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Legal

Finance Guru LLC Privacy Policy

 Last Modified: February of 2023

This Privacy Policy (the “Policy”) is issued by Finance Guru LLC (“we”, “us”, “our” or “Finance Guru”) in furtherance of our commitment to respecting data privacy rights. For purposes of this Policy, “you” or “your” means any visitor to our website, or any natural person or household whose "Personal Information" is collected by us in any way. This Policy describes how we collect, use, analyze and share Personal Information and how we ensure that your privacy rights always are honored. By using our website or services, you consent to the privacy practices described in this Policy.

1. Categories of Personal Information We Collect

We are dedicated to respecting and protecting Your privacy rights. Within this Policy, "Personal Information" means any information that identifies, relates to, describes, is capable of being associated with, or reasonably could be linked, directly or indirectly, to a particular individual or household. Such can include, but is not limited to, real name, postal address, Internet Protocol Address, email address, account names, or other similar identifiers, or information generated from electronic network activity, including browsing history, search history and any information concerning an individual’s interaction with an internet website. “Sensitive Personal Information” can include government identification numbers, financial account numbers, geolocation data, genetic, biometric or medical information or other similar identifiers. Personal Information does not include certain forms of publicly available information, deidentified information, or aggregated information that is not capable of being associated with, or could reasonably be linked, directly or indirectly, to a particular individual or household.

In providing services to our clients or business partners, we may collect the following categories of Personal Information:

  1. Transactional Data and Information. This includes Personal Information related to consumers or households who purchase products or services through our campaigns, each of which may encompass first and last name, address, contact information (such as phone number and email) and details of a particular transaction as well as information generated from a person's engagement with any of our clients; in some instances this may include an audio recording of the transaction. This information can also result in us collecting aggregated data that identifies trends and facilitates ongoing analysis of the services we perform. In some instances, we may receive “lead lists” from our clients, which contain Personal Information of prospective customers.
  2. Compliance and Operational Information. This includes Personal Information related to our subcontractors (and their employees, commonly known as Agents), which can encompass information such as first and last name, product and compliance training data generated from those individuals, and information in what is commonly known as a "background check", as provided by a consumer reporting agency and as authorized pursuant to applicable law.
  3. Information Generated from Our Website. This includes “Cookies”, web beacons, and other tracking technologies. “Cookies” are text files that websites store on a visitor’s device to identify the visitor’s browser or to store information or settings in the browser to track activity and patterns. Web beacons are pixel tags or clear GIVs demonstrate that a user has accessed or opened certain content or that the content was viewed or clicked. We only track cookies that are from Google Analytics and Google Tag Manager. For more information about cookies, including how to see what cookies have been set on your browser and how to manage and delete cookies, please visit: www.allaboutcookies.org. Some browsers may be configured to send “do not track” signals to the online services that you visit. To find out more about “do not track” please visit: www.allaboutdnt.com. You can learn more about Google Analytics cookies here, and how Google uses data here. You can prevent the use of Google Analytics relating to your use of our webpage by downloading and installing a browser plugin available here.
  4. Information You Provided to Us. Personal Information you submit to us, such as information submitted to us in any request or provided to us when you communicate with us or use our website.

2. How We Collect and Use Your Personal Information

Personal Information is collected by us in a variety of ways and used to support our business operations. We will not retain or use any Personal Information for any purpose other than: (i) providing services to our business partners; and (ii) using the Personal Information internally to verify sales completed by our subcontractors, maintain the quality of our services, comply with legal requirements, and improve the services for our business partners.

  1. Transactional Data and Information. This data is provided to us by our clients through reoccurring reporting and is delivered electronically or accessed through secured portals. Third party vendors may also facilitate our collection of this data at the direction of our clients. Certain categories of de-identified transactional data are shared with our subcontractors or other third party business partners to validate the services performed and otherwise oversee campaign performance. Transactional data also is used to ensure compliance through independent third-party verification tools and to protect against improper practices. We may use this data to validate sales, process payments to our subcontractors and otherwise ensure we are performing in accordance with our clients' expectations. Personal Information in lead lists is used with our Subcontractors to facilitate and target sales and marketing activities.
  2. Compliance and Operational Information. This Personal Information is collected from our subcontractors and is provided to ensure subcontractors and their employees are eligible to perform services on our campaigns. Sensitive Personal Information may be delivered to us in a consumer report (also known as a "background check") through a consumer reporting agency at the director of a subcontractor. We access this information through a portal that is used to transmit the Personal Information in a secure and protected environment.
  3. Information Generated from Our Website. Cookies, web beacons, and tracking technologies may be used for various purposes, such as fraud prevention, monitoring our websites, and assessing our marketing campaign performance. This information is gathered by and through a visitor to our website and interactions generated from that visit. Some of these tracking tools may detect characteristics or settings of the specific device you use to access our online services.
  4. Information provided to us. This Personal Information is provided to us by you and is used to provide services to you or to verify, process or respond to any request to submit to us.

3. Sharing of Personal Information

We never sell Your Personal Information. We share information provided to us with various trusted business partners or other third parties for the purpose of facilitating our business objectives.

  1. Our Subcontractors. We share Personal Information with our subcontractors to process payments and otherwise oversee campaign operations. This data often is de-identified and does not contain information that would be capable of being associated with, or could reasonably be linked, directly or indirectly, to a particular individual or household. We also may share information in lead lists for the purpose of targeting sales and marketing efforts.
  2. Our Clients. We share Personal Information with our clients for the purpose of overseeing our performance on a campaign, as well as to improve the quality and integrity of services delivered and to otherwise ensure we effectively perform.
  3. Third Party Service Providers. We share Personal Information with third party service providers that provide essential services on our behalf or on behalf of our clients to operate and support our business objectives. These third parties may use your Personal Information only to help us operate and deliver services on our business as authorized in our contracts with our clients. These may include third parties providing transactional support, software to process or verify transactions, third party verification services, call center transaction processing, software development and other forms of support services necessary to operate our business.
  4. Affiliates and Related Companies. We also may disclose Personal Information: to our subsidiaries, affiliates, and other third parties we use to support our business; to fulfill the purpose for which you provide it; to comply with any court order, law, regulation, or legal process, including responding to any government or regulatory request; to carry out our obligations and enforce our rights arising from any contracts entered into between you and our business partners; if we believe disclosure is necessary or appropriate to protect the rights, property or safety of us, our business partners or others; or to any other party with your consent.

