the Help Inquiry Platform is provided from the United States. If you are a user who resides outside the United States, please be aware that information we collect will be transferred to and processed in the United States and may be processed and stored in other countries outside the United States which may have data protection laws that differ from the laws in your country. By using the Help Inquiry Platform, or providing us with any information, you consent to the collection, processing, maintenance, and transfer of such information in and to the United States and other applicable countries in which the privacy laws may not be as comprehensive as, or equivalent to, those in the country where you reside and/or are a citizen.

How We Protect and Retain Your Information

We maintain procedural, technical, and physical safeguards to help protect against loss, misuse or unauthorized access, disclosure, alteration, or destruction of the Personal Information you provide via the Help Inquiry Platform. Unfortunately, no transmission of data is guaranteed to be completely secure. It may be possible for third parties not under our control to intercept or access transmissions or private communications unlawfully. Therefore, any transmission of Personal Information to us is made at your own risk.

We keep your information for the time necessary for the purposes for which it is processed. The length of time for which we retain information depends on the purposes for which we collected and use it and your choices, after which time we may delete and/or aggregate it. We may also retain and use this information as necessary to comply with our legal obligations, resolve disputes, and enforce our agreements.

The Help Inquiry Platform may from time to time contain links to third party websites/services for your convenience and/or information (for example, sites linking via banner ads). If you access other sites using the links provided, you may leave the Help Inquiry Platform. When you access these other sites, please understand that the operators of these websites may collect information from you which will be used by them in accordance with their privacy policies and terms of use, which may differ from ours. We do not endorse or control the policies or practices of third-party websites that we do not control or operate. You should always carefully read the privacy policy of any site you access in order to understand their specific privacy and information usage practices.

Children’s Personal Information

We do not knowingly collect or store any Personal Information from children under the age of 13. If a parent or guardian becomes aware that his or her child under the age of 13 has provided us with information without his or her consent, he or she should contact us at [email protected]. As required by law, we will delete such information from our files within a reasonable time. We may also delete Personal Information from our websites, as well as Posts and other information, from users we believe are under the age of 18.

Updates to this Privacy Policy

From time to time, we may revise this Policy to reflect changes in the law or technology, or changes in our practices regarding information collection and use. If we make material revisions to this Policy, we will provide you with notice of those changes and may do so by announcing the change through the Help Inquiry Platform or as required by law. You agree that we may notify you about material changes by placing a notice on the Help Inquiry Platform.

Any changes to this Policy will become effective as of the Effective Date on the top of this page. By continuing to use the Help Inquiry Platform after the most current Effective Date, you will be deemed to have understood and agreed to such changes. If you do not agree with the terms of this Policy, as it may be amended from time to time, in whole or in part, please do not continue to use the Help Inquiry Platform.

Additional Terms

This Policy may be supplemented from time to time by additional terms, privacy statements, or notices that explain how we collect, use, and share information in specific circumstances (“Additional Terms”). For example, Additional Terms may contain details about how we collect Personal Information in specific contexts.

How to Contact Us

If you have any questions or suggestions regarding this Privacy Policy, please visit our Customer Care page HERE or contact us at [email protected]. You may also write to us:

Cobski Ruby Sales LLC