Privacy Highlights
These “privacy highlights” provide an overview of some core components of our data handling practices. Please be sure to read our full privacy statement below.
- We collect information when you register an account, self-report information through surveys, forms, features or applications, use our Services, upload your own content to our Services, use social media connections and features, refer your contacts to us, share information through various interactions with us and our partners, and via cookies and similar tracking technologies.
- We use information in general (i) to provide, analyze and improve our Services, (ii) as we reasonably believe is permitted by laws and regulations, including for marketing and advertising purposes, (iii) to protect the security and safety of our company, employees, and customers as we reasonably believe is permitted by laws and regulations, (iv) to comply with laws and regulations we are subject to, and (v) when you consent, for research purposes, the results of which could be used to develop therapeutics.
CONSENT TO THE USE OF SENSITIVE INFORMATION
By agreeing to our Privacy Statement and Terms of Service, you consent to sensitive information, such as information about your health, Genetic Information, and Self-Reported Information such as racial and ethnic origin and sexual orientation (where you provide it) being used by us to:
- analyze and provide you with our Services;
- determine whether you would be suitable to take part in surveys, polls or questionnaires that we are conducting; and
- monitor and improve existing products or services that we offer or to develop new products and services
We will not use your sensitive information without your consent unless: (i) the information has been anonymized or aggregated so that you cannot reasonably be identified as an individual; or (ii) a legal obligation requires us to use it in some way e.g. a court order requires us to disclose the information.
CONSENT TO THE TRANSFER OF YOUR PERSONAL INFORMATION
- By agreeing to our Privacy Statement and Terms of Service, you consent to the storing and processing of your personal information, including sensitive information, in the USA and countries outside of the country you live in. We use a range of measures to safeguard information but these countries may have laws that are different from those of your country of residence. You also consent to your personal information, including sensitive information, being transferred in the event of a business transition such as a merger, acquisition by another company, or other transaction or proceeding. In such a case, your information would be used as set out in any pre-existing Privacy Statement.
- We will not sell, lease, or rent your individual-level information (i.e., information about a single individual’s genotypes, diseases or other traits/characteristics) to any third-party or to a third-party for research purposes without your explicit consent.
- You may independently decide to disclose your information to friends and/or family members, doctors, health care professionals, or other individuals outside our Services, including through third-party services such as social networks and third-party apps that connect to our website and mobile apps through our application programming interface (“API”); always review the privacy policies of third-party apps and services before sharing your information.
- We may share anonymized and aggregate information with third-parties; anonymized and aggregate information is any information that has been stripped of your name and contact information and aggregated with information of others or anonymized so that you cannot reasonably be identified as an individual.
- We will use your genetic information and/or self-reported information and share it with third-parties for scientific research purposes only if you e-sign the Research Initiatives Consent Document as provided during the registration process. Note that we will disclose your individual-level information only if we obtain additional explicit consent from you.
- There may be some consequences of using HealthCodes DNA Services that you haven’t thought of, as described more fully in our Terms of Service.
- If you have any questions about our privacy practices, please email us at [email protected] or send a letter to the address provided at the bottom of our full Privacy Statement.
Full Privacy Statement
This privacy statement applies to all websites owned and operated by HealthCodes DNA, LLC (“HealthCodes DNA”), including HealthCodes DNA.com. Our Privacy Statement is designed to help you better understand how we collect, use, store, process, and transfer your information when operating our website, mobile apps, products, software and other services (collectively “Service” or “Services“).
- Key Definitions
- Aggregate Information: information that has been combined with that of other users and analyzed or evaluated as a whole, such that no specific individual may be reasonably identified.
- Anonymized Information: information that has been stripped of your Registration Information (e.g., your name and contact information) and other identifying data such that you cannot reasonably be identified as an individual.
- Individual-level Information: information about a single individual’s genotypes, diseases, other traits, or characteristics, but which is not necessarily tied to Registration Information.
- Personal Information: information that can be used to identify you, either alone or in combination with other information. HealthCodes DNA collects and stores the following types of Personal Information:
- Registration Information: information you provide about yourself when registering for and/or purchasing our Services (e.g. name, email, address, user ID and password, and payment information).
