Terms and Conditions

Privacy Policy

Effective October 11, 2022

Tophatmonocle Corp. and its divisions, affiliates and subsidiaries (hereinafter “THM” “we”/”us”/”our”) respects the privacy and the integrity of any Personal Information that You provide in the use of our Websites, our mobile applications, student engagement services, and Licensed Content (“THM Services”), whether You are an institutional user (“Institution”), a Student, a professor or instructor (“Faculty”). This Privacy Policy explains our policy regarding the collection, use and disclosure of Your Personal Information.

A link to our Privacy Policy will be provided on the home page of our Websites and is accessible at https://tophat.com/company/legal/privacy-policy.  This Privacy Policy will be continuously assessed against new technologies, business practices and our users’ needs. As we update, expand and diversify our products and services, this Privacy Policy may evolve. Please check this Privacy Policy from time to time for updates by checking the date of the “Last Update” at the top of this document. We will take reasonable measures to notify You of material changes to this Privacy Policy by posting this on our home page or otherwise notifying You. You acknowledge and agree that Your access of our Websites and Your use of the THM Services following any posted changes to the Privacy Policy indicate Your acceptance of such changes.

We also encourage You to review the Terms of Service (the “Terms of Service”), the agreement between You and THM that governs Your use of the Website, as well as provides the terms and conditions under which THM provides, and You may access and use, the THM Services. The Privacy Policy is incorporated into and made a part of the Terms of Service.

Application of This Policy

At THM, we are committed to protecting the privacy of our users, which is why we do not sell or rent any Personal Information (as defined in ‘What is Personal Information’) regarding our users to any third party. We hope this Privacy Policy will answer Your questions regarding how we treat Personal Information gathered from visitors to our Web sites and users of the THM Services.

What is Personal Information

For the purposes of this Privacy Policy, “Personal Information” means information that identifies a particular living individual or can be used to identify a particular individual. This includes but is not limited to Your name, address, e-mail address, country of residence, as well as other information when such information is combined with other information (e.g. name of education institution, student ID, grades, cell phone number, location). Personal Information does not include business contact information (for example, if You are an administrative user on behalf of an educational institution, your email address at the institution might not be deemed Personal Information except in Australia and the European Union where this sentence does not apply). Except in Australia, Personal Information also does not include “aggregate” information or de-identified information.

Consent

You acknowledge and agree that by accessing our Website, using our mobile applications or using the THM Services more generally You fully understand, accept and voluntarily consent to the collection, use, retention and disclosure of Personal Information in accordance with this Privacy Policy. It is always Your choice whether or not You provide us with Your Personal Information; however, a decision to withhold Personal Information may restrict or prevent us from providing You with a particular product or service including access to any subscriber features of the THM Services. We will only collect, use, and disclose Your Personal Information in accordance with this Privacy Policy, except where otherwise permitted or required by applicable law or regulatory requirement.

Collection of Personal Information

In order to use certain features of the THM Services You must first complete a registration process and establish an account (“Account”).  During registration for Your Account You will be required to provide basic information (“Account Information”) including:

  • First/Last Name (as provided by user)
  • Email address
  • Mobile telephone number (Optional)
  • Location
  • IP address
  • Student ID number (Optional – provided by the Student User) 
  • Institution

THM will retain Account Information and associate it with Your Account. 

For students, our servers automatically record information about Your use of the System, and provide this to your Instructor, such as

  • Question and test responses
  • Course creation and activation
  • Course Registration

We will associate that information with their account. The instructors may use this data for the purposes of academic evaluation and academic integrity, including attendance. We store and maintain personal and associated account information in order to provide the System.

In addition, to place an order for certain services (e.g. access to Licensed Content), THM will require that You provide payment information such as credit card numbers and billing addresses and Your IP address. Credit card information, including the card number, expiry date and security code, is securely passed directly to payment processors over a secure socket layer (see the section entitled “Payment Processor” below). Credit card data is not retained by THM in any form.

