We protect your privacy
We know how important personal privacy
is to you. Because of our interest in protecting your privacy, our site
has adopted the following privacy policy, continuing our commitment to
you, our valued customer:
We
recognize that you expect privacy and security
Recognition
of Your Expectation of Privacy. We recognize that you expect privacy and
security for your affairs. We understand the need to safeguard the
sensitive information that you have entrusted to our site. We maintain
standards and procedures designed to prevent misuse of this information.
Consumer notification of information
policies is a basic element of a direct and interactive marketer's information
practices. Direct Marketing Association (The DMA) believes that all marketers
operating online sites should make available their information policies
to consumers in a prominent place.
Privacy Policy Statement
This is the web site of AQM.
Our postal address is :
CP 11-17
Bucharest Romania
We can be reached via e-mail at
afiliere@rol.ro
or you can reach us by telephone
at +401 240 7106
For each visitor to our Web page,
our Web server automatically recognizes only the consumer's domain name,
but not the e-mail address (where possible).
We collect only the domain name,
but not the e-mail address of visitors to our Web page.
The information we collect is used
to improve the content of our Web page.
With respect to cookies: We do not
set any cookies.
With respect to Ad Servers: We do
not partner with or have special relationships with any ad server companies.
With respect to security: When we
transfer and receive certain types of sensitive information such as financial
or health information, we redirect visitors to a secure server and will
notify visitors through a pop-up screen on our site.
If you feel that this site is not
following its stated information policy, you may contact us at the above
addresses or phone number, The DMA's Committee on Ethical Business Practices
at mgoldberger@the-dma.org,
state or local chapters of the Better Business Bureau, state or local consumer
protection office, The Federal Trade Commission by phone at 202.FTC-HELP
(202.382.4357) or electronically at http://www.ftc.gov/ftc/complaint.htm.
Read
more about security
Privacy - article index
How
to write a Privacy Policy by: Anti Spam League
A Privacy Policy can be defined as
the policy under which a company or organization operating a web site handles
the personal information collected about visitors to the site. For most
of us consumers, privacy involves protecting our integrity and our right
to disclose or not our personal information to third parties, without letting
anybody bother us with unsolicited communications if we do not want to
be contacted.
Why has privacy become such a big
deal for consumers over the last few years? The answer is that customers
need reassurance before giving out their personal information to someone
they do not know. They might really like your web site and even visit it
often, but as soon as you ask for their name, they get suspicious. Moreover,
if you also ask for their address, phone number, credit card number, bank
names, account numbers, health history, or current job information, they
start worrying about what you are going to do with all that information.
Can you blame them? Of course you cannot. What you have to do is ensure
you address some basic but critical aspects of their concern, through a
clear and efficient Privacy Policy.
Below are some important issues you
should take into consideration when writing your company’s Privacy Policy:
1) Explain what types of information
you collect and how you use it
Provide reassurance. Clearly explain
what types of information you ask from your visitors for and what you are
going to do with such information. Besides personal information, what other
information do you keep track of? Do you collect information from children?
How do you verify parental consent for information about their children?
Remember that information is power and although about two thirds of Internet
users might be willing to accept a guarantee that you will not abuse their
privacy, the other quarter feels extremely nervous about the way their
personal information might be used. Therefore, if your web site mines raw
transaction data to identify visitors, to come up with new offers, or to
sell their names to merchandisers, you will need to explain how you share
that information within your own family of companies and outside, or else
you will very likely face serious legal problems.
2) Explain why your server and online
operations are secure
Now you have already told people
what information you ask for and what you do with it, but that is just
the tip of the iceberg. Next you will have to explain what makes your server
and online operations secure. You probably do not want to be caught with
no answer when confronted with questions such as, ‘How do you make sure
nobody steals my credit card information?’ or ‘How do you protect the privacy
of my emails to your customer support team?’ Point out how your consumers
can tell if they are really on a secure server, i.e. the change in the
URL, the icons that show up on the status bar, etc. You may even take a
shot at explaining encryption, and the Secure Sockets Layer. Most importantly,
concentrate on the benefits to the consumer, for in the end, most of them
will not care less about all the security measures you take and all the
money you spend to make your website secure, unless that translates into
some specific benefits to them.
3) Let customers out
When people read your Privacy Policy
for the first time, they will want to know how they can start or stop receiving
email from you. Giving customers an opt-in and opt-out option is a great
way to build trust and lower their personal barriers. However, you must
be aware that people’s needs, desires and interests might change over time
and despite the fact that no one likes to lose a customer, you must let
them go if they state that they are no longer interested in receiving your
emails. In order to protect your customers’ privacy, you must give them
access to their personal profile or account, and let them delete themselves.
