American Express Card Defence
Privacy Statement
Tracking
We track how our site is used by both visitors and our
registered customers. One way we track is by using a small
string of text that is sent to your browser known as a
"cookie". Cookies collect information that includes the
server your computer is logged onto, your browser type
(for example, Netscape or Internet Explorer), and whether
you responded to a Card Defence banner ad from outside
our site or through an e-mail link. A cookie cannot
retrieve any other data from your hard drive, pass on
computer viruses, or capture your e-mail address or any
other personally identifiable information.
Using cookies enables us to recognise your computer
if you or someone else using your computer returns to our
site, and to keep track of the pages on our site that you
or another user of your computer visit, and whether or not
you or another user of your computer respond to certain
banner ads or special offers.
You can adjust your computer browser settings so that
you are informed when a cookie is being placed on your
browser. You can also set your browser to decline or accept
all cookies. However, if you choose to register for Card
Defence you must accept cookies in order to access pages that
enable you to view your confidential account information. These
cookies are essential for site administration and security.
Another way we track site activity is by using transparent
electronic images called "clear GIFs", "web bugs", or "web beacons".
These images count the number of users who visit that page from
specific outside banner or through e-mail links. E-mail offers we
send may contain electronic images to help us record who responds
to an offer and to measure the effectiveness of the offer.
Collection of Personal Information
When you become a registered user on our web site, and
enrol in Card Defence services, you provide us with personal
information such as your name, address, e-mail address and
telephone number.
The information you provide
Throughout this section there are words and phrases, which
have special meaning wherever they appear in bold. They are as follows:
| CCS |
Consumer & Communications Services GmbH |
| ‘We’, ‘our’, ‘us’ |
Consumer & Communications Services GmbH and American Express |
CCS and American Express use information about you to
process transactions you conduct on our web site, and to
process applications and deliver the products and services
you enrol in or apply for. To do this, it is often necessary
to share this information with carefully selected vendors and
business partners. The data that is entrusted to CCS and
American Express is never given to third party for gain
or other marketing purposes.
CCS and American Express are committed to protect
the privacy of customers and the confidentiality and
security of information entrusted to them. The following
sets out how we collect, use, release and secure your
information, which includes information you provide when
you enrol in Card Defence.
CCS and American Express will:
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exchange information about you with each
other and with companies within the respective
CCS and American Express groups of companies
and with our respective processors and
suppliers in order to administer and service
your requirements and process and collect
payments;
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unless you ask us not to, use information about you, your
purchasing preferences to develop lists for use within the
American Express group of companies worldwide in order that
American Express may develop or make offers to you
(by mail or telephone) of products and services in which we
believe you may be interested. The information used to develop
these lists may be obtained from your application, subsequent
updates of that information and from surveys and research
(which may involve contacting you by mail,
electronic mail or telephone). If you are an American Express
Cardmember, this will include information on where and how
you use the American Express Card and information obtained
from other external sources such as merchants or marketing
organisations;
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We may use your e-mail address to send you the following types
of communication:
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monitor and/or record your communications to
us or ours to you, either ourselves or by
reputable organisations contracted to us to
ensure consistent servicing levels (including
staff training), account operation and
dispute resolution;
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undertake all of the above within and outside
the United Kingdom and the European Union.
This includes processing your and your named
dependants’ information in countries outside
the European Economic Area, for example, the
USA in which data protection laws are not as
comprehensive as in the United Kingdom and
the European Union. In this case American
Express has taken appropriate steps to ensure
the same level of protection for your information
as there is in the United Kingdom and the
European Union.
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If you wish to have your name removed from any marketing programmes, please contact American Express directly on 01273 668300 or write to them at:
American Express Insurance Services Europe Limited
59-03-007
3rd Floor
Lanchester House
Trafalgar Place
Brighton
BN88 1ZA
It will help us if you provide your full name,
postal address, and, if you are an American Express
Cardmember, your Card account number. Please allow 40
days for your request to become effective.
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We use advanced technology and well-defined
employee practices to help ensure your information is
processed promptly, accurately and completely in accordance
with the applicable law. If you believe that any information
we hold is incorrect or incomplete, you should write without
delay to:
The Customer Service Manager
CCS GmbH
Ritterlingstr. 1
65719 Hofheim/Ts.
Germany
Any information which is found to be incorrect will be corrected promptly.
