Privacy Policy | Knowles
Website Privacy Notice
1. Introduction
This privacy notice sets out how Knowles Corporation and our subsidiaries ("we", "us" or "Knowles") will process your personal information when using or accessing our website, content, apps and services (each a “Service”).
This notice explains why Knowles collects information concerning the users of the Services (each a "user", "you" or “your”), what type of information we collect and how we use that information. This Privacy Notice applies to any such information collected via any Service which displays it (or a link to it).
Additional information for users located in the European Economic Area (“EEA”), Switzerland and the UK about their rights and other information can be found in the EEA Annex to this Privacy Notice.
This notice was last updated on 17 April 2024.
2. What data we collect
When a user interacts with any of the Services, Knowles may collect certain data about that user. This data falls into 2 broad categories: (i) data about a user themselves, which the user gives us; and (ii) data about the way a user interacts with the Services or Services, which is collected by us electronically (collectively "User Information").
We collect the following User Information in accordance with applicable law:
- Information that users provide to us, directly or via a third-party registration service for the purpose of registering with us or our group companies
- Information users provide to us when users interact with our customer service team
- Information about user interactions with our Services, and any direct communications the user receives from us (such as emails)
- Device IDs or unique identifiers, location data, device and software characteristics (such as type and configuration), connection information, statistics on page views, referral URLs, ad data, website and app navigation, IP address and standard web log information
- The language choices made by users in relation to their use of the Service, which may include information relating to their location when using the Service
- The details of any third-party digital property (such as a website) that referred or linked a user to the Services
- Information about how users behave on our Services (such as the type of content they view, how frequently, at what times etc).
We may also collect personal information from a variety of third-party sources. These include service providers who allow us to verify, enhance, or supplement the User Information collected on our Services, and business partners to whom we are offering a service.
3. How & why we use the data we collect
We use the User Information for three main purposes: (i) to operate and improve the Services and to ensure that we can provide the Services; (ii) to optimize the content on the Services; and (iii) send marketing and show advertising to our users.
We will use the User Information to do one or more of the following things:
- Administer our Services
- Recommend goods, services or promotions which may be of interest to the user
- Supply services purchased via our Services
- Send notices and invoices to users, and collect payments from them
- Deal with enquiries and complaints
- Comply with any legal or regulatory requirements and otherwise to respond to any relevant regulator or competent authority as required by law
- Understand user trends and patterns
- Develop aggregate analysis in respect of our users and business intelligence that enable us to operate, protect, make informed decisions and report on the performance of our business
4.Cookies
Much of the User Information that we collect, and most of the information we employ in connection with advertising, is obtained via the use of cookies and similar technologies. Cookies are usually a string of numbers and/or letters that a website transfers to a User's hard drive. Similar technologies include pixel tags and web storage and other technologies, and we refer to all these things as “cookies” in this section. The cookies enable the Services to "remember" you, either for the duration of your visit (session cookies) or for repeat visits (persistent cookies).
On this Services, we use the following types of cookies:
• Strictly necessary cookies - These cookies are essential to enable the user to navigate around the Services securely and to provide the user with Services they have specifically requested.
• Functionality cookies - These cookies enhance the functionality of the Services by storing user preferences. For instance, they can remember your name and location, if you provide this information and the types of content you are interested in.
• Performance cookies - These cookies improve the performance of the Services. For instance, they help pages load quicker.
• Analytics cookies - We use third party analytics services such as Google Analytics and others. Your IP address and other information will be collected by automated means to evaluate your use of the website, compile reports on website activity, identify user patterns and provide related services. For more information about how Google Analytics uses your information please click here. In addition, authentication and tracking logs will be used to compile user statistics.
• Targeting/advertising – These cookies help us serve relevant advertisements and implement frequency capping procedures.
These types of cookies may also be placed on the Services by our business partners or service providers.
