Privacy policy

Last modified August 26, 2024OVERVIEW

Ampersand Professionals, Inc., d/b/a AscentUP, a Delaware corporation (“Ampersand”, “AscentUP”, “we”, or “our”), respects your (“User,” “you,” or “your”) privacy and is committed to protecting it through Ampersand’s compliance with this privacy policy (the “Privacy Policy”). Ampersand provides online services to learners (“Users”), by providing Users an opportunity to participate in certain educational content and materials, including training with third parties (“Clients”). This Privacy Policy describes how Ampersand may collect information that identifies, relates to, describes, is reasonably capable of being associated with, or could reasonably be linked, directly or indirectly, with a particular consumer, Device (as defined below), or household (as defined in the CCPA, as defined below), as further described in the “What Information is Collected” Section of this Privacy Policy from the visitors to https://www.ampersandpro.com/, https://ascent.getlearnworlds.com/, https://learn.ascentup.com/, the AscentConnect mobile application (“AscentConnect”) and their various subpages (collectively, the “Website”) and any other services or features made available through the same, otherwise used by you, or which link to this Privacy Policy (the foregoing collectively, together with the Website defined herein as the “Services”), how Ampersand may use it, with whom Ampersand may share it, how Ampersand may license it, what choices you have regarding it, and how Ampersand protects it. This Privacy Policy also applies to information that we may collect through offline channels, which include but are not limited to phone calls and physical correspondence. However, this Privacy Policy does not cover what Ampersand’s Clients or third parties might do with your information, and you should review their privacy policies to find out more information on their privacy practices. This Privacy Policy is incorporated into and is a part of the Terms of Service of Ampersand, which can be found HERE (the “Terms of Service”), and Ampersand encourages you to become familiar with the terms and conditions contained herein and therein.

INTERNATIONAL USERS

This Privacy Policy is intended to cover only Users of the Services in the United States. Any international users of the Services should be aware that by using the Services, your information will be transferred to, stored on, and/or processed on servers located in the United States. You also understand that the United States’ data protection laws may not offer the same protections or rights, including judicial redress, with regards to your personal information as the laws of the country in which you are located. By using the Services or providing us with your personal information, you consent to this transfer, storage, and processing of your personal information.

CONSENT

By accessing or using the Services, you agree to the terms of this Privacy Policy as they may be amended from time to time. This Privacy Policy applies to all Users of the Services. By providing information to us, you understand and consent to the collection, maintenance, processing, and transfer of such information in and to the United States, in accordance with United States law. We reserve the right to modify or revise this Privacy Policy. We may notify Users if we make material modifications to the Privacy Policy in accordance with applicable law; however, we reserve the right to make other modifications or revisions without prior notice to you. We recommend that Users review the most up-to-date version of the Privacy Policy periodically, which will be available on the Website. Your continued use of the Services indicates your agreement to be bound by subsequent modifications or revisions to this Privacy Policy.

CONTROLLER

Ampersand is responsible for your Personal Information. If you have any questions about this Privacy Policy, including any requests to exercise Your Legal Rights (as set forth below), please contact Ampersand using the details set out below.

WHAT INFORMATION IS COLLECTED?

Ampersand may collect various types of information from or about you depending on how you use the Services and its various features. You supply Ampersand with various types of information, including Personal Information (defined below) that you choose to disclose. Ampersand also collects information automatically regarding how you use the Services, which Ampersand may collect as you interact with the Services.
Categories of Personal Information Collected by Ampersand:

• Identifiers: Full name, email address, other similar identifiers
• Internet or Network Activity Information: search or browsing history
• Geolocation Data: IP address
• Professional or Employment Related Information: Employment records or history, position/title, salary, and resume.
• Education Information: Academic records or history, test results, history of attendance and program completion.

