Terms and Conditions

Terms of Use:
Agreement with Terms and Conditions: This agreement (“Agreement”) sets forth the terms and conditions that apply to you (“Visitor”), an individual accessing the website of Deaf & Hard of Hearing Society (DHHS). By accessing the DHHS Site, you agree to the following terms and conditions and the Privacy Statement. If you do not agree, you have no right or license to access any part of the DDHS Site and you should not do so. Please note that certain services and programs offered by DHHS may have additional terms and conditions. Please check the specific service/program link(s) below to find these additional terms and conditions.

Terms and Conditions:

DHHS has the right to change or discontinue any aspect or feature of any DHHS, including, but not limited to, content, hours of availability, and equipment needed for access or use, at any time. DHHS has the right to change or modify the terms and conditions applicable to Visitor’s use of the DHHS site, or any part thereof, or to impose new conditions, including, but not limited to, adding fees and charges for use at any time. Such changes, modifications, additions or deletions shall be effective immediately upon notice thereof, which may be given by means including, but not limited to, posting on the DHHS Site, or by electronic or conventional mail, or by any other means by which Visitor obtains notice thereof. Any use of the DHHS Site by Visitor subsequent to such notice shall be deemed to constitute acceptance by Visitor of such changes, modifications or additions.

Conduct of Visitor/Lawful Use:

Visitor shall use the DHHS Site for lawful purposes only. Visitor shall not post or transmit through any DHHS Site any material which: (I) violates or infringes in any way upon the rights of others; (ii) is unlawful, threatening, abusive, defamatory, invasive of privacy or publicity rights, vulgar, obscene, profane or otherwise objectionable; (iii) encourages conduct that would constitute a criminal offense, gives rise to civil liability or otherwise violates any law; or (iv) contains advertising or any solicitation with respect to products or services, unless DHHS has expressly approved such material in advance of its transmission. Any conduct by a Visitor that in DHHHS’s discretion restricts or inhibits any other Visitor from using or enjoying any DHHS’s Site is expressly prohibited.

Downloading of Intellectual Property:

The DHHS Site contains copyrighted material, trademarks and other proprietary information, including, but not limited to, text, software, photos, video, graphics, music, and sound, portions of which are owned by DHHS. The entire contents of the DHHS Site are copyrighted as a collective work/compilation. DHHS owns copyright in the selection, coordination, arrangement, and enhancement of such content, as well as in the content original to it. No Visitor may modify, publish, transmit, participate in the transfer or sale, create derivative works, or in any way exploit, any of the content, in whole or in part. Visitor may download one (1) single copy of the copyrighted material for Visitor’s personal, non-commercial use only. Except as otherwise expressly permitted under copyright law, no copying, redistribution, retransmission, publication or commercial exploitation of downloaded material will be permitted without the express written permission of DHHS. In the event of any permitted copying, redistribution or publication of copyrighted material, no changes in or deletion of author attribution, trademark legend, copyright or other proprietary notice shall be made. Visitor acknowledges that he/she does not acquire any ownership rights by downloading copyrighted material.

Uploading of Intellectual Property:

Visitor shall not upload, post or otherwise make available on any DHHS Site any material protected by copyright, trademark, or other proprietary right, without the express written permission of the owner of the copyright, trademark, or other proprietary right, and the burden of determining that any material is not protected by copyright rests with Visitor. Visitor shall be solely liable for any damage resulting from any infringement of copyrights, proprietary rights, or any other harm resulting from such a submission. By submitting material to any public area of any DHHS Site, Visitor automatically grants, or warrants that the owner of such material has expressly granted, Deaf & Hard of Hearing Society the royalty-free, perpetual, irrevocable, non-exclusive right and license to use, reproduce, modify, adapt, publish, translate and distribute such material (in whole or in part) worldwide and/or to incorporate it in other works in any form, media or technology now known or hereafter developed for the full term of any copyright that may exist in such material. Visitor also permits any other Visitor to access, view, store or reproduce the material for that Visitor’s personal use. Visitor hereby grants DHHS the right to edit, copy, publish and distribute any material made available on any DHHS Site by Visitor.

Trademarks:

Unless otherwise indicated, trademarks that appear on this site are trademarks of DHHS or its affiliates. All other trademarks not owned by DHHS or its affiliates that appear on this site are the property of their respective owners, who may or may not be affiliated with, connected to, or sponsored by DHHS or its affiliates.

Authorize Others to Use:

You hereby authorize DHHS to use and/or authorize others to use all or part of your Postings in any manner, format, or medium that DHHS or such other parties see fit. You shall have no claim or other recourse against DHHS for infringement of any proprietary right in Postings.