4. Data Residency and Retention

Any data we collect will reside within the United States in our secure server and network. In limited circumstances, we may have a third-party service provider that resides and retains data overseas, in which case our practice is to disclose that to any data subject whose data would be subject to this arrangement.

Transactional Data containing Personal Information will be retained for sixty (60) days. We may retain other de-identified information for seven years, however this information will not be information that is capable of being associated with, or reasonably could be linked, directly or indirectly, to a particular individual or household.

Compliance and Operational Data will be retained for as long as a Subcontractor and their respective employees work on our campaigns, and three (3) years thereafter. In the event we receive Sensitive Personal Information pertaining to an employee of one of our Subcontractors, that information is retained for fourteen (14) days.

Information generated from the use of our website is retained by us for no longer than thirteen (13) months.

5. Your Data Rights

This portion of our Policy details your rights and how we strive to respect the data privacy rights that may apply in our business. Within this Policy, we also provide you information on how you may exercise these rights. Assuming we are able to verify your identity and the request you submit to us, you have the following rights:

  1. Right to know. You have a right to know what Personal Information we may have collected and retained pertaining to you in the twelve (12) months prior to the date of your requests. If requested and if verified (as discussed below), we will provide you the categories, specific pieces and sources of your Personal Information we have collected, the business purpose for which we gathered the information, and the categories of any third parties with whom we have shared the Personal Information.
  2. Access and Correction. You can request a copy of the categories and specific pieces of Your Personal Information collected by us in the twelve (12) months prior to the date of your requests, and to correct inaccuracies therein, if any.
  3. Deletion. You can request that we delete your Personal Information, provided that no exemption to the deletion exists (discussed below).
  4. Opt-Out of the Selling or Sharing. You can request to opt out of our ability to sell or share your Personal Information.
  5. Non-Discrimination. You are entitled to exercise the rights in this Policy free from discrimination as prohibited under applicable privacy laws.

6. Exercising Your Data Rights.

If you have a question as to how you can exercise your data rights under this policy, please contact us through our website, by calling our toll free number at 1 888 995 0263, or by emailing us at privacy.fg@financeguru.com. The requests herein are subject to certain exemptions and limitations that may limit our ability to process or grant the request. For example, we reserve the right to deny a request if the information is necessary to comply with a legal requirement or to provide you services, of if we have a legal obligation that requires us to maintain the requested information.

  1. Submitting a Data Request to us. You may submit a request to us to identify the categories and specific pieces of your Personal Information we have gathered in the twelve (12) months prior to your request. You may submit a data request to us by contacting our Data Manager, through any of the following methods:

    Phone (toll free): 1 888 995 0263
    Email: privacy.fg@financeguru.com
    Request Form:
    Personal Information Request Form
  2. DO NOT SELL OR SHARE MY PERSONAL INFORMATION. While it is not our practice to sell any Personal Information, you may request that we not sell or share your Personal Information by contacting our Data Manager, through any of the following methods:

    Phone (toll free): 1 888 995 0263
    Email: privacy.fg@financeguru.com
    Request Form:
    DO NOT SELL OR SHARE MY PERSONAL INFORMATION
  3. LIMIT THE USE OF MY SENSITIVE PERSONAL INFORMATION. Certain data privacy laws provide you the right to request that we limit the use of any of your Sensitive Personal Information we may hold (if any). You may request that we limit the use of Your Sensitive Personal Information by contacting our Data Manager through any of the following methods:

    Phone (toll free): 1 888 995 0263
    Email: privacy.fg@financeguru.com
    Request Form:
    LIMIT THE USE OF MY SENSITIVE PERSONAL INFORMATION
  4. Processing Requests.
    1. Agents: Only you, or a person that you authorize to act on your behalf, may submit a request related to your Personal Information. If an agent submits a request on your behalf, we will require that you: (1) provide the authorized agent written permission to do so; and (2) verify your own identity directly with us. We may deny a request from an agent that does not submit proof that they have been authorized by you to act on their behalf. If the agent demonstrates authorization through power of attorney, we will not require written permission to make a request on your behalf.
    2. Timing and Process: We will acknowledge receipt of your request within ten (10) days of its receipt. We endeavor to respond to a verifiable request within forty-five (45) days of its receipt. If we require more time (up to ninety (90) days), we will inform you of the reason and extension period in writing. We will deliver our written response by mail or electronically, at your option. Any disclosures we provide will only cover the 12-month period preceding the verifiable Consumer request’s receipt. The response we provide will also explain the reasons we cannot comply with a request, if applicable.
    3. Cost: We do not charge a fee to process or respond to your verifiable Consumer request unless it is excessive, repetitive, or manifestly unfounded. If we determine that the request warrants a fee, we will tell you why we made that decision and provide you with a cost estimate before completing your request.
  5. Exemptions. We may not process a request if a legal exemption applies or if we have a legal reason to not process the request. We specifically reserve the right to not process a request if: your Personal Information is necessary to exercise or defend any actual or potential legal claims; your Personal Information is necessary to comply with any court order, law, or legal process, including responding to any government or regulatory request; your Personal Information is necessary to complete the transaction for which the Personal Information was collected; you previously made two (2) requests within a twelve (12) month time period; as well as any other reason allowed under applicable laws.
  6. Verification. We can only process those requests that have sufficient information for us to verify the identity of the person submitting the request in relation to the information that we possess. A requestor’s failure to provide us complete or accurate information may prevent or delay our ability to verify a request. To verify a request, we reserve the right to request government identification, personal identifiers that allow us to match information and a declaration from the requestor under penalty of perjury. To properly verify a request, we must be provided sufficient information that allows us to reasonably verify you are the person about whom we collected personal information or an authorized representative, and describe your request with sufficient detail that allows us to properly understand, evaluate, and respond to it.