Use of Your Personal Information

You acknowledge that THM may use Personal Information that You consent to disclose to us to:

  • Allow You to purchase and download products, obtain access to the System or otherwise engage in activities You select;
  • To provide THM Services to You and Your academic institution;
  • Provide You with technical support;
  • Assist us in creating, improving, or providing content that is relevant to You;
  • Provide You with information about new products, services, newsletters, informative e-mails, surveys, and research on future product ideas or improvements (and, by using the THM Services, You give Your consent to receive such information);
  • Provide You with special offers that may be of interest (if You have opted-in to receive such marketing and promotional materials) and to improve Your experience on our Web sites or with our System;
  •   Allow you to contribute to discussions and collaborate with other Users of the THM Services if you select to use those services;
  • Help You quickly find software, services or product information important to You;
  • Send transaction-related communications such as welcome letters, and product/service order confirmations.
  • Restrict the availability of some of the products, services and content to certain parts of the world, where required for legal reasons, by using Your address, IP address and other information in order to enforce those restrictions.
  • For Student Users, if You choose to add your mobile phone number or register via short message service (“SMS”), which is optional, Your mobile phone number will also be recorded to allow You to submit responses via SMS, for password recovery purposes, and for security and identity verification. We will not use Your mobile phone number for any non-THM Service related purposes, and we will not share it with third parties and if You have selected at any time not to receive communications by SMS or phone we will respect that choice.
  • For Faculty Users You may choose to add your mobile phone number, which is optional, for THM Service-related communications, password recovery purposes, and for security and identity verification. We will not use Your mobile phone number for any non-THM Service related purposes, and we will not share it with third parties, and if You have selected at any time not to receive communications by cellphone, we will respect that choice.

While using the THM Services, You may have opportunities to post information to the THM Services , reviews, comments, or other Personal Information in forums on the Website at Your own discretion. Please understand that when You post such information, it is made public and is not reviewed by THM before it is posted to the Service. You should exercise caution when deciding to disclose any Personal Information in a publicly available forum such as the THM Service and agree to indemnify THM for any damages or claims resulting from any of Your postings. THM is not obligated to monitor postings, however, may at its discretion remove any content submitted.

Disclosure of Your Personal Information

THM will not sell or rent Your Personal Information to any other party and will only use and disclose Your Personal Information for the purposes for which it was collected as described in this Privacy Policy.

You agree that THM may disclose Your Personal Information in the circumstances set out below:

  • If You are a student, THM may disclose Your Personal Information to Faculty and administrators at Your academic institution, including Your teachers and teaching assistants as required for the provision of the THM Services;
  • If You are a student, THM may disclose “directory information,” defined as information contained in an education record of a student that would not generally be considered harmful or an invasion of privacy if disclosed, such as name, identifier, email address, phone number, and enrollment status. 
  • THM may share Your Personal Information with service providers who perform services on our behalf. For example, we may hire other companies to handle the processing of payments, collect debts, provide data storage, host websites, fulfill orders, assist in product marketing, and to conduct audits, etc. Those companies will be permitted to obtain only the Personal Information they need only as necessary to provide services to us. Each company is bound by agreement or obligations with THM to implement and maintain reasonable security procedures and practices in order to use and disclose Your Personal Information in a manner consistent with the use and disclosure provisions of this Privacy Policy, unless You consent otherwise. These service providers are located in Canada, the United States, the Philippines and Europe and, as a result, Your Personal Information may be stored, processed or transferred into or out of these countries. We take all reasonable measures and precautions to protect Your Personal Information when it is being handled by our service providers. If You wish to obtain more information on our use of service providers and our policies and practices regarding such service providers, please contact us at privacy@tophat.com.
  • THM may disclose Your Personal Information with Your prior consent, or the consent of Your parents if You are under 18 years old;
  • THM may also disclose Account Information to the administration of any institution (at which You are a Student or Faculty) for administrative purposes including the right for the Institution to compile a list of Students or Faculty who use the THM Services, and contact such Faculty in order to obtain references to evaluate an implementation of the THM Services.
  • THM may also disclose Personal Information to third parties in connection with a corporate re-organization, merger or amalgamation, or the sale of all or substantially all of our assets, provided that, where appropriate, any party to whom the information is disclosed is bound by agreements or obligations, and required to use or disclose Your Personal Information in a manner consistent with the use and disclosure provisions of this Privacy Policy, unless You consent otherwise; or
  • THM may be required or permitted by law to disclose Personal Information without Your consent in the event of emergency situations or when required by law, government, valid legal process, or other legal authority;

