Privacy Policy

Introduction

Solve is committed to protecting the privacy of its community of supporters and innovators. This Privacy Statement explains how we handle and use the personal information we collect about our supporters, Solver teams, and our past, present, and future supporters. 

What personal information we collect

While specific information may vary for particular individuals, we may collect, use, store, and transfer different kinds of personal information about you, which we have grouped together as follows:

  • For Solve supporters, applicants/innovators, and all others who create a Solve online account, we collect basic biographic/contact information about you and your representative organization, which may include name, title, business addresses, phone numbers, email addresses, birth year, country of birth, country of residence, and social media contact information.
  • For donors and supporters, we may collect or process information regarding any donation that is made, including wealth assessment information and indicators of your interest in giving.
  • For recipients of our newsletter, we collect your name and email address.
  • For visitors to our site, we collect and process analytical information—aggregated information related to web visitor activity and email marketing actions.

How we collect personal information about you

We collect information about you from a variety of sources. A significant portion of the information we maintain is that which you have provided to us, either by creating or updating your profile online, registering for an event, communicating with us, or making a donation. We may also augment the information we collect about you from targeted internet searches and may use third-party sources.

How we use your personal information

We use your personal information for a number of legitimate purposes, including to provide you with services you have requested, all in support of Solve and its mission. Specifically, we use your personal information to:

  • Keep you updated with information about Solve and upcoming challenges and events
  • Fundraise for particular Solve concerns, initiatives or programs
  • Send you information about Solve events in your area or other non-Solve events or initiatives that might be of interest to you
  • Conduct philanthropic preference research in order to understand Solve’s supporters, to inform our fundraising strategy and target our communications
  • Administer custom challenges to which you have applied
  • Perform administrative tasks and for internal record keeping purposes
  • Create and analyze information about the Solve community for statistical research purposes in support of our educational mission

If you have concerns about any of these purposes, or how we communicate with you, please contact us. We will always respect a request by you to stop processing your personal information (subject to our legal obligations). You can opt out of Solve’s communications at any time by clicking the “Unsubscribe” button at the bottom of any email we send or by emailing us your request to unsubscribe at solve@mit.edu. You can also write to us at MIT Solve, 600 Technology Square, Floor 3, Cambridge, MA 02139.

When we share your personal information

To perform the functions listed above, it may be necessary to share your personal information with other individuals. All individuals performing functions for us are informed regarding the appropriate handling of your personal information. We may also share your personal information with third parties performing services under contract with us. 

How your information is stored and secured

Solve uses administrative, technical and physical security measures to protect your personal information. Only authenticated users with specific permissions may access the data using a virtual private network or encrypted communication channel. We use firewalls and regular monitoring to evaluate any attempts at accessing the systems without permission.

How long we keep your personal information

We consider the relationship with our community of Solver teams to be lifelong. This means that we will maintain a record for you until such time as you tell us that you no longer wish us to keep in touch. For Solve supporters and Solver teams, we will retain your information as long as necessary to provide you with access to Solve and its services. After such time, we will retain a core set of information about your Solve membership and/or Solve submission for our historical and archival purposes. 

Rights for Individuals in the European Economic Area

You have the right in certain circumstances to (1) access your personal information; (2) to correct or erase information; (3) restrict processing; and (4) object to communications, direct marketing, or profiling. To the extent applicable, the EU’s General Data Protection Regulation provides further information about your rights.  You also have the right to lodge complaints with your national or regional data protection authority. 

If you are inclined to exercise these rights, we request an opportunity to discuss with you any concerns you may have. To protect the personal information we hold, we may also request further information to verify your identify when exercising these rights. Upon a request to erase information, we will maintain a core set of personal data to ensure we do not contact you inadvertently in the future, as well as any information necessary for Solve archival purposes. We may also need to retain some financial information for legal purposes, including US IRS compliance. In the event of an actual or threatened legal claim, we may retain your information for purposes of establishing, defending against or exercising our rights with respect to such claim.

By providing information directly to Solve, you consent to the transfer of your personal information outside of the European Economic Area to the United States. You understand that the current laws and regulations of the United States may not provide the same level of protection as the data and privacy laws and regulations of the EEA. 

You are under no statutory or contractual obligation to provide any personal data to us.

Additional Information

We may change this Privacy Statement from time to time. If we make any significant changes in the way we treat your personal information we will make this clear on our website or by contacting you directly.

To manage or delete your data, please contact help@solve.mit.edu.

The controller for your personal information is MIT. We can be contacted at dataprotection@mit.edu

This policy was last updated in October 2023.

 
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