7. Biometric Data.

This Biometrics Privacy Policy is issued by us in furtherance of our commitment to respecting the legal rights of data subjects, and specifically certain data rights concerning “Biometric Data.” This Policy details the Biometric Data that we collect and describes how it is used. In this Policy, our “Affiliates” include those entities, directly or indirectly, controlling, controlled by, or under common control with Credico (USA) LLC, including without limitation Personal Fundraising Services, LLC, Finance Guru LLC, Credico Marketing, Inc., and Givebridge, Inc.

  1. Biometric Data Collected. “Biometric Data” includes facial geometry scans and information derived therefrom generated from photographs submitted to us. Facial photographs are submitted to us from Field Representatives employed by our Subcontractors (the “Field Representatives”) while those individuals are performing services in the course of using a tablet. Our Subcontractors will also submit a facial photograph of each Field Representative to generate an identification badge for these individuals, all as part of our onboarding process. Biometric Data in the form of facial geometric measurements will be generated from these photographs.
  2. Purpose. To protect the integrity of the services performed, we require facial recognition technology on most tablets used by our Subcontractors (the “Technology”). Specifically, the Technology is used confirm whether an individual using a tablet on our campaigns is also an authorized Field Representative employed by our Subcontractor who is authorized to perform the work. The Technology will be licensed from Imagga Technologies Ltd. (“Imagga”), whose principal address is 471 Mladost 4 Residential Complex, Ent. 4, Apt. 120, Sofia, Bulgaria.
  3. Process and Use. Anyone processing transactions on our campaigns will be in possession of a tablet. Each tablet will be equipped with software deploying the Technology. The tablet can only be used when it is unlocked by a valid sales code, which corresponds to a duly authorized Field Representative. While in use, the Technology will prompt the individual to document the individual’s consent to the collection and storage of the individual’s Biometric Data possessing the tablet to take and submit a facial photograph, with said photograph being transmitted Imagga. The Technology will then compare the submitted photograph to the facial photograph on the identification badge corresponding to Field Representative whose sales code is used on the tablet. The Technology generates and compares facial Biometric Data, including measurements and numerical representations, from both photographs to determine if both photographs depict the same individual.
  4. Retention. Imagga will permanently delete any facial Biometric Data no later than twenty-four (24) hours after the comparison of the photographs. All data will reside in the United States. At no point will Finance Guru or any Affiliate collect or store Biometric Data.
  5. Restrictions and Standard of Care. Biometric Data will not be sold, leased, traded, shared or transferred with any person or entity not identified in this Policy for any purpose not detailed herein. Imagga shall use a reasonable standard of care to store, transmit, and protect from disclosure any Biometric Data collected. This standard of care shall be in a manner that is the same as or more protective than the manner in which other confidential and sensitive information is maintained.
  6. Disclosure and Authorization. We ensure that no Biometric Data is collected unless we first: (1) inform a Field Representative or data subject in writing that their Biometric Data is being collected, (2) inform a Field Representative or data subject of the purpose and length of term for which Biometric Data is collected and (3) receive written authorization or written release executed by the Field Representative authorizing the collection, storage and use of the Biometric Data in the manner set forth in this Policy.

8. Security

We use technical, physical and organizational security measures designed to protect your Personal Information from accidental loss and from unauthorized access and disclosure. The use of, and access to, your Personal Information by us is restricted to employees, subcontractors, clients, and authorized third party service providers who need to know that information to provide services to our business partners. We maintain physical, electronic and procedural safeguards to limit access to your Personal Information. Notwithstanding, security risk is inherent in all internet and information technology platforms and no part of this Policy should be interpreted as a guarantee or other legal obligation in relation to preventing all threats to networks, systems or other repositories of information.

9. Children

Our services and this website are not intended for children or anyone under the age of eighteen (18). In the event we learn that we inadvertently collect any Personal Information of a minor, without the required consent by law, we will delete said information immediately. If you believe that we have collected information of a minor, please contact our Data Manager through any of the following methods:
Phone (toll free): 1 888 995 0263
Email: privacy.fg@financeguru.com
Or: contact us through our website.

10. Changes to Our Privacy Policy

We reserve the right to amend this Policy at our discretion and at any time. When we make changes to this Policy, we will post the updated notice on the Website and update the effective date. Your use of our Website following the posting of changes constitutes your acceptance of such changes.

11. Contact Us

If you have any questions or comments about this notice, the ways in which Finance Guru collects and uses your information, your choices and rights regarding such use, or wish to exercise your rights please do not hesitate to contact us at:

Phone: 1 888 995 0263
Email: privacy.fg@financeguru.com

Finance Guru Terms of Use

By accessing or using our Services, you agree to be bound by the terms and conditions of these Terms of Use (this “Agreement”) and our Privacy Policy (the “Privacy Policy”). The terms “we,” “us,” or “our” mean Finance Guru LLC, a Delaware limited liability company, whose principal office is located at 550 W. Van Buren, Suite 1100, Chicago, IL 60607, and its affiliated companies. The term “Services,” means, collectively, websites, applications, Services, email notifications and other mediums, or portions of such mediums, through which you have accessed this Agreement.

This Agreement contains a binding arbitration agreement, which provides that you and we agree to resolve certain disputes through binding individual arbitration and give up any right to have those disputes decided by a judge or a jury. You have the right to opt out of our agreement to arbitrate. See the Legal Disputes section of this Agreement.

Your Compliance with this Agreement

You acknowledge that this Agreement is supported by reasonable and valuable consideration, the receipt and adequacy of which is hereby acknowledged. Without limiting the foregoing, you acknowledge that such consideration includes, without limitation, your ability to visit, use and/or submit information to our Services.

You represent that you have the capacity to be bound by this Agreement, or if you are acting on behalf of a company or other entity, you have the authority to bind such company or entity. To determine your compliance with this Agreement, we may monitor your access and use of our Services in accordance with our Privacy policy.

Our Services are Not Intended for Minors

Our Services are intended to be accessed and used only by adults and are not directed to minors. As stated in our Privacy Policy, we do not knowingly collect personal identifiable information from anyone under the age of 18 and you should not provide us with any information regarding any individual under the age of 18.

