Privacy Policy

1. Introduction

The interactive nature of the Internet permits newspapers to measure certain characteristics of its readers and use aggregated data to make the site more interactive and to make advertising more effective. 1st Responder Newspaper (www.1RBN.com), a division of Belsito Communications Inc. (hereto referred to as 1st Responder), has procedures in place to collect data from readers and use this data to attract advertisers that want to advertise to certain groups. By doing this, 1st Responder can obtain advertising revenue that permits it to provide online service free of charge. 1st Responder respects reader privacy and will not send readers unsolicited e-mail (spam) or disclose personally identifiable information about readers in a way that will endanger their financial or privacy interests.

Scope - This site contains Web pages created by 1st Responder and third party content providers. This Privacy Statement only applies to data collected by 1st Responder on this website. Third party pages, ads, and websites featured on, or linked to, by this website have different privacy policies and data collection procedures. Please keep in mind that 1st responder has no control over the content of third party sites and their use of data and assumes no responsibility for, nor endorses any views of, third party sites to which it links.

2. Registration, Data Collection and Usage:

Information Gathered:

In General - Generally, 1st Responder makes no attempt to personally associate readers' identification with collected data. Most data gathered is used for customized features such as weather, greetings, interactive polls, message boards, personal preferences, advertising and statistical analysis.

Type of Data Collected -1st Responder collects some the following information about you and your viewing habits on 1st Responder's Website or from third parties that supply content to 1st Responder's Websites: name, address, zip code, telephone numbers, business/department name, email address, birth date, gender, interests, relevant experience in emergency services, IP address and browser type. Information collected, with few exceptions, is aggregated and distributed anonymously for statistical analysis.

Email Addresses - 1st Responder will save e-mail addresses readers voluntarily provide in order to receive e-mailed news headlines; special promotions; activities; and correspondence with 1st Responder. 1st Responder reserves the right to use these e-mail addresses for special announcements, including information about third-party offers to readers. Any solicitations using e-mail lists will give the reader the chance to choose to decline to receive promotional e-mail ("opt out").

Any e-mail sent to 1st Responder, along with accompanying e-mail addresses, may be saved by 1st Responder. Letters to editors or other correspondence sent for purposes of publication (such as letters to the editor or message boards) may be published with the senders' e-mail address.

Survey and Contest Data - Data supplied by readers for surveys and contests may be covered under terms separate from this agreement. Data supplied by readers will be posted as survey results and data provided for contests may be used for marketing or related activities. Please check for any separate privacy statement posted with contests run at this Website.

Collection Techniques - Data gathered from 1st Responder is collected from information voluntarily disclosed to 1st Responder and its third party vendors, and passively by tracking viewing habits by analyzing log files (server records) and cookies (small bits of code placed on your computer).

Voluntary Disclosure - Data that readers provide to this site, such as zip code, age, or gender, is automatically stored onto a "cookie," a small piece of computer code that is encrypted and readable only by 1st Responder. Reader preferences are stored on cookies, so that information such as zip code, user names, and passwords do not have to be re-entered every time readers go to the Website. Cookies are small in size (frequently 1 KB) and enable the 1st Responder server to upload information to readers' browser when they view this Website. Cookies do not affect computer speed, nor do they transmit personal data or files to others. To learn more about Cookies, please see one of the following sites:

http://www.cookiecentral.com
http://www.epic.org/privacy/cookies/default.html

Passive Collection - 1st Responder periodically analyzes data obtained from its computer servers about readers viewing habits. Data such as specific pages viewed, what pages link to 1stResponderNews.com, type of browser used (such as Netscape Navigator or Microsoft Explorer), amount of time Web pages are accessed, amount spent reading each page, and user IP address (the location of your computer on the Internet) are collected. This type of data is summarized in broad demographic categories and used for making strategic and technological decisions regarding our Website. Individual data is not provided to third parties.

What Pages collect data:

1st Responder's Data Collection - 1st Responder's Internet servers collect user usage information about every page on this Website, such as what pages are viewed and how long readers spend at the Website

Third Party Data Collection - Third party sites also collect data and may even place their own cookies onto your computer. These third parties are not owned or controlled by 1st Responder and 1st Responder cannot be held responsible for any information they collect.

Disclosure of Data

Newspaper employees and agents - 1st Responder and its employees view and analyze reader data. Aggregated anonymous reader data may also be shared with third parties and/or agents of 1st Responder, primarily for, but not limited to, marketing and advertising analysis.

Third parties

Advertisers and content providers - 1st Responder occasionally provides aggregated anonymous data, such as readers' zip codes, age, and gender, to various advertisers and content providers in order to obtain more relevant information, advertising, and service for readers. 1st Responder will not disclose individually identifiable information about the reader to third parties, except as provided below.

Legal - 1st Responder reserves the right to disclose personal information about any user that 1st Responder deems, in good faith, to be necessary to: comply with applicable state and federal law or legal process; protect 1st Responder's rights or assets, including, but not limited to 1st Responder's property rights under Copyright, Trademark, and other intellectual property law; protect 1st Responder's readers, other persons, and the public; or for any other purpose consistent with this agreement. 1st Responder may disclose reader data if it feels that reader has provided fraudulent or illegal information, has attempted to pose as someone else, or has attempted an unauthorized access of 1st Responder's computer systems. Persons responsible for attempting unauthorized access of 1st Responder's computer systems will be prosecuted to the fullest extent permitted by law.

