Privacy Policy

Effective Date: August 28, 2024

INTRODUCTION

Matador Ventures, Inc. (“Matador”, “we”, “us” and/or “our”) is committed to protecting your privacy. We have prepared this Privacy Policy to describe to you our practices regarding the Personal Data (as defined below) we collect from users of any of our mobile applications (“Apps”) or our websites, including those located at: MatadorNetwork.com. The Apps and websites are collectively referred to as “Site and Services” (as defined in the Matador Terms of Service). Capitalized terms not defined in this Privacy Policy have the meanings given in our Terms of Service located at www.MatadorNetwork.com/content/tos.

PARTICULARLY IMPORTANT INFORMATION

WHO WE ARE: For the purpose of applicable data protection legislation, the data controller of your personal data is Matador. You can contact us at consent@matadornetwork.com or the mailing address at the end of this document.

MUST READ SECTIONS: We draw your attention in particular to the sections entitled “International Data Transfer” and “Your Rights.”

CHANGES TO THIS POLICY

We will post any modifications or changes to the Policy on our Site and Services. We reserve the right to modify the Policy at any time, so we encourage you to review it frequently. The “Last Updated” legend above indicates when this Policy was last changed. If we make any material change(s) to the Policy, we will notify you via a notice on our Site and Services prior to such changes(s) taking effect.

1. PURPOSES OF PROCESSING

What is personal data?

We collect information about you in a range of forms, including personal data. As used in this Policy, “personal data” is as defined in the General Data Protection Regulation 2018 and any successor legislation, this includes any information which, either alone or in combination with other information we hold about you, identifies you as an individual, including, for example, your name, postal address, email address and telephone number.

Why do we need your personal data?

We will only process your personal data in accordance with applicable data protection and privacy laws. We need certain personal data in order to provide you with access to our Site and Services. If you created a profile/registered with us, you will have been asked to tick to agree to provide this information in order to access our services, purchase our products, view our content. This consent provides us with the legal basis we require under applicable law to process your data. You maintain the right to withdraw such consent at any time. If you do not agree to our use of your personal data in line with this Policy, please do not use our Site and Services.

2. COLLECTING YOUR PERSONAL DATA

We collect information about you in the following ways:

Information You Give Us. This includes:

  • the personal data you provide when you register to use our Site and Services, including your‎ name, postal address, email address, telephone number, username, password and demographic information (such as your gender);
  • the personal data that may be contained in any video, comment or other submission you upload or post to our Site and Services;
  • the personal data you provide when registering for an account we run on our Site and Services;
  • the personal data you provide when you report a problem with our Site and Services or when we provide you with customer support;
  • the personal data you provide when registering and using Matador Creators, including: username, first name, last name, password, referred by, age range, country of residence, Specialty (photography, writing, video), Phone number, skype, website urls, social urls, bio, links to content they have produced, profile photo, current location, hometown, timezone, languages spoken;
  • the personal data you provide when you access and use GuideGeek, including WhatsApp account information, profile, and any information you type into the chatbox;
  • the personal data you provide when you download, register and use the Travelstoke App, including: name, email, password, current location (automatic), profile image, languages spoken, interests, countries visited, cities visited, hometown, bio;
  • the personal data you provide when you make a purchase thorough our Site and Services; and
  • the personal data you provide when you correspond with us by phone, email or otherwise.

Information from Social Networking Sites. Our Site and Services include interfaces that allow you to connect with social networking sites (each a “SNS”). If you connect to a SNS through our Site and Services, you authorize us to access, use and store the information that you agreed the SNS could provide to us based on your settings on that SNS. We will access, use and store that information in accordance with this Policy. You can revoke our access to the information you provide in this way at any time by amending the appropriate settings from within your account settings on the applicable SNS.

Information Automatically Collected. We automatically log information about you and your computer or mobile device when you access our Site and Services. For example, when visiting our Site and Services, we log your computer or mobile device operating system name and version, manufacturer and model, browser type, browser language, screen resolution, the website you visited before browsing to our Site and Services, pages you viewed, how long you spent on a page, access times and information about your use of and actions on our Site and Services. We collect this information about you using cookies. Please refer to the sections on cookies, Flash Technology and Pixel Tags below.

Automated Decision Making and Profiling. We do not use your personal data for the purposes of automated decision-making. However, we may do so in order to fulfill obligations imposed by law, in which case we will inform you of any such processing and provide you with an opportunity to object.

3. COOKIES

What are cookies?