Disclaimers and Limitation of Liability:

Use Is At Visitor’s Risk:
Visitor expressly agrees that use of the dhhs site is at visitor’s own risk. Visitor shall be responsible for protecting the confidentiality of visitor’s password(s), if any. Neither dhhs, its affiliates, nor any of their respective employees, shareholders, agents, third-party content providers or licensors, warrant that the dhhs site will be uninterrupted or error free; nor do they make any warranty as to the results that may be obtained from use of any dhhs site, or as to the accuracy, reliability or content of any information, service, or merchandise provided through any dhhs site. Price information is subject to change without notice. It is your responsibility to evaluate the accuracy and completeness of all information, opinions and other material on the dhhs site or any sites with which it is linked. Deaf & hard of hearing society provides technology automatically producing search results that link and/or reference sites and information located worldwide throughout the internet. Because we have no control over such sites and information, dhhs makes no guarantee as to such sites and information, including the accuracy, currency, content or quality of any such sites and information and dhhs assumes no responsibility as to whether the search locates unintended or objectionable content. Furthermore, because some content on the internet consists of material that is adult-oriented or otherwise objectionable to some people, the results of your search on our sites may automatically and unintentionally generate links or references to objectionable material. We make no claim that such surprises might not occur.

No Warranties of Service:

The dhhs site is provided on an “as is” basis without warranties of any kind, either express or implied, including, but not limited to, warranties of title or implied warranties of merchantability or fitness for a particular purpose, other than those warranties which are incapable of exclusion, restriction or modification under the laws applicable to this agreement.

Disclaimer of liability:

This disclaimer of liability applies to any damages or injury caused by any failure of performance, error, omission, interruption, deletion, defect, delay in operation or transmission, computer virus, communication line failure, theft or destruction or unauthorized access to, alteration of, or use of record, whether for breach of contract, tortious behaviour, negligence, or under any other cause of action. Visitor specifically acknowledges that dhhs and its licensors are not liable for the defamatory, offensive or illegal conduct of other visitors or third parties and that the risk of injury from the foregoing rests entirely with visitor.

Visitor’s waiver of damages:

In no event will dhhs, or any person or entity involved in creating, producing or distributing any part of the dhhs site be liable for any damages, including, without limitation, direct, indirect, incidental, special, consequential or punitive damages arising out of the use of or inability to use any part of the dhhs site. Visitor hereby acknowledges that the provisions of this section shall apply to all content on all dhhs site.
In addition to the terms set forth above, neither deaf& hard of hearing society, nor its affiliates, information providers or content partners shall be liable regardless of the cause or duration, for any errors, inaccuracies, omissions, or other defects in, or untimeliness or unauthenticity of, the information contained within the dhhs site, or for any delay or interruption in the transmission thereof to the visitor, or for any claims or losses arising therefrom or occasioned thereby. None of the foregoing parties shall be liable for any third-party claims or losses of any nature, including, but not limited to, lost profits, punitive or consequential damages.

Indemnification:

Visitor agrees to defend, indemnify and hold harmless DEAF & HARD OF HEARING SOCIETY, its affiliates and their respective directors, officers, shareholders, employees, agents, and assigns from and against all claims and expenses, including attorneys’ fees, arising out of Visitor’s use of any DHHS Site.

Email Newsletters:

Please be advised that our email newsletters (“Newsletters”) are part of a wide distribution, and that neither DHHS nor any third party involved is monitoring, reviewing or screening the recipient email list prior to its distribution. The Newsletters are distributed only to those who have expressly opted-in to receive them. If local, provincial or federal rules or regulations prohibit the recipient from receiving these types of Newsletters or the recipient simply does not wish to receive same in the future or the Newsletter was sent to recipient in error, the recipient should immediately opt-out from receiving similar future offers and/or newsletters by visiting the www.dhhs.ca updating his or her subscription.

DHHS Site Content:

Certain content portions of the DHHS Site are supplied by third parties. Any opinions, advice, statements, services, offers, or other information or content expressed or made available by third parties, including information providers, are those of the respective author(s) or distributor(s) and not of DHHS. Neither DHHS nor any third-party provider of information guarantees the accuracy, completeness, or usefulness of any content, nor its merchantability or fitness for any particular purpose. DHHS neither endorses nor is responsible for the accuracy or reliability of any opinion, advice or statement made on any DHHS Site by anyone other than employee spokespersons of DHHS while acting in their official capacities.

Submissions:

DHHS always welcomes suggestions and comments regarding any DHHS Sites. Any comments or suggestions submitted to DHHS Site, either online or offline, will become DHHS property upon their submission.