Since one of the biggest invasions of privacy is spam, one of the organizations
created to fight spam called The Anti SPAM League considers that it is
a good idea to allow people to opt into your e-mail newsletter twice -
once by clicking the checkbox and Submit button, and again by responding
to the e-mail notification that they can subscribe if they reply -. Double
opt-in makes it more likely that people know what they are doing when they
volunteer for the email. Remember to include an ‘unsubscribe’ option at
the bottom of each newsletter you email to your customer base. Of course,
if most of your customers request to be removed from your mailing list
then you will have a much more serious problem because your business will
be in danger. But still, you must always give your customers a way out.
4) Let customers view and edit their
personal information
If you give people the opportunity
to view and edit their information, chances are they will provide even
more. The reasoning under this is pretty basic: almost no one destroys
his or her own data. Therefore, whenever you display customers’ personal
information, place clear and visible labels indicating how they can edit
it. Be clear about how they can view and edit their information, i.e. ‘You
can access all your personally identifiable information that we collect
online by logging in and clicking the ‘Change User Info’ link in the box
on the right-hand side of every page’. Also, answer questions that might
be of extreme importance to some customers such as, ‘Can I review information
you have about my child?’.
5) Inform customers about policy
changes
Most businesses revise their Privacy
Policies from time to time. If you are among these businesses, inform your
customers how they can have access to those changes and revisions. For
example, include a sentence in your Privacy Policy such as, ‘New versions
will be posted on this web site, so please check back periodically for
updates’.
6) Tell your customers who to contact
in case they have questions about privacy
Sometimes people might have some
specific questions that are not explicitly covered in your Privacy Policy.
For example, where they can learn more about their right to privacy or
who they can talk to if they have a question about their privacy. Always
include one or more ways in which customers can contact you regarding privacy
issues. This contributes a lot in terms of reassurance.
7) Write a privacy policy that people
can understand
Last, but not least, this issue can
make the whole difference between a trusted business and one that may look
OK, but deep inside you feel you cannot trust. Unfortunately, most Privacy
Policies are written by lawyers and consequently, contain way too many
technicalities. We do not question the value of legal terminology, but
we greatly emphasize the fact that a Privacy Policy does not need to sound
too serious or elegant. It just needs to be clear and simple, so that any
average consumer can understand it without much effort. If you use industry
or in-house jargon without explanation you make readers suspect that you
are trying to pull the wool over their eyes and the final result debilitates
the whole purpose of the policy, which is to build trust. Sure you will
have to talk about your security precautions, but refer to them in plain
English before you mention tech words that most people do not understand.
Our advice regarding how to write
an efficient Privacy Policy can be summed up in just two sentences: ‘Keep
it simple’, and ‘Do not lie to your customers’. If you want to learn more
about this and other related topics, check out www.Anti-Spam-League.org.
This organization offers free membership and the chance to access a wide
amount of relevant information on privacy, spam, email abuse, Internet
fraud, responsible marketing and several other topics.
About The Author
The purpose of the Anti SPAM League
is to help consumers and business owners reduce the amount of SPAM they
receive. In addition, our Anti SPAM organization believes that educating
site owners in the area of SPAM prevention and ways to successfully and
responsibly market their sites, is key in making a difference. mike@anti-spam-league.org
Courtesy of http://www.ArticleCity.com/
How
To Protect Your Privacy by: News Canada
(NC)-With the advent of new computer
and communications technology, the potential for privacy invasion has never
been greater. Easier access to personal and financial information, credit
ratings and Social Insurance Numbers, and the unauthorized collection and
sale of personal data, are issues that concern many Canadian consumers.
Privacytown is a Web site from Industry
Canada's Office of Consumer Affairs that takes you on a tour of the marketplace
- to the drug store, medical office, shopping mall, bank, grocery store
and more. At each stop, you can learn about specific privacy concerns and
how to deal with them. You can also find information on topics such as
how to prevent someone stealing your identity, and how personal information
flows via new technologies. As well there are links to federal and provincial
privacy commissioners.
Consumer Connection (http://
consumer.ic.gc.ca) is an award-winning Web site developed by the Office
of Consumer Affairs of Industry Canada. It provides rapid access to consumer
information, powerful tools to cut research time, and many useful links
to consumer and other organizations. Canadians can access Consumer Connection
from home, the public library, community access points or from Government
of Canada, provincial and territorial service outlets. For a variety of
information on everything from bank fees, to privacy rights, to the latest
scams or frauds, this is the place to go.
