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PRIVACY POLICY

Last updated on September 2018

ABOUT US

This website is operated by Photon Etc. Inc (Photon Etc. hereafter).

Photon Etc. is a company that designs and manufactures widely tunable laser filters, hyperspectral microscopes and Raman imagers, wide-field hyperspectral imagers, and infrared cameras for scientific research and the industry. Its main office is located in Montreal, Canada, and its products are distributed mostly in North America and Europe, but also in China, Japan, South Korea and Australia. You can learn more about the company on its “About” page. 

This Privacy Policy explains what and how we collect, use, disclose, transfer, and store your personal information. We also explain your rights and how to contact us. Any reference to “We”, “Us”, and “Our” is to Photon Etc., as an organization. Any reference to "You" and "Your" is to you as an individual user of our products, websites, and applications.

Links to other websites

This website contains links to other sites. Please be aware that we are not responsible for the content or privacy practices of such other sites. We encourage our users to be aware when they leave our site and to read the privacy statements of any other site that collects personally identifiable information.

DATA COLLECTION AND USE

What information we collect

We typically collect the following information:

  • Your name and contact details (phone, email address, etc.)
  • Your qualifications and employment details where appropriate (title, company’s name, billing and/or shipping address, contact information, etc.)
  • Details of the goods or services you have ordered or in which you have expressed an interest
  • Details of any enquiries or requests for quotations you have made. We may also collect feedback, comments and questions received from you in service-related communication and activities, such as meetings, phone calls, documents, and emails.
  • Details of the newsletter (Photon Express) you have subscribed to and any documents you have downloaded
  • IP-address and actions took on the website

Legal compliance

Unless stated otherwise, Photon Etc. is the sole owner and data controller in respect of all personal data collected by us on this Website or otherwise. This means that we are responsible for ensuring that we do so in full compliance with the General Data Protection Regulation that came into effect in May 2018, and the Personal Information Protection and Electronic Documents Act (PIPEDA) issued by the Government of Canada.

Where, when and how we collect data

We obtain personal data:

  • Directly from you such as when you register for any of our services, send us emails, attend any of our events
  • From another organization for example, where you receive information or services from one of our distributors (click here to see the list of our distributors). These organizations may share your personal data with us if you allow them to do so. We can also obtain personal data from third-parties where our products are listed (Azo Network, Findlight, Photonics buyer’s guide, etc.). 
  • From social media sites or apps. If your settings and preferences allow, we may obtain information (including personal data) from social media services such as Facebook and LinkedIn.
  • From publicly available sources such as University or institutions websites
  • From suppliers, distributors and partners
  • When you buy our products
  • When you apply for a job at Photon Etc.
  • When you interact with us in person, through correspondence, by phone, by social media, or through our websites
  • When we collect personal information from other legitimate sources, such as third-party data aggregators, marketing partners, public sources or social networks. We only use this data if you have given your consent to them to share your personal data with others.
  • When you subscribe to our mailing lists, download or engage with our content, submit a web-based enquiry or attend an event we sponsor
  • We may collect personal data if it is considered to be of legitimate interest and if this interest is not overridden by your privacy interests. However, Photon Etc. will not collect or process any special categories of personal data, such as unique identifiers or sensitive personal data.

Third-Parties

We invite you to read the Privacy Policies of all the third-parties we use as data processors:
SalesForce, MailChimp, GoogleAnalytics

How we use data

We collect and use personal data mainly to perform direct sales, direct marketing and customer service. We will use your information to respond to you, regarding the reason you contacted us. We will not share your information with any third party outside of our organization and the services we use to process data, other than as necessary to fulfill your request, e.g. to ship an order.