If you register with us or if you continue to use our Services, you agree to our use of cookies. In some cases, when you arrive on our Services a pop-up message will appear asking for your consent to place advertising cookies on your device as required by applicable law. In order to provide your consent, please click ‘OK’. Once your consent has been provided, this message will not appear again when you revisit, unless you delete cookies via your browser settings or otherwise.
Most web browsers automatically accept cookies, but if you prefer, you can change your browser to prevent that, or opt-out as explained below. You may not be able to take full advantage of our Services or use certain functions if you disable cookies.
5.Disclosure of User Information
We may share User Information with any member of the Knowles group where this is necessary for business administration purposes in accordance with applicable law. We may also allow other members of the Knowles group to contact users with relevant offers, competitions and latest news (where they have consented to doing so, if required by applicable laws).
We may also share User Information with selected third parties including:
• Business partners, suppliers and sub-contractors in connection with providing Services to our users
• Advertisers and advertising networks that require the data to select and serve relevant adverts to the user
• Analytics and search engine providers that assist us in the improvement and optimisation of the Services
• If we decide to sell the business operating the Service or it is integrated with another business, we may disclose User Information to our advisers and any prospective buyer’s advisers as well as to the new owners of the business
• If we are under a duty to disclose or share a user's personal information in order to comply with any legal obligation, or in order to enforce or apply our terms
• In order to prevent fraud, cheating and money laundering we may disclose User Information and betting and gaming history to third parties including, but not limited to, any relevant regulator, gaming and sporting bodies, financial institutions and law enforcement agencies or any other body that deals with the investigation of alleged offences.
Where relevant, we will disclose User Information and anonymized information associated with a user's use of and interaction with the Services to the partner on whose behalf we operate that Services, for the purposes of marketing and advertising, and to promote their own products and services.
6.Your right to opt-out
If you, or another user of your device, wish to withdraw your cookies consent at any time, you have the ability to accept or decline cookies by modifying your browser setting. You may also go to www.allaboutcookies.org or www.youronlinechoices.eu if you are in Europe, or to www.aboutads.info/choices if you are anywhere else for instructions on how to disable cookies. You may opt-out from Google Analytics here. In some instances, when you opt-out, a new cookie (Opt-Out-Cookie) is placed in your web browser. This tells the third party provider to cease data collection from your browser and prevents advertisements from being delivered to you.
7. Security
We understand that the security of your User Information is important to you. When handling User Information, security is paramount and we seek to ensure that User Information is protected through appropriate technical and organizational measures.
We use reasonable administrative, logical and physical controls, including password protection, to safeguard your User Information against loss, theft and unauthorized access, use or modification. Unfortunately, the transmission of information via the internet is not completely secure. Although we will do our best to protect your User Information in accordance with applicable law, we cannot guarantee the security of your User Information.
8. International data transfers
Information that we collect may be stored and processed in and transferred between any of the countries in which we operate in order to enable us to use the information in accordance with this notice.
Information which you provide may be transferred to our group companies, commercial partners, suppliers or agents located outside your country as set out in paragraph 5 above. We will ensure adequate protection of personal data transferred outside of your country as required under applicable laws. For example, if you are located in the EEA, Switzerland or in the United Kingdom, we may enter into model clauses with the recipient. You may contact us for a copy of the safeguards which we have put in place to protect your personal data in these circumstances.
In addition, personal information that you submit for publication on the Services will be published on the internet and may be available, via the internet, around the world. We cannot prevent the use or misuse of such information by others.
9.Parents and guardians
Our Services are not directly intended for children and should not be used by them unless supervised by a parent or guardian.
10. Contact
Questions, comments and requests regarding this Privacy Notice are welcomed and should be addressed to dataprivacy@knowles.com.
11. Changes
We reserve the right to change the practices described in this Privacy Notice at any time by posting an updated Privacy Notice. Please check here periodically. If we amend this notice, your continued use of our Services will amount to your acknowledgement of the amended notice.