We may collect information using “cookies.” Cookies are small data files stored on the hard drive of your computer or mobile device by a website. We may use both session cookies (which expire once you close your web browser) and persistent cookies (which stay on your computer or mobile device until you delete them) to provide you with a more personal and interactive experience on our Site and Services.

We use two broad categories of cookies: (1) first party cookies, served directly by us to your computer or mobile device, which are used only by us to recognize your computer or mobile device when it revisits our Site and Services; and (2) third party cookies, which are served by service providers on our Site and Services, and can be used by such service providers to recognize your computer or mobile device when it visits other websites.

Cookies we use

Our Site and Services use the following types of cookies for the purposes set out below:

  • Essential Cookies: These cookies are essential to provide you with services available through our Site and Services and to enable you to use some of its features. For example, they allow you to log in to secure areas of our Site and Services and help the content of the pages you request load quickly. Without these cookies, the services that you have asked for cannot be provided, and we only use these cookies to provide you with those services.
  • Functionality Cookies: These cookies allow our Site and Services to remember choices you make when you use our Site and Services, such as remembering your language preferences and remembering your login details. The purpose of these cookies is to provide you with a more personal experience and to avoid you having to re-enter your preferences every time you visit our Site and Services.
  • Analytics and Performance Cookies: These cookies are used to collect information about traffic to our Site and Services and how users use our Site and Services. The information gathered does not identify any individual visitor. It includes the number of visitors to our Site and Services, the websites that referred them to our Site and Services, the pages they visited on our Site and Services, and other similar information. We use this information to help operate our Site and Services more efficiently, to gather broad demographic information and to monitor the level of activity on our Site and Services.
  • Social Media Cookies: These cookies are used when you share information using a social media sharing button or “like” button on our Site and Services or you link your account or engage with our content on or through a social networking website such as Facebook, Twitter or Google+. The social network will record that you have done this.
  • Advertising Cookies: If there is advertising on the Site, such advertising may employ the use of Cookies or other methods to track hits and click-throughs. If you click on these advertisements, these companies may place a persistent Cookie on your computer which may allow them to display further advertisements to you. We are not responsible for advertiser Cookies or how the information gathered through their use might be used. For more information about these companies’ separate privacy policies, you should contact the company directly. Should you have any complaints about the privacy practices of any of these companies, you should contact consent@MatadorNetwork.com.

Disabling cookies

You can typically remove or reject cookies via your browser settings. In order to do this, follow the instructions provided by your browser (usually located within the “settings,” “help” “tools” or “edit” facility). Many browsers are set to accept cookies until you change your settings.

Further information about cookies, including how to see what cookies have been set on your computer or mobile device and how to manage and delete them, visit www.allaboutcookies.org and youronlinechoices.eu.

If you do not accept our cookies, you may experience some inconvenience in your use of our Site and Services. For example, we may not be able to recognize your computer or mobile device and you may need to log in every time you visit our Site and Services.

4. FLASH TECHNOLOGY

We may also use Flash cookies (which are also known as Flash Local Shared Object (“LSOs”) on our Site and Services to collect and store information about your use of our Site and Services. Unlike other cookies, Flash cookies cannot be removed or rejected via your browser settings. If you do not want Flash cookies stored on your computer or mobile device, you can adjust the settings of your Flash player to block Flash LSO storage using the tools contained in the Website Storage Settings Panel at https://www.macromedia.com/support/documentation/en/flashplayer/help/settings_manager07.html. You can also control Flash LSOs by going to the Global Storage Settings Panel at https://www.macromedia.com/support/documentation/en/flashplayer/help/settings_manager03.html and following the instructions. Please note that setting the Flash Player to restrict or limit acceptance of Flash LSOs may reduce or impede the functionality of some Flash applications, including, potentially, Flash applications used in connection with our Site and Services.

5. PIXEL TAGS

We may also use pixel tags (which are also known as web beacons and clear GIFs) on our Site and Services to track the actions of users on our Site and Services. Unlike cookies, which are stored on the hard drive of your computer or mobile device by a website, pixel tags are embedded invisibly on webpages. Pixel tags measure the success of our marketing campaigns and compile statistics about usage of our Site and Services, so that we can manage our content more effectively. The information we collect using pixel tags is not linked to our users’ personal data.

6. DO NOT TRACK SIGNALS

Some Internet browsers may be configured to send “Do Not Track” signals to the online services that you visit. We currently do not respond to do not track signals.

