Privacy Policy

Effective Date: October 11, 2011

This overall Privacy statement verifies, among other things, that Zagat Survey, LLC ("we" or "us" or "Zagat") on the Web is a member of the TRUSTe program and is in compliance with TRUSTe Privacy principles.

Zagat Survey, LLC is a licensee of the TRUSTe Privacy Program. TRUSTe is an independent organization whose mission is to build users' trust and confidence in the Internet by promoting the use of fair information practices. Because this Web site wants to demonstrate its commitment to your Privacy, it has agreed to disclose its information practices and have its Privacy practices reviewed for compliance by TRUSTe. By displaying the TRUSTe trustmark, this Web site has agreed to notify you of:

  1. Personally identifiable information about you or a third party that is collected from you through the Web site
  2. The organization collecting the information
  3. How the information is used
  4. With whom the information may be shared
  5. What choices are available to you regarding collection, use and distribution of the information
  6. The kind of security procedures that are in place to protect the loss, misuse or alteration of information under Zagat Survey's control
    7. How you can correct any inaccuracies in the information

We always have and always will respect your privacy. Any information that you give us is held with the utmost care and will not be used other than as described in this Privacy Policy or as required to provide you with the services we offer.

Zagat Survey has created this Privacy Policy to demonstrate our commitment to your privacy on ZAGAT.com and ZAGAT.mobi (the "Zagat Site(s)"). The "Zagat" name and reputation have been built on the trust of our customers, and we hope that our commitment to online privacy will inspire the same trust in you while you are visiting the Zagat Sites.

We have adopted a set of information management guidelines that serve as the basis for our customer relationships. These guidelines have been developed with the recognition that Internet and mobile technologies are rapidly evolving. Accordingly, guidelines are subject to change. Any such changes will be incorporated in the most current version of this Privacy Policy. Please read this Privacy Policy to understand how your personal information will be treated as you use the Zagat Sites. Please see our Terms of Use for more information about our online policies in general.

If you have questions or concerns regarding this statement, you should contact us via 'Ask a Question' in our online Help section. If you do not receive acknowledgment of your inquiry or your inquiry has not been satisfactorily addressed, you should then contact TRUSTe: http://www.truste.com/consumers/watchdog_complaint.php. TRUSTe will then serve as a liaison with the website to resolve your concerns.

Note: We permit users of the Zagat Sites to access and download certain mobile applications (e.g., ZAGAT for iPhone). This Privacy Policy does not cover any Personally Identifiable Information that may be collected through those mobile applications.

The Information We Collect

We collect personal information from you on the Zagat Sites when you provide it and in some cases, from third party sources such as credit card companies in order to ensure that your credit card information is up-to-date or from restaurant reservation services to ensure the effectiveness of such services.

User Registration. Registration on the Zagat Sites is strictly voluntary. To register for the Zagat Sites, you must provide your e-mail address and name. This information is required in the registration process but we recognize that this is your personal information and, except as we explain below, we do not give it out to third parties without your approval. At any time you may later review or update the personal information we have collected online from you by logging on with your user name and password and then going to the "Account" section within your profile.

In order to participate in certain offers or receive certain products or services, you may be asked to provide additional information. For example, we may ask you for optional information with regard to your personal preferences on dining, travel and leisure activities to personalize your experiences on the Zagat Sites. The submission of such information is voluntary. If you chose not to receive such products, services or offers, you will not be required to provide such information.

Subscriptions to the Zagat Sites. To subscribe to the Zagat Sites, you must provide the personal information requested in ZAGAT.com's subscription process, including, without limitation, your name, address, e-mail address, other information required in order to become a registered user of the Zagat Sites, and your credit card information for subscription fee billing. This information is required in the subscription process, but we recognize that this is your personal information and, except as we explain below, we do not give it out to third parties without your approval. Becoming a subscriber of the Zagat Sites provides you with the benefits described in the subscriber section of ZAGAT.com, including access to certain content that is not available to persons who are not subscribers and a discount for purchases in our store. The Subscriber Agreement applies to your subscription to the Zagat Sites. In addition, as a subscriber to the Zagat Sites, you will also automatically become a registered user of
the Zagat Sites, thereby subjecting you to the terms and conditions of this Privacy Policy applicable to registered users, and you will be entitled to all of the benefits and privileges available to registered users of the Zagat Sites.

Member Reviews. In order to submit your ratings and reviews on the Zagat Sites you will need to create a username. You will have the option of sharing your reviews with other members of the Zagat Sites. If you so choose on your personal profile, the following pieces of information will be shared on the site along with your reviews: (i) your username, (ii) your home city and state, (iii) the month and year that you became a subscriber to the Zagat Sites and (iv) the total number of reviews submitted. In addition, you will have the option to add the following additional information to your profile, in which case this information will also be shared on the site: (i) gender, (ii) age range and (iii) personal description.

Comments and Posts. In order to comment on our blog posts or on lists, you will need to register on the Zagat Sites. If you comment on our blog posts or on lists, you should be aware that any personally identifiable information you submit there can be read, collected, or used by other users of these forums, and could be used to send you unsolicited messages. We are not responsible for the personally identifiable information you choose to submit in these forums.