EEA ANNEX TO PRIVACY NOTICE - INFORMATION FOR EEA, SWISS AND UK INDIVIDUALS
In order to comply with data privacy regulations in the EEA, Switzerland and the UK, Knowles provides additional information to its EEA, Switzerland and UK based users.
What is personal data?
“Personal data” is information about you (a “data subject”) the use of which is governed by applicable data protection laws. It will include any information from which you can be identified, directly or indirectly, in particular by reference to an identifier such as your name, an identification number, location data, an online identifier or other information about your identity. Most User Information will constitute personal data.
What is the legal basis on which Knowles relies to process your personal data?
On some occasions, we process your personal data with your consent (for example, when you agree to participate in our surveys and other activities or when you give us consent to send you marketing communications (adopting a “double-opt-in” where required) or to deal with your enquiries, as set out in paragraph 3 letter (d)).
On other occasions, we process your personal data when we need to do this in order to fulfil a contract with you (for example, to make available to you the requested content or for billing purposes) or in order to take steps prior to entering into a contract (for example, verifying your information), as set out in paragraph 3 letters (a), (b), (c), (f), (g), (h), (i), (j) and (k).
We also process your personal data when it is in our legitimate interests to do this and when these interests are not overridden by your data protection rights, as set out in paragraph 3 letters (c), (e), (j), (k), (l), (n) and (o). For example, we may process your personal data in our legitimate interests to ensure that our Services and Services are provided efficiently and in an user-friendly and personalised manner taking into account user feedback, data and profiles, unless consent is required for any such processing under applicable law. We will process personal data to ensure the security of our business and the information of our users, and to ensure the proper and efficient administration of our business. You may contact us for further information.
Finally, we will process your personal data where we are required to do this by law (for example, where we have to fulfil anti-money laundering requirements or disclose information under a court order), as set out in paragraph 3 letters (f), (g), (k) and (m).
How long does Knowles keep data?
Knowles keeps your data for only as long as required to provide you with the necessary Services and to carry out the processing set out in this notice, and in line with its obligation under applicable law. This means that we will generally not keep your personal information for longer than six years following your last interaction with us, and the retention period will often be shorter. For example, we may keep your information for marketing purposes for a period of 3 years following the termination or expiry of our relationship, or your last contact with us.
Your rights
Data subjects may ask us for a copy of their information, to correct it, erase it or to transfer it to other organisations at their request. Data subjects also have rights to object to some processing including profiling and, where we have asked for their consent to process the data subject’s data, to withdraw this consent. In particular, data subjects have the right to object to direct marketing at any time. Where a data subject withdraws their consent, this will not affect the legitimacy of the processing conducted prior to your request. Where we process data because we have a legitimate interest in doing so (as explained above), the data subject has a right to object to this. Where we make a decision based solely on automated processing which significantly affects the data subject, he or she may have the right to contest the decision, express his or her point of view and obtain human intervention. Data subjects have the right to have their data transferred to another provider.
These rights may be limited in some situations – for example, where we can demonstrate that we have a legal requirement to process your data.
Please use the contact information set out in our Contact section above. We will aim to acknowledge your enquiries within 72 hours and respond within one month, unless otherwise required by law.
We hope that we can satisfy queries you may have about the way we process your data. However, if you have unresolved concerns you also have the right to complain to your local data protection authority.
CALIFORNIA ANNEX TO PRIVACY NOTICE – INFORMATION FOR CALIFORNIA RESIDENTS
In order to comply with data privacy regulations in California, Knowles provides this California Annex, which supplements the information contained in the Website Privacy Notice, and which applies to all visitors, users, and others who reside in the State of California ("consumers" or "you"). We adopt this Annex to comply with the California Consumer Privacy Act of 2018 (CCPA) and any terms defined in the CCPA have the same meaning when used in this Annex.
This California Annex does not apply to workforce-related personal information collected from California-based employees, job applicants, contractors, or similar individuals. If you are a California employee of Knowles, please visit California Privacy Policy if you would like additional information about how we process your Personal Information.