For Australian users, by accepting our terms and conditions and continuing to use the THM Services, You expressly consent to us disclosing Your Personal Information to persons and entities in other countries (“Overseas Recipient”) for the purposes of this Privacy Policy. Please be aware that, in giving such consent:

  • The requirement under the Australian Privacy Principle (APP) 8.1 to take reasonable steps to ensure that the Overseas Recipient does not breach the APPs (other than APP 1) set out in the Privacy Act 1999 (Cth) (Privacy Act) will not apply to THM; and
  • If the Overseas Recipient handles the Personal Information in breach of the Privacy Act:
    1. THM will not be accountable under the Privacy Act; and
    2. You will not be able to seek redress under the Privacy Act for such breach.

However, this does not change our commitment to safeguard Your Personal Information and we take all reasonable measures and precautions to protect Your Personal Information when it is being handled by our service providers and Overseas Recipients. If You wish to obtain more information on our use of service providers and our policies and practices regarding such service providers, please contact us as set forth below.

How to Opt-Out / Withdraw Consent

You can withdraw Your consent for the use of Your Personal Information at any time by requesting the deletion of Your Account or by providing written notice to us of that withdrawal. However, You acknowledge that THM may retain information as described in the “Retention of Personal Information” below. You can also review and update Your Personal Information yourself through the user features in Your account (see further Access to Your Personal Information).

If You opted-in to receive marketing communications but at any time You do not wish to continue receive marketing communications, You may do so in the following ways:

  • follow the “unsubscribe” instructions included within each e-mail communication
  • select or deselect (depending on the service) the appropriate option in Your Account settings.  
  • Email support@tophat.com with subject line: Email Unsubscribe

Please keep in mind that, even if You choose not to receive marketing communications, You cannot opt-out of receiving transactional or account communications related to services or products that You have requested (e.g. purchase confirmation e-mails and receipts) or important updates from us from time to time relating to the THM Services or updates to the legal terms that govern Your use of the THM Services.  

If You are a student enrolled in a class for which you are receiving THM Services, You cannot prevent us from disclosing Your name, identifier, or institutional email address in a class in which You are enrolled, or from disclosing Your Personal Information to Faculty and administrators at Your academic institution, including Your teachers and teaching assistants as required for the provision of the THM Services.

Retention of Personal Information

THM maintains information about You for as long as we provide services to You, and for as long as it remains necessary for identified purposes or as required by law or contract which may extend beyond the termination of our relationship with You.

We may retain certain data as necessary to prevent fraud or future abuse, or for legitimate business purposes, such as auditing, account recovery, or if required by applicable federal, state and provincial laws or by contract with an academic institution. All retained Personal Information will remain subject to the terms of this Privacy Policy. If You request that Your Personal Information be removed from our databases, it may not be possible to completely delete all Your Personal Information due to technological and legal constraints. However, we will take such steps as are reasonable to destroy the information or to ensure that the information is de‑identified.

Safeguards We Have in Place

THM stores and processes Your Personal Information on our servers principally in Canada and the United States as well as internationally. Accordingly, Your data may be available to government bodies or their agencies in those jurisdictions under a lawful order, irrespective of the safeguards we have put in place for the protection of Your Personal Information. 

THM employs reasonable administrative, physical, and technical measures to ensure that Your Personal Information is secure. In addition, our dedicated team of information technology professionals works to maintain data accuracy and prevent unauthorized access to sensitive information. Unfortunately, no security system can be guaranteed to be 100% secure. Accordingly, we cannot guarantee the security of Your Personal Information. The Internet is not a secure medium and You acknowledge and agree that the privacy of Your e-mail communication and Personal Information can never be guaranteed as any e-mail communication may be lost, intercepted or altered. By using our Websites, or providing Personal Information to us through any means, You agree that we can communicate with You electronically regarding security, privacy, and administrative issues relating to Your use of the THM Services.