- Genetic Information: information regarding your genotype (e.g. the As, Ts, Cs, and Gs at particular locations in your genome), generated through processing of your saliva by HealthCodes DNA or by its contractors, successors, or assignees; or otherwise processed by and/or contributed to HealthCodes DNA.
- Self-Reported Information: all information about yourself, including your disease conditions, other health-related information, personal traits, ethnicity, family history, and other information that you enter into surveys, forms, or features while signed in to your HealthCodes DNA account.
- Sensitive Information: information about your health, Genetic Information, and certain Self-Reported Information such as racial and ethnic origin and sexual orientation.
- User Content: all information, data, text, software, music, audio, photographs, graphics, video, messages, or other materials – other than Genetic Information and Self-Reported Information-generated by users of HealthCodes DNA Services and transmitted, whether publicly or privately, to or through HealthCodes DNA.
- Web Behavior Information: information on how you use the HealthCodes DNA website (e.g. browser type, domains, page views) collected through log files, cookies, and web beacon technology.
- Service or Services: HealthCodes DNA’s products, software, services, and website (including but not limited to text, graphics, images, and other material and information) as accessed from time to time by the user, regardless if the use is in connection with an account or not.
- Principles
The following are our core privacy principles:
- We collect and handle information (i) to provide, analyze and improve our Services, (ii) as we reasonably believe is permitted by laws and regulations, including for marketing and advertising purposes, (iii) to protect the security and safety of our company, employees, customers, as we reasonably believe is permitted by laws and regulations, (iv) to comply with laws and regulations we are subject to, and (v) when you consent for research purposes, the results of which could be used to develop therapeutics.
- We will not sell, lease, or rent your individual-level information (i.e., information about a single individual’s genotypes, diseases or other traits/characteristics to any third-party or to a third-party for research purposes without your explicit consent.
- We understand and respect the sensitive nature of the information you may provide to us, including information about your genetic characteristics, disease conditions, racial and ethnic origin, etc. To that end, we strive to be transparent in our collection, use and disclosure of this information and to ask for your explicit consent to share such sensitive information with third-parties. Please see below to learn more about our sharing and consent practices.
- We are committed to providing a secure and safe environment for our Services.
Please review this Privacy Policy and our Terms of Service. By using our Services, you agree to all of the policies and procedures described in the foregoing documents. HealthCodes DNA, LLC is referred to herein as HealthCodes DNA (or “we,” “us,” “our”) and includes all of our commonly owned companies.
- What information we collect
- Information you provide directly to us
- Registration Information.When you register an account with us or purchase our Services, we collect personal information, such as your name, date of birth, billing and shipping address, payment information (e.g., credit card) and contact information such as your email and phone number.
- Self-Reported Information.You have the option to provide us with additional information about yourself through surveys, forms, features or applications. For example, you may provide us with information about your personal traits (e.g., eye color, height), ethnicity, disease conditions (e.g. Type 2 Diabetes), other health-related information (e.g. pulse rate, cholesterol levels, visual acuity), and family history information (e.g. information similar to the foregoing about your family members). Where you are disclosing information about a family member, you should make sure that you have permission from the family member to do so.
- User Content. Some of our Services allow you to create and post or upload content, such as data, text, software, music, audio, photographs, graphics, video, messages, or other materials that you create or provide to us through either a public or private transmission (“User Content“). For example, User Content includes any post or message you place on HealthCodes DNA’s community forums.
- Blogs. Our website may offer publicly accessible blogs or community forums. You should be aware that any information you provide in these areas may be read, collected, and used by others who access them. To request that we remove or anonymize your personal information from our blog or community forum, contact us at [email protected]. Please note that whenever you post something publicly, it may sometimes be impossible to remove the information, for example, if someone has taken a screenshot of your posting. Please exercise caution before choosing to share personal information publicly on our blogs, community forums or in any other posting. Note also that you may be required to register with a third-party application to post a comment. To learn how the third-party application uses your information, please review their privacy statement.
