Privacy Policy (Website)

Red Five Comms exists to support effective communications between its clients and their stakeholders (including journalists, analysts and blog/website/social media followers). As such, we handle personal information.

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This Privacy Policy also describes how we collect and use personal information during and after your relationship with us.

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Red Five Comms is a “data controller” and is responsible for deciding how we hold and use personal information and for explaining it clearly.

This notice applies to prospective, existing and former clients of Red Five Comms, individual and business contacts and prospects, individuals who request information from us, any person who provides services to Red Five Comms either as an individual or as the employee or representative of a service provider and third parties acting for our clients.

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To be COMPLETELY transparent; as General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) is still new, and as a small business, we’re trying our best to be compliant, but as there is still a certain level of interpretation around GDPR, so guaranteeing 100% compliance is tricky at this stage (we don’t think we’re alone in that).

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If you have any questions about this Privacy Policy or how we handle personal information, please contact us. 

What information do we hold?

‘Personal data’ or ‘personal information’ is defined as any information about an individual from which that person can be identified.

How we collect such information is dependent on the relationship (details follow).

Clients 

We process: Names, job titles and contact details. We also store email correspondents. This is necessary for the performance of the contract between us.

Prospects and other non-clients 

We process: Names, job titles and contact details.  We also store email correspondents. Such processing is necessary for the legitimate interest of promoting and growing our business and improving our services.

Service providers

We process: Names, job titles and contact details. We also store email correspondents. This is necessary for the performance of the contract between us.  We record details relating to the performance of the contract between us, including financial information and bank details for payment. Such processing is necessary for performance of the arrangement.

Journalists

We process: Names, job titles, contact details and pitch communication preferences. We also store email correspondents. We collect and process journalist data for the legitimate interest of providing information which helps journalists and our clients work well with each other. These services serve the interests of journalists, who wish to be kept informed on what is happening in the sectors they cover and businesses that wish to share information that might be of interest. This is known as ‘media relations’ and is a well-established practice.

How we collect information 

We collect personal information directly when establishing a client, supplier or journalist relationship, through our website enquiries form or where we enter into a work agreement.

We collect further information during the ongoing relationship or period of service delivery.

We collect information from other third parties, such as journalist databases.

We may collect information about you from public sources, such as ‘Contact’ details on websites, from online searches and from social media sites. Our Privacy Policy (Website) is detailed above. 

Adhering to the law

We use personal information when:

• We need to perform the contract we have entered into

• It is necessary for the legitimate interests of delivering our services

• Otherwise (when given consent)

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We will only use the personal information for the purposes for which it was collected.

Sharing data

We share personal data between clients and journalists to enables both sides to carry out their professions.

We may share personal data with third-party service providers, who provide services to us. For example, in order to collect payment, we store information in our cloud-based accountancy software.

We share personal data with:

• Our accountancy

• Our insurance and professional indemnity insurance providers

Where we share information with other data controllers, they are responsible to you for the use of information and compliance with the law.

The hosting of our website is carried out by a third party provider (detailed above).

Data security 

We have put in place measures to protect the security of your information.

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Length of retainership 

We will only retain personal information for as long as necessary to fulfill the purposes for which we collected it, including for the purposes of satisfying any legal, accounting, or reporting requirements.

To determine the appropriate retention period for personal information, we consider the amount, nature and sensitivity of the personal information, the potential risk of harm from unauthorised use or disclosure of personal information, the purposes for which we process personal information and whether we can achieve those purposes through other means, and the applicable legal requirements.

We retain where a minimum retention period is required by law, we comply with that minimum period.

In some circumstances we may anonymise personal information so that it can no longer be associated with a specific individual, in which case we may use such information without further notice.

Your rights 

Under certain circumstances, by law you have the right to:

• Request access to your personal information

• Request correction of the personal information that we hold about you

• Request erasure of your personal information

• Object to processing of your personal information where we are relying on a legitimate interest

• Request the restriction of processing of your personal information

• Request the transfer of your personal information to another party

• Withdraw consent in the limited circumstances where you may have provided your consent to the collection, processing and transfer of your personal information for a specific purpose

For any questions, please contact us.