Effective Date: January 9, 2020.
The New York Times Company (“NYT,” “we,” “our,” or “us”) has created the Privacy Chicken game (the “Game”) as part of a bigger campaign, the Privacy Project, which highlights current data privacy and security themes. The Game’s purpose is to encourage readers to think more carefully about the sensitivity and types of personal information they share. The Game therefore encourages game play based upon common situations in which companies ask consumers to share their personal information in exchange for “leveling up” to obtain more rewards or points. In many cases, as described in more detail below, you do not need to share your real personal information, and the NYT does not want you to share your real personal information, in order to advance in the Game. For example, you do not need to provide your real HBO GO username and password. However, to complete the Game you must give certain pieces of real information (providing your email address and phone number, and linking your bank account information to the Game through a third party, Plaid). Please note: providing your real personal information does not mean you will successfully complete the Game. You must still complete all other levels without losing all three lives in the Game.
This Privacy Policy describes how NYT collects, uses, and shares information about you while you visit the Game page and play the Game online. This Privacy Policy also describes your rights and choices about how we use and share information about you collected in connection with the Game. This Privacy Policy DOES NOT apply to NYT information collection, use and sharing activities outside of the Game, even though the Game is hosted on www.nytimes.com.
Most of the information NYT collects about you through the Game will be deleted after no more than 30 minutes. The information NYT collects separate and apart from the information collected through the Game is not deleted after 30 minutes. To learn more about the information NYT collects about you through the Game, please see the “Information We Collect for Business Purposes” and “Information We Request but Do Not Use” sections below. To learn more about the information NYT collects outside of the Game – including information collected on the site through which you access the Game – please see the NYT Privacy Policy.
By visiting the Game page and/or playing the Game, you agree and consent to our collection use and disclosure practices, and other activities described in this Privacy Policy. If you do not agree and consent, do not play the Game. We will also ask for your consent to various kinds of data collection during the Game. Please read this Privacy Policy and do not play the Game if you do not agree and consent.
If you have any questions, email us at privacy@nytimes.com or write us at:
The New York Times Company
620 Eighth Avenue
New York, NY 10018
Attn.: Privacy Counsel
We can also be reached by phone at 1-800-NYTIMES (click here for a list of our local telephone numbers outside the USA).
We collect information you provide when you play the Game. During the Game, you will encounter a series of questions that entice you to divulge specific and at times intimate information about yourself. It is YOUR CHOICE to submit information to us. In many cases, you do not need to, and should not, share your real personal information with us. Some examples of information you will be asked to provide include the following:
You are solely responsible for information submitted to us in response to questions the Game asks.
In addition, we automatically collect information when you play the Game using tracking technologies in your browser.
We place an essential session cookie on your browser during the Game. Session cookies make it easier for you to navigate through the Game. We use them for the level during which you are asked to link your bank account to the Game and the reCAPTCHA level of the Game. These cookies expire when you close your browser or leave the Game.
We also use Google Analytics cookies which allow us to see the overall patterns of usage of the Game, rather than the usage of a single person. To learn more about how Google uses data. For opt-out options specific to Google Analytics. The information collected using Google Analytics cookies is not deleted within 30 minutes, after you close your browser, or leave the Game. For example, we collect the pages of the Game, the time of day you play, your completed level of the Game, and information about your device or browser’s connectivity and configuration. We also log device identifiers and other usage information.
Do Not Track. Your browser settings may allow you to transmit a “Do Not Track” signal to online services you visit. Note, however, there is no industry consensus as to what site and app operators should do with regard to these signals. Accordingly, we do not monitor or take action with respect to “Do Not Track” signals or other mechanisms. For more information on “Do Not Track,” visit http://www.allaboutdnt.com
When we actually use the information collected, we use it in all the ways you would expect, including the following business purposes:
We work with outside companies, agents or contractors (“service providers”) with whom we share your personal information for business purposes (discussed above). We share information we collect through the Game with Chris Baker / Everyday Arcade, our primary vendor and service provider. We prohibit Everyday Arcade from using information about you for any purpose other than to develop and operate the Game on our behalf.
We also share information to facilitate your requests and in the event of compelled legal disclosures or law enforcement requests.
The Game may include hyperlinks to websites, locations, platforms, and services operated and owned by third parties such as Facebook or Plaid (“Third Party Services”). The information collected by a third party on a Third Party Service remains subject to the third party’s own policies and practices, including what information they share with others, your rights and choices on their services and devices, and whether they store information in the U.S. or elsewhere. We encourage you to familiarize yourself with and consult their privacy policies and terms of use.
E-mails. We will email you during the Game to verify your email address. Once you have confirmed your email address (in order to advance to the next Game level), we will delete your email address within 30 minutes.
Text Messages and Calls. After you provide your phone number, the Game will text you a code to paste in to the Game and confirm your number; this is real in order to advance you to the next level of the Game. The Game will call the phone number you provided and you must pick up and complete the automated prompts in order to proceed to the next level of the Game. You can opt-out of receiving text messages or calls to your phone number at any time by (i) for text messages, texting “STOP” in response to any text message you receive from us or contacting us as set out in the “Contact Us” section above and specifying you want to opt-out of text messages; and (ii) for calls, requesting opt-out during any call you receive from us or contacting us as set out in the “Contact Us” section above and specifying you want to opt-out of calls.