Family Education Rights & Privacy Act (FERPA)

In the United States, the Family Educational Rights & Privacy Act, 20 U.S.C. § 1232(g), restricts the disclosure of personally identifiable information from a student’s education records, unless an exception applies. For US users, THM’s data protection and privacy policies and practices allow our institution partners to comply with FERPA, and other applicable federal and state privacy laws. 

THM maintains the privacy of FERPA-protected student data, and only uses this information to deliver and improve THM Services provided to schools and their students, as provided in THM’s agreements with schools. You may also have specific rights related to accessing and/or updating Your Personal Information when FERPA applies.  

Student Users may also edit Personal Information provided to Top Hat by accessing their account information and updating their settings. Full instructions can be found here: Updating Student Account Information

In the event that any collected student Personal Information is inaccurate, Users have the ability to contact Top Hat Support via email or phone to request corrections. Prior to amending data, Top Hat will validate the user’s identity, and notify the Institution of the request if required by prior agreement.

For further information about FERPA compliance, or to access, modify, or remove any such data, please contact us at privacy@tophat.com.

To the extent that a provision in this Privacy Policy conflicts with a provision in FERPA or another state or federal education privacy law, THM will abide by the more restrictive provision.

Access to Your Personal Information

You are responsible for updating and maintaining the truth and accuracy of the Personal Information You provide to us relating to Your Account. If You want to update the Personal Information You have provided to us, You should do so by visiting: https://app.tophat.com/accounts/personal_information/. You must be signed in to access Your Account and the privacy link above.

Collection of Non-Personal Information

Non-personal information is data we collect through the use of the THM Services and may include aggregate and de-identified data which does not identify any individuals and cannot be traced back or linked to an identifiable individual. Our privacy policy does not restrict or limit our collection and use of aggregate or de-identified information, or other types of non-personal information.

This data may include but is not limited to:

  •   Number of sessions
  •   Session times
  •   Number of question responses
  •   Number of active users
  •   Number of question activations
  •   Browser/platform and version number
  •   Navigational data

THM may use this information to conduct statistical analyses on students’ performance to study and improve the effectiveness of the THM Services. No identification of users will be revealed at any point to any third party. We do not sell, rent, or trade personal and associated account information about our users.

THM may retain aggregated, non-personally-identifiable data for auditing and statistical analysis.

You acknowledge and agree that from time to time THM, and its service providers may collect non-personal information from Your use of the THM Services such as server log files, environmental variables (such as MAC address, computer type (Windows or Macintosh), screen resolution, OS version, Internet browser, and Internet browser version) to collect non-personal information about our users in order to help us deliver better service and user experience. Such non-personal information could include the IP addresses or areas of the site being clicked on most frequently.

Cookies

What is a Cookie?

Cookies are files saved to Your computers through Your Web browser to enable websites or service providers systems to recognize Your browser and capture and remember certain information. THM, like many other Web services, uses “cookies” as well as so-called “pixel tags,” “web beacons,” “clear GIFs” and other similar technologies to understand and save Your preferences for future visits and to compile aggregate data about site traffic and site interaction, so that we can offer better site experiences and tools in the future.

Why we use Cookies

THM and our service providers (including ad servers, outbound email vendors, affiliate vendors and search engine advertising agencies, and providers of web analytics tools) may use cookies to help us deliver better service and user experience and to facilitate Your ongoing access to and use of the THM Services.

Necessary Cookies are essential to enabling your use or our website and its features. 

Functionality Cookies allow us to remember the choices you make on our Site and to provide enhanced and more personalized features, such as customizing a certain webpage, remembering if we have asked you to participate in surveys, and for other services you request.

Analytics/Performance Cookies help us learn how well our website and services are performing. 

Tracking cookies are a specialized type of cookie that can be shared by more than one website or service. They are used for legitimate marketing and advertising purposes.