Information we collect or have collected
We collect information that identifies, relates to, describes, references, is reasonably capable of being associated with, or could reasonably be linked, directly or indirectly, with a particular consumer, household, or device ("personal information"). Personal information does not include:
- Publicly available information from government records.
- Deidentified or aggregated consumer information.
In particular, our website collected the following categories of personal information from consumers within the last twelve (12) months:
| Personal Information Category | Examples (not all will be collected) |
|---|---|
| A. Identifiers | A real name; alias; email address; telephone number; unique personal identifier; online identifier; Internet Protocol address; device identifiers; or other similar identifiers. |
| B. Personal information categories listed in the California Customer Records statute (Cal Civ. Code § 1798.80(e)). | A name. Some Personal Information in this category may overlap with other categories. |
| D. Commercial information. | Records of products or services purchased, obtained, or considered, including blog posts that you subscribe to or events that you attend. |
| F. Internet or other similar network activity | Browsing history, search history, information on a consumer's interaction with a website, application or advertisement. |
| G. Geolocation data. | Physical location of users, generally and specifically. |
| I. Professional or employment-related information. | Job title and company |
We obtain the categories of personal information listed above from the following categories of sources:
- Directly from you. For example, from forms you complete or products and services you purchase.
- Indirectly from you. For example, from observing your actions on our website.
Use of Personal Information
We may use or disclose the personal information we collect for one or more of the following purposes:
- To fulfill or meet the reason you provided the information
- For example, if you share your name and contact information to request a price quote or ask a question about our products or services, we will use that personal information to respond to your inquiry. If you provide your personal information to purchase a product or service, we will use that information to process your payment and facilitate delivery. We may also save your information to facilitate new product orders or process returns.
- To provide, support, personalize, and develop our Website, products, and services
- To respond to law enforcement requests and as required by applicable law, court order, or governmental regulations
- As described to you when collecting your personal information or as otherwise set forth in the CCPA.
We will not collect additional categories of personal information or use the personal information we collected for materially different, unrelated, or incompatible purposes without providing you notice.
Sharing Personal Information
We may share your personal information by disclosing it to a third party for a business purpose. We only make these business purpose disclosures under written contracts that describe the purposes, require the recipient to keep the personal information confidential, and prohibit using the disclosed information for any purpose except performing the contract. In the preceding twelve (12) months, Company has disclosed personal information for one or more business purposes to the categories of third parties indicated below:
| Personal Information Category | Examples (not all will be collected) |
|---|---|
| A. Identifiers |
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| B. Personal information categories listed in the California Customer Records statute (Cal Civ. Code § 1798.80(e)). |
|
| D. Commercial information. |
|
| G. Geolocation data. |
|
| I. Professional or employment-related information. |
|
Such business purposes include:
- Maintaining or servicing accounts
- Providing customer service
- Processing or fulfilling orders and transactions
- Verifying customer information
- Auditing related to counting ad impressions to unique visitors and verifying positioning and quality of ad impressions
We do not sell personal information.
Right to Know and Data Portability
You have the right to request that we disclose certain information to you about our collection and use of your personal information over the past 12 months (the "right to know"). Once we receive your request and confirm your identity (see Exercising Your Rights to Know or Delete), we will disclose to you:
- The categories of personal information we collected about you.
- The categories of sources for the personal information we collected about you.
- Our business or commercial purpose for collecting or selling that personal information.
- The categories of third parties with whom we share that personal information.
- If we sold or disclosed your personal information for a business purpose, two separate lists disclosing: sales, identifying the personal information categories that each category of recipient purchased; and disclosures for a business purpose, identifying the personal information categories that each category of recipient obtained.
- The specific pieces of personal information we collected about you (also called a data portability request).