Please note that your opt-out is limited to the email address and phone number used and will not affect other email addresses or phone numbers.
The Game is intended for a general audience and is not directed to children under thirteen (13) years of age. NYT does not knowingly collect personal information through the Game as defined by the U.S. Children’s Privacy Protection Act (“COPPA”) in a manner that is not permitted by COPPA. If you are a parent or guardian and believe NYT has collected such information in a manner not permitted by COPPA, please contact us as set out in the “Contact Us” section above, and we will remove such data to the extent required by COPPA.
In California we do not knowingly “sell” (as the term “sale” is defined in the California Consumer Privacy Act) the personal information of minors under 16 years old.
For information we collect automatically, we store your information for as long as needed, or permitted, based on the reason why we obtained it (consistent with applicable law). This means we might retain your personal information even after you stop playing the Game and close your browser.
When deciding how long to keep your information, we consider:
We implement and maintain reasonable administrative, physical, and technical security safeguards to help protect information about you from loss, theft, misuse and unauthorized access, disclosure, alteration and destruction. Nevertheless, transmission via the internet is not completely secure and we cannot guarantee the security of information about you.
We reserve the right to revise and reissue this Privacy Policy at any time. Any changes will be effective immediately upon posting of the revised Privacy Policy. Your continued use of the Game indicates your consent to the Privacy Policy then posted. If the changes are material, we may provide you additional notice to your email address.
California’s “Shine the Light” law permits customers in California to request certain details about how certain types of their information are shared with third parties and, in some cases, affiliates, for those third parties’ and affiliates’ own direct marketing purposes. Under the law, a business should either provide California customers certain information upon request or permit California customers to opt in to, or opt out of, this type of sharing.
NYT will not share personal information as defined by California’s “Shine the Light” law with third parties and/or affiliates for such third parties’ and affiliates’ own direct marketing purposes. If you are a California resident and wish to obtain information about our compliance with this law, please contact us as set out in the “Contact Us” section above. Requests must include “California Privacy Rights Request” in the first line of the description and include your name, street address, city, state, and ZIP code. Please note that NYT is not required to respond to requests made by means other than through the provided email address or mail address.
Starting on January 1, 2020, California residents have the right to request that we disclose what personal information we collect, use, disclose, and sell or delete the personal information collected from you. If you’d like to exercise any of these rights, contact us via this form or by calling us at our toll-free number, 1-800-NYTIMES. In your request, please be specific. State the information you want to know or deleted. Please use the email address linked to that personal information – we only complete requests on the information linked to your email address. This is how we verify your identity before complying. To verify your identity, we will email the email address you provide us, and which matches our records, and wait for your response. In some instances we may also ask for additional information. This is how we verify your identity before complying. You can designate an authorized agent to make a request on your behalf. In order to do that, please provide us a notarized power of attorney.
If you are a California resident, we do not share your personal information with third parties who are not our service providers (in accordance with the California Consumer Privacy Act) in the context of the Game.
You have the right not to receive discriminatory treatment by us for the exercise of your privacy rights.
We might need to keep certain information for recordkeeping purposes, or to complete a transaction you began prior to requesting a change or deletion.
In some cases, your request doesn’t ensure complete removal of the content or information.
We are based in the U.S. and the information we collect is governed by U.S. law. If you are accessing the Game from outside of the U.S., please be aware that information collected through the Game may be transferred to, processed, stored, and used in the U.S. and other jurisdictions. Data protection laws in the U.S. and other jurisdictions may be different from those of your country of residence. Your use of the Game or provision of any information therefore constitutes your consent to the transfer to and from, processing, usage, sharing, and storage of information about you in the U.S. and other jurisdictions as set out in this Privacy Policy.
Data protection laws in Europe make a distinction between organizations that process personal data for their own purposes (known as “controllers”) and organizations that process personal data on behalf of other organizations (known as “processors”). NYT acts as a controller with respect to personal data collected as you interact with our Game, emails, and communications.
Data protection laws in Europe require a “lawful basis” for processing personal data. Our lawful bases include where: (a) you have given consent to the processing for one or more specific purposes, either to us or to our service providers; and/or (b) processing is necessary for the purposes of the legitimate interests pursued by us or a third party, and your interests and fundamental rights and freedoms do not override those interests.
If you are a data subject in Europe, you have the right to access, rectify, or erase any personal data we have collected about you. You also have the right to data portability and the right to restrict or object to our processing of personal data we have collected about you. You may withdraw your consent at any time for any data processing we do based on consent you have provided to us.
You may exercise your rights by completing this form. We may request specific information from you to help us confirm your identity and process your request. We will respond in accordance with applicable law. If we decline your request, we will tell you why, subject to legal restrictions.
If you have a complaint about our use of your personal data or response to your requests regarding your personal data, you may submit a complaint to the data protection regulator in your jurisdiction. However, we would appreciate the opportunity to address your concerns before you approach a data protection regulator, and would welcome you directing an inquiry first to us.