Privacy Policy
Live Free Business Alliance respects the privacy of the people who visit our website, participate in our programs, attend our events, support our work, and communicate with our organization.
This Privacy Policy explains how we may collect, use, disclose, retain, and protect personal information. It also explains the choices and rights that may be available to you.
Our Approach to Privacy
We collect information when it is reasonably necessary to:
- Respond to questions
- Manage program participation
- Coordinate events
- Process applications and requests
- Communicate organizational updates
- Process donations
- Maintain and improve the website
- Protect our organization and community
- Meet legal, financial, and administrative obligations
We do not publicly identify participants, applicants, volunteers, donors, mentors, presenters, partners, or sponsors without an appropriate reason and, when needed, permission.
We do not use personal information merely because it is available.
The sections below provide the complete policy.
Scope of This Privacy Policy
This Privacy Policy applies to information collected by Live Free Business Alliance through:
- livefreebiz.org
- Website forms
- Program registrations
- Event registrations
- Mentorship requests and applications
- Workshop registrations and proposals
- Volunteer forms
- Partnership inquiries
- Sponsorship inquiries
- Email-list subscriptions
- Resource submissions
- Donation-related interactions
- Communications sent directly to the Alliance
- Other services that link to this policy
This policy does not control the independent privacy practices of third-party websites, payment processors, registration platforms, video-conferencing services, email providers, or other external services. Those providers may have their own privacy policies and terms.
Information We Collect
The information we collect depends on how you interact with the Alliance.
Information You Provide to Us
Contact Information
We may collect: Name, Email address, Phone number, Mailing address (when necessary), City or town, and Preferred contact method.
Business and Professional Information
We may collect: Business or organization name, Job title, Website, Industry, Business stage, Geographic area served, Professional background, Areas of expertise, Social media profiles, and Business goals or challenges.
Program and Event Information
We may collect: Program interests, Event registrations, Attendance information, Scheduling preferences, Workshop interests, Mentorship needs, Accessibility or accommodation requests, Dietary information (when relevant to an event), Questions submitted before or during a program, and Feedback about programs and events.
Application and Involvement Information
Mentor, presenter, volunteer, partner, sponsor, and board-related forms may collect: Relevant experience, Skills, Availability, Areas of expertise, Proposed workshop topics, Partnership interests, Sponsorship goals, Sponsorship budget information, In-kind contribution information, Application responses, References (when requested), and Additional comments supplied by the applicant.
Communications
We may retain information contained in: Contact-form submissions, Emails, Support requests, Feedback, Survey responses, Resource suggestions, and Messages related to programs or events.
Donation Information
Donation-related information may include: Donor name, Email address, Mailing address, Donation amount, Donation date, Donation frequency, Donor comments, Tribute information (when enabled), Anonymous-giving preference, Communication preferences, and Transaction and receipt identifiers.
Payment-card and banking information should be entered directly into the approved donation processor’s secure system. Live Free Business Alliance does not store full payment-card details on its servers.
Information Collected Automatically
When you use the website, certain technical information may be collected automatically, including: Internet Protocol address, Browser type, Device type, Operating system, Referring page, Pages visited, Date and time of access, Approximate geographic region, Website interactions, Error and diagnostic information, and Cookie or similar-technology identifiers.
The exact information collected depends on the website hosting, security, analytics, embedded-content, and consent tools that are active.
Please Use Care When Submitting Information
Please do not submit highly sensitive information unless it is specifically requested and necessary for a stated purpose. Examples include:
- Social Security numbers
- Full financial-account information
- Payment-card details outside the approved payment processor
- Medical records
- Government identification numbers
- Passwords
- Confidential legal documents
- Proprietary business information
- Information about another person that you are not authorized to provide
Accessibility and accommodation requests may sometimes contain health-related information. Such information should be limited to what is reasonably necessary to understand and respond to the request.
How We Collect Information
We may collect personal information:
Directly From You
For example, when you: Complete a form, Register for an event, Request mentorship, Apply to become a mentor, Submit a workshop proposal, Volunteer, Request a partnership, Submit a sponsorship inquiry, Join the email list, Suggest a resource, Make a donation, or Contact the Alliance.
