Privacy Policy

Last Updated: March 2024.

OUR APPROACH TO PRIVACY

The protection of your personal information is of the utmost importance to Babbl Communications Ltd., its subsidiaries, divisions and affiliates (“Babbl”, “we”, “us” or “our”, as appropriate).

This privacy policy (“Privacy Policy”) aims to give you information on how Babbl collects, uses and discloses your personal information through your use of our website (located at www.heybabbl.ca), products or services (collectively, “Services”), as well as the choices you have with respect to that information. This Privacy Policy is incorporated into the Terms of Use for our website, products and services, as applicable.

For the purposes of this Privacy Policy, “personal information” means any information about an identifiable individual, including, but not limited to, an individual’s name, home address, telephone number, social insurance number, gender, income and family status, and expressly excludes any other information otherwise exempted by applicable law. References to our “products” in this Privacy Policy include internet modems. References to our “services” in this Privacy Policy include, apps, websites, online services, telecommunications services, and other services that we may provide to you. Certain Babbl products, services

PLEASE READ THIS PRIVACY POLICY CAREFULLY.  BY USING OUR WEBSITES, PRODUCTS OR SERVICES, OR OTHERWISE PROVIDING US WITH YOUR PERSONAL INFORMATION, YOU ARE HEREBY CONSENTING TO BABBL’S COLLECTION, USE, AND DISCLOSURE OF YOUR PERSONAL INFORMATION IN ACCORDANCE WITH THIS PRIVACY POLICY.

If you do not consent to the practices described in this Privacy Policy, you may not continue to use the Services.

In some instances, our products and services or those offered by a third-party service provider to our customers or users may have their own specific privacy policies. Customers or users may be asked to consent to the additional privacy policies before using these products or services.

WE RESPECT YOUR PRIVACY

Your privacy is important to us. We are committed to protecting and ensuring the confidentiality of any personal information you provide to us.

We take care to only use your personal information, whether submitted to us using our Services or otherwise, to serve you as a customer and for the purposes described in this Privacy Policy. Any personal information you provide to us will be treated with diligence and will only be used or disclosed in accordance with your consent, this Privacy Policy, or applicable law.

This Privacy Policy describes the following:

• How we obtain consent to collect, use and disclose personal information;
• What types of personal information we collect;
• How we may use that information;
• How we may disclose that information;
• How we protect that information;
• How you may access or correct any of your personal information held by us; and
• How you may contact us should you have questions or concerns about your privacy.

CONSENT

Your consent to the collection, use or disclosure of personal information may be implied or express, through written, oral, electronic or any other method. When it is reasonable in the circumstances, we may imply consent from your actions. We may ask for your express consent when or collection, use or disclosure of personal information is more sensitive or not necessarily expected.

For example, when you provide us with your address, it is implied that it is used for billing purposes and service provisioning. However, if we are dealing with more sensitive information, such a performing a credit check, we well seek your express consent. We will also obtain your express consent for marketing purposes.

WITHDRAWING YOUR CONSENT

The choice to provide Babbl with you consent is always yours, however your decision to withhold such consent may limit our ability to provide you with certain products, services or offers.

You may withdraw your consent to the collection, use, and disclosure of your personal information at any time. Upon receiving your request, we will undertake to delete any of your personal information held by Babbl within a reasonable time, subject to any personal information that may need to be retained for purposes required or permitted by applicable law.

You may also request that we stop sending you commercial electronic messages (CEMs). Upon receiving your request, we will remove your electronic address from our mailing list within ten (10) business days.

Please direct any of the above requests to our Privacy Officer at privacy@heybabbl.ca. In addition, we provide opt-out or withdrawal instructions in our CEMs to allow you to remove your name from future mailings.

COLLECTION OF YOUR PERSONAL INFORMATION

The personal information we collect and the method of collection depends on how you interact with us, and the products and services you use or to which you subscribe. We collect only the personal information that is strictly necessary for the Purposes described below (in the section entitled “Use of Your Personal Information”).