About The Author
News
Canada provides a wide selection of current, ready-to-use copyright
free news stories and ideas for Television, Print, Radio, and the Web.
News
Canada is a niche service in public relations, offering access to print,
radio, television, and now the Internet media, with ready-to-use, editorial
"fill" items. Monitoring and analysis are two more of our primary services.
The service supplies access to the national media for marketers in the
private, the public, and the not-for-profit sectors. Your corporate and
product news, consumer tips and information are packaged in a variety of
ready-to-use formats and are made available to every Canadian media organization
including weekly and daily newspapers, cable and commercial television
stations, radio stations, as well as the Web sites Canadians visit most
often. Visit News Canada
and learn more about the NC services.
Courtesy of http://www.ArticleCity.com/
Check
Out That Privacy Policy by: Richard Lowe, Jr.
Before you enter your name, address
or any other data in that form, STOP! Wait. Don't enter anything yet. If
you do, you may be giving away personal information to strangers, and you
know what your mom said about talking to strangers.
Okay, back up a minute. You want
to buy a new necklace for your wife at that great dot com you recently
found. They require you to fill out a form first - your name, address,
phone number and credit card information. They also want your email address,
gender and income range.
So you know these people? Think about
it for a minute. How many of your friends (even your best ones) have you
told your true age or how much money you make. Have you divulged your credit
card data to your co-workers at work? Perhaps you give your social security
number to the kid at the McDonalds?
I didn't think so. Then why do you
insist on giving this data to a faceless computer? You don't have any idea
who is on the other side of the screen - yet every day you give away information
that you would never dream of telling your parents or best friends.
Before typing in the information
look around the site until you find a link named "privacy". Usually it
is on the bottom of the home page (at least), and good sites will have
a link to it from EVERY page. Click on the link and read the policy from
start to finish. Make sure you understand it - if there are any words you
do not understand pull out your handy dictionary and check them out. Once
you are done, read it again. Slowly.
What's so important about this that
it requires all this work? Look, you are giving out personal data about
yourself. The web site owners have an obligation to inform you how this
data is going to be used.
Questions that should be answered
by any decent privacy policy include:
-
How do you get in contact with the owners
of the company?
-
How do you erase your private data or
remove yourself from mailing lists?
-
Are they going to keep your information
to themselves or sell it to third parties? If so, can you stop this and
how?
-
What are they going to do with your
credit card data? How do they keep it safe?
-
Why do they need the information? For
example, our site asks each person who signs up for an award their age.
Why? Because the COPPA law does not allow us to collect information from
people under 13 years old. How else are you going to ensure you are in
compliance with this kind of law except to ask?
-
It's very important to totally understand
what they plan to do with your email address ... you don't want to get
spam, after all. How do they use cookies?
-
Do they make use of your TCP/IP address
and other similar information, and if so what is it used for? Virtually
every site logs this data, but rarely is it used for anything except mass
statistics and error checking.
-
If the site has third party advertisers,
banners, web bugs, banners and so on, what similar information is available
for how they use any information? This is most pertinent for cookies and
TCP/IP data that is automatically logged. At the very least, their should
be links to third party sites so you can look at their privacy policies
also.
-
Are there any special relationships
such as partners who use the information also? If so, how is that information
shared and used? If the web site asks for information, how do they ensure
that COPPA (a law which attempts to ensure that information is not gathered
from minors without their parents permission) is adhered to.
-
Under what conditions will you receive
mailings and how do you opt- in and out of them.
Once you fully understand a privacy
policy you can make an intelligent decision as to whether or not you want
to give these people your information.
I know it seems like a lot of work,
but remember you don't know who these people are and you don't know what
they will do with your information. If you read the privacy policy, you
can at least understand what they will do with it.
So now, go finish ordering new jewelry
for your wife. That's important.
About The Author
Richard Lowe Jr. is the webmaster
of Internet Tips And Secrets. This website includes over 1,000 free articles
to improve your internet profits, enjoyment and knowledge.