INFORMATION YOU PROVIDE AMPERSAND

You may provide Ampersand with various types of information, including, without limitation, you and your name, address, telephone number, e-mail address, professional information, work and internship experience, academic and school information, education information, financial information, billing and payment information, as applicable, that you voluntarily provide through the Services (the “Personal Information”). This information is generally entered into fields in the registration or application forms, regardless of whether submitted and enables you to take full advantage of the Services. Ampersand may collect Personal Information and other information from you and other users, customers, and visitors to the Website or Users of the Services. If at any time you wish to be removed from Ampersand’s email database, you can request removal by contacting Ampersand at contact@ascentup.com. Ampersand reserves the right to contact you via postal mail, email, or telephone for the purpose of administering your account.

Ampersand may also retain the content of and metadata regarding any correspondence you may have with Ampersand or its customer service representatives or other employees or agents, regardless of the mode of communication by which such correspondence occurs. This includes, without limitation, any information contained and consented to, as described in the Terms of Service. This information helps Ampersand to improve the Services and the materials, products, and services that are offered on the Services, and to more effectively and efficiently respond to both current and future inquiries.

AUTOMATIC INFORMATION COLLECTION AND TRACKING

When you access and use the Services, Ampersand or others may use technology to automatically collect:

• Certain details of your access to and use of the Services, including traffic data, location data, logs, and other communication data, and the resources that you access and use on or through the Services;

• Information about your computer, tablet, mobile phone, television, or any other device capable of accessing the Services (each a “Device”) and internet connection, including the Device’s unique device identifier, Internet Protocol (“IP”) address, operating system, browser type, mobile network information, and the Device’s telephone number, if applicable;

• Stored information and files, metadata, and other information associated with other files stored on your Device, including, without limitation, photographs, audio and video clips, personal contacts, and address book information; and

• Real-time information about the location of your Device for analytics.

Ampersand also may use these technologies to collect information about your activities over time and across third-party websites, apps, or other online services.

THIRD PARTY INFORMATION

Clients may send Ampersand information about you, whether directly or indirectly, or from their website, mobile application, or other platform technologies. This information might have come from information that Clients collected about you or that you provided to Clients or third parties that they may use and have passed that information on to Ampersand. This information may include any of the information described above, along with information regarding your performance and status.

USE OF COOKIES

Ampersand uses “cookies” (small text files stored on your computer) to help track and customize your access and use of the Services. Cookies store and retain information that helps Ampersand recognize you when you return to the Services following a previous visit. Cookies may also store any login or ID assigned to you by Ampersand and the associated password, which information would be stored in encrypted form. Most popular internet browser packages allow you to configure the browser so as to not accept cookies if you so choose. However, setting your browser to reject cookies may prevent you from taking full advantage of the Services and the materials, products, and other services that Ampersand or its Clients make available on or through the Services.

Ampersand or its Clients may also use the following:

Flash Cookies.

Certain features of the Services may use local stored objects (or Flash cookies) to collect and store information about your preferences and navigation to, from, and on the Services. Flash cookies are not managed by the same browser settings as are used for browser cookies. For information about managing your privacy and security settings for Flash cookies, see Ampersand’s Use and Disclosure of Your Information below.

Web Beacons.

Portions of the Services and e-mails may contain small electronic files known as web beacons (also referred to as clear gifs, pixel tags, and single-pixel gifs) that permit Ampersand to, for example, count Users who have visited those pages or opened an email and for other related statistics (for example, recording the popularity of certain content and verifying system and server integrity).

Google Analytics Cookies.

The Services may use Google Analytics cookies, which is a simple, easy-to-use tool that helps website owners measure how users interact with website content. As a user navigates between web pages, Google Analytics provides website owners JavaScript tags (libraries) to record information about the page a user has seen, such as the URL of the page. The Google Analytics JavaScript libraries use HTTP Cookies to “remember” what a user has done on previous pages/interactions with the website.

