Privacy Policy

Our Privacy Pledge

New privacy statement effective 10.25.11

www.social.ford.com Privacy Statement

1. General Statement:

We respect your privacy and are committed to protecting it. This privacy statement explains our policies and practices regarding online customer information. It is through this disclosure that we intend to provide you with a level of comfort and confidence in how we collect, use, and safeguard personal and other information we collect or that you provide through this website, and how you can contact us if you have any questions or concerns. It is our sincere hope that by explaining our data handling practices we will develop a trusting and long-lasting relationship with you. By using the site, you agree to the terms of this privacy statement.

2. Information About Our Organization and Website:

This Privacy Statement applies to www.social.ford.com, which is owned by Ford Motor Company, Marketing, Sales and Service Division, 16800 Executive Plaza Drive, Dearborn, MI 48126.

The business purpose of this website is: (1) to provide customers with Ford’s perspective on news and current events relevant to Ford Motor Company, its employees and its customers; (2) to provide samples of what others are saying about Ford Motor Company, and its products; and (3) to provide customers with a place to post their opinions and their stories.

3. Personally Identifiable Information We Collect From You:

When you visit ford.social.com we will not collect any personal information about you unless you provide it to us voluntarily. Personal data includes information that is particular to you such as name, street address, telephone number, and email address. If you opt not to provide us with personal information you can still access our website, however you may be unable to request a speaker, or register to use the site which will allow you to submit an idea or story.

ford.social.com provides you two ways to provide your personally identifiable information if you wish to register to use the site, and to then authenticate (login). You can register by typing in your name, email address, password, and other requested information on the registration page. You may also use your Facebook account where you allow us to access your Facebook general information such as your Facebook name, profile picture, gender, networks, User ID, list of friends and any other information you have shared with everyone. In addition, you may allow us to collect your email address from Facebook. For more information regarding Facebook’s privacy practices including connecting with an application on Facebook, see the Facebook privacy policy at www.facebook.com. Ford Motor Company does not own or operate the Facebook platform. If you click to “Allow” the Application to access your Facebook “General Information,” the Application will have access to your Facebook “General Information” and email address if you allow it, but will collect and store only your Facebook name, Facebook user ID, and, if you allow it, your email address.

Our primary goal in collecting personal information from you when you visit social.ford.com is to provide you the functionality and services that you need to have a meaningful and customized experience while using the site features.

This site may use session and persistent “cookies” to collect personally identifiable information. An explanation for each of these items and how they work is included in Section 7 – Methods We Use to Collect Information.

Email address collected at the point of the Tell-a-Friend email tools will be used solely for the purpose of forwarding to your intended recipient.

Please keep in mind that if you disclose personally identifiable information or other sensitive data through a social.ford.com chat room, message board, or other public online forums, this information may be collected and used by others.

4. How We Use the Personally Identifiable Information We Collect:

Personally identifiable information collected on social.ford.com may be used to:

Fulfill a site user request (e.g., to publish your story on social.ford.com)
Respond to your comments or requests for information
Meet a request for or to develop new products or services
Make the user experience more customer friendly
Contact you if necessary
Generate site analytics that improve our site layout, content, product offerings and services
Compile user data that is stored in our corporate database and may be used for marketing and other purposes
Match personal data collected here with data about you that we collect offline
Comply with legal requirements

5. Other (Non-Personally Identifiable) Information We Collect From Site Visitors:

social.ford.com collects other information, non-personally identifiable information from site visitors. This means that we do not track these items on an individual basis that identifies the site visitor, but rather gather and collect this information on an aggregate [or anonymous] basis that includes all site visitors. Non-personal information includes tracking the site pages that are visited or the amount of time spent on our site.

Our primary goal in collecting aggregate information from you is to be able to perform site metrics that allow us to improve the functionality of the website. We need to collect aggregate information in order to track page visits and peak site usage times, and to perform site clickthrough analysis and site layout re-design.

