charity: water knows that you care how information about you is used and shared, and we appreciate you trusting that we will do so carefully and sensibly. This Privacy Policy explains our practices and the choices you can make about the way your information is collected and used by charity: water. It applies to donor information that we collect both online and offline.
This Privacy Notice ("Notice") applies to personal data charity: water and its affiliates ("charity: water," "we," "us," or "our") collects. This Notice also covers rights and choices related to your personal data.
We collect data about you in different ways. For example, we collect data:
These can include our affiliates, vendors, social media, publicly available sources, and other companies.
The following are a few examples of our collection and use of data:
We collect your name and contact information when you make an account. We also collect data on the actions that you perform while logged in. You will have the option of adding other information like your picture.
We have a legitimate interest in providing account related functionalities to users. Accounts can offer easy navigation through the donation process. It can also help save your preferences, or give you access to your donation history.
We collect the name and contact information of our donors, including the employees of our corporate donors with whom we may interact. We may also collect background information about our donors from third party sources, including their likelihood and ability to make future donations.
We have a legitimate interest in contacting our donors and communicating with them about activities such as projects, services, and billing. We have a legitimate interest in better understanding our donors. If required by law, we obtain the consent of our donors prior to obtaining information about them from third party sources.
We use technology (e.g., a cookie or a pixel) to learn how you engage with our websites. This may include which links you click or what you type into our online forms. We may also track your IP address, the website that referred you to us, and data about your device.
We have a legitimate interest in making our website operate. We also use it to understand how you interact with our websites, gather analytics, improve our websites, and learn your preferences. We may also use this data to help detect and prevent fraud. Where required by law, we base the use of technologies upon consent.
We may let third parties place tracking technology on our websites (e.g., a cookie or a pixel). The third party might also collect data over time and across other websites. Among other things, they may use this data to serve ads tailored to your interests, which may include ads about donation opportunities.
Where required by law, we base the use of third-party tracking technologies upon consent. Users should click here for more information. You can also find more information about your options with regard to this technology in the Your Choices section below.
We collect personal data, such as your age or your region.
We have a legitimate interest in understanding our users, donors, and potential donors better.
If you receive email from us, we use tools to capture when you open our message, click on links or banners in it, or make purchases after receiving an email.
Where permitted by law, we use this technology to understand how you engage with our messages.
If you apply for a job, we collect information needed to process your application. This may include your social security number. Providing this information is required for employment.
In some contexts, we are required by law to collect data about applicants. We also have a legitimate interest in using data to evaluate your application or consider you for other positions. If you become an employee, we will provide you with a separate privacy notice that explains how we collect, use, and share additional data about our employees.
If you provide feedback or contact us for support, we collect your name and email, as well as other content that you send.
We have a legitimate interest in receiving and acting upon feedback.
When you sign up for our mailing lists, we collect your contact information.
We have a legitimate interest in sharing information about our mission. Where required by law we will ask for your consent before communicating with you.
We collect information your device broadcasts when you visit our website.
We have a legitimate interest in identifying unique visitors and understanding how users engage with us on their mobile device.
We collect your name, billing, shipping, and email addresses, phone number, and credit or debit card information when you place an order.
We use your information to perform our contract to provide products to you.
We collect your name, billing, email addresses, phone number, and credit or debit card information when you make a donation.
We use your information to process your donation.
We collect data that you provide as part of co-branded offer, or promotion, with other entities.
We may collect your information with another organization, such as a company that allows us to ask you for a donation on their website. When data is jointly collected, your information may be submitted, or sent, to both organizations. This privacy notice applies to our use of your data. You should review the privacy notice of the other entity to understand their use of your data.
We may collect data from employees, guests, and others who visit our offices or attend our events. This may include body temperature, symptoms of illness, and underlying health conditions.
We have a legitimate interest in protecting the health and safety of our employees and guests. In some jurisdictions we may be required by law, regulation, or government order to collect and retain data related to public health and safety. We have a legal obligation to comply in such areas.
We collect data you share through surveys. If a third-party offers a survey, the third party's privacy notice also applies to the collection, use, and disclosure of your data.
We have a legitimate interest in understanding your opinions.
When you enter a sweepstakes or contest, we collect data about you such as your contact information.
We have a legitimate interest in operating the sweepstakes. We may also be required by law to collect such data.