We may use your information for the following purposes:

  • Send you marketing communications which you have requested. These may include information about our products and services, events, activities, and promotions of our associated partners’ products and services. This communication is subscription based and requires your consent.
  • Send you information about the products and services that you have inquired or purchased from us.
  • Perform direct sales activities in cases where legitimate and mutual interest is established.
  • Provide you content and venue details on a webinar or event you signed up for.
  • Reply to a ‘Request for Quotes’ or other web forms you have completed on one of the listing websites we are subscribed to (e.g. to download a whitepaper).
  • Follow up on incoming requests (customer support, emails, chats, or phone calls).
  • Perform contractual obligations such as order confirmation, license details, invoice, reminders, and similar.
  • Contact you to conduct surveys about your opinion on our products and services.
  • Process a job application.

In guaranteeing the utmost confidentiality, Photon Etc. promises not to disclose, sell, rent or market any information nor personal data whatsoever.

COOKIES

Some of our business partners use cookies on our site (for example, Google Analytics tracks the visitors’ activity on the website). A cookie is a piece of data stored on a site visitor's hard drive to help us improve your access to our site and identify repeat visitors to our site. Cookies can enable us to track and target the interests of our users to enhance the experience on our site. Usage of a cookie is in no way linked to any personally identifiable information on our site. However, since the cookies are placed by a third party, we have no direct access to or direct control over these cookies.

We also use outside shipping companies to ship orders and payment processing companies to bill users for goods and services. These companies do not retain, share, store or use personally identifiable information for any secondary purposes beyond filling your order.

Preventing use of cookies

Most browsers automatically accept cookies, but you can usually change your browser to prevent cookies from being stored. With experience, you can usually choose to switch off all cookies or to allow only certain ‘trusted’ sites to place cookies.

DATA RETENTION

We store personal data for as long as we find it necessary to fulfill the purpose for which the personal data was collected, while also considering our need to answer your queries or resolve possible problems, to comply with legal requirements under applicable laws, to attend to any legal claims/complaints, and for safeguarding purposes.

This means that we may retain your personal data for a reasonable period of time after your last interaction with us. When the personal data that we have collected is no longer required, we will delete it in a secure manner. We may process data for statistical purposes, but in such cases, data will be anonymized.

SECURITY

We observe strict security measures for storing and disclosing the information you give us in order to avoid any unauthorized access. This is why you may be asked to restate your identity before any confidential information is released or modified at your request (to make a request, please write to info[at]photonetc.com). We take precautions to protect your information. When you submit sensitive information via the website, your information is protected both online and offline. While we will use encryption to protect sensitive information transmitted online, we also protect your information offline. Only employees who need the information to perform a specific job (for example, billing or customer service) are granted access to personally identifiable information. The servers in which we store personally identifiable information are kept in a secure environment.

YOUR RIGHTS

You have the following rights with respect to your personal data:

  • The right to be forgotten: you may request that Photon Etc. delete all data on you without undue delay.
  • The right to object: you may prohibit certain data uses at any time. For example, if you want to withdraw your consent to e-marketing, please make use of the link to manage your subscriptions included in our communication. Please note that you may still receive administrative communications and legal notices from Photon Etc.
  • The right to rectification: you may request that incomplete data be completed or that incorrect data be corrected.
  • The right of access: you may know what personal information about you is being processed and how. You may also request a copy of your personal data we hold about you.
  • The right of portability: you may request that personal data held by one organization be transported to another.

Any query about your Privacy Rights should be sent to info[at]photonetc.com.

OUR RIGHT

Photon Etc. reserves the right to modify its privacy policy at any time. In the event that Photon Etc. modifies its privacy policy, all subscribers and customers will be notified ahead of time.

LEGAL COMPLIANCE

Unless stated otherwise, Photon Etc. is the data controller in respect of all personal data collected by us on this Website or otherwise. This means that we are responsible for ensuring that we do so in full compliance with the General Data Protection Regulation that came into effect in May 2018, and the Personal Information Protection and Electronic Documents Act (PIPEDA) issued by the Government of Canada.

CONTACT US

If you feel that we are not abiding by this privacy policy, you should contact us immediately via telephone at +1 (514) 385-9555 or via email at info[at]photonetc.com. 

 

TLDR; Photon Etc. is committed to protecting your personal information and privacy. The information that we collect is used strictly to facilitate your visit, deliver the content you request, and communicate with you.