Signal Privacy Policy

Last updated on February 15, 2017

Thank you for your interest in NFX LLC ("NFX", "NFX Guild", "we," or "us") and our website located at signal.nfx.com (the "Site", or "Signal"), as well as all related web sites, networks, embeddable widgets, downloadable software, mobile applications (including tablet applications), and other services provided by us and on which a link to this Privacy Policy (this "Policy") is displayed (collectively, together with the Site, our "Service").

This Policy describes the information that we gather from you on the Service, how we use and disclose such information, and the steps we take to protect such information. By using the Service, you consent to the privacy practices described in this Policy.

This Policy is incorporated into and is subject to the Signal Master Terms of Use. Capitalized terms used but not defined in this Policy have the meaning given to them in the Signal Master Terms of Use.

The highlights of our commitment to your privacy

NFX analyzes your email history to understand your relationship strength with people you know, and to find the best introduction paths from you to the people you're interested in connecting with. In order to do this, we request access to your email account.

  • We never send email without your permission.
  • We never access the bodies, subject lines, or attachments of your messages. We access only email headers (the to, from, cc, bcc, and date fields).
  • You and your relationships strengths with your contacts are added to the Signal network. This means that Signal users in your extended network will be able to see who you know and how strong your relationships are.
  • You are in control of your personal network. If another Signal user wants an introduction to one of your contacts, they must ask you, and you must grant permission.
  • We do not expose your email address(es) to other Signal users. Other Signal users can contact you directly only if their email history proves the two of you have a strong existing relationship.
  • You can delete your account and data at any time. Please see the Termination section of the Terms of Use for more information.

The information we collect on the Service

User-provided Information. When you use the Service, you may provide and we may collect what is generally called "personally identifiable" information, or "personal information," which is information that specifically identifies an individual. Examples of personal information include name, email address, personal website url, and employer name. Personal information also includes other information, such as date of birth, geographic area, or preferences, when any such information is linked to information that identifies a specific individual. You may provide us with personal information in various ways on the Service. For example, you provide us with personal information when you register for an account, use the Service, post User Content, interact with other users of the Service through communication or messaging features, or send us customer service-related requests.

"Cookies" Information. When you use the Service, we may send one or more cookies – small text files containing a string of alphanumeric characters – to your device. We may use both session cookies and persistent cookies. A session cookie disappears after you close your browser. A persistent cookie remains after you close your browser and may be used by your browser on subsequent visits to the Service. Please review your web browser "Help" file to learn the proper way to modify your cookie settings. Please note that if you delete, or choose not to accept, cookies from the Service, you may not be able to utilize the features of the Service to their fullest potential.

"Automatically Collected" Information. When you use the Service, we may automatically record certain information from your device by using various types of technology, including "clear gifs" or "web beacons." This "automatically collected" information may include your IP address or other device address or ID, web browser and/or device type, the pages or other content you view or otherwise interact with on the Service, and the dates and times that you visit, access, or use the Service. We also may use these technologies to collect information regarding your interaction with email messages, such as whether you opened, clicked on, or forwarded a message. This information is gathered from all users.

Integrated Services. You may be given the option to access or register for the Service through the use of your user name and passwords for certain services provided by third parties (each, an "Integrated Service"), such as through the use of your Google credentials through OAuth, or otherwise have the option to authorize an Integrated Service to provide personal information or other information to us. By authorizing us to connect with an Integrated Service, you authorize us to access and store your name, email address(es), gender, current city, profile picture URL, and other information that the Integrated Service makes available to us, and to use and disclose it in accordance with this Policy. You should check your privacy settings on each Integrated Service to understand and change the information sent to us through each Integrated Service. Please review each Integrated Service's terms of use and privacy policies carefully before using their services and connecting to our Service.

Information from Other Sources. We may obtain information, including personal information, from third parties and sources other than the Service, such as Integrated Services and User Submissions. If we combine or associate information from other sources with personal information that we collect through the Service, we will treat the combined information as personal information in accordance with this Policy.

How we use the information we collect

We use information we collect on the Service in a variety of ways in providing the Service and operating our business, including the following:

  • to build and maintain your network of contacts,
  • to add you and your contacts to Signal's aggregated venture capital network,
  • to share your network of contacts with other Signal users to whom you are connected,
  • to otherwise operate and support the Site,
  • to contact you for feedback about the Site,
  • to provide you with product and service information, and news,
  • to conduct research about NFX or our services, or
  • to understand and analyze the usage trends and preferences of our users, to improve the Service, and to develop new products, services, features, and functionality.

We may use "cookies" information and "automatically collected" information we collect on the Service to: (i) personalize our services, such as remembering your information so that you will not have to re-enter it during your visit or the next time you visit the Service; (ii) provide customized content and information; and (iii) monitor aggregate site usage metrics such as total number of visitors and pages viewed.

How we share information with others

We will not sell or rent your Personally Identifiable Information to third parties.

Investor profiles are publicly searchable. Search for Investors is viewable to all Registered Users on Signal. All other information is private to you and the people in your Signal network with whom you explicitly choose to share it.

We work with third party service providers to provide website, application development, hosting, maintenance, and other services for us. These third parties may have access to or process your information as part of providing those services for us. Generally, we limit the information provided to these service providers to that which is reasonably necessary for them to perform their functions, and we require them to agree to maintain the confidentiality of such information.