Cookie Management

If You do not want information collected through the use of cookies, for EU Users, THM provides users a direct approach to manage Cookie preferences through our Privacy Preference Center, which is accessible when you first visit our website, by clicking “Cookie Settings” in the Cookie banner appearing at the bottom of your screen.

In addition, there is a simple procedure in most browsers that allows You to automatically decline cookies, or to be given the choice of declining or accepting the transfer of a particular cookie, or cookies from a particular website, to Your computer. If You choose to reject all cookies, You may not be able to access the services. To learn more about cookies, please visit http://www.allaboutcookies.org/. You may find more information about opting out of most third-party service cookies at www.networkadvertising.org or other related sites.

You may opt out of the DoubleClick cookie by visiting the Google advertising opt-out page or You may opt out of Google Analytics by visiting the Google Analytics opt-out page. Google has additional information available about their Remarketing Privacy Guidelines, and Restrictions.

THM does not respond to Do Not Track signals on web browsers, as the industry has not settled on a Do Not Track Compliance standard.

Hyperlinks

Our Websites are connected by “hyperlinks” to other websites. You acknowledge and agree that THM makes no representation, warranty, covenant, or claim regarding, and THM expressly disclaims and denies any responsibility or liability for, directly or indirectly, the privacy practices on any third-party website or resource accessible by hyperlink from our Websites. You agree that the inclusion of any such hyperlink does not suggest, represent, warrant, covenant or imply that THM monitors, endorses or exerts any control over such website or linked resource whatsoever. You agree that THM provides these hyperlinks to You only as a convenience, and the inclusion of any hyperlink does not suggest, represent, warrant, covenant or imply affiliation, endorsement or adoption by THM of any such website or linked resource whatsoever.

When You leave our Websites, You acknowledge and agree that our terms and policies do not govern Your access to, and use of, other websites. You acknowledge our recommendation to review the applicable privacy and data gathering practices of any website or linked resource to which You navigate from our Websites.

Third Party Promotions

THM may run advertisements and promotions from third parties on the THM Services. Your correspondence or business dealings with, or participation in promotions of, advertisers other than THM, found on or through the THM Services, including payment and delivery of related goods or services, and any other terms, conditions, warranties or representations associated with such dealings, are solely between You and such advertiser. THM is not responsible or liable for any loss or damage of any sort incurred as the result of any such dealings or as the result of the presence of such non-THM advertisers on the Site.

Social Media Widgets

Our Website may include Social Media Features, such as the Facebook button, and Widgets, such as the Share this button or interactive mini-programs that run on our Website. These features may collect Your IP address, which page You are visiting on our Website, and may set a cookie to enable the feature to function properly. Social Media Features and Widgets are either hosted by a third party or hosted directly on our Website. Your interactions with these features are governed by the privacy policy of the company providing it.

California Residents

California Consumer Privacy Act

If You are a resident of California, the applicable data protection legislation permits You to request that we tell You what Personal Information we hold about You, how we process it and that we provide You with a copy of that information. You are also entitled to access or (under certain circumstances) delete Your Personal Information. You can exercise this right free of charge. We may ask You to provide further information to confirm Your identity before considering Your request.

For our full California Consumer Privacy Act Privacy Statement please review the information here: CCPA Information

In accordance with California Civil Code 1798.83, California residents are entitled to know that they may file grievances and complaints at California Department of Consumer Affairs, 400 R Street, Suite 1080, Sacramento, CA 95814, or by phone at 916-445-1254 or 800-952-5210; or by email to dca@dca.ca.gov.

THM does not sell or rent Users’ Personal Information with third parties for the third parties’ direct marketing purposes.  Nonetheless, if You are a California resident, You may request information about the disclosure of Your Personal Information to third parties for the third parties’ direct marketing purposes by emailing privacy@tophat.com.

For users in California, any third-party service providers are “service providers” under the California Consumer Privacy Act §1798.140(v) and may only use Your data only for the purposes defined under the applicable vendor agreement.