Restaurant Reservation Services. In order to book a restaurant reservation through the Zagat Sites, you must provide the personal information requested in the restaurant reservation process, including, without limitation, your name, e-mail address, telephone number and other information that may be required in order to secure a restaurant reservation. This information is required in order to process your restaurant reservation and, as we explain below, will be shared with the applicable restaurants in order to secure your booking.

Credit Card Policy. To simplify ordering and product fulfillment in our store and/or for your subscription to the Zagat Sites, if applicable, we request your credit card number, its expiration date and your billing and shipping address. We transmit this information over the Internet in encrypted form and store it on a secure server. This information is used only to bill you for and ship to you the products that you order or to bill you for your subscription to the Zagat Sites or other services available on the Zagat Sites.

Cookies. The Zagat Sites employ cookies (small pieces of text stored on your computer) to recognize you and your access privileges and to collect anonymous traffic data. For example, we use cookies to allow you to log on to the Zagat Sites automatically without requiring that you enter your email and password each time you visit the Zagat Sites. Cookies also identify you and your preferences on our site. For these purposes, these cookies are tied to your personally identifiable information. You may refuse to accept our cookies, but we will not be able to recognize you as a registered user or Premium Member, which will limit your access to the site.

We also use cookies to collect anonymous traffic data. These cookies may be placed by us or third party service providers who provide services to Zagat (for example, in connection with monitoring and recording traffic).

Location. If you choose to enter a street address when selecting a location, this information will be saved for your convenience in your Recent Locations list. This information may make it easier for you to browse and search our content and will not be used for any other purpose.

Tell a Friend. If you choose to email or SMS a list, review or link to a friend from the Zagat Sites, we collect the friend's name, e-mail address, and/or mobile phone number. This information is used only to deliver a one-time message to your friend and is not stored on our servers. If "a friend" decides that he/she will register with the Zagat Sites, he or she will be given the same rights of access as registered users of the Zagat Sites. The prospect information that you submit for "a friend" will be used only for the use for which it is submitted. Additionally, for "a friend" to register, he or she will have to follow the Zagat Site's registration process (see above) and will be given the same option in regard to receiving marketing materials that the Zagat Sites offer to all registered users.

IP Addresses. ZAGAT.com logs IP addresses, or the location of your computer on the Internet, for systems administration and troubleshooting purposes.

Facebook Connect

The Zagat Sites may allow users to access Facebook Connect to interact with friends and to share on Facebook through Wall and friends' News Feeds. If you are already logged into Zagat and Facebook, when you click on "Connect with Facebook" you will be prompted to merge your profiles. If you are already logged into Zagat but not logged into Facebook, when you click on "Connect with Facebook" you will be prompted to enter your Facebook credentials or to "Sign up for Facebook." By proceeding, you are allowing the Zagat Sites to access your information and you are agreeing to the Facebook Terms of Use in your use of Zagat Sites.

Conversely, if you are not currently registered as a Zagat user and you click on "Sign in Using Facebook," you will first be asked to enter your Facebook credentials and then be given the option to register and join Zagat. Once you register on the Zagat sites and Connect with Facebook, you will be able to automatically post recent activity back to Facebook. You have the option to disable Facebook Connect at any time by logging into your profile and clicking on "My Facebook Profile." Further, you can edit privacy settings for the reviews that appear on Facebook or disconnect this service by visiting the Facebook Application Settings page.

Third Party Advertising

The ads appearing on this website are delivered to you by DoubleClick, our Internet advertising partner. Information about your visits to this site, such as number of times you have viewed an ad, is used to serve ads to you. For more information about DoubleClick, cookies, and how to "opt-out", please click here.

Retargeting

We partner with third-party advertising companies to serve ads and/or collect certain information when you visit the Zagat Sites. Such third parties may use cookies or web beacons to collect non-personally identifiable information such as IP Address, pages viewed, and if a conversion occurred during your visit to a Zagat Site in order to help show advertisements on other websites likely to be more interesting to you. To learn more about this "behavioral advertising" practice or to opt-out of this use of your anonymous information, you can visit www.networkadvertising.org. and click on www.networkadvertising.org/managing/opt_out.asp.

Third Party Cookies

In the course of serving advertisements to this site, our third-party advertiser may place or recognize a unique cookie on your browser. We have no access to or control over these cookies. See "Third Party Advertising."

How We Use Your Information

We use your e-mail address and home address to send you updates and newsletters periodically about new features, special offers and targeted promotional items available on the Zagat Sites and to request that you complete restaurant surveys. You may choose to not receive certain of these communications by so indicating during the registration process or in response to one of our e-mails or postal mailings. Each communication will explain how to opt out of future communications. Any demographic information that you voluntarily share with us is used to tailor the Zagat Sites to your interests. We also may share this demographic information with other companies with which we do business.

