This Privacy Policy explains how Vera Institute of Justice, Inc. (“Vera,” “we,” “us,” or “our”) collects, uses, and discloses your information. Personal information is information that can be used to directly or indirectly identify you or is reasonably capable of being associated with you. Personal information does not include information that has been anonymized or aggregated so that it can no longer enable us, whether in combination with other information or otherwise, to identify you. This Privacy Policy applies to personal information we collect from individuals who interact with us on our website (wearesafety.info).

Please note that our website and this Privacy Policy are directed only to individuals in the United States.

Where applicable, you consent to the use of your information as described in this Privacy Policy each time you visit our website.

Collection of Personal Information

When you visit our website, we may collect different kinds of personal information from or about you.

We collect your contact information. We may collect your name and email address when you use our website, Contact Us, sign up to receive our communications, or otherwise interact with us through our website. 

We collect device and website usage information. When you visit our website, we may collect information about your use of our website, which may include information about your device’s unique identifier, the IP address of your device, usage information, diagnostic information, location information, or browsing information, from or about the computers, phones, or other devices on which you install or access our products or services. We may gather some of this information automatically.

We collect information by cookies and other tracking technologies. We use tracking technologies, such as cookies, to collect information about you. A cookie is an element of data that a website can send to your browser, which may then be stored on your hard drive. If you do not agree, you can choose to not receive a cookie file by enabling your web browser to refuse cookies or to prompt you before you accept a cookie. 

We collect information from third parties. From time to time and as permitted by applicable law(s), we may collect personal information about you from third-party sources, including analytics providers, hosting providers and search information providers, as described below.

Use of Personal Information

We may use the information we collect through our website in the following ways: 

• To process and respond to your requests and inquiries

• To communicate with you about events or issues, petitions, and news about our progress

• To inform you about our policies and terms

• To provide, improve, and develop our website, programs, and services

• To comply with applicable law(s) (for example, to comply with a search warrant, subpoena or court order) or to carry out professional ethics/conduct investigations

• To promote safety and security, such as by monitoring fraud and investigating suspicious, malicious, deceptive, fraudulent or potentially illegal activity and protecting the rights and property of Vera, our website visitors and others

• To debug to identify and repair errors in our website

• To carry out any other purpose described to you at the time the information was collected

Cookies and Similar Technologies

We use cookies and similar technologies to provide, protect, and improve our website and services, such as by understanding user behavior, and providing a safer experience. You can remove or reject cookies using your browser or device settings, but in some cases doing so may affect your ability to use our website.

Disclosure of Personal Information

We may disclose your personal information to third parties from time to time under the following circumstances, or as otherwise described in this Privacy Policy:

• We make certain personal information available to agents, vendors and trusted partners who work on behalf of or with Vera to help communicate with you about Vera’s work, upcoming events, and collaborations between Vera and other organizations. Personal information will only be shared by us with these parties in order to provide or improve our services programming; it will not be shared with third parties for their own marketing purposes without your prior express consent. 

• We may share personal information with companies that provide services on our behalf, such as website hosting, email services, donation management, payment processing, data analytics, and other services that assist in providing our programs and services. These companies are obligated to protect your information.

• Personal information may be disclosed as permitted by applicable law and/or for purposes of legal compliance and security, or as a result of legal process, litigation, or requests from public or governmental authorities within or outside your country of residence. 

• If we determine that for purposes of national security, law enforcement or other issues of public importance, disclosure is necessary or appropriate. 

• We may also disclose personal information if we determine in good faith that disclosure is reasonably necessary to protect our rights and pursue available remedies, enforce our terms and conditions, or protect our operations.

• Between and among Vera and our current and future parents, affiliates, and subsidiaries and other companies under common control and ownership.

Communication Preferences

We strive to provide you with relevant and useful information related to our work. Any promotional emails that we send will include a link at the bottom of the email to unsubscribe or update your communication preferences. Additionally, you can Contact Us to make changes to your communication preferences. If you opt out, we may still send you non-promotional emails, such as those about events, issues, and our organization.

Third-Party Websites and Services

Our websites and services may contain links to or the ability for you to access third-party websites, products, and services. We are not responsible for the privacy practices employed by those third parties, nor are we responsible for the information or content their products and services contain. This Privacy Policy applies solely to information collected by us through our website and services.

 Retention

We will retain your personal information for as long as it is necessary to fulfill the purposes outlined in this Privacy Policy, unless a longer retention period is required or permitted by law. This period of retention is subject to our review and alteration.

Children

We do not knowingly collect, use, or disclose information from children under 13. If we learn that we have collected the personal information of a child under 13, we will take steps to delete the information as soon as possible. Please immediately Contact Us if you become aware that a child under 13 has provided us with personal information.

U.S. Website; Consent to Transfer

Vera is headquartered in the United States and this website is operated in and targeted to individuals in the United States. If you are outside of the United States, any information you provide will be transferred to the United States, and by using this website and/or providing us with your information, you consent to this transfer.

Changes to this Privacy Policy

We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time. If so, we will post the updated Privacy Policy on our website. If the changes being made are material, we may provide you with additional notice. Your continued use of this website, or your provision of personal information to us after any such notices, will tell us that you agree to these changes. We encourage you to review this Privacy Policy regularly to stay informed about our information practices and the choices available to you. 

Contact Us

If you have any questions regarding this Privacy Policy, you may contact us at: Tel: 212.334.1300 | Email: contactvera@vera.org

Effective Date: May 12, 2025