Entire Agreement:

This Agreement, and any operating rules for the DHHS Site established by Deaf and Hard of Hearing Society, constitutes the entire agreement of the parties with respect to the subject matter hereof, and supersedes all previous written or oral agreements between the parties with respect to such subject matter.

Privacy Policy

Welcome to the Deaf & Hard of Hearing Society’s (DHHS) web site, owned and managed by the DHHS. The DHHS products and services (collectively, the “Programs and Services”) are offered by DHHS through web pages at DHHS.ca and are made available subject to this Privacy Policy. This statement discloses the privacy practices of the DHHS.ca site. By using the Programs and Services, you agree, without limitation or qualification, to be bound by this Privacy Policy.

The Privacy Policy contains detailed information about the following:

What information of yours does the DHHS.ca site collect?
What are “cookies” and how does DHHS use them?
What organization is collecting the information?
How does the DHHS.ca site use the information?
With whom does the DHHS.ca site share the information that is collected?
How can you access, edit or delete your information?
How can you opt-out?
What types of security procedures are in place to protect against the loss, misuse or alteration of your information?
What can you do to better protect yourself on the Internet?
All questions or concerns regarding our use of your information and this statement should be directed to:

Deaf & Hard of Hearing Society
Executive Director
63 Cornell Road
Calgary, Alberta
T2L 0L4
E-mail: reception@dhhs.ca

Please note that the DHHS.ca site contains links to other sites, and while we endeavor to ensure that these other sites’ privacy policies conform to our own, DHHS cannot represent or guarantee that they do so. So bear in mind that sites that are linked to from the DHHS.ca site may have privacy policies which differ from that of the DHHS.ca site.

This policy may be updated from time to time so please check back periodically.

What information of yours does the DHHS.ca site collect?
The goal of the DHHS.ca site is to be your premier destination on the Internet by providing you with the information, services and product offerings that are most relevant to deaf, hard of hearing, deafened, hearing and significant others. To achieve this goal, the DHHS.ca site needs to collect information to understand what differentiates you from its other unique users. We collect two types of information from you, “Anonymous Information” and “Identifiable Information”.

Anonymous information refers to information that cannot be traced back to an identifiable specific individual. Each time a visitor comes to the DHHS.ca site, DHHS collects information that is necessary to improve the overall quality of the visitor’s online experience. DHHS collects the visitor’s IP address (e.g., whether the user is logged on from a .ca, .com, .gov or .edu domain), referral data (e.g., the address of the last URL a user visited prior to clicking through to a DHHS.ca Network site), and browser and platform type (e.g., a Netscape browser on a Macintosh platform). DHHS also collects aggregate search terms from its search services for internal reporting and targeted advertising. DHHS collects this user information for purposes of product monitoring, product improvement, and targeted advertising.

In addition to this Anonymous Information, DHHS may also collect identifiable information (“Identifiable Information”). Identifiable Information refers to information that tells us specifically who is using the DHHS.ca site, such as your name and e-mail address. Wherever and whenever DHHS collects identifiable information, we make an effort to include a link to this Privacy Policy on that page.

DHHS collects Identifiable Information in the following ways from different parts of the DHHS.ca site:

Most of the Identifiable Information is gathered when you voluntarily register. If you choose to register you may provide DHHS with your name, postal code, e-mail address, birth date, gender and other information. While not all of this information is required, the more information you volunteer (and the more accurate it is), the better we are able to customize your experience. Once you register, you will be given a DHHS.ca site ID and will be able to take full advantage of the many offerings over the DHHS.ca site, including personalization services. For example, your DHHS.ca site ID is used to offer you customized information. The number and variety of useful services the DHHS.ca site provides continues to grow and so will your ability to make use of these services if you choose to register for them. If you choose not to provide the requested information, the DHHS.ca site may not be able to offer you some of the customized services that depend on this type of information to function. However, to register, you still have the option of providing only the minimum necessary information.

In addition to registration for various services on the DHHS.ca site, DHHS may ask you for Identifiable Information at other times, including certain necessary information when you enter raffles, a contest or a promotion sponsored by the DHHS.ca site and/or our many partners. We also ask for information when you make a purchase or conduct a transaction over the DHHS.ca site.

If you contact the DHHS.ca site, we may keep a record of that correspondence. We do collect any e-mail addresses of those who communicate with the DHHS.ca site by joining our mailing list voluntarily. We use the information provided to occasionally send out mass e-mailings to inform end users about upcoming events, and other activities endorsed by DHHS.

What are “cookies” and how does DHHS use them?