We may collect personal information in the following ways:

• when you provide your personal information during the inquiry, activation, purchase or subscription process for a product or service;
• when we provide services to our customers, including technical or customer support;
• automatically, when you use our Services (such as through the use of cookies or similar technologies).

Types of personal information collected may include, but are not limited to,:

• Identification Information.

As part of our Services, we may ask you to provide us with certain personal information to allow us to identify you and communicate with you. Such information may include your name, mailing address, e-mail address and phone number.

• Relationship Information

We may collect information regarding your inquiries, purchases, regional location and other transactions, to allow us to offer you products and services that may interest you.

• Product or Inquiry Information

We use inquiry forms (e.g., on our website) to allow you to request information, including product, service or pricing information. Any personal information collected in these forms is used to fulfill your request or to better understand your request. We do not collect sensitive personal information such as social insurance numbers or financial information in these inquiry forms, other than we may need to collect credit card information to process payment obligations on your account.

• Anonymous Information

By using our Services, you agree to the collection of certain information that we use to improve the functionality of our Services. Such information may include website visitor demographics (e.g., language), what web pages our visitors are browsing to, the amount of time spent on each page, the device type used to visit the website, and other technically relevant information. Once collected, this information is not tied to you personal, and is used in aggregate with the information of other users so that we may better understand our customers and improve our Services.

• Information Collected Through Our Website

When you log on to our website for the first time, you are presented with a notice regarding our use of cookies to automatically track certain information. We do not collect any cookie information until you have accepted our cookie policy. You may still use our website if you decline our cookie policy, and your information will not be collected or tracked. However, you will not have the benefits arising from our use of cookies, such as personalized preferences or the provision of advertisements for products tailored to you interests.

If you accept our cookie policy, you consent to the collection of information about your online activities when you use our website through certain online tracking mechanisms deployed on our website. They collect information regarding your browsing activities, including:

• IP address;
• Device type;
• Operating system;
• Browser language;
• Our web pages that you visited, time on the website, and total number of pages viewed; and
• Network service provider.

You may use browser, app or device controls to prevent certain types of automotive information collection. However, if you choose not to provide or allow information that is necessary for certain Services or features, those Services or features may not be available or function correctly. For instance, you may manage the information we collect through our website by adjusting the cookie and privacy settings in your web browser or on your mobile device, but this may limit your online experience and available functionality on the website.

We may also obtain data and information about you from third parties, including, but not limited to:

• Credit information from credit reporting agencies.

USE OF YOUR PERSONAL INFORMATION

We collect your information for various reasons in order to provide you with our products and services and to improve those products and services to better serve you as a customer. Specifically, we may use your information for the following purposes (the “Purposes”):

• to provide you with the products or services you have purchased from us or for which you have subscribed, and to bill you and collect payment for those products or services.
• to understand your needs and offer you products or services that may be of interest to you.
• to perform customer support.
• to manage customer relationships and communicate with you, including responding to your inquiries and information requests.
• administer and validate warranties.
• to monitor, customize, and improve our communications with you.
• to manage invoicing, accounting, and information security services related to our transactions with you.
• to provide geo-location services that will send you offers and promotions from carefully chosen third parties based on your current and historical personal location information.
• to operate our websites, including online registration processes (e.g., for webinars and other online information sessions).
• to evaluate and/or improve the quality, performance, safety and security of our products and services.
• to help us develop new products, services and features to meet your needs as a customer.
• to notify you of recalls or safety issues.
• to perform troubleshooting.
• to confirm or authenticate your identity and ensure your information is correct and up-to-date.
• to detect, prevent, investigate or otherwise address fraud, unauthorized or illegal activity, security, or technical issues.
• to perform analytics, administer surveys, or request feedback to improve and manage our relationship with you.
• to ensure the Babbl networks are functioning and to protect the integrity of our networks.
• to protect against harm to the rights, property, or safety of Babbl, our customers, our employees, or the public, as required or permitted by law.
• to evaluate any application by you for employment with Babbl.
• to comply with any “Do Not Email” or other non-solicitation requests.
• to comply with any contractual requirements under contracts entered into with you.
• to ensure compliance with our Terms of Service and Acceptable Use Policy.
• to comply with legal or regulatory requirements, including as part of an investigation of a security incident or cooperation with governmental authorities pursuant to a legal matter.
• to perform marketing, including interest-based marketing and advertising.
• browsing and system information may be used to personalize and optimize your website experience.

