At CriticalDance and Ballet-Dance Monthly BDm, we're serious about the privacy of our members. The following policy provides information on how CriticalDance collects, uses and safeguards your personal information such as email addresses and identity. We've thought long and hard about this policy, so please take a moment to read it.

CriticalDance does not share any personally identifiable information with outside parties without your explicit consent. If you surf through CriticalDance's website, you do so anonymously. We do not collect personal information - including your email address - through browsing.

We do log your IP address (the Internet address of your computer) to give us an idea of which parts of our site you visit and how long you spend there, but your IP address does not provide us with any other personal information. The only other information automatically provided to us is the type of computer and operating system that you are using, which is relayed by your browser.

Ballet-Dance Monthly Subscriptions
We may request that you voluntarily supply us with personal information, such as your email address and geographic location, so that we may correspond with you. Ballet-Dance Monthly subscribers, for instance, receive regular email updates when new issues appear on the site.

To subscribe, please visit www.ballet-dance.com/subscribe. If you wish to be removed from the subscription list, please visit www.ballet-dance.com/unsubscribe.

Forums
Our forums enable you to contact other members of the online dance community.

If you want to just read the articles and postings on CriticalDance, then you don't need to register. However we really hope that you will want to join in the discussions and that means that you will need to register, which is free and quick. Your e-mail address must be valid, as we will send you a password, which you will need to use when posting to the Board. (Click here to register) You can change your password, by clicking on "my profile" found alongside the search function described above.

You must enter a "handle" or a name in order to post or chat on our system, but it does not have to be your actual name. Your "handle" is remembered using a cookie, however. CriticalDance does not use or track that information anywhere but on the bulletin board system. As a quick way of receiving answers to your messages, you may opt to allow other posters to see your email address. We do not track email addresses or use them in any other way, however, except as you permit or to contact you regarding CriticalDance administrative issues. If you do make your personal information available on the boards, please understand that CriticalDance is not liable for any third-party misuse of that information. If you encounter any person who is improperly collecting or using information about users, please contact admin@CriticalDance.com.

On our message boards, we do save all posted messages. We keep postings for an indeterminate amount of time and they are accessible to all visitors to CriticalDance. From time to time, we may also highlight some of the best discussions taking place on our site by featuring it on our homepage and on Ballet-Dance Monthly. If you wish to remove your posted messages from CriticalDance, you may remove them yourself (Click on the paper-pencil icon next to your post and check the "Delete Post?" box then click "Edit Post"), or, if you encounter difficulties, you may contact admin@CriticalDance.com to have us remove them.

Cookies
As with most websites, CriticalDance may use a standard technology called a "cookie" to collect information about how you use the site and to help you navigate more easily. A "cookie" is a small file sent from a website to the hard drive of your computer so that the site may track your activities on the website. A cookie does not release any personally identifiable information about you (your real name, phone number, etc.), unless you previously provided that information to the site or have set your preferences in your browser to provide that information. Cookies allow us to track the traffic on our site so that we can improve our site and services.

Kids
CriticalDance is often viewed by children, however, we do not solicit information from them. We would like to encourage parents and guardians to spend time online with your kids and to participate in the interactive activities offered on the sites your children visit. No personal information should be submitted to, or posted at, our website by visitors under 18 years of age without the consent of their parent or guardian.

Last Safety Tips
In general on the Web, you can safeguard your privacy best by remembering a few things about being online:

1. When you communicate with others in a public forum via message boards or chats, any personal information you disclose can be collected and/or misused by parties outside of Critical Dance. Think of it as shouting out your phone number to a friend in a crowded store. Anyone can pick that information up if they want to.

2. You don't have to tell anyone anything personal if you don't wish to. If you don't wish to supply certain personal information to a site, then don't do it!

3. When transmitting important personal information such as credit card numbers, always be sure that you are at least on a secure site. Many browsers allow you to see that information immediately with a small lock icon at the corner.

4. Don't forget that simple passwords can be cracked easily. Most people choose passwords that are easy to remember, such as their initials and a birthdate, or their dog's name. If it's easy to remember, it's easy to figure out too! Never give out your password, and always log out, especially when working on a computer other than your own .

If you are interested in more security information, visit Pretty Good Privacy (www.pgp.com) or Privacy Alliance (www.privacyalliance.org) for advice on encryption, security and updates.

And if you have any other questions regarding our privacy policy, please email us at admin@CriticalDance.com.