Privacy Policy

The Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum (the “Museum”, “we”) is committed to protecting the privacy of its online guests, visitors, members, and donors (“Users”, “you”, “your”). This privacy policy (this “Privacy Policy”) describes how we collect and use information through our website (gardnermuseum.org, the “Website” or the “Site”). The Museum believes that it is important to inform Users about the types of information we collect and how we use that information.

By using the Site, you are consenting to and accept our Privacy Policy, as the same may be modified by us from time to time. If you do not agree to this Privacy Policy, please do not use our Site. Your use of the Site constitutes your acceptance of the terms of this Privacy Policy and any changes we make to it.

Personally Identifiable Information (PII)
The Museum does not collect any personally identifiable information about individual Users, including  names, postal or email addresses, credit card information or other personally identifying information (“PII”), unless such information is knowingly provided. In general, you can browse the Site without submitting your PII to us. We, or a third-party processor with whom we contract, may collect PII when you:

• Purchase tickets for admission, concerts, or events
• Purchase a membership or gift membership
• Purchase a gift certificate
• Purchase merchandise
• Make a donation
• Subscribe to a mailing or email list
• Request information be sent to you through the Site
• Complete a survey
• Apply for a job, internship, or volunteer position
• Communicate with us through the Site, including the completion of any online forms

By knowingly providing PII to the Museum through the Site, whether by engaging in one of the activities above or otherwise, Users are consenting to the Museum’s use of their PII in accordance with this Privacy Policy.  Users may opt out of the Museum’s use of their PII by taking the steps described below.

Non-PII
Some non-PII is collected automatically. The Museum collects some anonymous, aggregated non-PII about Users when pages are requested through a browser. Non-PII may refer to information about our Users’ browsers, operating systems, internet service providers, time zone and other similar information. Collecting non-PII, among other things, helps us optimize the performance of the Site and collect valuable data which helps the Museum understand the success of the Site. 

Cookies
The Museum may use Cookies to track information about you. “Cookies” are small data files that are sent to your browser from a web server and are stored on your computer’s hard drive. Cookies track where you travel on the Site and what you view. Examples of the ways in which the Museum might use Cookies are to control access to certain features, to customize content areas, and to analyze Site activity and User behavior. The Museum also reserves the right to use Cookies in the future, including in conjunction with new content or extended functionality.  

Pixels
The Museum uses “pixels” placed through Google Tag Manager to track behavior on the Website and to collect Cookies for remarketing. Examples of behavior that is tracked include which pages a User visits and what content they interact with. In addition, this data helps the Museum target advertising toward Users who have expressed interest in the Museum by visiting the Site. This User behavior information is anonymous and never includes PII.
 

Marketing and Promotion
If you give the Museum permission by knowingly providing PII to the Museum by using the Site, we may use any PII you submit for Museum marketing, promotional or other purposes. For example, the Museum sometimes sends emails to inform Users of new exhibitions or other events we think might be of interest. The Museum may also use your PII to respond to information you have requested through email or through a form submitted on the Site. 

Third Party Service Providers
The Museum has teamed up with reputable third-party service providers in order to provide certain services to its Users including to process transactions and to better respond to the needs of our Users. The Museum has taken reasonable precautions to ensure that the privacy of its online Users’ information, including PII, is protected by any online partners.

Guest Checkout
The Museum retains some PII even when Users choose to purchase tickets or otherwise interact with the Site using the Site’s “Guest Checkout” feature. This information may be used if the Museum needs to contact you about your purchase or in order to process a refund.

Legal Necessity
The Museum may disclose your PII if required to do so by law or in the good faith belief that such action is necessary (i) to comply with a subpoena, legal process, government request or any other legal obligation, (ii) to protect and defend the rights or property of the Museum, (iii) to prevent, investigate, detect, or prosecute criminal offenses or attacks on the technical integrity of the Site or our network, (iv) to protect the rights, privacy, property, business, or safety of the Museum, its partners and employees, Users and/or the public, (v) to protect against legal liability, and (vi) to apply or enforce our Terms of Use.