From time-to-time, information may also be collected for other purposes, or as permitted or required by law. We will always identify any additional purpose prior to, or at the time of, collection.

We will not use any information provided by you through the Contact Us forms of our websites or via telephone for unsolicited marketing purposes.

We may anonymize your information in a way that it can no longer reasonably be associated with you. We may use anonymized information or share it with third parties for any legitimate business purpose, including, but not limited to,: helping us understand trends and customer needs; assisting in product selection, ordering, and sizing; introducing new product and service offerings; and optimizing our websites’ rankings in third party search engines.

DISCLOSURE OF YOUR PERSONAL INFORMATION

Babbl understands consumers’ concerns over the sharing of their personal information with third parties. For this reason, we will not disclose any of your personal information to third parties, except as described in this Privacy Policy, with your consent, or as required or permitted by applicable law.

Within Babbl. We may share your personal information with our directors, officers, employees, consultants, contractors and agents for the Purposes set forth in this Privacy Policy.

Third-Party Service Providers. We may share, without your consent, your personal information with service providers that we use to facilitate or outsource one or more aspects of the operation of our Services or our business (e.g., hosting our website and online services, backup/archival services, tracking website usage, marketing our Services, and communicating with our customers), provided that any use of the information is in accordance with the Purposes, and such information is necessary for the performance of their functions. We require all our service providers to sign agreements in which they promise to protect personal information using safeguards reasonably similar to ours. Further, these service providers are subject to confidentiality and security agreements with Babbl and other legal restrictions that prohibit their use or unauthorized access of any personal information we provide to them for any purpose other than to facilitate specific processing operations in accordance with the Purposes. Any disclosure of your personal information for purposes other than the Purposes will require your prior consent.

Business Transactions and Transfers. In the event that we intend to sell or transfer ownership or control of any or all of our business, operations or services to a third party, we reserve the right to disclose your personal information to a potential buyer both before and after the purchase under the protection of a valid confidentiality and security agreement. In the event the sale goes through, we will require that the receiving party agree that they will be similarly bound by the provisions of our Privacy Policy and that they will only use and disclose your personal information in accordance with the Purposes described under this Privacy Policy. In the event the sale does not go through, we will require the potential purchaser to not use or disclose your personal information in any manner whatsoever and to completely erase any of your personal information in their possession.

General. With regard to any disclosures of your personal information, we will ensure that (i) the use of your personal information is consistent with the Purposes, (ii) your personal information will not be disclosed to third parties without your prior consent (except if such disclosure is consistent with the Purposes or if provided for by applicable law), and (iii) reasonable measures have been or will be implemented to protect your personal information against any unauthorized access or use.

Compliance with Laws and Protection of Our Rights and the Rights of Others. We may disclose personal information when we, in good faith, believe disclosure is appropriate to comply with the law, a court order, or a subpoena. We may also disclose personal information to cooperate with a government investigation; to prevent or investigate a possible crime, such as fraud or identity theft; to enforce or apply our Terms of Use, Acceptable Use Policy or other agreements; or to protect our own rights or property or the rights, property or safety of our users or others.

Cross-Border Transfers.  Our head office is in Richmond, British Columbia, Canada. In some cases, personal information that we manage may be processed and stored outside of British Columbia or Canada. These jurisdictions may operate under privacy and data protection laws different from those of your home jurisdiction. Consequently, there is a risk that such information may be available to the courts, law enforcement, or other government authorities under lawful orders and laws applicable in those jurisdictions. We will take all steps reasonably necessary to ensure that your personal information is treated securely and in accordance with this Privacy Policy and applicable privacy laws. To the extent we are required by law, such disclosure will be the subject of a written agreement that takes into account, among other things, the results of our risk assessment and, where applicable, the terms and conditions agreed upon to mitigate any identified risks. Your submission of personal information to us through or in connection with the Services and your consent to this Privacy Policy include consent to such storage and processing outside of British Columbia or Canada.