THIRD-PARTY USE OF COOKIES AND OTHER TRACKING TECHNOLOGIES LIKE GOOGLE ANALYTICS

Ampersand may use Google Analytics cookies (see above) and may use these cookies with remarketing using Google Analytics to create ads for you and others. Some content or applications, including advertisements, on the Services, may be served by third parties, including advertisers, ad networks and servers, content providers, and application providers. These third parties may use cookies alone or in conjunction with web beacons or other tracking technologies to collect information about you when you use the Services. The information they collect may be associated with your Personal Information or they may collect information, including Personal Information, about your online activities over time and across different websites and other online services. These third parties may use this information to provide you with interest-based (behavioral) advertising or other targeted content. Ampersand does not control these third parties’ tracking technologies or how they may be used. If you have any questions about an advertisement or other targeted content, you should contact the responsible provider directly.

Ampersand may also collect data about your activities that does not identify you personally or indirectly when you use the Services, or other websites and online services where Ampersand may display ads. This information may include content you view, the day, time, and manner in which you access the content, the products or services you purchase, and your location details associated with your IP address. Ampersand may use this information that it collects to serve you more relevant advertisements. Ampersand also may collect information about where you saw the advertisements it delivers to you and what ads you click on. Ampersand may use remarketing to advertise across the internet and other websites. Please contact Ampersand if you do not want to participate in these programs. You may opt out of Google’s use of cookies by visiting the Google advertising opt-out page. For more information about how targeted advertising works, you can visit the Network Advertising Initiative’s (“NAI”) educational page at http://www.networkadvertising.org/understanding-online-advertising/how-does-it-work.

CHILDREN'S ONLINE PRIVACY PROTECTION ACT

We do not knowingly collect Personal Information from individuals under 18 years of age. If we become aware that a child under 18 is attempting to submit Personal Information, we will inform the child that he or she is ineligible to do so. We will then remove this information from our records. If you believe that we have inadvertently collected Personal Information from a child under 18, please notify us immediately. Our Services are not intended for children under 18 years of age.

AMPERSAND’S USE OF YOUR INFORMATION

Business Purposes

Ampersand may use your information for the following business purposes:

• To verify the identity of your contact information;

• To provide customer support to you and Ampersand’s Clients;

• To review the usage and operations of the Website or other Services and to address any problems;

• To help improve, maintain, and develop new products and services;

• To market and provide AscentUP or third party products or services to you;

• To protect you, Clients, partners, or Ampersand from fraud, malicious activity, and other privacy and security related concerns;

• To investigate misuse or unauthorized access of the Services; and

• To provide you or others with customized content, products, or services (including the Services).

Choices About How Ampersand Uses and Discloses Your Information:

Ampersand strives to provide you with choices regarding the Personal Information you provide to it. It has created mechanisms to provide you with the following control over your information:

Tracking Technologies and Advertising.

You can set your browser to refuse all or some browser cookies, or to alert you when cookies are being sent. To learn how you can manage your Flash cookie settings, visit the Flash player settings page on Adobe’s website. If you disable or refuse cookies, please note that some parts of the Services may then be inaccessible or not function properly.

Disclosure of Your Information to Third Parties.

If you do not want Ampersand to share your Personal Information with unaffiliated or non-agent third parties for promotional or other purposes, you can opt-out by sending an email stating your request to contact@ascentup.com. If you opt out, please note that some parts or all of the Services may then be inaccessible to you.

Promotional Offers from Ampersand.

If you do not wish to have your email address or contact information used by Ampersand to promote its own or third parties’ products or services, you can opt-out by sending an email stating your request to contact@ascentup.com. If Ampersand has sent you a promotional email, you may send a return email asking to be omitted from future email distributions.

Targeted Advertising.

If you do not want Ampersand to use information that it collects or that you provide to it to deliver advertisements according to its advertisers’ target-audience preferences, you can learn more about opting out by visiting Google’s advertising opt-out information page. Please note, Ampersand does not control third parties’ collection or use of your information to serve interest-based advertising. However, these third parties may provide you with ways to choose to not have your information collected or used in this way. You can opt-out of receiving targeted ads from members of the Network Advertising Initiative on the Network Advertising Initiative’s website.