Other Organizations
If you sign up for a Museum membership online or purchase a ticket online, your name, telephone number, and postal and email addresses will be entered into the Museum’s constituent database. The Museum may share your this information with other reputable organizations which you may be interested in, such as other non-profits, art institutions, and companies.  

Links
The Site may include links to other unaffiliated websites and social media platforms operated by third parties (“Third-Party Sites”), over which we have no control. Third-Party Sites may collect or share your data if you click on such sites.  In addition, you may share information with your friends associated with your social media account, with other users, and with your social media account provider. By doing so, you authorize us to facilitate this sharing of information. The Museum is not responsible for the privacy practices of Third-Party Sites, and Users are encouraged to become familiar with the privacy statements of each site they visit. Once you leave the Site, this Privacy Policy will not apply, and you access such sites at your own risk.

The Museum may also use paid advertising and paid content tools provided by social media platforms to help carry out advertising campaigns on social media platforms and to promote Museum content on the social media platforms. Such social media platforms only provide to us aggregated statistical information about interactions with its ads and paid content, such as number of views and number of shares.

You can visit the privacy policies of the respective entities at the following links to find more information about the purpose and extent of data collection and processing in connection with integrated third-party tools and social sharing features, or use of the social media platforms:

Meta: https://www.facebook.com/privacy/center/   
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/howyoutubeworks/privacy/
Google: https://policies.google.com/privacy?hl=en-US
Vimeo: https://vimeo.com/legal/privacy/policy

Third-Party Payment Services
The Site may allow you to make payments to the Museum using third-party payment services. When you use such a service to make a payment to us, your PII will be collected by that third-party and not by us, and will be subject to the third-party’s privacy policy, rather than this privacy policy. We have no control over, and are not responsible for this third-party’s collection, use, and disclosure of your PII.

Third-Party Advertising
The Museum may use third-party advertising companies to advertise goods and services that may be of interest to you when you access the Site. You may receive advertisements based on information relating to your access to and use of the Site, as well as on information received from third parties. These companies place a unique Cookie on your browser (including through the use of pixel tags). They also use these technologies, along with information they collect about your online use, to recognize you on the devices you use. If you would like more information about this practice, and to learn how to opt out of it in desktop browsers on the particular device on which you are accessing this Privacy Policy, please visit YourAdChoices and Network Advertising Iniative (NIA). 

Children
The Museum does not knowingly collect PII from children 17 years of age and under. Children should always ask parents/guardians for permission before providing PII to any website or purchasing any products or services online. The Museum urges all parents/guardians to participate in their child’s exploration of the internet and to teach them about protecting their PII while online. 

Security
The Museum takes commercially reasonable steps to protect the security and integrity of all PII provided to the Site. For example, the Museum uses SSL encryption to process all purchases made through the Site. However, the Museum cannot guarantee that your PII will be absolutely safe from intrusion by others, and the Museum will have no liability for disclosure of your information, including PII, due to errors or unauthorized acts of third parties during or after transmission.

The Museum may use email to notify you in the unlikely event that we believe the security of your PII in our possession may have been compromised. By using this Site, you consent to our use of email as a means of such notification. 

How to Access, Correct or Delete your PII
If for any reason you do not wish to receive further notifications (emails or mailings) from the Museum or wish to change your preferences for the types of notifications you receive, please follow the instructions included within the body of the message that was sent to you, or email us at information@isgm.org. You may also use this same email address to access, correct, or delete any PII that you have provided to us.  We may not accommodate a request to change information if we believe the change would violate any legal requirement or cause the information to be incorrect.

The Museum reserves the right to change or update this Privacy Policy, or any other of the Museum’s policies or practices, at any time.  The Museum’s posting of such changed or updated Privacy Policy on this page shall constitute notice to Users of the changes or updates. Any changes or updates will be effective immediately upon posting to this Site.  We encourage you to check this page whenever you visit the Site for any changes or updates.

Terms of Use
Your use of the Site is subject to the provisions of our Terms of Use. 

Contact Information
For any questions about our privacy policy, please contact us at :information@isgm.org. 

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