Your Access and Use of our Services

Your right to access and use our Services is personal to you and is not transferable by you to any other person or entity. You are only entitled to access and use our Services for lawful purposes and pursuant to the terms and conditions of this Agreement and Privacy Policy.

Your access and use of our Services may be interrupted from time to time for any of several reasons, including, without limitation, the malfunction of equipment, periodic updating, maintenance or repair of our website or other actions that we, in our sole discretion, may elect to take. We reserve the right to suspend or discontinue the availability of our Services at any time in our sole discretion and without prior notice.

Any action by you that, in our sole discretion: (i) violates the terms and conditions of this Agreement and/or the Privacy Policy; (ii) restricts, inhibits or prevents any access, use or enjoyment of our Services; or (iii) through the use of our Services, defames, abuses, harasses, offends or threatens, shall not be permitted, and may result in your loss of the right to access and use our Services. You shall not modify, scrape, embed, or frame our Services without our prior written permission.

Subject to the terms of this Agreement and the Privacy Policy, we may offer you various Services. Below are terms and conditions governing the use of Finance Guru Services and services.

You Must Maintain the Integrity of Your Information. To use certain Services, you may be required to provide us with information about you, which may be of a confidential nature and may include personal identifying information and/or financial information (“Your Information”). If you provide Your Information to us then you agree to provide true, current, complete and accurate information, and not to misrepresent your identity. You also agree to keep Your Information current and to update Your Information if any of Your Information changes. Our collection, use and disclosure of Your Information is governed by this Agreement and our Privacy Policy.

You Must Maintain the Security of Any Password Issued to You. If Finance Guru requires you to create a password to use certain Services, then it is your sole responsibility to maintain the security of that password. You agree that we shall not be liable for any loss that you may suffer because of the authorized or unauthorized use of your password by a third party. You shall not allow any person under the age of 18 to use any Service via your registration or password.

You Must Notify Us of a Breach. You agree to immediately notify us of any unauthorized use of your password, any unauthorized use of any account that you may have with us, any violation of this Agreement, or any other breach of security known to you in connection with any product or service available on our Services by sending an email to Finance Guru.

You Are Responsible for Your Financial Decisions. We and our affiliates, through the product offering, may provide a venue through which you can obtain information and you can find third-party service providers, such as financial institutions, credit card providers, mortgage brokers, insurance brokers, insurance agents, discount program representatives and other financial professionals (“Service Providers”). We do not endorse or recommend the Services or services of any Service Provider and are not an agent or advisor to you or any Service Provider. We do not validate or investigate the licensing, certification or other requirements and qualifications of Service Providers. It is your responsibility to investigate Service Providers. You acknowledge and agree that Service Providers are solely responsible for any services that they may provide to you and that we are not liable for any losses, costs, damages or claims in connection with, arising from, or related to, your use of a Service Provider’s Services or services. We urge you to obtain the advice of financial advisors, insurance agents, brokers or other qualified professionals who are fully aware of your individual circumstances before you make any financial decisions.

You Acknowledge and Agree that We are Not a Service Provider. We are not a lending institution, insurance provider or other Service Provider. Instead, we, through our Services, may help to connect you with Service Providers that might meet your needs based on information provided by you. We do not, and will not, make any coverage or credit decision with any Service Provider referred to you. We do not issue mortgages, credit cards, insurance coverage or any other financial Services.

No Guarantee of Quotes, Fees, Terms, Rates, Coverage or Services.We do not make any warranties or representations regarding the quotes, fees, terms, rates, coverage or services offered or made available by Service Providers. We do not guarantee that quotes, fees, terms, rates, coverage or services offered by Service Providers are the best available.

You Do Not Pay Fees to Us for Basic Services. Unless you are a Service Provider or order a specific service through our Services, we do not charge you a fee to use our basic Services. Service Providers may pay us fees for services and to be matched with users of our Services, however. We are not involved with and are not responsible for any fee arrangement that you may enter into with any Service Provider. You acknowledge and agree to this compensation arrangement.

You hereby release us of any and all losses, costs, damages or claims in connection with, arising from or related to your use of a Service Provider’s Services or services, including any fees charged by a Service Provider.

Requests for Quotes and Offers

We may share your information with third parties when you use our Site to request a rate, quote, service, approval, or information from those third parties (a “Request”). IF YOU SUBMIT A REQUEST, SERVICE PROVIDERS MAY CONTACT YOU DIRECTLY WITH QUOTES VIA MAIL, TELEPHONE, TEXT MESSAGE, FAX, EMAIL, AND OTHER MEANS OF COMMUNICATION, YOU MAY RECEIVE TELEMARKETING CALLS AS A CONSEQUENCE OF SUBMITTING A REQUEST THROUGH OUR SERVICES, EVEN IF YOU ARE ON THE NATIONAL DO NOT CALL REGISTRY OR ANY OTHER DO NOT CALL REGISTRY.

By submitting a Request, you expressly consent to the third party conducting any research necessary to provide you with information about your Request. Third parties may need to share your information to conduct such research. If you do not want third parties to conduct necessary research to provide you with a quote for your Request, then you should not submit a Request.

Finance Guru Services

Finance Guru’s Services allows Users to manage their credit and financial health online. You understand that by accepting this Agreement and using Finance Guru Services, you are providing “written instructions” to Finance Guru, its contracted data providers, agents, and its employees, agents, subsidiaries, affiliates, contractors, third party data sources and suppliers, and all other credit reporting agencies under the Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA), as amended, to access your credit files from each national credit reporting agency and to exchange information about you with each such national credit reporting agency in order to verify your identity and to provide Services to you. You agree and hereby authorize Finance Guru, its contracted data providers, agents, and employees, to provide your personally identifiable information (or, if applicable, information about your child you have enrolled) to third parties as provided in our Privacy Policy as may be amended from time to time. You waive all claims against Finance Guru LLC, its contracted data providers, agents, employees, and shareholder for the acts or omissions of these third parties about the use or disclosure of such information. You further authorize Finance Guru, its contracted data providers and its agents, employees and shareholder to obtain various information and reports about you (or about your child that you have enrolled, if applicable) to provide Services, including, but not limited to, address history reports, name and alias reports, criminal reports or sex offender reports, and to provide monitoring and alerts. While enrolling for the Services, we will ask you for the following types of information: contact information (such as name, address, phone number, and e-mail address); sensitive information (such as date of birth or part of your social security number); personal information to verify your identity and financial information (such as a cell phone number). This information is required to verify your identity, charge you the agreed upon fees for our Services and services, and to fulfill our obligation to provide our Services and services to you, including communicating with third parties as necessary to provide such Services and services, such as identification verification companies, consumer reporting agencies, credit bureaus, payment validation companies, law enforcement agencies, or others. You agree that you will use the Services to protect against or prevent actual fraud, unauthorized transactions, claims or other liabilities.