Automatically Through the Website
Website hosting, security, analytics, and similar technologies may collect technical usage information.
Through Service Providers
We may receive information from providers that help us manage: Donations, Event registrations, Email communications, Virtual meetings, Forms, Website hosting, Analytics, Spam prevention, and Customer or participant records.
From Community Partners or Referral Sources
A partner or other individual may refer someone to an Alliance program. When appropriate, the referring party should have permission to share the person’s information.
From Public Sources
We may use publicly available professional or business information for legitimate outreach, program coordination, verification, or community engagement. Public availability does not mean information will be used without reasonable limits.
How We Use Information
We may use information to:
- Respond to questions and requests
- Provide information about programs
- Manage event registrations
- Send event access details
- Coordinate Connect Weekly and Connect Live
- Review mentorship requests and mentor applications
- Coordinate mentorship opportunities
- Review workshop proposals and manage registrations
- Coordinate volunteers
- Evaluate partnership and sponsorship inquiries
- Process and acknowledge donations
- Provide transaction-related communications
- Maintain internal records
- Send requested email updates
- Improve programs, resources, and website usability
- Understand general website activity
- Detect spam, abuse, fraud, or security threats
- Maintain the safety and integrity of programs
- Meet legal, tax, accounting, insurance, and reporting obligations
- Establish, exercise, or defend legal rights
- Fulfill another purpose disclosed when information is collected
We may also use aggregated or de-identified information for planning, evaluation, reporting, and program improvement when that information does not reasonably identify an individual.
Programs, Forms, and Events
Program Participation Information
Information submitted for one program should be used for that program and for reasonably related organizational administration. For example:
- Mentorship information may be reviewed by authorized program coordinators and a potential mentor when necessary.
- Workshop proposals may be reviewed by staff, board members, volunteers, or program reviewers involved in selecting educational programs.
- Volunteer information may be shared with authorized event or program coordinators.
- Sponsorship information may be reviewed by people responsible for partnerships, events, and organizational development.
- Accommodation requests may be shared only with people who need the information to help arrange the accommodation.
Submitting a form does not automatically make the information public.
Mentorship Privacy
Mentorship requests may contain business concerns, goals, financial questions, operational challenges, or other contextual information. The Alliance limits access to people involved in reviewing the request, identifying an appropriate mentor, coordinating the meeting, supporting the mentorship program, or addressing safety or compliance concerns.
Participants should avoid sharing trade secrets, passwords, protected client information, or other highly confidential information through general website forms.
Mentorship does not create an attorney-client, accountant-client, healthcare-provider, fiduciary, or other licensed professional relationship.
Event Photography and Recordings
Some events or programs may be photographed or recorded. When photography or recording is planned, the Alliance will provide appropriate notice. Additional permission will be obtained when required, particularly before publishing identifiable close-up images, using testimonials, recording private mentorship discussions, publishing participant presentations, or using content for fundraising or promotional campaigns.
A person who has a concern about photography or recording should contact an event organizer.
Donations
Donations are processed through the Alliance’s approved third-party donation platform. The donation processor may collect and process information necessary to complete the transaction, prevent fraud, provide confirmation, issue receipts, manage recurring donations, and meet payment-processing and legal obligations.
Live Free Business Alliance may receive transaction details and donor contact information from the platform but does not receive or store full payment-card details.
Donor Communications & Recognition
Transaction-related communications are separate from promotional communications. Making a donation does not automatically subscribe a donor to general marketing emails unless the donor clearly chooses to subscribe.
The Alliance does not publicly identify a donor without permission. A donor may request anonymous public recognition, although the Alliance and its payment processor may still need to retain identifying information for financial, legal, fraud-prevention, and recordkeeping purposes.
For additional information, visit our Donor Privacy Policy.
Email Communications
Email Updates
When you join the email list, we may use the information you provide to send updates about networking, events, workshops, mentorship, business resources, volunteer opportunities, partnerships, sponsorship opportunities, and organizational news.