Aggregated Data.  We compile aggregate usage statistics of our Services from data collected through or in connection with the Services (e.g., through website cookies). We may publish those statistics or share them with third parties, but they do not include personal information.

Google Analytics.  Google Analytics is a web analytics service offered by Google that tracks an reports website traffic. Google uses the data collected to track and monitor the use of our website. This data may be shares with other Google services. Google may use the collected data to contextualize and personalize the ads of its own advertising network. For information on the privacy practices of Google, please visit the Google Privacy & Terms web page at www.policies.google.com/privacy?hl=en. You can opt-out of having your website browsing activity made available to Google Analytics by installing the Google Analytics opt-out browed add-on. The add-on prevents the Google Analytics JavaScript (ga.js, analytics.js and dc.js) from sharing information with Google Analytics about visitor activity.

CONFIDENTIALITY & SECURITY MEASURES

We maintain security measures in accordance with industry standards to protect and ensure the confidentiality of your personal information. We employ reasonable physical, administrative, contractual, and technological safeguards to guard against loss, unauthorized access, misuse, or alteration of personal information under our control. Access to personal information is restricted to authorized personnel who require such information to properly perform their duties, and access is limited to only that information that is strictly necessary for the performance of those duties.  Further, we insist that our service providers implement similar safeguards to protect the personal information of Babbl customers or users.

Unless we are required to do so by law or to protect the integrity or security of our Services, we will not authorize the sale or trade of your personal information that you submit to us, or otherwise publicize in association with your identity the fact that you submitted materials or other information to us, unless we first receive your permission or else notify you beforehand in accordance with this Privacy Policy.

Due to the nature of the Internet, no systems are impenetrable, and the security measures undertaken by Babbl may not fully protect your personal information in all cases. Babbl cannot guarantee that there will not be a breach in the confidentiality of your personal information; you should thus exercise care in using our Services. If you believe that your personal information held by Babbl has been compromised, we urge you to notify us promptly.

In the event that a breach of confidentiality involving your personal information occurs or is suspected, such as unauthorized access, use, disclosure, loss of personal information or any other breach of the security of such personal information, Babbl will take reasonable steps to reduce the risk of harm and to prevent similar breaches from occurring in the future. Babbl will notify you of any such breach of confidentiality that poses a real risk of significant harm to you.

• SSL Protection. Some password-protected areas of our Services require a secure connection with your computer. We use an encryption technology called Secure Socket Layers (SSL). A secure connection is maintained until you leave the secure area of the website. Babbl cannot guarantee the safety of transmitting personal information over the Internet.
• Password Protection. You are responsible for maintaining the confidentiality of your passwords. We have the right to assume that anyone accessing one of our Services using a password assigned to you has the right to do so. You will be solely responsible for the activities of anyone accessing our Services using a password assigned to you. You must promptly change your passwords if you see a risk of your password being compromised.

RETENTION AND DESTRUCTION OF YOUR PERSONAL INFORMATION

Your personal information is kept with our cloud storage/hosting provider, at a facility located in BC. As mentioned above (in the section entitled “Disclosure of Your Personal Information”), in some cases, personal information that we manage may be disclosed, processed, or stored in other Canadian provinces or territories, or abroad.

Your personal information will be retained for only as long as is necessary to fulfill the Purposes described herein or as otherwise authorized by you, or as is otherwise necessary to protect our interests or comply with applicable law. When your personal information is no longer necessary for the Purposes, we will delete, destroy, aggregate, or otherwise anonymize your personal information, subject to any retention period provided by applicable law.

As described above, any anonymization of your personal information will be done in such a way that it can no longer reasonably be associated with you. We may use anonymized information or share it with third parties for any legitimate business purpose, including, but not limited to,: helping us understand trends and customer needs; assisting in product selection, ordering, and sizing; and introducing new product and service offerings.