Public Forums

Our Services may act as a venue, through blogs, messaging, chat rooms, bulletin boards and other forums (collectively, the “Forums”), allowing the users to contribute information and make statements (“User Generated Content”). Neither we nor our advertisers are involved in the actual transmission of User Generated Content provided for in the Forums. As a result, neither we nor our advertisers approve or endorse any User Generated Content in the Forums, and you hereby acknowledge and agree that neither we nor our advertisers have control over the User Generated Content submission’s quality, correctness, timeliness, safety, truth, accuracy or legality by you or any other person or entity in the Forums. You may find User Generated Content posted in the Forums by other users to be offensive, harmful, inaccurate or deceptive. Please use caution and common sense, and do not rely solely on User Generated Content published in the Forums. It is neither our nor our advertisers’ responsibility to ensure all posts and questions submitted on the Forums are answered. Without limiting the generality of the foregoing, and although we do not regularly review User Generated Content provided for in the Forums, we reserve the right (but not the obligation) to remove or edit any User Generated Content in the Forums, for any reason or no reason, in our sole discretion.

Transmissions, Submissions and Postings

If you transmit, submit or post information to our Services that is not Federally trademarked and/or copyrighted, you automatically grant us and our assigns the worldwide, fully-paid, royalty-free, exclusive right and license to use, copy, format, adapt, publish and/or incorporate any or all such information in any media whatsoever, including, without limitation, the Content (as defined below). If you have obtained prior written permission from us to transmit, submit or post information to our Services that is Federally trademarked and/or copyrighted, you automatically grant us and our assigns the worldwide, fully-paid, royalty-free right to use, copy, format, adapt, publish and/or incorporate any or all such information in any media whatsoever, including, without limitation, the Content.

You shall not transmit, submit or post the following to our Services:

  • Information that infringes our or any third party’s copyright, patent, trademark, trade secret or other proprietary rights;
  • Information that violates any law, statute, ordinance or regulation;
  • Information that is trade libelous, unlawfully threatening, unlawfully harassing, defamatory, obscene, explicit or vulgar, or otherwise injurious to us or third parties or that infringes on our or any third party’s rights of publicity or privacy;
  • Information that contains any viruses, worms, Trojan horses, trap doors, back doors, easter eggs, time bombs, cancelbots or other code or computer programming routines that contain contaminating or destructive properties or that are intended to damage, detrimentally interfere with, surreptitiously intercept or expropriate any system, data or personal information;
  • Information containing or constituting chain letters, mass mailings, political campaigning, or any form of “spam”;
  • Information that is false, inaccurate or misleading;
  • Commercial advertisements or solicitations without our written permission; or
  • Federally trademarked and/or copyrighted information without our prior written permission.

Although we do not regularly review your transmissions, submissions or postings, we reserve the right (but not the obligation) to edit, refuse to post or remove your transmissions, submissions or postings. Under our Privacy policy, we may review transmissions, submissions or postings made by you to determine, in our sole discretion, your compliance with this Agreement.

You are solely responsible for all your transmissions, submissions or postings (i.e., your own User Generated Content) and the consequences of transmitting, submitting or posting them.

Our Intellectual Property Rights

Our names, graphics, logos, page headers, button icons, scripts, and service names are our trademarks or trade dress in the United States and/or other countries (collectively, the “Proprietary Marks”). You may not use the Proprietary Marks without our prior written permission. We make no proprietary claim to any third-party names, trademarks or service marks appearing on our Services. Any third-party names, trademarks, and service marks are property of their respective owners.

The information, advice, data, software and content viewable on, contained in, or downloadable from our Services (collectively, the “Content”), including, without limitation, all text, graphics, charts, pictures, photographs, images, videos, line art, icons and renditions, are copyrighted by, or otherwise licensed to, us or our Content suppliers. We also own a copyright of a collective work in the selection, coordination, arrangement, presentation, display and enhancement of the Content (the “Collective Work”). All software used on or within our Services (the “Software”) is our property or the property of our software vendors and is protected by United States and international copyright laws. Viewing, reading, printing, downloading or otherwise using the Content and/or the Collective Work does not entitle you to any ownership or intellectual property rights to the Content, the Collective Work, or the Software.

You are solely responsible for any damages resulting from your infringement of our or any third-party’s intellectual property rights regarding the Trademarks, the Content, the Collective Work, the Software and/or any other harm incurred by us or our affiliates as a, direct or indirect, result of your copying, distributing, redistributing, transmitting, publishing or using the same for purposes that are contrary to the terms and conditions of this Agreement.

Your Use of the Content

We grant you a limited license to access, print, download or otherwise make personal use of the Content and the Collective Work in the form of: (i) one machine-readable copy; (ii) one backup copy; and (iii) one print copy, for your non-commercial use; provided, however, that you shall not delete any proprietary notices or materials about the foregoing manifestations of the Content and the Collective Work. You may not modify the Content or the Collective Work or utilize them for any commercial purpose or any other public display, performance, sale, or rental, decompile, reverse engineer, or disassemble the Content and the Collective Work, or transfer the Content or the Collective Work to another person or entity.

Except as otherwise permitted under the copyright laws of the United States, no other copying, distribution, redistribution, transmission, publication or use, other than the non-commercial use of the Content and the Collective Work as permitted by this Agreement, is permitted by you without our prior written permission.

You may not use any meta tags or any other “hidden text” utilizing our name or trademarks without our prior written permission.