We may use session and persistent “cookies,” session logs, spot light ads/web beacons/GIF/pixel tags/banner ads or links, and third-party click tracking analytics tools (such as DART, Omniture tags, DoubleClick and Google Analytics) to collect aggregate or other non-personally identifiable information about site visitors. An explanation for each of these items and how they work is included in Section 7 Methods We Use to Collect Information.

6. How We Use the Aggregate or Non-Personally Identifiable Information We Collect:

Non-Personally identifiable information collected on social.ford.com may be used to:

Compile aggregate and statistical data to help in website design and to identify popular features
Measure site activity to allow us to update our site to better meet user wants and needs
Make the user experience more customer friendly

social.ford.com utilizes non-personal data for the purpose of performing analytics on the users’ experience while visiting this site. This analysis:

Is performed on an aggregate level and does not identify you or your information personally
May involve the use of a third-party vendor acting on behalf of social.ford.com
Is performed in order to improve our website and the user experience
May include the use of session and/or persistent cookies to track user movement across this and other Ford Motor Company websites or to track other events within or across this and other Ford Motor Company websites
Any information that is provided to a third-party vendor is to be used only for the purpose of performing the analytics and compiling reports of the data. The third-party vendor is restricted from using this data in any other way other than to provide these services to Ford Motor Company and they may not share or resell this data

7. Methods We Use to Collect Information:

A “cookie” is a small text file that helps us in many ways to make your visit to our website more enjoyable and meaningful to you. For example, cookies avoid you having to log in every time you come back to one of our websites. They also allow us to tailor a website or advertisement to better match your interests and preferences. There are a couple different types of cookies.

A “session” cookie is stored only in your computer’s working memory (RAM) and only lasts for your browsing session. When you close all your browser’s windows, or when you shut down your computer, the session cookie disappears forever.

A “persistent” cookie is stored on your computer’s hard drive until a specified date, which could be tomorrow, next week, or 10 years from now. Persistent cookies stay on your computer until either a) they expire, b) they are overwritten with newer cookies, or c) you manually remove them. Most browsers can be configured not to accept cookies, however, this may prevent you from having access to some site functions or features.

This site may use a third-party click tracking analytics tool (such as DART, Omniture tags, DoubleClick, and Google Analytics) to capture clickthrough statistics.

social.ford.com may use spot light ads/web beacons/GIF/pixel tags which are site instrumentation tools that help us to determine, for instance, whether a page has been viewed or not and, if so, how many times. In general, any electronic image viewed as part of a webpage, including an ad banner, can act as a web beacon.

When you visit our website the server housing the pages automatically generates a “session log.” We use session logs to help us determine how people travel through our site. In this way, we can structure our pages so that the information most frequently visited is easier to find. By tracking page visits, we can also determine if the information we’re providing is being used. The only data gathered is the Internet Protocol (IP) address from which you came (which contains no personal information), the website that referred you, the pages you visited and the date and time of those visits.

If you visit this site with an open ID, you may integrate with third-party social media sites, and social.ford.com may track on an aggregate level the number of visits to this site with an open ID, the number of items “liked” on this site, or items on this site that you choose to share with a third-party social media site.

Users may be directed to social.ford.com via banner ads or site links. Ads or site links that are placed by social.ford.com may use cookies or web beacons to deliver metrics on the effectiveness of the ads or links. They do not collect personal information from the user.

8. Sharing Your Information:

social.ford.com does not share, sell, or rent personally identifiable information with independent companies for their own use without providing you a choice.

Personal information that you provide to us in the course of using our site features or requesting a product or service through this website may be gathered and stored in one or more of our corporate databases and be used for purposes of contacting you for things like promotional offers, marketing programs, or other communications from this website or other Ford Motor Company websites.

We may share personal information that we collect about you with other companies within the Ford Motor Company family of companies or subsidiaries. Our “family of companies” is the group of companies related to us by common control or ownership. We share information within this “family” as a normal part of conducting business and offering products and services to our customers.

Personal information that you provide to social.ford.com may be shared with our authorized dealers. This is necessary in order to honor your request for a price quote on a vehicle or in order to provide a dealer with information for purposes of contacting you in their regular course of business. The dealer is not restricted by social.ford.com in their use of your data.