We may make certain automatically-collected, aggregated, or otherwise non-personally-identifiable information available to third parties for various purposes, including (i) compliance with various reporting obligations; or (ii) for business, analysis, or marketing purposes.

We may disclose your information if required to do so by law or in the good-faith belief that such action is necessary to comply with state and federal laws (such as U.S. copyright law), in response to a court order, judicial or other government subpoena or warrant, or to otherwise cooperate with law enforcement or other governmental agencies.

We also reserve the right to disclose your information that we believe, in good faith, is appropriate or necessary to (i) take precautions against liability, (ii) protect ourselves or others from fraudulent, abusive, or unlawful uses or activity, (iii) investigate and defend ourselves against any third-party claims or allegations, (iv) protect the security or integrity of the Service and any facilities or equipment used to make the Service available, or (v) protect our property or other legal rights (including, but not limited to, enforcement of our agreements), or the rights, property, or safety of others.

Information about our users, including personal information, may be disclosed and otherwise transferred to an acquirer, or successor or assignee as part of any merger, acquisition, debt financing, sale of assets, or similar transaction, as well as in the event of an insolvency, bankruptcy, or receivership in which information is transferred to one or more third parties as one of our business assets.

Your Choices

You may, of course, decline to share certain personal information with us, in which case we may not be able to provide to you some of the features and functionality of the Service. You may update or correct your profile information and preferences at any time by accessing your account preferences page on the Service. If you wish to access or amend any other personal information we hold about you, or to request that we delete any information about you that we have obtained from an Integrated Service, you may contact us at legal@NFX.com. Please note that while any changes you make will be reflected in active user databases instantly or within a reasonable period of time, we may retain all information you submit for backups, archiving, prevention of fraud and abuse, analytics, satisfaction of legal obligations, or where we otherwise reasonably believe that we have a legitimate reason to do so.

Third-Party Services

The Service may contain features or links to Web sites and services provided by third parties. Any information you provide on third-party sites or services is provided directly to the operators of such services and is subject to those operators' policies, if any, governing privacy and security, even if accessed through the Service. We are not responsible for the content or privacy and security practices and policies of third-party sites or services to which links or access are provided through the Service. We encourage you to learn about third parties' privacy and security policies before providing them with information.

Children's Privacy

Protecting the privacy of young children is especially important. Our Service is not directed to children under the age of 13, and we do not knowingly collect personal information from children under the age of 13 without obtaining parental consent. If you are under 13 years of age, then please do not use or access the Service at any time or in any manner. If we learn that personally identifiable information has been collected on the Service from persons under 13 years of age and without verifiable parental consent, then we will take the appropriate steps to delete this information. If you are a parent or guardian and discover that your child under 13 years of age has obtained an account on the Service, then you may alert us at qed@nfx.com and request that we delete that child's personally identifiable information from our systems.

Data Security

We use certain physical, managerial, and technical safeguards that are designed to improve the integrity and security of your personally identifiable information. We cannot, however, ensure or warrant the security of any information you transmit to us or store on the Service, and you do so at your own risk. We also cannot guarantee that such information may not be accessed, disclosed, altered, or destroyed by breach of any of our physical, technical, or managerial safeguards.

If we learn of a security systems breach, then we may attempt to notify you electronically so that you can take appropriate protective steps. We may post a notice through the Service if a security breach occurs. Depending on where you live, you may have a legal right to receive notice of a security breach in writing. To receive a free written notice of a security breach you should notify us at qed@nfx.com.

Privacy Settings

Although we may allow you to adjust your privacy settings to limit access to certain personal information, please be aware that no security measures are perfect or impenetrable. We are not responsible for circumvention of any privacy settings or security measures on the Service. Additionally, we cannot control the actions of other users with whom you may choose to share your information. Further, even after information posted on the Service is removed, caching and archiving services may have saved that information, and other users or third parties may have copied or stored the information available on the Service. We cannot and do not guarantee that information you post on or transmit to the Service will not be viewed by unauthorized persons.

International Visitors

The Service is hosted in the United States and is intended for visitors located within the United States. If you choose to use the Service from the European Union or other regions of the world with laws governing data collection and use that may differ from U.S. law, then please note that you are transferring your personal information outside of those regions to the United States for storage and processing. Also, we may transfer your data from the U.S. to other countries or regions in connection with storage and processing of data, fulfilling your requests, and operating the Service. By providing any information, including personal information, on or to the Service, you consent to such transfer, storage, and processing.

Changes and Updates to this Policy

Please revisit this page periodically to stay aware of any changes to this Policy, which we may update from time to time. If we modify the Policy, we will make it available through the Service, and indicate the date of the latest revision. In the event that the modifications materially alter your rights or obligations hereunder, we will make reasonable efforts to notify you of the change. For example, we may send a message to your email address, if we have one on file, or generate a pop-up or similar notification when you access the Service for the first time after such material changes are made. Your continued use of the Service after the revised Policy has become effective indicates that you have read, understood and agreed to the current version of the Policy.

Our Contact Information

Please contact us with any questions or comments about this Policy, your personal information, our use and disclosure practices, or your consent choices by email at qed@nfx.com or by mail to NFX LLC: 400 Florence St, Palo Alto, CA 94301.

Thanks for reading. We hope you join the Signal network!