Access and Interference

You agree that you will not use any robot, spider, scraper, deep link or other similar automated data gathering or extraction tools, program, algorithm or methodology to access, acquire, copy or monitor our Services or any portion of our Services or for any other purpose, without our prior written permission. Additionally, you agree that you will not: (i) take any action that imposes, or may impose in our sole discretion an unreasonable or disproportionately large load on our infrastructure; (ii) copy, reproduce, modify, create derivative works from, distribute or publicly display any content (except for your personal information) from our Services without our prior written permission and the appropriate third party, as applicable; (iii) interfere or attempt to interfere with the proper working of our Services or any activities conducted on our Services; or (iv) bypass any robot exclusion headers or other measures we may use to prevent or restrict access to our Services. Notwithstanding the foregoing, we grant the operators of public search engines permission to use spiders to copy materials from our Services for the sole purpose and solely to the extent necessary for creating publicly available search indices of the materials on our Services, but not caches or archives of such materials. We reserve the right to revoke these exceptions either generally or in specific cases. Except as expressly permitted in this Agreement, you shall not collect or harvest any personally identifiable information, including account names, from our Services. You shall not use any communication systems provided on our Services (such as Forums or email) for any commercial or solicitation purposes. You shall not solicit for commercial purposes any users of our Services without our prior written permission.

Electronic Communications

When you use our Services or send email to us, you are communicating with us electronically. You consent to receive communications from us electronically. Although we may choose to communicate with you by regular mail, we may also choose to communicate with you by email or by posting notices on our Services. You agree that all agreements, notices, disclosures and other communications that we provide to you electronically satisfy any legal requirement that such communications be in writing.

Your Responsibility for Equipment and Related Costs

You are responsible for obtaining and maintaining all telephone, computer hardware, Internet access services and other equipment or services needed to access and use our Services, and all costs and fees associated with Internet access or long-distance charges incurred with regard to your access and use of our Services.

Third Party Links or Access

There may be provided on our Services links or access to other websites or mediums belonging to our advertisers, business partners, affiliates, Service Providers and other third parties. Such links and access do not constitute our endorsement of those third parties, nor the Services or services of those third parties. We are not responsible for the activities or policies of those third parties. We are not responsible for examining or evaluating any third-party Services or services and we do not warrant their offerings. We do not guarantee that the terms or rates offered by any advertiser, business partner, affiliate, Service Provider or other third party on or through our Services are the best terms or lowest rates available in the market.

Mobile Devices

If we provide aspects of our Services via an application for your mobile or other device, please be aware that your carrier’s normal rates and fees may apply and that the terms of this Agreement and other agreements within the application apply to your use of such application.

Copyright Infringement

It is our policy to comply with the Digital Millennium Copyright Act, title 17, United States Code, Section 512, including, without limitation, responding to notices of alleged copyright infringement, and other applicable intellectual property laws. We shall, in appropriate circumstances, disable and/or terminate the accounts of users who may infringe or repeatedly infringe the copyrights or other intellectual property rights of ours and/or others.

Notifications (each a “Notification”) of claimed copyright infringement should be sent by either express mail or U.S. mail to Finance Guru.

Pursuant to Title 17, United States Code, Section 512(c)(3), to be effective, the Notification must include the following:

  • A physical or electronic signature of a person authorized to act on behalf of the owner (“Complaining Party”) of an exclusive right that is allegedly infringed;
  • Identification of the copyrighted work claimed to have been infringed, or if multiple copyrighted works at a single online site are covered by a single Notification, a representative list of such works at that site;
  • Identification of the material that is claimed to be infringing or to be the subject of infringing activity and that is to be removed or access to which is to be disabled, and information reasonably sufficient to permit us to locate the material;
  • Information reasonably sufficient to permit us to contact the Complaining Party, such as an address, telephone number, and if available, an electronic mail address at which the Complaining Party may be contacted;
  • A statement that the Complaining Party has a good faith belief that use of the material in the manner complained of is not authorized by the copyright owner, its agent, or the law; and
  • A statement that the information in the Notification is accurate, and under penalty of perjury, that the Complaining Party is authorized to act on behalf of the owner of an exclusive right that is allegedly infringed.

Upon receipt of the Notification containing the information as outlined in 1 through 6 above, and pursuant to Title 17, United States Code, Section 512:

  • We will remove or disable access to the material that is alleged to be infringing;
  • We will forward the Notification to the alleged infringer (“Subscriber”); and
  • We will take reasonable steps to promptly notify the Subscriber that we have removed or disabled access to the material.

We Make No Representations or Warranties Regarding the Content

THE CONTENT AND ALL SERVICES AND SERVICES ASSOCIATED WITH OUR SERVICES ARE PROVIDED TO YOU ON AN “AS-IS” AND “AS AVAILABLE” BASIS. WE MAKE NO REPRESENTATIONS OR WARRANTIES OF ANY KIND, EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, AS TO THE OPERATION OF OUR SERVICES OR THE INFORMATION, CONTENT, MATERIALS, SERVICES OR SERVICES INCLUDED ON OR ASSOCIATED WITH OUR SERVICES. YOU EXPRESSLY AGREE THAT YOUR USE OF OUR SERVICES AND ALL SERVICES AND SERVICES INCLUDED ON OR ASSOCIATED WITH OUR SERVICES IS AT YOUR SOLE RISK.