ACCESSING AND CORRECTING YOUR INFORMATION

You can review and change your Personal Information by sending an email to contact@ascentup.com to request access to, correct, or delete any Personal Information that you have provided to Ampersand. Ampersand may be unable to delete your Personal Information without removing your access to and use of all or significant portions of the Services. Ampersand may not accommodate a request to change information if it believes the change would violate any law or legal requirement or cause the information to be incorrect.

If you delete your User Contributions (as defined in the Terms of Service), copies of your User Contributions may remain viewable in cached and archived pages or might have been copied or stored by other Users. Proper access and use of information provided on the Services, including User Contributions, is governed by the Terms of Service.

California residents may have additional Personal Information rights and choices. Please see Your California Privacy Rights below for more information.

CPRA NOTICE AT COLLECTION

Ampersand is providing you with this Notice at Collection (“Notice”) and Privacy Policy as required under CCPA and CPRA to provide you with timely notice, at or before the point of collection, about the categories of Personal Information to be collected from you, the purposes for which the Personal Information will be used, and retention periods.

YOUR CALIFORNIA PRIVACY RIGHTS

If you are a California resident, California law may provide you with additional rights regarding Ampersand’s use of your Personal Information under the California Consumer Privacy Act of 2018 (“CCPA”) and the California Privacy Rights Act (“CPRA”). Depending on the circumstances and which Services you use, Ampersand may have disclosed the following categories of your Personal Information for a “business purpose” (as defined in the CCPA) in the preceding twelve (12) months: identifiers; protected characteristics; commercial information; information about your use of Services; geolocation data; internet or other electronic network activity information; financial, medical, or health insurance information ; audio, electronic, visual, or similar information; professional information; education information; and inferences drawn from any of the aforementioned information categories.

For more details about the Personal Information Ampersand has collected over the last 12 months, please see the “What Information Is Collected?” section above. Ampersand collects this information for, among other things, the business and commercial purposes described in the “How Does Ampersand Use the Information It Collects?” section below. Ampersand shares this information with, among others, the categories of third parties described in the "How Ampersand Shares and Discloses Your Information” section below.

Ampersand may use third-party cookies for advertising purposes as further described above.

Subject to certain limitations, the CCPA/CPRA affords Users of the Services that are California residents certain rights to their data:

Right to Access Specific Information and Data Portability Rights:

Under the CCPA/CPRA, you have the right to request Ampersand disclose certain information to you about our collection and use of your Personal Information over the past 12 months.

Right to Deletion:

Under the CCPA/CPRA, you have the right to request the deletion of Personal Information. However, this right does not apply where we need to retain the Personal Information for any of the following purposes:

• Provide you with the Services;

• Detect or resolve security or functionality related issues;

• Comply with law;

• Conduct research in the public interest;

• Safeguard the right to free speech; or

• Carry out any actions for internal purposes that you or other consumers might reasonably expect.

Right to Opt-Out of the Sale and Sharing of Personal Information:

California consumers have the right to opt-out of the sale and sharing of Personal Information by a business that sells or shares Personal Information.  Ampersand does share some personal information with trusted third party partners, described in the "How Ampersand Shares and Discloses Your Information” and "With Whom Does Ampersand Share Information It Collects" sections below.

Right to Correction:

California consumers may request the correction of any of their sensitive Personal Information for specific secondary purposes.

Right to Restrict Use or Processing of Sensitive Personal Information:

California consumers may request to limit processing of your personal data where Ampersand is relying on a legitimate interest (or those of a third party) and there is something about your particular situation that makes you want to object to processing on this ground as you feel it impacts on your fundamental rights and freedoms. You also have the right to object where Ampersand is processing your personal data for direct marketing purposes. In some cases, Ampersand may demonstrate that it has compelling legitimate grounds to process your information, which override your rights and freedoms.

Non-Discrimination:

We will not discriminate against you for exercising any of your rights under the CCPA or CPRA. Discrimination under the CCPA/CPRA includes but is not limited to:

• Denying you goods or services.