RIGHT TO ACCESS AND CORRECT YOUR PERSONAL INFORMATION

To ensure that your personal information held by Babbl is accurate, complete, and up-to-date, you may request to access, correct, and update any such personal information. Any such request should be addressed to our Privacy Officer at privacy@heybabbl.ca or at the coordinates listed in the “Contact Us” section of this Privacy Policy. We undertake to respond to your request with diligence and no later than thirty (30) days from the date of receipt of your request.

To protect your privacy, you may be required to provide authenticating information prior to gaining access or making changes to you personal information. We undertake to respond to all requests to review or request changes to personal information within 30 days. In some cases, we may not be able to allow you to access certain personal information in certain circumstances (e.g., if the file contains personal information of other persons, or where required by law). In such event, we will provide you with a reasonable explanation of why it is not possible to grant access to your personal information.

To the extent permitted by law, Babbl assumes no responsibility for verifying the ongoing accuracy of personal information.

ANTI-SPAM

We are committed to providing transparency with respect to our practices in complying with Canada’s anti-spam laws (“CASL”). From time to time, we may send commercial electronic messages (“CEMs”), including (i) to our current or potential clients (whether individuals or businesses) (e.g., for prospecting purposes or to respond to an inquiry or request for information); and (ii) to our current or potential service providers or business partners. We may also delegate the distribution of Babbl CEMs to a third party service provider, in which case the CEM will be identified as being sent on behalf of Babbl.

We only send CEMs to those recipients that have either provided their express consent to receive CEMs from Babbl, or where permitted by law, including without limitation (i) due to an existing business relationship between Babbl and you; (ii) within a certain period after the end of any such business relationship; (iii) within a certain period after an inquiry or request for information by you; (iv) in the form of a single CEM, following a referral by a current Babbl client, service provider, business partner, or employee who also has a personal, family, or business relationship with you; and (v) in the event that you conspicuously published your email address or voluntarily disclosed it to Babbl or one of our employees or agents (without an indication that you do not wish to receive unsolicited CEMs).

If you wish to stop receiving CEMs from us, you may do so by using the unsubscribe mechanism found at the bottom of any Babbl CEM, or by contacting us at privacy@heybabbl.ca with “UNSUBSCRIBE” in the subject header. We will remove your e-mail address from our mailing list within ten (10) business days.

CHILDREN’S PRIVACY

We do not knowingly collect personal information from or market to children under the age of 13 years old. If a child under the age of 13 has provided personal information to Babbl through our website or other Services, a parent or guardian may contact our Privacy Officer to request that the information be deleted from our records. Following receipt of such a request, we will make reasonable efforts to delete the child’s information from our records.

CHANGES TO THIS PRIVACY POLICY

We regularly review our policies and practices, and reserve the right to modify this Privacy Policy at our discretion and at any time. When we make changes to this Privacy Policy, we will post the updated Privacy Policy on our website, notify users that have opted to receive such notice, and indicate the effective date of the Privacy Policy. We encourage you to periodically review this Privacy Policy for any updates before using our Services to ensure that you understand how your personal information may be collected, used, and disclosed. Your continued access or use of the Services, continued business with us, or continued submission of personal information to us, after a revised Privacy Policy has been posted will be deemed an acceptance of, and agreement to be legally bound by, this Privacy Policy, as revised.

Regardless of any changes we make to this Privacy Policy, we will only use your personal information in accordance with the version of the Privacy Policy in place at the time you provided your information, unless you later provide your express consent for us to do otherwise, or as otherwise permitted by law.

CONTACT US

If you have questions, concerns or complaints regarding this Privacy Policy or the collection, use or disclosure of your personal information by Babbl, please contact our Privacy Officer at the coordinates listed below. We undertake to respond to your request with diligence and no later than thirty (30) days from the date of receipt of your written request.

• E-mail: privacy@heybabbl.ca; or

PRIVACY COMMISSIONER

If you are not satisfied with Babbl’s response, you may contact the Office of the Privacy Commissioner of Canada for further guidance at:

• Website: priv.gc.ca/en
• Toll-free: 1-800-282-1376
• Phone: (819) 994-5444
• Fax: (819) 994-5424

Mailing address:
Office of the Privacy Commissioner of Canada
30 Victoria Street
Gatineau, Quebec
K1A 1H3