WE DO NOT MAKE, AND EXPRESSLY DISCLAIM, ANY REPRESENTATIONS, WARRANTIES OR GUARANTEES, EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, REGARDING THE ACCURACY, CORRECTNESS, OR COMPLETENESS OF THE CONTENT OR THE SERVICES AND SERVICES ASSOCIATED WITH OUR SERVICES, OR THE SAFETY, RELIABILITY, TITLE, TIMELINESS, COMPLETENESS, MERCHANTABILITY, CONFORMITY OR FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE OF THE CONTENT OR THE SERVICES AND SERVICES ASSOCIATED WITH OUR SERVICES. IT IS YOUR SOLE RESPONSIBILITY TO INDEPENDENTLY EVALUATE THE ACCURACY, CORRECTNESS OR COMPLETENESS OF THE CONTENT AND THE SERVICES AND SERVICES ASSOCIATED WITH OUR SERVICES. WE MAKE NO REPRESENTATION, WARRANTY OR GUARANTEE THAT THE CONTENT THAT MAY BE AVAILABLE FOR DOWNLOADING FROM OUR SERVICES IS FREE OF INFECTION FROM ANY VIRUSES, WORMS, TROJAN HORSES, TRAP DOORS, BACK DOORS, EASTER EGGS, TIME BOMBS, CANCELBOTS OR OTHER CODE OR COMPUTER PROGRAMMING ROUTINES THAT CONTAIN CONTAMINATING OR DESTRUCTIVE PROPERTIES OR THAT ARE INTENDED TO DAMAGE, DETRIMENTALLY INTERFERE WITH, SURREPTITIOUSLY INTERCEPT OR EXPROPRIATE ANY SYSTEM, DATA OR PERSONAL INFORMATION. WE DO NOT MAKE ANY REPRESENTATIONS, WARRANTIES OR GUARANTEES, EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, REGARDING ANY QUOTES OR OFFERS PROVIDED ON OR THROUGH OUR SERVICES.

WITHOUT LIMITING THE FOREGOING, YOU ACKNOWLEDGE AND AGREE THAT WE ARE NOT A FINANCIAL INSTITUTION, INSURANCE PROVIDER, CREDIT CARD PROVIDER OR OTHER SERVICE PROVIDER. YOU ACKNOWLEDGE AND AGREE THAT WE ARE SOLELY AN INTERMEDIARY BETWEEN YOU AND SUCH SERVICE PROVIDERS AND, THEREFORE, WE EXPRESSLY DISCLAIM ANY AND ALL LIABILITY FOR ANY CONTENT, SERVICES OR SERVICES PROVIDED BY SUCH SERVICE PROVIDERS.

The Content is intended only to assist you with financial decisions and is broad in scope and does not consider your personal financial situation. Your personal financial situation is unique, and the information and advice may not be appropriate for your situation. Accordingly, before making any final decisions or implementing any financial strategy, we recommend that you obtain additional information and advice of your accountant and other financial advisors who are fully aware of your individual circumstances.

Our Services are controlled and offered by us from our facilities in the United States of America. We make no representations that our Services are appropriate or available for use in other jurisdictions. If you access or use our Services from other jurisdictions, then you do so by your own volition and are solely responsible for compliance with local law.

Limitations on Our Liability

NEITHER WE NOR OUR AFFILIATES, DIRECTORS, OFFICERS, EMPLOYEES, OR SHAREHOLDERS SHALL BE RESPONSIBLE TO, OR LIABLE TO, YOU, OR ANY THIRD PARTY, WHETHER IN CONTRACT, WARRANTY, TORT (INCLUDING NEGLIGENCE) OR OTHERWISE, FOR ANY DAMAGES, INCLUDING, BUT NOT LIMITED TO, SPECIAL, INCIDENTAL, INDIRECT OR CONSEQUENTIAL DAMAGES THAT INCLUDE, BUT ARE NOT LIMITED TO, DAMAGES FOR ANY LOSS OF PROFIT, REVENUE OR BUSINESS, AS A DIRECT OR INDIRECT RESULT OF: (I) YOUR BREACH OR VIOLATION OF THE TERMS AND CONDITIONS OF THIS AGREEMENT; (II) YOUR ACCESS AND USE OF OUR SERVICES; (III) YOUR DELAY IN ACCESSING OR INABILITY TO ACCESS OR USE OUR SERVICES FOR ANY REASON; (IV) YOUR DOWNLOADING OF ANY OF THE CONTENT OR THE COLLECTIVE WORK FOR YOUR USE; (V) YOUR RELIANCE UPON OR USE OF THE CONTENT OR THE COLLECTIVE WORK, OR (VI) ANY INFORMATION, SOFTWARE, SERVICES OR SERVICES OBTAINED THROUGH OUR SERVICES, OR OTHERWISE ARISING OUT OF THE USE OF OUR SERVICES, WHETHER RESULTING IN WHOLE OR IN PART, FROM BREACH OF CONTRACT, TORTIOUS BEHAVIOR, NEGLIGENCE, STRICT LIABILITY OR OTHERWISE, EVEN IF WE AND/OR OUR SUPPLIERS HAD BEEN ADVISED OF THE POSSIBILITY OF DAMAGES. OUR LIABILITY AND THE LIABILITY OF OUR AFFILIATES, DIRECTORS, OFFICERS, EMPLOYEES, INDEPENDENT CONTRACTORS, SHAREHOLDERS, REPRESENTATIVES, AND AGENTS ARISING OUT OF THIS AGREEMENT SHALL NOT EXCEED $100.

YOU SPECIFICALLY ACKNOWLEDGE THAT WE SHALL NOT BE LIABLE FOR USER GENERATED CONTENT OR THE DEFAMATORY, OFFENSIVE OR ILLEGAL CONDUCT OF ANY THIRD PARTY, AND THAT THE RISK OF HARM OR DAMAGE FROM SUCH USER GENERATED CONTENT AND THIRD-PARTY CONDUCT RESTS ENTIRELY WITH YOU.

YOU AND US AGREE THAT ANY CAUSE OF ACTION ARISING OUT OF OR RELATED TO OUR SERVICES MUST COMMENCE WITHIN ONE (1) YEAR AFTER THE CAUSE OF ACTION ACCRUES. OTHERWISE, SUCH CAUSE OF ACTION IS PERMANENTLY BARRED.

Certain state laws do not allow limitations on implied warranties or the exclusion or limitation of certain damages. If these laws apply to you, some or all the above disclaimers, exclusions or limitations may not apply to you.

In the event that any limitation on the period of time for bringing an action, claim, dispute or proceeding against us, located in this “Limitations on Our Liability” section, is determined or held to be inapplicable or unenforceable by any court, arbitration panel or other tribunal, then the statute of limitations for the State of Illinois shall apply to any such action, claim, dispute or proceeding referred to final or binding arbitration.