In addition to the Identifiable Information that DHHS collects, we also collect information anonymously using “cookies.” A cookie is a small text file containing a unique identification number that is transferred from a web site to the hard drive of your computer so that the web site may identify you and allow you to move within the DHHS.ca site without having to sign in each time. This unique number identifies your browser— but not you — to the DHHS computers whenever you visit the DHHS.ca site. A cookie will NOT let a web site know any Identifiable Information about you, such as your real name and address. The coding in the cookies DHHS sets lets us know that you are using a particular computer but nothing more. Since cookies are only text files, they cannot run on your computer, search your computer for other information or transmit any information to anyone.

To help serve you better DHHS uses cookies to:

Help us remember who you are through your browser settings so that DHHS can offer and provide personalized services. DHHS uses cookies to store and sometimes track information about our members’ activities on the DHHS.ca site. Cookies also allow us to save passwords and preferences for you so that you will not have to re-enter them the next time you visit.

Measure traffic patterns. Without cookies, it could be difficult for DHHS to know that certain services are more popular than others. This information also helps us to better understand when to offer new services. Estimate audience size. Cookies help us know whether or not users have seen particular displays, including advertisements. d. Display advertisements. Third party advertising networks for DHHS may issue cookies when serving advertisements. See section 3 below for details on the information gathering practices of our ad-serving partners. The use of cookies is now an industry standard and you will find them used on most major web sites. Most browsers are initially set up to accept cookies. If you prefer, you can reset your browser either to notify you when you have received a cookie, or to refuse to accept cookies. You should understand that while DHHS does not require you to use cookies, certain sites would not function properly if you set your browser to not accept cookies.

What organization is collecting the information?

When you register information on the DHHS.ca site, that information is collected and maintained solely by DHHS for the operation of the DHHS.ca site.

DHHS may run promotions, contests and raffles across the DHHS.ca site. These promotions, contests and raffles may be sponsored or co-sponsored by third-parties. Data collected during a promotion is typically shared with the sponsor or co-sponsor. DHHS will inform you at the point of collection whether or not we are sharing your Identifiable Information as a result of your participation in a promotion, contest or raffles. If you do not want to have DHHS share your data, you can choose to provide only the minimum information necessary to participate in such promotion, contest or raffles, or choose not to participate in the promotion, contest or raffles.

Be aware that DHHS.ca site sponsors and other advertisers may have links on our sites that take you to other sites that may collect personally identifiable information about you. DHHS hopes that all third parties involved adhere to our policies regarding the privacy of our users. However, the DHHS.ca site Privacy Policy does not cover third party data collection practices and the DHHS.ca site does not assume any responsibility for any actions of third parties.

How does the DHHS.ca site use the information it collects?

Any Identifiable Information you provide to DHHS when registering for products and services on the DHHS.ca site is maintained and accessible only for the purposes of the DHHS.ca site unless specifically stated otherwise. DHHS requests information from its users so those users can enjoy customized experiences across the DHHS.ca.

The DHHS.ca site may use the information it collects as follows:

The DHHS.ca site offers its users the ability to personalize content on the DHHS.ca site. DHHS uses the anonymous, aggregate data collected to inform our sponsors and advertisers as to numbers of people who have certain demographic characteristics and the number of those people who have seen and “clicked” on their advertisement(s). We will also disclose to those third-party sponsors and advertisers the overall demographics available regarding who saw and “clicked” on their advertisement. No Identifiable Information will be disclosed to these sponsors and advertisers as part of this process; only information in an anonymous, aggregate form will be disclosed. DHHS also uses the anonymous, aggregate data to perform statistical analyses of the collective characteristics and behavior of our registered users and visitors, to measure user demographics and interests regarding specific areas of the DHHS.ca site, to describe our services to third parties such as prospective business partners and advertisers and to analyze how and where best to use our resources. Without such data, we would be unable to identify the most popular areas of the DHHS.ca site, and we would be unable change and update the content and services appropriately. No Identifiable Information will be disclosed during these activities. With your specific permission, the DHHS.ca site may, from time to time, use your information to contact you about changes or enhancements to Products and Services on the DHHS.ca site. If you indicated that you were interested in receiving offers or information from selected DHHS.ca site sponsors and advertisers, DHHS can send you e-mail publications and mailings about products and services that we feel may be of interest to you and your company. For those who elect to receive such materials from DHHS and who indicate that they do in their profile, DHHS will release Identifiable Information. Information released includes name, e-mail address and other necessary information supplied in the DHHS.ca site registration process. If at any time you would like to end your subscription to any e-mail materials, follow the directions posted at the bottom of the e-mail material.