Web Site Address: http://www.internet-tips.net
Weekly newsletter: http://www.internet-tips.net/joinlist.htm
Claudia Arevalo-Lowe is the webmistress
of Internet Tips And Secrets and Surviving Asthma. Visit her site at http://survivingasthma.com
Courtesy of http://www.ArticleCity.com/
A
Closer Look at Cyber Crooks by: grace V. planas
I work from my home, the most peaceful
workplace I can think of so far. As a Homemaker and part time Freelance
Writer, I submit articles and subscribe to various respectable writing
newsletters and do endless research online. But before signing up, I read
privacy policies, some brief while others boringly lengthy.
I am just one among millions of unknown
but honest Internet users. Why, to my mind, would I worry so much about
anyone in the Internet community making me a target for nasty tricks or
harassments?
Nonetheless, I feel safe just knowing
that the websites that interest me run a committed sense of policy on security.
But when my computer screen started
flashing as if gasping for air and slowly died down months ago, I blamed
electric current fluctuations. But when my files disappeared and my computer
turned alarmingly uncooperative, I referred the case to the expert, my
husband.
For the first time, I was hit by
a computer virus.
It was not as simple as unplugging
the computer connection, sleeping on it for a few days while a computer
surgeon works on the damage so everything could be good as new.
I saw months of hard work on research,
completed manuscripts stashed in my hard disk, long hours spent online,
time, money, and effort my spouse has invested in setting up the whole
system, all go down the drain and turn into nothingness.
Going through the process of repair
and reconstruction is painfully tedious, time consuming, and costly.
I was angry. I took it as an attack
on my person. The perpetrator has no heart.
A series of disturbing yet quite
interesting cyber intrusions that followed prodded me to quench my curiosity
and do a personal research on what inspires the behavior behind the waste
of skill, time and resources involved in these damaging cyber pursuits
and other elctronic petty crimes that make life miserable for honest internet
users.
CYBER OFFENDERS
Anyone who enters your home without
your consent is committing an offense theoretically. Your computer system
is an extension of your boundaries and must not be infringed. When someone
gains unauthorized access to your computer in any manner or utilizes the
computer technology in performing a felony, he/she commits a cyber crime.
The Hacker is always the first person
that comes to mind in relation to cyberspace violations. After all, who
else can be as knowledgeable and bold enough to break into someone else’s
computer system?
Hackers used to have nobler objectives
for their being. In the earlier days of the Computer technology, they were
the computer experts/geniuses who tested computer systems, with the owners’
consent, for loopholes and recommended better programs or fixed the errors
themselves to frustrate any effort to exploit the defective system by more
dangerous ‘creatures.’ They even had the Hackers’ Code of Ethics.
There are two types of Hackers: The
Ethical Pros, the highly skilled professionals who hire out their skills
to organizations concerned about their own network’s safety. They represent
Hackers of earlier generation. The other type is the CyberRambos or plain
crackers-despised by the Elite Hackers, Crackers crack/break systems for
superficial reasons. (UC San Diego Psycho. Dept.: Computer & Network
Resources)
But by what many Hackers have become
these days, it is difficult to ascribe their destructive behaviors to nobility
instead of outright violation.
And by whatever name they are called,
these cyber felons have become simply faceless and nameless ‘hackers’ to
their victims.
ON MOTIVES
An online article by David Benton
entitled: ‘What’s Inside a Cracker?’ from SANS (SysAdmin, Audit, Network,
Security) Information Security Reading Room, states seven psychological
profiles of malicious hackers as documented by Canadian Psychologist Marc
Rogers M.A., Graduate Studies, Dept. of psychology, university of Manitoba
and a former Police Computer Crimes Investigator:
Newbie/Tool Kit (NT): new to hacking,
have limited computer/programming proficiencies; rely on ready-made pieces
of software (tool kits) that are readily available in the Internet;
Internals (IT): disgruntled employees
or ex-employees proficient in how the company’s internal systems work;
Coders (CD) and Virus Writers: programmers
who’d like to see themselves as elite; they write codes but not for personal
use. They have their own networks to experiment with “zoos.” They leave
to others to introduce their codes into the “wild” or Internet. (Hacker
Psych 101 by Jeremy Quittner);
Cyber-Punks (CP): antisocial geeks,
the most visible, socially inept, and burdened with unresolved anger that
they take into cyberspace; they relate better to computers than humans
and have better computer skills and some programming capabilities; capable
of writing their own software, they intentionally engage in malicious acts
such as defacing web pages, spamming, credit card number theft, etc.;
Old Guard Hackers (OG): have no criminal
intent in its real sense but display an alarming disrespect for personal
property with great interest in intellectual endeavo;.