7. ADVERTISING

Generally. We may use other companies to serve third-party advertisements when you visit and use the Site and Services. These companies may collect and use click stream information, browser type, time and date, subject of advertisements clicked or scrolled over during your visits to the Site and Services and other websites in order to provide advertisements about goods and services likely to be of interest to you. These companies typically use tracking technologies to collect this information. Other companies’ use of their tracking technologies is subject to their own privacy policies.

Mobile. We use the Google Places API(s) for location searches and as a result also use the Google Maps/Google Earth API(s). Use of this feature is also subject to the Google privacy policy, which can be found at http://www.google.com/privacy.html, and which policy is incorporated into this Privacy Policy by this reference.

8. USING YOUR PERSONAL DATA

We may use your personal data as follows:

  • to operate, maintain, and improve our Site and Services, products, and services;
  • to manage your account, including to communicate with you regarding your account, if you have an account on our Site and Services;
  • to operate and administer any promotions you participate in on our Site and Services;
  • to respond to your comments and questions and to provide customer service;
  • to send information including technical notices, updates, security alerts, and support and administrative messages;
  • with your consent, to send you marketing e-mails about upcoming promotions, and other news, including information about products and services offered by us and our affiliates. You may opt-out of receiving such information at any time: such marketing emails tell you how to “opt-out.” Please note, even if you opt out of receiving marketing emails, we may still send you non-marketing emails. Non-marketing emails include emails about your account with us (if you have one) and our business dealings with you;
  • to process payments you make via our Site and Services;
  • as we believe necessary or appropriate (a) to comply with applicable laws; (b) to comply with lawful requests and legal process, including to respond to requests from public and government authorities; (c) to enforce our Policy; and (d) to protect our rights, privacy, safety or property, and/or that of you or others; and
  • as described in the “Sharing of your Personal Data” section below.

9. SHARING YOUR PERSONAL DATA

We may share your personal data as follows:

  • Third Parties Designated by You. We may share your personal data with third parties where you have provided your consent to do so.
  • Our Third Party Service Providers. We may share your personal data with our third party service providers who provide services such as data analysis, payment processing, information technology and related infrastructure provision, customer service, email delivery, auditing and other similar services. These third parties are only permitted to use your personal data to the extent necessary to enable them to provide their services to us. They are required to follow our express instructions and to comply with appropriate security measures to protect your personal data.
  • Affiliates. We may share some or all of your personal data with our affiliates, in which case we will require our affiliates to comply with this Policy. In particular, you may let us share personal data with our affiliates where you wish to receive marketing communications from them. This Site is affiliated with Freestar for the purposes of placing advertising on the Site, and Freestar will collect and use certain data for advertising purposes. To learn more about Freestar’s data usage, click here: https://freestar.com/privacy-policy/
  • Corporate Restructuring. We may share personal data when we do a business deal, or negotiate a business deal, involving the sale or transfer of all or a part of our business or assets. These deals can include any merger, financing, acquisition, or bankruptcy transaction or proceeding.
  • Other Disclosures. We may share personal data as we believe necessary or appropriate: (a) to comply with applicable laws; (b) to comply with lawful requests and legal process, including to respond to requests from public and government authorities to meet national security or law enforcement requirements; (c) to enforce our Policy; and (d) to protect our rights, privacy, safety or property, and/or that of you or others.

10. ANONYMOUS DATA

When we use the term “anonymous data,” we are referring to data and information that does not permit you to be identified or identifiable, either alone or when combined with any other information available to a third party.

We may create anonymous data from the personal data we receive about you and other individuals whose personal data we collect. Anonymous data might include analytics information and information collected by us using cookies. We make personal data into anonymous data by excluding information (such as your name) that makes the data personally identifiable to you. We use this anonymous data to analyze usage patterns in order to make improvements to our Site and Services.

11. THIRD PARTY SITES

Our Site and Services may contain links to third party websites and features, such as Facebook and Twitter widgets, etc. This Policy does not cover the privacy practices of such third parties. These third parties have their own privacy policies and we do not accept any responsibility or liability for their websites, features or policies. Please read their privacy policies before you submit any data to them.

12. USER GENERATED CONTENT

You may share personal data with us when you submit user generated content to our Site and Services, including via our sweepstakes, forums, message boards and blogs on our Site and Services. Please note that any information you post or disclose on our Site and Services will become public information, and will be available to other users of our Site and Services and to the general public. We urge you to be very careful when deciding to disclose your personal data, or any other information, on our Site and Services. Such personal data and other information will not be private or confidential once it is published on our Site and Services.