United Kingdom and European Union Residents

If You are a resident of the United Kingdom or the European Union, the applicable data protection legislation permits You to request that we tell You what Personal Information we hold about You and how we process it and that we provide You with a copy of that information. You are also entitled to access, rectify, change, update, delete, revoke, or improve upon Your Personal Information at any time. You can exercise this right free of charge. We may ask You to provide further information to confirm Your identity before considering Your request.

In addition, for purposes of providing the THM Services, You acknowledge that THM may transfer Your personal data to servers located in Canada or other countries outside of the UK and the European Economic Area which provide for a different level of data protection. By using, and continuing to use the THM Services You agree to that transfer.

Australian Users

In accordance with the Privacy Act 1988 (Cth), if You reside in Australia, You are entitled to access and correct Your Personal Information at any time. We will, on request, provide You with access to the information we hold about You, including for the purpose of correcting or updating that information, unless there is an exception to such disclosure which applies under the Australian Privacy Principles (APPs). To make such a request, please send an email or write us using the contact information under “Privacy Policy Information”. Before we provide You with access to Your Personal Information, we will require some proof of identity. For most requests, Your information will be provided free of charge, however, we may charge a reasonable fee if Your request requires a substantial effort on our part. If we refuse to provide You with access to the information, we will provide You with reasons for the refusal and inform You of any exceptions relied upon under the APPs (unless it would be unreasonable to do so).

Payment Processor

THM uses Stripe as payment processor for the THM Services.  THM only provides payment processors with an identifier to link your payment to your THM Account. THM does not provide the payment processor with Personal Information and only provides billing information required to process Your payment and minimize fraudulent payment risk.

You acknowledge and agree that THM makes no representation, warranty, covenant, or claim regarding, and THM expressly disclaims and denies any responsibility or liability for, directly or indirectly, the privacy practices in regard to any Personal Information You provide to Stripe directly or any other party in relation to purchasing a product or service from our Web sites.

You acknowledge and agree that our terms and policies do not govern any other party.

You acknowledge our recommendation to review the applicable privacy and data gathering practices, of any third party to which You provide Personal Information.

Minors

You represent that You are at least eighteen (18) years of age and You have the legal authority to enter into this Agreement. If You are at least thirteen (13) years of age and less than eighteen (18) years of age, and are not enrolled at a post-secondary education institution, then Your parent or legal guardian must read and accept this Agreement, consent to Your use of the THM Services, and agree to You providing any Personal Information in connection with the THM Services on Your behalf.  This Service is not meant for users under the age of thirteen (13).

If You have reason to believe that a child under 13 years old has provided THM with Personal Information, and that child’s parents or school have not provided THM with the adequate consent, please contact us at privacy@tophat.com.

Privacy Policy Information

If You have any questions about this Privacy Policy, concerns about how we manage Your Personal Information, or if you would like to make a complaint about how we manage Your Personal Information, please contact us by mail or email at:

Tophatmonocle Corp
151 Bloor Street West, Suite 200
Toronto, Ontario, Canada
M5S 1S4
privacy@tophat.com

We will endeavor to answer Your questions within a reasonable period of time and advise You of any steps taken to address the issues raised by You.

Interpretation of this Privacy Policy

This Privacy Policy does not create or confer upon any individual any rights, or impose upon THM any obligations, in addition to any rights or obligations imposed by applicable federal and provincial privacy laws if You reside in Canada, or the Privacy Act in Australia. Should there be any inconsistency between this Privacy Policy and applicable federal and provincial privacy laws or the Privacy Act in Australia, this Privacy Policy will be interpreted to comply with the applicable privacy laws.

Unless otherwise stated above, any services provided by THM is controlled and operated by us from Canada, and we do not intend that the THM Services subject us to the laws or jurisdiction of any state, country or territory other than that of Canada. We do not represent or warrant that the services, or any part of the THM Services, are appropriate or available for use in any particular jurisdiction. Those who choose to access the services do so on their own initiative and at their own risk, and are responsible for complying with all local laws, rules and regulations. We may limit the THM Services’ availability, in whole or in part, to any person, geographic area or jurisdiction we choose, at any time and in our sole discretion.