• Charging you different prices or rates for goods or services, including through granting discounts or other benefits, or imposing penalties.

• Providing you a different level or quality of goods or services.

• Suggesting that you may receive a different price or rate for goods or services or a different level or quality of goods or services.

California residents may make such a request pursuant to their rights under the CCPA by sending an email to contact@ascentup.com. Ampersand will verify your request using the information associated with your account, including email address. Government identification may be required. California residents may also designate an authorized agent to exercise these rights on their behalf. To learn more about your California privacy rights, email contact@ascentup.com or visit https://www.caprivacy.org. Requests may also be sent to Ampersand through the mail at the address below.
Attn: Legal
Ampersand Professionals, Inc., d/b/a AscentUP
501 W. Broadway, Suite A105
San Diego, CA 92101

California’s “Shine the Light” law (Civil Code Section § 1798.83) permits users of the Services that are California residents to request certain information regarding Ampersand’s disclosure of Personal Information to third parties for their direct marketing purposes. To make such a request, please send an email to contact@ascentup.com or write to Ampersand at the address below.

HOW AMPERSAND SHARES AND DISCLOSES YOUR INFORMATION

This section describes how Ampersand may share and disclose your information. Ampersand does not control how you or any other third party choose to share or disclose your information.

USER INSTRUCTIONS

Ampersand will not share and disclose your information in violation of your instructions or in contravention of applicable law and legal process.

DISCLOSE FOR LEGAL PURPOSES

Ampersand reserves the right to disclose any personally identifiable information or other information it collects through the Services or otherwise if it is required to do so by law or if it reasonably believes that the disclosure is necessary in order to (a) fulfill a government request; (b) conform with the requirements of law or to comply with legal process served on it; (c) protect or defend its legal rights or property or third party licensors of any material on the Services; or (d) in an emergency to protect the health or safety of the Users of the Services or the general public.

Your use of the Services, including any disputes arising from it, is subject to this Privacy Policy as well as the Terms of Service and all dispute resolution, limitation on damages, and choice of law provisions therein. Ampersand encourages you to refer to this Privacy Policy on an ongoing basis so that you understand the current Privacy Policy. Unless stated otherwise, the current Privacy Policy applies to all information that Ampersand has about you and your account.

Does Ampersand Disclose Information to Outside Parties?

Ampersand may share your information other parties, including, without limitation, its affiliates, service providers, Clients, or other trusted any third parties (as further detailed in the "WITH WHOM DOES AMPERSAND SHARE INFORMATION IT COLLECTS?" section below). Ampersand, in its sole discretion, may also disclose your information when it believes disclosure is appropriate to comply with the law, enforce Services policies, or protect Ampersand’s or others’ rights, property, or safety. Additional non-personally identifiable visitor information may be provided to other parties for marketing, advertising, or other purposes. Information entered into any forms or applications on the Website, regardless of whether submitted, may be used by Ampersand in accordance with this section.

BUSINESS TRANSFERS

As Ampersand continues to grow and develop its business, it is possible that its corporate structure might change or that it might merge or otherwise combine with, or that substantially all of its assets might be acquired by, another company. In any such transactions, customer information generally is, will most probably be, and should be expected to be one of the transferred business assets.

HOW DOES AMPERSAND USE THE INFORMATION IT COLLECTS?

In addition to the uses mentioned or described above, Ampersand uses the information that it collects from or about you to improve the materials, products, and other services that it makes available on the Services, to notify you of changes made to the Services or new products or services made available on or through the Services, to evaluate your and others’ needs and customize content delivered through the Services to you or others according to those needs, to facilitate the processing of any purchases or uses you make through the Services, to send you and others promotional material from Ampersand and its affiliates or other third parties, and for other legitimate and lawful business purposes of Ampersand.

WITH WHOM DOES AMPERSAND SHARE INFORMATION IT COLLECTS?