With Whom We Share Information

We share your personally identifiable information with intermediaries and data processors. These intermediaries and data processors use your information in connection with performing the services for which we have engaged them, including, by way of example, to process payments for online purchases, to deliver e-mail and postal mailings to our users who have chosen to receive such communications and to process restaurant reservations you make through the Zagat Sites. We do not permit these intermediaries or data processors to use, store or retain personally identifiable information for secondary purposes, unless they indicate otherwise in communications to you. Some intermediaries and data processors have the right to use aggregated, non-personally-identifiable information, for example, in order to improve the delivery or quality of their services. Some of these intermediaries and data processors may perform their functions from outside of the United States.

In connection with the restaurant reservation services, your personally identifiable information will be transmitted to the relevant restaurant in order for them to honor your booking. Such restaurants may use your personally identifiable information in connection with their operations and services. You should contact the restaurants directly to obtain information on their privacy practices.

From time to time we may allow some of our select partners to send you special promotional offers that we believe may be of special interest to you. You may choose not to receive these communications from our partners by visiting your email preferences section of your account or in response to any of these communications, each of which will explain how to opt out of future communications. You may also opt out of having your personal information shared with these third parties by sending a request to have your user account deactivated via 'Ask a Question' in our online Help section. If you do so, however, you will not be able to take advantage of many of our features, including the right to vote online, make restaurant reservations through the Zagat Sites, purchase items from our store and even continue as a subscriber to the Zagat Sites.

We make use of certain tracking technology designed to enhance your browsing experience and provide analytics. These technologies, provided as a hosted service application, provide aggregate reporting information to the site owner only, through cookies that they set at the Zagat Sites. No personal or personally identifiable information is gathered for this process.

We do retain the right to share and transfer all user information with a purchaser of our company or all or substantially all of our assets if that purchaser agrees to abide by the terms of this Privacy Policy.

Legal Disclaimer

We may disclose personal information if required to do so by law or in the good faith belief that such action is necessary to conform with the law or legal process or to protect or defend our rights or property.

Security

The Zagat Sites have security measures in place to help protect the loss, misuse and alteration of the information under our control. All information is stored in a secure operating environment. When sending sensitive information across the Internet - including your email, password and purchasing information such as credit cards - we use Secure Socket Layer (SSL) encryption. Internally, all customer information is protected with multiple security checks. Employee access to the system is limited to the functionality necessary for each person's job. Relevant employees are informed of our security policies and their access to applications and data on our network.

If you still do not feel comfortable about leaving your credit card information on our secured Web site, please contact our customer service department at (800) 540-9609 and we'll be happy to help you with your order or subscription.

Special Policy With Regard to Information From Children Under Thirteen

Zagat Survey does not knowingly collect or solicit personal information from anyone under the age of 13 or knowingly allow such persons to register. If you are under 13, please do not attempt to register for Zagat Sites or send any information about yourself to us, including your name, address, telephone number, or e-mail address. No one under age 13 may provide any personal information to Zagat Survey. In the event that we learn that we have collected personal information from a child under the age of 13 without verification of parental consent, we will delete that information as quickly as possible. If you believe that we may have any information from or about a child under the age of 13, please contact us.

Links

We may provide links to third party websites as a service to our users. Please be aware that we cannot control and are not responsible for the information collection practices of such websites, which may differ from those of the Zagat Sites. We encourage you to review and understand the privacy policies on these websites before providing any information to them.

How You Can Access or Correct Your Information

If you are a registered user you can review or make changes to your personal information at any time by going to the "Account" section within your profile on ZAGAT.com. You may also submit changes via "Ask a Question" in our online Help section.

Questions

Protecting your privacy is one of our highest priorities. If you have any questions about our Privacy Policy, you may send them via "Ask a Question" in our online Help section, or write to us at Zagat Survey, LLC, 4 Columbus Circle, New York, NY, 10019, Attn: Privacy.

Consent and Opting-Out

Upon request, the Zagat Sites will:

  1. Remove you and your personal information from our database, thereby canceling your registration.
  2. Correct personal information that you state is erroneous.
  3. Permit you to "opt out" of further e-mail contact (excepting notification from the Zagat Sites of major changes to the service) while still allowing access to the sites.

To request a correction or cancellation, please contact us via "Ask a Question" in our online Help section.

Notification of Changes

If we decide to change our Privacy Policy, we will post the revised Privacy Policy on this page so that you are always aware of what information we collect, how we use it and under what circumstances we disclose it. If we decide to change our Privacy Policy in a manner that would (in our discretion) materially change the way we use the information you have previously submitted, we will first provide you with an opportunity to opt out of the new Privacy Policy. We will post a notification of the new Privacy Policy 30 days prior to its implementation. You may determine when this Privacy Policy was updated last by noting the Effective Date directly beneath the title of this page.

Adherence to Safe Harbor Principles

Zagat adheres to the US Safe Harbor Privacy Principles of Notice, Choice, Onward Transfer, Security, Data Integrity, Access and Enforcement.

Zagat regularly reviews its compliance with this Privacy Policy. When we receive formal written complaints, it is Zagat’s policy to contact the complaining user regarding his or her concerns. We will cooperate with the appropriate regulatory authorities, including local data protection authorities, to resolve any complaints regarding the transfer of personal data that cannot be resolved between Zagat and an individual.

Thank you for using ZAGAT.com and ZAGAT.mobi.