The Field Museum is committed to protecting your privacy when you visit our Website or use our Website to purchase tickets, make a donation, become a Field Museum Member, sign up to receive our e-newsletter, or participate in our surveys. The Museum takes reasonable steps to protect visitors’ privacy and to ensure that you are notified of what information you are providing to us and how that information will be used.
This Privacy Statement applies to the online activities of the Museum. It does not apply to websites that are linked to, but not controlled by, the Museum, such as the Field Museum Stores (stores.fieldmuseum.org), social media sites (YouTube, Facebook, Flickr, etc.), and the sites of our sponsors and affiliates that may be linked through the Website. These third party sites may or may not have privacy policies of their own; please consult those sites for their applicable policies.
What We Collect & Why We Collect It
Non-Personal Information
Our Website automatically gathers and stores Non-Personal Information, which includes
- The IP address from which you access our Website;
- The name of the domain from which you accessed our Website (i.e. the page that linked you to fieldmuseum.org);
- The type of browser and operating system you use to access our Website;
- The date and time you access our Website; and
- The pages, files, documents, and links you access on our Website.
We collect Non-Personal Information to help us evaluate and improve how our Website works and to learn how and from where visitors access it. This information is stored and used in the aggregate, meaning that it is not tied to your name and does not identify you as an individual. This statistical information may be provided to third parties. Neither the Museum nor any third party will use this information to contact you personally.
Personal Information
Personal Information includes information that identifies you as an individual and is linked to your name; Personal Information includes
- Your name;
- Your email address;
- Your mailing address;
- Your telephone number;
- Credit card or other financial information; and
- Demographic information (e.g. age, size of household).
The Museum will only collect Personal Information that is voluntarily and knowingly provided, such as when you fill out a membership, donation, or order form, or if you sign up for a program or event, agree to participate in a survey, or request communications from the Museum.
The Museum will use this information to respond to your specific inquiry, request, or order. Sometimes the Museum uses third party vendors to perform certain services on our behalf, such as email distribution, order fulfillment, and shipping; these vendors will have access to Personal Information to the extent required to perform their functions, but will not use that information for any other purposes.
The Museum may also use Personal Information you submit to the Museum in order to communicate with you about exhibitions, programs, membership, development, surveys, special events, and other Field Museum news that may be of interest to you and for other marketing and promotional purposes. You will always have the opportunity to decline further communications (see below for instructions on how to opt out).
The Museum may share or exchange Members’ name and address information with other charitable or cultural not-for-profit organizations. You will be notified of any such sharing and provided the opportunity to opt out; please refer to your Membership Handbook for more information.
The Museum will disclose information, if required, for purposes of law enforcement or the enforcement of the Museum’s or a third party’s rights, such as intellectual property rights and laws relating to fraud. In response to a request by a federal, state, or local law enforcement agency or to a court-issued subpoena, the Museum can (and you authorize the Museum to) disclose your Personal Information to the extent that the Museum reasonably believes necessary to comply with the request or subpoena. The Museum may also use your Personal Information when it is reasonably necessary to satisfy an applicable law, regulation, legal process, or enforceable government request; enforce an agreement between you and the Museum, including potential violations thereof; detect, prevent, investigate or otherwise address fraud, security, or technical issues; or protect against imminent harm to the safety, property, or rights of the Museum, its visitors, or the public as required or permitted by law.
Survey Responses
The Museum may invite you to participate in one of our surveys, which provide the Museum with valuable feedback about our exhibitions and programs and information about visitors’ experiences, preferences, and needs.
These surveys may request certain Personal Information from you, including household and demographic data such as age, marital status, size of household, etc. Participation in these surveys is completely voluntary and you may choose whether or not to disclose this information to us. You may be given the opportunity to opt in to further communications from the Museum during the survey, but your contact information will not be associated with your survey responses or the provided demographic information.
The Museum may use third party service providers to conduct surveys or analyze survey data; such service providers will not use your Personal Information for any other purpose. We will not share any Personal Information gathered through a survey with other third parties without giving you prior notice and an opportunity to opt out.
Children’s Information
The Museum does not knowingly collect personal information from children under 13 years of age. If Personal Information regarding a child is required for program participation or similar reasons, the Museum will collect this information from the child’s parent or guardian. If a child sends an email to the Museum, we will only use that address and any information provided only to respond to the particular inquiry and will not retain or use the information for any other purpose.
How to Opt Out of Field Museum Communications
You may opt out of receiving further communications from the Museum at any time. Any communication sent to you by the Museum will include an unsubscribe link or other instructions that will allow you to opt out of future communications.
The Museum Website uses Google Analytics to collect and analyze Non-Personal Information. You can opt out of Google Analytics by downloading and installing the Google Analytics Opt-out Browser Add-on, provided by Google.
Information Security
The Website (and the Museum Stores’ website) uses Secure Socket Layer (SSL) encryption to process online transactions. Additionally, the Museum takes other industry-standard precautions to protect the Personal Information it receives, both online and offline, from unauthorized access, as do the third party service providers who work with us.
Acceptance of Terms
By using the Museum’s Website you signify your acceptance of the terms of this Privacy Statement. If you do not agree with the terms above please do not use our Website.
Occasional changes may be made to this Statement as new services and content are added or to reflect changes in the Museum’s policies. Visitors to the Website are encouraged to check this page periodically to stay informed of the Museum’s current Privacy Statement. Your continued use of the Website following the posting of changes to its terms will indicate acceptance of those changes.
Questions and Comments
If you have questions or comments about this Privacy Statement, please contact us in one of the following ways:
Field Museum of Natural History
1400 S. DuSable Lake Shore Dr.
Chicago, IL 60605-2496
U.S.A.
312.922.9410
The Museum will use reasonable efforts to respond promptly to requests, questions, and concerns regarding this Policy Statement.
Last updated October 2014