Security - 1st Responder is committed to online data security and will take steps to protect collected reader data from unauthorized access from third parties, including 1st Responder employees not authorized to view data. 1st Responder will take reasonable safeguards to protect reader data from hackers and transmission errors. Since no computer communication system is completely secure, 1st Responder EXPRESSLY DISCLAIMS ANY EXPRESS OR IMLIED WARRANTY that user data is absolutely secure and will not claim or warrant that others cannot access reader data. However, 1st Responder will take steps to protect readers by making certain reader data anonymous or undecipherable to persons who try to hack into the system.

Disclosure to Readers - 1st Responder collects personally identifiable information as listed in section above. To view this data, please contact webmaster@1stResponderNews.com or go to your Profile page once registration is completed.

Ownership of Data:

1st Responder owns the data it collects through the above mentioned methods. In the unlikely event that 1st Responder undergoes a sale, merger, or bankruptcy proceeding, collected data may be included in a transfer or liquidation of assets.

WARRANTY DISCLAIMER.

ALL Web content and serviceS ARE PROVIDED "AS IS" WITHOUT WARRANTies OF ANY KIND, EITHER IMPLIED OR EXPRESSED, INCLUDING, BUT NOT LIMITED TO, THE IMPLIED WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY AND FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE, FUNCTIONALITY, DATA INTEGRITY, OR PROTECTION. This Website is provided for informational and entertainment purposes only and is not intended for use with any activities for which damages may result from untimely or inaccurate data. 1st Responder DOES NOT WARRANT THAT THE data or functions CONTAINED WITHIN ANY PART OF THIS WEBSITE WILL MEET YOUR REQUIREMENTS, that defects will be corrected, that any parts of this site are free of viruses or other harmful objects, THAT USER DATA IS ABSOLUTELY SECURE, OR THAT THE OPERATION OF ANY OF ITS services WILL BE UNINTERRUPTED OR ERROR FREE.

LIMITATION OF REMEDIES. THE user expressly assumes the ENTIRE RISK AS TO THE QUALITY AND PERFORMANCE OF any and all data, service, or feature provided by THis WEBSITE. IN NO EVENT WILL 1st Responder BE LIABLE FOR ANY DAMAGES, INCLUDING, BUT NOT LIMITED TO, LOST PROFITS, BUSINESS INTERRUPTIONS, OR OTHER INCIDENTAL OR CONSEQUENTIAL DAMAGES ARISING FROM THE USE OR INABILITY TO USE PARTS OF THIS WEBSITE (WHETHER OR NOT DUE TO ANY DEFECTS THEREIN) EVEN IF 1st Responder HAS BEEN ADVISED OF THE POSSIBILITY OF SUCH DAMAGES, OR FOR ANY CLAIM BY ANY OTHER PARTY.

Special note for parents of children under the age of 13 - 1st Responder does not make any specific or targeted attempts to collect personally identifiable data from readers under the age of 13. In fact, attempts are made to screen the collection of data from users under the age of 13. Any data-except email address-that 1st Responder Newspaper collects on children under 13 years of age will be discarded in accordance with the Children's Online Privacy Protection Act. Email addresses of children under 13 submitted during registration are kept by 1st Responder Newspaper for identification purposes only, and under no circumstances are displayed or made publicly available.

Variations/Interactive features -1st Responder may offer more advanced interactive services that will allow readers to customize information received from this site or to add information to this site. In such cases 1st Responder will need to retain reader information in order to permit such customized service.

E-commerce data - Any and all e-commerce transactions conducted through 1st Responder will be kept confidential. Individual transaction data will not be released to non-parties to the transaction. Aggregated anonymous data that does not reveal the customers' identity may be released to third parties for statistical analysis. 1st Responder makes no guarantees or warranties about e-commerce transactions conducted by third parties linked to 1st Responder's Website.

Interactive Forums - Any postings or uploads to chat-rooms, forums, or interactive communication features on 1st Responder's Website are made public and are not private. By posting data or personal information to such features, readers assume the risk that others may view their postings and personal information, such as user name or e-mail address. 1st Responder reserves the right to take measures to restrict the access to interactive forums of persons who post offensive content. Please check the individual interactive forums for other terms of use.

Changes - 1st Responder reserves the right to change this Privacy Policy without notice. In the event of a change of this privacy policy, procedures will be developed for readers to opt-out or otherwise prohibit any future use of their individually identifiable information that is not currently covered under this policy.

Termination - You can elect to terminate your membership with 1st Responder at any time. Simply go to your My Profile page, scroll down to the "My Info" menu on the left-hand side of the page, and select the "My Preferences" link. On the "My Preferences" page and scroll down to the "Account Status" section. Check the box next to "Want to cancel your account?" and scroll down to the bottom of the page to the "Submit" button. Click on the "Submit" button to cancel your account. Upon termination, your account information will not necessarily be removed entirely from 1st Responder - this is to reserve your identity so that no one else can create a new account with your member name or email address, and also allows you the privilege of reactivating your account at a later date if you wish to use 1st Responder again. The termination of your 1st Responder Newspaper membership will not automatically terminate any affiliated memberships or registrations you have formed through 1st Responder. If, after having joined a 1st Responder partner's service, you wish to be removed, you should contact that service directly to have your membership terminated.


Contacts - Please contact
privacy@1stResponderNews.com or send a letter addressed to:
Belsito Communications, Inc.
Privacy Policy Administrator,
53 Route 17K, Newburgh, NY 12550
if you have any questions about this policy.