If you choose to engage in forums, blogs, or other similar features offered by us, including submitting a review about your experience or creating a public team, we may maintain records about the content you post. This might include comments, reviews or questions as well as metadata associated with your content.
We use this data to understand your opinions and foster a safe environment on our websites.
We have a third party that runs a whistleblower hotline. We collect the personal data that individuals who use that hotline provide. This may include in their contact information, or information that relates to other individuals or employees. If you provide your contact information, we may not be able to keep it confidential in all cases.
We have a legitimate interest collecting information about issues that might violate our policies or procedures. In some situations we may need to disclose the information that someone provides to us. When that occurs, the disclosure might be based on their consent, our compliance with laws mandating disclosure, our legitimate business interest in running our business, or protecting someone.
We also use data to:
The sections above describe our main purposes in collecting your data, but often we have multiple purposes. For instance, if you make an online purchase or donation, we may collect your information to perform our contract with you. We also have a legitimate interest in maintaining that data so that we can easily address questions from you. As a result, our collection and processing of your data is based in different contexts on your consent, our need to perform a contract, our legal obligations, and/or our legitimate interest in conducting our business.
To the extent we store and use deidentified personal data, we will not try to reidentify the information, except to test our deidentification methods.
Some areas give you a right to make the following choices:
Not all the rights above are absolute, and they do not apply in all circumstances. We may limit or deny a request because the law permits or requires us to. We will not discriminate against individuals who exercise a privacy right.
You may exercise the above rights through by contacting us via the contact information below. If you disagree with our denial of a request, you may appeal our decision by contacting us with the subject line "Appeal."
We will require you to prove your identity when making most types of requests. We may verify your identity by phone or email. Depending on your request, we may ask for information such as your name or the date of your last donation, or that provide us a signed declaration confirming your identity.
In some circumstances, you may designate an authorized agent to exercise rights on your behalf. If you are an authorized agent, you must attach a copy of a completed Authorized Agent Designation Form which shows that you may act on another's behalf.
No method of internet transmission or electronic storage is fully secure. While we use reasonable efforts to protect personal data, we cannot guarantee its security. If we are required to inform you about a security incident, we will do so electronically, in writing, or by phone, as the law permits.
Some of our websites permit you to create an account. You are responsible for selecting a unique and complex password and keeping it confidential. You are responsible for any access to or use of your account by someone who has obtained your password, whether or not you approved of such access or use. Notify us of unauthorized use of your password or account immediately.
We keep your personal data for only as long as necessary to fulfil the purposes in this Notice unless a longer retention period is required or permitted by law. This includes the purposes of satisfying legal, accounting, or reporting requirements. To determine the appropriate retention period for personal data, we consider the amount, nature, and sensitivity of the data. We also weigh the potential risk of harm from unauthorized use or disclosure of the data, the purposes for which we obtained the data and whether we can meet those purposes through other means, as well as applicable legal requirements.
As a multi-national organization, we send data between and among our affiliates. As a result, we may process your data in a country with less stringent privacy laws than the laws in the country that you reside. Where possible, we treat personal data using the same privacy principles that guide the law of the country in which we first receive your data. By submitting your personal data to us you agree to the transfer, storage, and processing of your data in a country other than your country of residence including, but not limited to, the United States. For more information on our attempts to apply the privacy principles applicable in one area to data when it goes to another, contact us using the contact information below. You may also request a copy of any Standard Contractual Clauses we use for the transfer of your data outside of the EEA, which includes the categories of information transferred by contacting us using the contact information below.
We may provide links to websites and other third-party content or services that we do not own or operate. We have no control over the privacy practices of websites or services we do not own. For details about such third parties' privacy practices, see their privacy notices.
We may change our Notice and privacy practices. New notices will be published on our website. If changes are material, the Notice that was in place when you submitted personal data to us will generally govern that data unless you consent to the new Notice. Our Notice shows "effective" and "last updated" dates below. The effective date is the date the current version took effect. The last updated date is the date the current version was last substantively changed.
If you have questions, comments, or complaints on our privacy practices, or if you need to access this Notice in a different form due to a disability, please contact us. We will try to address your requests and provide you with additional privacy-related information.
info@charitywater.orgcharity: water Donation Processing CenterIf you have further queries or requests relating to how we use Personal Data please contact our UK data protection officer at hello@charitywateruk.org. If you are not satisfied with our response and are in the European Union or United Kingdom, you may have a right to lodge a complaint with your local supervisory authority.
Last updated: June 2025