You may unsubscribe through the link included in applicable promotional emails or by contacting the Alliance.
Transactional and Administrative Messages
Even when you unsubscribe from general email updates, we may still send non-promotional messages necessary to confirm a form submission, complete an event registration, provide meeting access, communicate a cancellation, respond to an inquiry, provide donation information, or address security or legal matters.
Data Retention
We retain personal information only for as long as reasonably necessary for the purpose for which it was collected and for legitimate organizational, financial, legal, safety, and administrative needs.
Retention periods may depend on the type of information, the program involved, whether a relationship remains active, financial-record requirements, donation and tax records, contractual obligations, insurance requirements, dispute-resolution needs, applicable statutes of limitation, safety concerns, or a valid deletion request.
Data Security
We use reasonable administrative, technical, and organizational measures intended to protect information against unauthorized access, improper use, loss, alteration, disclosure, and destruction. Measures may include account-access controls, secure website connections, software updates, vendor review, backup procedures, spam and malware protection, and secure disposal practices.
No website, email system, database, or online transmission can be guaranteed to be completely secure. Visitors should use care when submitting information electronically.
Your Privacy Rights and Choices
Depending on your relationship with the Alliance and the law that applies, you may be able to:
- Request access to personal information
- Request correction of inaccurate information
- Request deletion of certain information
- Request a copy of certain information
- Withdraw optional communication consent
- Unsubscribe from promotional emails
- Object to or opt out of certain processing
- Ask questions about how information is used
- Appeal the denial of a qualifying privacy request
Certain information may need to be retained for legal, financial, security, fraud-prevention, contractual, or administrative reasons.
New Hampshire Privacy Rights
For organizations covered by the New Hampshire Data Privacy Act, qualifying consumers may have rights to confirm processing, access data, correct inaccuracies, request deletion, obtain a portable copy, and opt out of certain targeted advertising, sales, or profiling. The availability of a particular right depends on whether the law applies to the Alliance, the nature of the request, applicable exemptions, and your relationship with the organization.
Submitting a Privacy Request
To submit a privacy request, please contact us at:
Privacy Email: [Insert approved privacy email]
The request should include enough information to help us understand who you are, the nature of your relationship with the Alliance, the right you wish to exercise, and how we can contact you. We may need to verify a requester’s identity before responding.
Children’s Privacy
The website and programs are intended primarily for adults involved in business, entrepreneurship, professional development, and community support.
The Alliance does not knowingly seek to collect personal information online from children under 13 through a child-directed service. If you believe a child has submitted personal information without appropriate authorization, please contact us so we can take appropriate action.
External Links and Third-Party Services
The website may link to external government agencies, business-support organizations, community partners, event venues, educational resources, funding resources, social media services, registration platforms, and donation processors.
A link does not mean the Alliance controls the external organization’s privacy, security, accuracy, accessibility, or content. Visitors should review the external provider’s policies before submitting personal information.
International Visitors
Live Free Business Alliance is based in New Hampshire and operates primarily for the benefit of New Hampshire entrepreneurs and business owners. Information submitted through the website may be processed and stored in the United States. Visitors located outside the United States should understand that privacy and data-protection laws may differ from those in their location.
Changes to This Policy
We may update this Privacy Policy to reflect changes in programs, website features, service providers, data practices, legal requirements, security practices, or organizational operations.
When the policy changes, we will revise the "Last Updated" date. When appropriate, we may provide additional notice through the website or another reasonable communication method. Changes apply from the stated effective date unless otherwise indicated.
Contact Us
For questions about this Privacy Policy or the Alliance’s handling of personal information, contact:
Live Free Business Alliance
Privacy Email: [Insert approved privacy email]
Mailing Address: [Display only if an official organizational mailing address is approved]
Privacy Supports Trust
Live Free Business Alliance exists to create stronger relationships, useful programs, and accessible support for New Hampshire business owners. Responsible handling of personal information is an important part of maintaining that trust.