Your Indemnification of Us

You shall defend, indemnify and hold harmless us and our officers, directors, shareholders, employees, independent contractors, agents, representatives and affiliates from and against all claims and expenses, including, but not limited to, attorneys’ fees, arising out of, or attributable to: (i) any breach or violation of this Agreement by you; (ii) your failure to provide accurate, complete and current personally identifiable information requested or required by us; (iii) your access or use of our Services; (iv) access or use of our Services under any password that may be issued to you; (v) your transmissions, submissions or postings (i.e., your own User Generated Content); and/or (vi) any personal injury or property damage caused by you.

Amendments of this Agreement

We reserve the right to update, amend and/or change this Agreement at any time in our sole discretion and without notice. Updates to this Agreement will be posted here. Amendments will take effect immediately upon us posting the updated Agreement on our Services. You are encouraged to revisit this Agreement from time to time to review any changes that have been made. The date on which this Agreement was last updated will be noted immediately above this Agreement. Your continued access and use of our Services following the posting of any such changes shall automatically be deemed your acceptance of all changes.

Our Remedies

You acknowledge that we may be irreparably damaged if this Agreement is not specifically enforced, and damages at law would be an inadequate remedy. Therefore, in the event of a breach or threatened breach of any provision of this Agreement by you, we shall be entitled, in addition to all rights and remedies, to an injunction restraining such breach or threatened breach, without being required to show any actual damage or to post an injunction bond, and/or to a decree for specific performance of the provisions of this Agreement. For purposes of this Section, you agree that any action or proceeding regarding such injunction restraining such breach or threatened breach shall be brought in the courts of record of Cook County, Illinois, or the United States District Court, Northern District of Illinois. You consent to the jurisdiction of such court and waive any objection to the laying of venue of any such action or proceeding in such court. You agree that service of any court paper may be effected on such party by mail or in such other manner as may be provided under applicable laws, rules of procedure or local rules.

Legal Disputes

You and we agree that any claim or dispute at law or equity that has arisen or may arise between us relating in any way to or arising out of this or previous versions of this Agreement, your use of or access to the Services will be resolved in accordance with the provisions set forth in this Legal Disputes section. Please read this section carefully. It affects your rights and will have a substantial impact on how claims you and we have against each other are resolved.

Applicable Law

You agree that the laws of the State of Illinois, without regard to principles of conflict of laws, will govern this Agreement and any claim or dispute that has arisen or may arise between you and us, except as otherwise stated in this Agreement.

Arbitration/Class Waiver

You and we each agree to resolve exclusively through final and binding arbitration any and all disputes or claims that have arisen or may arise between you and us (including any affiliates, officers, directors, employees, and agents), whether or not such dispute or claim involves a third party, relating in any way to any aspect of our relationship or any contact between us, direct or indirect, or arising out of this or previous versions of this Agreement, your use of or access to our Services, or any Services or services sold, offered, or purchased through our Services (“Dispute”).

1.1 You and we agree to submit the Dispute to a single arbitrator under the then-current Commercial Arbitration Rules of the American Arbitration Association (AAA), including when applicable the \Optional Rules for Emergency Measures of Protection and the Consumer Arbitration Rules, or, by separate mutual agreement, at another arbitration institution. The AAA’s rules, information regarding initiating a claim, and a description of the arbitration process are available at www.adr.org.

The location of the arbitration and the allocation of fees and costs for such arbitration shall be determined in accordance with the AAA rules. As an alternative, you or we may bring a claim in your local “small claims” court, if permitted by that small claims court’s rules.

1.2 The Federal Arbitration Act governs the interpretation and enforcement of this section regarding our agreement to arbitrate any Dispute (“Agreement to Arbitrate”), and the arbitrability of the Dispute. The arbitrator will decide whether the Dispute can be arbitrated.

1.3 You and we agree that each of us may bring a Dispute against the other only on our own behalf, and not on behalf of a government official or other person or entity, or a class of persons or entities. You and we agree, if we are a party to the proceeding, not to participate in a class action, a class-wide arbitration, a claim brought in a private attorney general or representative capacity, or a consolidated claim involving another person’s use of the site or our services. You and we agree not to combine a claim that is subject to arbitration under this Agreement with a claim that is not eligible for arbitration under this Agreement. You and we agree to waive the right to a trial by jury for all disputes.

1.4 If the prohibition against class actions and other claims brought on behalf of third parties contained in Section 1.3, above, is found to be unenforceable, then all of Section 1 will be null and void as to that Dispute.

1.5 This Agreement to Arbitrate will survive the termination of your relationship with us.

Unless you and we agree otherwise, if you opt out of the Agreement to Arbitrate, if the Agreement to Arbitrate is found by a court to be unenforceable, if your claim is not covered by the Agreement to Arbitrate, or if you neither are a resident of nor have a principal place of business in the US or Canada, you agree that any Dispute that has arisen, or may arise, between you and us must be resolved exclusively by a state or federal court located in Cook County, Illinois. You and we agree to submit to the personal jurisdiction.

Notwithstanding any provision in the Agreement to the contrary, you and we agree that if we make a change to this Agreement to Arbitrate (other than a change to the notice address or the site link provided herein) in the future, that change shall not apply to a claim that was filed in a legal proceeding between you and us prior to the effective date of the change. The change shall apply to all other disputes or claims governed by the Agreement to Arbitrate that have arisen, or may arise, between you and us. We will notify you of a change to this Agreement to Arbitrate by posting the amended terms on our Services at least 30 days before the effective date of the change and/or by email.

Miscellaneous

If any portion of this Agreement is deemed unlawful, void or unenforceable by any arbitrator or court of competent jurisdiction, this Agreement as a whole shall not be deemed unlawful, void or unenforceable, but only that portion of this Agreement that is unlawful, void or unenforceable shall be stricken from this Agreement.

The headings contained in this Agreement are for convenience of reference only, are not to be considered a part of this Agreement and shall not limit or otherwise affect in any way the meaning or interpretation of this Agreement.

All covenants, agreements, representations and warranties made in this Agreement, as may be amended by us, from time to time, shall survive your acceptance of this Agreement and the termination of this Agreement.

This Agreement and the Privacy Policy represent the entire understanding and agreement between you and us regarding the subject matter of the same, and supersede all other previous agreements, understandings and/or representations regarding the same.

If you have questions, comments, concerns or feedback regarding this Agreement or our Services, please contact us.