Other than to the extent necessary or convenient for Ampersand to provide the Services, Ampersand may share information collected about you including Identifiers, Internet or Network Activity, Geolocation Data, Professional or Employment Related Information, and Education Information with trusted third parties, such as Clients, vendors, service providers like LearnWorlds, and your school, for purposes including but not limited to enabling Ampersand’s provision of the Services, and for certain special programs that Ampersand offers in connection with its affiliates. By inputting any information into any forms or applications on the Website or through the Services, regardless of whether such forms or applications are actually submitted, or by otherwise providing your information, you are consenting to such use and disclosure. The information Ampersand shares with trusted third parties includes identifiers (full name, email address) and status regarding your completion of AscentUP coursework and modules (if applicable). You have the right to withdraw consent at any time by contacting Ampersand at contact@ascentup.com. Withdrawing consent may affect your access to the Services.

HOW DOES AMPERSAND PROTECT INFORMATION COLLECTED ABOUT YOU?

Ampersand places a high value on protecting information transmitted via the Services. For this reason, Ampersand uses state-of-the-art security solutions to provide secure communication methods. Ampersand and its providers use industry-standard Secure Socket Layer (SSL) encryption technology to safeguard User information. Other security safeguards include, but are not limited to, data encryption, firewalls, and physical access controls to building and files. Ampersand takes commercially reasonable measures to secure and protect customer-specific information transmitted via the Services, monitors the security of the storage environment on a continuous basis, and reviews its security practices on a regular basis. However, no security system is impenetrable. AMPERSAND CANNOT AND DOES NOT GUARANTEE AND HEREBY EXPRESSLY DISCLAIMS THAT INFORMATION USERS SUPPLY TO AMPERSAND OR ON THE SERVICES WILL BE TOTALLY SECURE

HOW LONG DOES AMPERSAND KEEP YOUR PERSONAL DATA?

Ampersand will retain your personal data in accordance with its Data Retention Policy and Data Usage Policy, which may be accessed HERE (“Data Retention Policy”).

LINKED SITES

For your convenience, some hyperlinks may be posted on the Website that link to other websites not under the control of Ampersand. Other company logos may also be posted on the Website as service providers to Ampersand or Clients. Please note that this Privacy Policy applies only to the Services and not to other websites of other organizations to which it may link. Ampersand is not responsible for the privacy policies or practices of any other third party sites. You should make your own inquiries regarding them. In addition, when you interact on a Client’s website or systems or a website that the Website links to, even if you reached that site through the Website or Services, the information that you submit to complete that transaction becomes subject to the privacy practices of the owner of that linked site. You should read their privacy policies to understand how they use and protect Personal Information that they collect. Ampersand is not responsible for the privacy or information practices of its suppliers or any third-party websites.

WHAT CHOICES DO YOU HAVE?

You may update at any time the information about you derived from information you have provided to Ampersand. You may also ask Ampersand at any time to remove your name from the list of Users who wish to receive electronic communications and e-mail advertisements from Ampersand or its affiliates by simply sending such a request to Ampersand at the addresses given below. Once you opt out, Ampersand will honor your choice until you inform it otherwise. Please remember, however, that if Ampersand has already shared information about you, Ampersand has no control over how such affiliates or third parties may further use that information, and you will need to contact them directly in that regard.

Subject to applicable law, you also have the right to (i) restrict Ampersand’s use of information that constitutes your personal data and (ii) lodge a complaint with your local data protection authority. If you are a resident of the European Economic Area and believe Ampersand maintains your personal data within the scope of the General Data Protection Regulation (“GDPR”), you may direct your questions or complaints to Ampersand or your local supervisory authority.

WHO CAN YOU CONTACT FOR MORE INFORMATION?

If you feel that your privacy or security is being compromised, or have any other questions regarding the privacy practices or this Privacy Policy, please notify Ampersand using the following contact information:

Attn: Legal

Ampersand Professionals, Inc., d/b/a AscentUP

501 W. Broadway, Suite A105

San Diego, CA 92101

Email: contact@ascentup.com