If you provide feedback to us, we may use and disclose such feedback on our Site and Services, provided we do not associate such feedback with your personal data. If you have provided your consent to do so, we may post your first and last name along with your feedback on our Site and Services. We will collect any information contained in such feedback and will treat the personal data in it in accordance with this Policy.

13. INTERNATIONAL DATA TRANSFER

Your information, including personal data that we collect from you, may be transferred to, stored at and processed by us and our affiliates and other third parties outside the country in which you reside, including, but not limited to the United States, where data protection and privacy regulations may not offer the same level of protection as in other parts of the world. By using our Site and Services, you agree to this transfer, storing or processing. We will take all steps reasonably necessary to ensure that your data is treated securely and in accordance with this Policy.

14. SECURITY

We seek to use reasonable organizational, technical and administrative measures to protect personal data within our organization. Unfortunately, no transmission or storage system can be guaranteed to be completely secure, and transmission of information via the internet is not completely secure. If you have reason to believe that your interaction with us is no longer secure (for example, if you feel that the security of any account you might have with us has been compromised), please immediately notify us of the problem by contacting us using the details in Section 20 below.

15. RETENTION

We will only retain your personal data until you close your account/cancel your subscription, unless a longer retention period is required or permitted by law (for example for regulatory purposes).

16. OUR POLICY ON CHILDREN

Our Site and Services are not directed to children under 16. If a parent or guardian becomes aware that his or her child has provided us with information without their consent, they should contact us using the details in Section 20 below. We will delete such information from our files as soon as reasonably practicable.

17. SENSITIVE PERSONAL DATA

Subject to the following paragraph, we ask that you not send us, and you not disclose, any sensitive personal data (e.g., social security numbers, information related to racial or ethnic origin, political opinions, religion or other beliefs, health, biometrics or genetic characteristics, criminal background or trade union membership) on or through our Site and Services or otherwise to us.

If you send or disclose any sensitive personal data to us when you submit user generated content to our Site and Services, you consent to our processing and use of such sensitive personal data in accordance with this Policy. If you do not consent to our processing and use of such sensitive personal data, you must not submit such user generated content to our Site and Services.

18. YOUR RIGHTS

  • Opt-out. You may contact us anytime to opt-out of: (i) direct marketing communications; (ii) automated decision-making and/or profiling; (iii) our collection of sensitive personal data; (iv) any new processing of your personal data that we may carry out beyond the original purpose ; or (v) the transfer of your personal data outside the EEA. Please note that your use of some of the Site and Services may be ineffective upon opt-out.
  • Access. You may access the information we hold about you at any time via your profile/account or by contacting us directly.
  • Amend. You can also contact us to update or correct any inaccuracies in your personal data.
  • Move. Your personal data is portable – i.e. you to have the flexibility to move your data to other service providers as you wish.
  • Erase and forget. You can request that we erase your data at any time by emailing a deletion request to consent@matadornetwork.com.

If you wish to exercise any of these rights, please contact us using the details in Section 20 below. In your request, please make clear: (i) what personal data is concerned; and (ii) which of the above rights you would like to enforce. For your protection, we may only implement requests with respect to the personal data associated with the particular email address that you use to send us your request, and we may need to verify your identity before implementing your request. We will try to comply with your request as soon as reasonably practicable and in any event, within one month of your request. Please note that we may need to retain certain information for recordkeeping purposes and/or to complete any transactions that you began prior to requesting such change or deletion.

19. COMPLAINTS

We are committed to resolve any complaints about our collection or use of your personal data. If you would like to make a complaint regarding this Policy or our practices in relation to your personal data, please contact us at: consent@matadornetwork.com. We will reply to your complaint as soon as we can and in any event, within 45 days. We hope to resolve any complaint brought to our attention, however if you feel that your complaint has not been adequately resolved, you reserve the right to contact your local data protection supervisory authority, which for the UK, is the Information Commissioner’s Office.

20. CONTACT INFORMATION

Matador welcomes your comments or questions regarding this Privacy Policy. Please e-mail us at consent@matadornetwork.com or contact us at the following address:

Matador Network
Attn: Legal
P.O. Box 7775 #40021
San Francisco, CA 94120

21. EMPLOYEE PERSONAL DATA

Matador commits to cooperate with the panel established by the EU data protection authorities (DPAs) and comply with the advice given by the panel with regard to human resources data transferred from the EU in the context of the employment relationship. Please contact us to be directed to the relevant DPA contacts.