Vendors, contractors or partners of social.ford.com who have access to your personal information in connection with providing services for social.ford.com are required to keep the information confidential and are not permitted to use this information for any other purpose than to carry out the services they are performing for social.ford.com.

Site metrics for social.ford.com may be shared with other Ford Motor Company websites or subsidiaries or affiliates. The information shared will be aggregate data and will not include any of your personally identifiable information.

social.ford.com will disclose your personal information, without notice, only if required to do so by law or in the good faith belief that such action is necessary to: (a) conform to the edicts of the law or comply with legal process served on Ford Motor Company or the site; (b) protect and defend the rights or property of Ford Motor Company and this site; or, (c) act under exigent circumstances to protect the personal safety of users of Ford Motor Company, its websites, or the public.

9. Access To and Control Over the Use of Your Information:

To correct or update your personal information, click on your icon at the bottom left corner of the webpage and then select “Edit Profile.”

The scope of access available for this request is for information stored in the database that holds the data for social.ford.com. Any personal information that has been collected from you on other Company websites will not be accessible or changeable through the processing of this request.

10. Security of Your Information:

Safeguarding information of visitors to our website is important to us. We use systems, policies and procedures to maintain accuracy of information and to protect information from loss, misuse or alteration.

When you send personal information, such as email address or telephone numbers, to social.ford.com we use “Secure Socket Layers” or SSL to protect your data. SSL is encryption technology that helps safeguard your personal information against misuse by unauthorized individuals.

Vendors are not permitted to use this information for any other purpose than to carry out the services they are performing for social.ford.com.

11. Processing of Personal Data:

By visiting this site and by providing your personally identifiable information to us, you understand and consent to the collection, use, processing, transfer, and disclosure of your personally identifiable and

non-personally identifiable information globally — including to the United States – in accordance with this Privacy Statement. Therefore, by visiting this site and by providing such information, you consent to the transfer of such information across country borders, and to the use, processing, and disclosure of such information in global locations. Your consent shall be deemed to include your consent to transfer of the personally identifiable or non-personally identifiable information to locations that may have different levels of privacy protection than in your own country.

12. Links to Other Sites:

social.ford.com provides links to other websites. We encourage you to review the privacy statements of all sites that you visit, including those whose links are provided so that you can understand how those sites collect, use and share your information. social.ford.com is not responsible for the privacy statements, content or data handling practices on other websites.

13. Children’s Privacy:

social.ford.com does not knowingly intend to collect personal information from children under 13 years of age.

If a child has provided us with personal information a parent or guardian of that child may contact us at

Telephone
800-392-3673
800-232-5952 (TDD for the hearing impaired)

Available 8:00 am – 5:00 pm local time
Monday – Friday

Mailing Address

Ford Motor Company
Customer Relationship Center
P.O. Box 6248
Dearborn, MI 48126

if they want this information deleted from our records. We will then make reasonable efforts to delete the child’s information from the database that stores information for social.ford.com.

14. Contacting Us:

If you have any questions, comments or concerns about this online privacy statement for social.ford.com, social.ford.com privacy practices, or have any questions regarding the contents of this website please contact us at:

Telephone
800-392-3673
800-232-5952 (TDD for the hearing impaired)

Available 8:00 am – 5:00 pm local time
Monday – Friday

Mailing Address

Ford Motor Company
Customer Relationship Center
P.O. Box 6248
Dearborn, MI 48126.

social.ford.com is committed to working with consumers to obtain a fair and rapid resolution of any complaints or disputes about privacy and the handling of your data. social.ford.com will be happy to respond to your questions and comments.

15. Privacy Statement Effective Date and Revision Days:

Occasionally we may update the privacy statement for social.ford.com in order to reflect any changes to the website or our privacy practices. If we update this statement, the new statement will be posted to the website ten (10) days prior to the changes taking effect.

The effective date of this privacy statement is October 25, 2011.