Right to Delete
You have the right to request that we delete any of your personal information that we collected from you and retained, subject to certain exceptions (the "right to delete"). Once we receive your request and confirm your identity (see Exercising Your Rights to Know or Delete), we will review your request to see if an exception allowing us to retain the information applies. We may deny your deletion request if retaining the information is necessary for us or our service provider(s) to:
- Complete the transaction for which we collected the personal information, provide a good or service that you requested, take actions reasonably anticipated within the context of our ongoing business relationship with you, fulfill the terms of a written warranty or product recall conducted in accordance with federal law, or otherwise perform our contract with you
- Detect security incidents, protect against malicious, deceptive, fraudulent, or illegal activity, or prosecute those responsible for such activities
- Debug products to identify and repair errors that impair existing intended functionality
- Exercise free speech, ensure the right of another consumer to exercise their free speech rights, or exercise another right provided for by law
- Comply with the California Electronic Communications Privacy Act (Cal. Penal Code § 1546 et. seq.)
- Engage in public or peer-reviewed scientific, historical, or statistical research in the public interest that adheres to all other applicable ethics and privacy laws, when the information's deletion may likely render impossible or seriously impair the research's achievement, if you previously provided informed consent
- Enable solely internal uses that are reasonably aligned with consumer expectations based on your relationship with us
- Comply with a legal obligation
- Make other internal and lawful uses of that information that are compatible with the context in which you provided it
We will delete or deidentify personal information not subject to one of these exceptions from our records and will direct our service providers to take similar action.
Exercising Your Rights to Know or Delete
To exercise your rights to know or delete described above, please submit a request by email to DataPrivacy@knowles.com. Only you, or someone legally authorized to act on your behalf, may make a request to know or delete related to your personal information. You may only submit a request to know twice within a 12-month period. Your request to know or delete must:
- Provide sufficient information that allows us to reasonably verify you are the person about whom we collected personal information or an authorized representative.
- Describe your request with sufficient detail that allows us to properly understand, evaluate, and respond to it.
We cannot respond to your request or provide you with personal information if we cannot verify your identity or authority to make the request and confirm the personal information relates to you. You do not need to create an account with us to submit a request to know or delete. We will only use personal information provided in the request to verify the requestor's identity or authority to make it.
Response Timing and Format
We will confirm receipt of your request within ten (10) business days. If you do not receive confirmation within the 10-day timeframe, please send an inquiry to info@knowles.com with “Attn: Law Department” in the subject line.
We endeavor to substantively respond to a verifiable consumer request within forty-five (45) days of its receipt. If we require more time (up to another 45 days), we will inform you of the reason and extension period in writing.
Any disclosures we provide will only cover the 12-month period preceding our receipt of your request. The response we provide will also explain the reasons we cannot comply with a request, if applicable. For data portability requests, we will select a format to provide your personal information that is readily useable and should allow you to transmit the information from one entity to another entity without hindrance.
We do not charge a fee to process or respond to your verifiable consumer request unless it is excessive, repetitive, or manifestly unfounded. If we determine that the request warrants a fee, we will tell you why we made that decision and provide you with a cost estimate before completing your request.
Non-Discrimination
We will not discriminate against you for exercising any of your CCPA rights. Unless permitted by the CCPA, we will not, as a result of you exercising any of your CCPA rights:
- Deny you services.
- Charge you different prices or rates for services, including through granting discounts or other benefits, or imposing penalties.
- Provide you a different level or quality of services.
- Suggest that you may receive a different price or rate for services or a different level or quality of services.
Changes to The California Annex to Privacy Notice
We reserve the right to amend this Annex at our discretion and at any time. When we make changes to this Annex, we will post the updated notice on the Website and update the notice's effective date. Your continued use of our Website following the posting of changes constitutes your acceptance of such changes.
Contact Information
If you have any questions or comments about this notice, the ways in which Knowles collects and uses your information described here, your choices and rights regarding such use, or wish to exercise your rights under California law, please do not hesitate to contact us at:
Knowles World Headquarters
Attn: Law Department
1151 Maplewood Drive
Itasca, IL 60143 USA