Privacy Policy
This policy explains what information VillanovaU (villanovau.com) collects when you visit, why we collect it, who we share it with and what choices you have. We keep it as small as we can: there are no user accounts, no comments and no display advertising on this site.
In short
- We collect basic visit data (such as your IP address, browser and the pages you view) through our hosting provider and an analytics tool.
- We use analytics cookies to see which pages are read. You can block them in your browser or with Google’s opt-out add-on (section 4).
- Some links on our pages are affiliate links. When you click one you leave our site, and the other company’s privacy policy applies.
- We do not sell your personal information for money.
- You can ask us to access or delete information about you by email.
Who we are
VillanovaU (“we”, “us”, “our”) is an independent website that publishes guides about professional certificates, courses and career skills. For privacy matters, we are the party that decides how and why information about visitors is used.
VillanovaU is not a school and is not affiliated with Villanova University or any other college or university. See our disclaimer.
Information we collect
| Type | Examples | How we get it |
|---|---|---|
| Visit and device data | IP address, browser and device type, operating system, pages viewed, time and length of visit, the page that referred you, approximate location (such as city or country) worked out from your IP address | Automatically, through our web server, security tools and analytics service |
| Cookie and similar data | A random identifier used by analytics | Through cookies and similar technologies. See section 4 |
| Link click data | The time of a click on one of our outbound links, the page it was on, your browser type and, depending on our settings, your IP address | Through our link-management tool, which sends you to the other company’s website |
| Messages you send us | Your email address and anything you write to us | Only if you email us |
What we do not collect. We do not ask you to create an account, we do not run comments or a newsletter, and we do not take payments. When you buy a course or program, you do that on the provider’s website, not ours. We do not knowingly collect sensitive information. Please do not send us health, financial or government-ID details by email.
How we use information
We use information to:
- run, secure and fix the website;
- understand which pages are useful so we can improve them;
- measure whether outbound links work and which pages lead people to them;
- reply to messages you send us;
- detect and prevent abuse, spam and fraud; and
- comply with law and protect our rights.
If the law of your region requires a legal basis for using your information, ours are as follows:
| Purpose | Legal basis |
|---|---|
| Running and securing the site | Legitimate interests in operating a safe, working website |
| Analytics and improving content | Legitimate interests in understanding which pages are useful and improving the site |
| Measuring outbound link clicks | Legitimate interests in understanding how our site is used and funded |
| Answering your messages | Legitimate interests, or steps you ask us to take |
| Legal compliance | Legal obligation |
Cookies and analytics
Cookies are small text files that a website stores in your browser. We use an analytics service (Google Analytics) to count visits and see which pages people read. It sets cookies, mainly _ga and _ga_*, that hold a random identifier and can last up to two years. Our hosting and security tools may also set technical cookies needed to keep the site working. We do not use advertising cookies, and we do not run display ads.
Your choices. You can block or delete cookies in your browser settings, or install the Google Analytics opt-out browser add-on. Blocking technical cookies may stop parts of the site from working. We do not currently show a cookie banner or respond automatically to Do Not Track or Global Privacy Control signals, so please use the options above if you want to opt out of analytics. If we add a cookie banner, we will update this section.
Affiliate links and other websites
Some links on this site are affiliate links. If you click one and later sign up with the provider, we may earn a commission at no extra cost to you. Read our affiliate disclosure.
When you click an outbound link you leave our site. The other website has its own privacy practices, and it may set its own cookies, including cookies that tell it your visit came from us. We do not control those sites and are not responsible for their policies. Please read them before you share information.
Who we share information with
We do not sell your personal information for money. We share information only as described here:
- Service providers that help us run the site, such as web hosting, security and caching, and analytics. They may process information on our behalf under their own terms.
- Affiliate partners. When you click an affiliate link, your browser connects to the partner or its affiliate network. They can see that you came from our site and may use cookies to credit us. We do not send them your name or email address.
- Legal and safety. We may disclose information if the law requires it or to protect our rights, our visitors or others.
- Business changes. If the site is sold or transferred, information may transfer with it, subject to this policy.
We do not “sell” or “share” personal information as those terms are defined in US state privacy laws, and we do not use advertising cookies. Companies we link to may set their own cookies after you leave our site (see section 5).
Your rights in the United States
Depending on where you live, laws such as the California Consumer Privacy Act and similar state laws may give you the right to:
- know what personal information we collect, use and disclose;
- access a copy of it;
- correct it or ask us to delete it;
- opt out of the sale or sharing of personal information; and
- not be treated unfairly for using these rights.
In the last 12 months we have collected identifiers (such as IP address and cookie identifiers), internet or network activity (such as pages viewed) and approximate location, for the purposes in section 3. We do not sell personal information for money, and we do not knowingly sell or share the personal information of anyone under 16.
To use a right, email us at contact@villanovau.com. We may need to confirm it is you, for example by asking you to reply from the same address. You may use an authorized agent, and we may ask for proof of their authority. We will respond within the time the law requires. If we turn down a request, we will tell you why, and you may be able to appeal by replying to our message.
Your rights in the EEA, the UK and similar regions
If the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR), the UK GDPR or a similar law applies to you, you have the right to:
- access the personal data we hold about you;
- have inaccurate data corrected and, in some cases, have it erased;
- restrict or object to some uses of your data;
- receive your data in a portable format, where it applies;
- withdraw consent at any time, without affecting use before you withdrew it; and
- complain to your local data protection authority.
Email contact@villanovau.com to use these rights. We will reply within the time the law requires.
International transfers
We and our service providers may process information in countries other than your own, including the United States and the country where we operate. Those countries may have different data protection laws. Where the law requires it, we rely on safeguards such as standard contractual clauses or similar approved mechanisms offered by our providers.
How long we keep information
Server and security logs are kept for the period set by our hosting provider. Analytics data is kept for up to 14 months, the period set in our analytics settings. Emails you send us are kept for as long as needed to deal with your message and meet legal duties, and then deleted. We may keep information longer if the law requires or to resolve a dispute.
Security
We use reasonable measures to protect information, including secure (HTTPS) connections and access controls. No method of transmission or storage is completely secure, so we cannot guarantee absolute security.
Children
This site is for a general audience and is not directed to children under 13 (or under 16 where the law sets a higher age). We do not knowingly collect personal information from children. If you believe a child has sent us information, email us and we will delete it.
Changes to this policy
We may update this policy as our practices or the law change. The “Last updated” date at the top shows the latest version. If we make a major change, we will say so on this page.
Contact
For privacy questions or requests, email contact@villanovau.com. Please put “Privacy” in the subject line.