If you enter a raffles or a contest on the DHHS.ca site, we will use the information you provided to contact you in the event you win. All DHHS contest entry forms provide a way for you to opt-out of any communications that are not related to awarding prizes for the promotion. These entry forms also provide users with a choice on whether to receive e-mail marketing materials from third parties. Any information you provide will not be shared with such third parties unless you agree by checking the appropriate consent box on the entry form. If you enter a contest, you may be asked, under the rules of the promotion, to agree that the promotion sponsor may use your name in relation to announcing and promoting the winners of the promotion.

DHHS may be required by law enforcement or judicial authorities to provide information on individual users to the appropriate governmental authorities.

With whom does the DHHS.ca site share the information that is collected?

In order to provide you with content and services that match your interests, the DHHS.ca site has relationships with many of the best services and content companies on the Internet. Many of these services also require registration to make them function properly. You can recognize most of these sites by the joint branding of DHHS and such companies. Other third-party relationships are “private label” relationships where a Product or Service partner provides DHHS with technology, services and/or content under DHHS.ca site branding. Whenever you provide registration information on co-branded or private label sites such data may be shared with the partners. You should make every effort to read the individual privacy policies of the partners, and make an informed decision on your own whether or not to continue based upon these sites’ privacy practices and your own discretion.

In addition to finding co-branded sites, you will find direct links on our site to sites offered by third parties. Some of these sites are authorized to use the DHHS.ca site brands and/or logos. No third-party sites are covered by this Privacy Policy. If you feel that a site using a DHHS.ca site brand and/or logo does not follow an acceptable privacy policy, please contact the webmaster@DHHS.ca at DHHS.ca.

How can you access, edit or delete your information?

The DHHS.ca site provides its registered users the ability to access and edit the identifiable information in their user profiles. Currently, to access and edit your identifiable information, you have to go the DHHS.ca site. DHHS also offers all users who have volunteered any Identifiable Information to DHHS the opportunity to review the information provided and to rectify any inaccuracies. Please contact our webmaster@DHHS.ca at DHHS.ca.

How can you opt-out?

You can opt-out of providing Identifiable Information and from receiving information on DHHS.ca site updates and new services, as well as direct email offers from selected DHHS.ca site partners and sponsors. This is done at the point of initial collection of information and during the editing or updating process. The process to opt out of most DHHS.ca site email materials is the same as the process for editing user information profiles described above. In addition, all such email materials have easy-to-follow unsubscribe directions posted at the bottom of the email. If you have any questions or concerns, please contact us (webmaster@DHHS.ca) at DHHS.ca.

What kinds of security procedures are in place to protect against the loss, misuse or alteration of your information?

The DHHS.ca site has security measures in place to attempt to protect you against the loss, misuse and alteration of your user data under our control. In all cases, your information is retained in secure facilities, protected from unauthorized access and kept only as long as is reasonably required. Only authorized employees who have a need to know your information for the purposes described in this policy have access to the information you choose to provide to us. DHHS has imposed strict rules on DHHS.ca site employees who have access to the databases that store user information or to the servers that host our services. While we cannot guarantee that loss, misuse or alteration to data will not occur; we make every effort to prevent such unfortunate occurrences. Any other particularly sensitive information, such as your credit card number collected for a transaction is encrypted prior to transmission. DHHS is not liable for any illegal use of your Identifiable Information that is beyond our reasonable control.

You are ultimately responsible for the security of your DHHS.ca site ID and password. Please take care when using and storing them. DHHS recommends that you do not divulge your password to anyone. You should log out of your browser at the end of each computer session to ensure that others cannot access your identifiable information and correspondence, especially if you share a computer with someone else or are using a computer in a public place like a library or Internet cafe.

What you can do to better protect yourself on the Internet
Know the risks
When you communicate with others online, you should be aware that, when disclosing Identifiable Information such as one’s actual name, member name or email address on a web page, in a newsgroup, chat room, forum or any other medium, information may be collected and used by others to send that person unsolicited email from other parties, outside the DHHS.ca site.
Educate yourself, your co-workers and employees.
Search the Web for as much information as you can about how to protect your privacy. Look for a privacy statement in the sites you visit. Privacy resources can be found at by clicking on any of the following links: Industry Canada - Electronic Commerce Task Force (http://www.ecom.ic.gc.ca/english/index.html)
Privacy Commissioner of Canada (http://www.privcom.gc.ca)
CSA International (http://ww w.csa-international.org)
Electronic Privacy Information Center (http://www.epic.org/)
Privacy International (http://www.privacy.org/pi/)