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If you ask, we will tell you what information
we hold about you and any named dependants and
provide it to you in accordance with applicable
law. There may be a charge for this, as
permitted by law.
Please write to:
The Customer Service Manager
CCS GmbH
Ritterlingstr. 1
65719 Hofheim/Ts.
Germany
Ads that link to Our Website
CCS hires other companies to place our banner ads on other
Web sites and to perform tracking and reporting activities
("third-party advertisement servers"). They do not collect
personally identifiable information in doing this work for
us, and we do not give any personally identifiable information
to them.
Third-party advertisement servers are subject to their own
privacy policies. If you would like more information about
the privacy policies of these third-party advertisement
servers, including information on how to opt out of their
tracking methods, please click here
to visit the Network Advertising Initiative Web site.
Security
SSL Technology and how you benefit from it
CCS realises how important security is to you, so we've taken a
number of steps to enhance the protection of personal or confidential
information sent to or from CCS over the Internet. This includes card
and other account information. First, we establish a "secure session",
using Secure Socket Layer (SSL) Technology. This is done any time you
supply or access personal or confidential information in one of our
secure online areas.
SSL Technology creates a
private conversation that only your computer and CCS systems can
understand. The SSL Technology encodes information as it is being
sent over the Internet between your computer and CCS systems, helping
to ensure that the transmitted information remains confidential.
The use of SSL requires two components: an SSL-compatible browser
and a Web server to perform the "key-exchange" that establishes a
secure connection to CCS Web server systems.
CCS’s SSL key is a 128 bit key from Verisign
The technological requirements needed to benefit from SSL Technology
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A Compliant Browser
In order to securely access your personal information
via the Internet, you will need a browser with SSL
capabilities. We recommend you use the latest browser
versions available to ensure you have a browser with SSL
capabilities. Examples of SSL browsers include
Netscape 2.0 and above, Microsoft's
Internet Explorer 2.0 and above, Mozilla Firefox 1.0 and above,
and the Web browser for America Online version 3.0 for Windows and above.
(Note that some older versions of browsers will not
support SSL sessions and some older versions of browsers
are not JavaScript-enabled, which means that you may not
be able to view all the features on the Card Defence Web
site). If you don't already have a JavaScript-enabled
browser with SSL capabilities, you can download an SSL
and JavaScript-enabled browser from any of the links below.
Mozilla Firefox
Internet Explorer
AOL
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A Compliant Internet Service Provider
Nearly all Internet Service Providers (ISPs)
automatically enable the SSL session described above.
If you use your company's internal connection to access
the Internet and you find you cannot access the Card
Defence secure pages with an SSL browser described above,
your company may be blocking access via a "firewall."
Please speak to your employer’s Internet access systems
administrator for further details on your network's
Internet access.
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Enabled Cookies
You also must have enabled cookies on your browser
in order to access confidential information. If you have
chosen to disable cookies on your browser, you will not
be able to access confidential information.
User ID and Password
Many areas of the site require the use of a User ID and Password as
an additional security measure that helps protect your confidential
information. This allows CCS to verify who you are, thereby allowing
you access to your account information, and preventing unauthorised
access.
When you have finished using a secure area of Card Defence online
services, make sure you always click on the red "Exit Secure Area" or
"Log Out" link which appears on the left-hand side of every secure page.
When you click on it, you will be given the option to end your secure
session. No further secure transactions can be conducted without
re-entering your User ID and Password.
You should be aware that browser software often "caches" a page as
you look at it, meaning that some pages are saved in your computer's
temporary memory. Therefore, you may find that clicking on your "Back"
button shows you a saved version of a previously viewed page. Caching
in no way affects the security of your confidential User ID or Password.
If you use a computer in a public place to access your account
information, simply quit/exit the browser software before leaving to
minimize the possibility of anyone else viewing your confidential
information.
Business Partners
CCS works with many business partners and is the supplier for the
American Express Card Defence programs. American Express, as well as
others like VISA and Mastercard, first conducted a careful evaluation
of our information and security systems and practices, and required
administrative, technical, and physical safeguards to ensure the
security and confidentiality of CCS customer information. At any time,
these organisation may and do audit CCS to verify the continued security
of our systems and practices.
Linking to other Internet Sites
You should be aware that other Internet sites that you link to
from the Card Defence site or a Card Defence e-mail may contain
privacy provisions that differ from the provisions of our Privacy
Statement. To ensure your privacy is protected, we recommend that you
review the privacy statements of other Internet sites you visit.