Professional Criminals (PC) and Cyber
Terrorists (CT): most dangerous; They are professional criminals and ex-intelligence
operatives who are guns for hire. They specialize in corporate espionage,
are extremely well trained and have access to state of the art equipments;
Further, Rogers pointed out that
not all Hackers are criminals. He has categorized them as follows: (Jeremy
Quittner, Hacker Psych 101);
Old School Hackers: akin to the 1960s
style computer programmers from Stanford MIT for whom it is an honor to
be a hacker; interested in analyzing systems with no criminal intent; they
believe the Internet was designed to be an open system;
Script Kiddies/ Cyber –Punks: wannabe
hackers and crackers; use other Cracking programs carelessly with the intent
to vandalize and corrupt systems; often caught red-handed because they
brag their exploits online.
Professional Criminals: breaking
into systems and selling information Is their livelihood; they get hire
for espionage; often have ties with organized Criminal groups; not interested
in disrupting systems but more on stealing intelligence data;
The list of motives is endless: boredom,
illicit thrill, addiction, blackmail or low self esteem, and a desperate
need for recognition from the hacker peer group, all cowardly performed
under the protection of anonymity.
“Underlying the psyche of criminal
hackers may be a deep sense of inferiority. The mastery of the computer
technology or the shut down of a major site causing millions of dollars
of damage is real power trip.” (J. Quittner, Hacker Psych 101, Hackers:
Computer Outlaws)
Jarrold M. Post, a George Washington
University Psychiatrist says: It’s (Hackers) a population that takes refuge
in computers because of their problems sustaining real world relationships.”
The less information you share in
the Internet the better. But as computer wizards, Hackers will always find
ways to reconstruct your identity even with very little details in their
possession.
However, there are varied ways by
which you, a legitimate Internet user can be protected. Know the warning
signs and get educated on how to thwart any attempt to victimize you. Don’t
take the wired blows sitting down.
“Constant awareness and updating
of knowledge is the best defense to any attack,” wrote Shayne Gregg, CA
(NZ), CISA, CMC, in ‘A Response to Recent Cyber Attacks.’ (Information
Systems Audit & Control Association InfoBytes)
I recommend The Complete Idiot’s
Guide to: Protecting Yourself Online by Preston Gralla, Executive Editor,
ZDNet. It is comprehensive, easy to understand, and a must for every Internet
user’s library.
HACKERS, CYBERPUNKS, et al
Cyber Crime is not monopolized by
hackers or crackers. The pedophile, thief or drug dealer in your community
who hire computer experts to carry out their illegal activities online
are as guilty and despicable.
Just like the criminals roaming out
in the real world, Cyber felons are a bunch of psychologically imbalanced
and misguided citizens who happen to have the dexterity to commit electronic
transgressions or hire a computer expert to do the job and will never get
enough despite their Cyber Glory and ‘conquests.’
Still the tendency to commit a crime
lies hidden in wholesome images, while the unsuspecting is often caught
by surprise. What you don’t see is sometimes what you get.
Hackers cannot be strictly stereotyped.
Peter Shipley, Chief Security architect for the Big Five firm KPMG avers:
“I know a lot of hackers, including one who spends an hour and a half in
the gym everyday. He is built. I know of women who are knock-down gorgeous
who are hackers.”
No Exceptions
Whenever high tech-crazed folks travel
through your wires to make your computer system malfunction, steal your
identity or get paid to give you trouble, it’s a sign that you do not take
the needed precaution whenever you log in.
When I asked myself quietly back
then “Why me?” I guess the reply would be “And why not?” As with most inventions,
the Internet is being abused and mishandled. And as always, a helpless
victim completes the drama.
Anyone can be a casualty at random
regardless if one is honest, educated, high profile, residing at the far
end of the globe or a Stay-at-Home- Mom working hard and peacefully from
her abode.
Hackers won’t care how his/her prey
will feel.
But I am still hoping that such an
impressive brainwork will be put to good use by present day hackers, just
how their predecessors intended Hacking to be used.
About The Author
Grace V. Planas is Filipino Chinese
living in the Philippines, a Homemaker and part time Freelance Writer.
Formerly a Contributing Writer to Working Woman Magazine-Philippines, she
writes poetry, psychology/self help, and informative as well as inspirational
pieces based on research, personal and other people’s experiences. She
has had articles published in various Writing/Literary websites and continually
submits works online. Read more of her other articles at: www.geocities.com/my_hearts_haven/index
Email: grace21857@netscape.net
Courtesy of http://www.ArticleCity.com/
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