- Social Media Features and Widgets. Our website includes Social Media Features and Widgets. Features may collect your IP address, which page you are visiting on our site, and may set a cookie to enable the Feature to function properly. They may also allow third-party social media services to provide us information about you, including your name, email address, and other contact information. Features are either hosted by a third-party or hosted directly on our site. Your interactions with these Features are governed by the privacy statement of the company providing it. You should always review, and if necessary, adjust your privacy settings on third-party websites and services before linking or connecting them to our website or Service.
- Referral Information and Sharing. When you refer a person to HealthCodes DNA or choose to share results information with another person, we will ask for that person’s email address. We will use the email address solely, as applicable, to make the referral or to share your results information, and we will let your contact know that you requested the communication. By participating in a referral program or by choosing to share information with another person, you confirm that the person has given you consent for HealthCodes DNA to communicate (e.g., via email) with him or her. The person you referred may contact us at [email protected] to request that we remove this information from our database. For more information on our referral program, contact us at [email protected].
- Address books. If you choose to use your computer’s or mobile device’s address book in connection with our Services to make referrals or to request that we communicate with another person, we may collect the names and contact information of those persons for these purposes only.
- Third-party services (e.g., social media). If you use a third-party site, such as Facebook or Twitter, in connection with our Services to communicate with another person (e.g., to make or post referrals or to request that we communicate with another person), then in addition to that person’s name and contact information, we may also collect other information (e.g., your profile picture, network, gender, username, user ID, age range, language, country, friends lists or followers) depending on your privacy settings on the third-party site. We do not control third-party site’s information practices, so please review their privacy policies and your settings on those sites carefully.
- Gifts. If you provide us personal information about others, or if others give us your information for purposes of ordering the Service as a gift, we will only use that information for the specific reason for which it was provided to us. Once a gift recipient registers for his or her Services and agrees to our Privacy Statement our Terms of Service and Research Initiatives Consent Document, his or her information will be used consistent with this Privacy Statement and those agreements, and we will not share any of the gift recipient’s personal information with the user who purchased the gift.
- Customer service. When you contact us at [email protected] or correspond with us about our Service, we collect information to: track and respond to your inquiry; investigate any breach of our Terms of Service, Privacy Policy or any applicable laws or regulations; and analyze and improve our Services.
- Information related to our genetic testing services
- Saliva sample and bio-banking. To use our genetic testing services, you must purchase, or receive as a gift, a HealthCodes DNA wellness kit, register an online account, and ship your saliva sample to our third-party laboratory. Once received, your saliva sample will be identified by its unique barcode, along with your gender and your year of birth. The barcode label identifies you to us but not to our third-party laboratory. Your saliva samples and DNA are destroyed after the laboratory completes its work, unless the laboratory’s legal and regulatory requirements require it to maintain physical samples.
- Genetic Information. Genetic Information refers to features of your DNA that distinguish you from other people (e.g. the As, Ts, Cs, and Gs at particular locations in your genome) and is generated when we analyze and process your saliva sample, or when you otherwise contribute or access your Genetic Information through our Services. Genetic Information includes the HealthCodes DNA Results information reported to you as part of our Services, and may be used for other purposes, as outlined in Section 4 below.
- Information collected through tracking technology (e.g. from cookies and similar technologies)
Web Behavior Information. We and our third-party partners use cookies and similar technologies (such as web beacons, tags, scripts and device identifiers) to help us recognize you, customize and improve your experience, provide security, analyze usage of our Services (such as to analyze your interactions with the results, reports, and other features of the Service), gather demographic information about our user base, to offer our products and services to you, to monitor the success of marketing programs, and to serve targeted advertising on our site and on other sites around the Internet. We and our third-party partners do not use your sensitive information, such as Genetic Information and Self-Reported Information for targeted advertising. We may receive reports based on the use of these technologies by these companies on an individual as well as aggregated basis. Users can control the use of cookies at the individual browser level. If you reject cookies, you may still use our site, but your ability to use some features or areas of our site may be limited.
As is true of most websites, we gather certain information automatically and store it in log files. This information may include internet protocol (IP) addresses, browser type, internet service provider (ISP), referring/exit pages, operating system, date/time stamp, and/or clickstream data. We may combine this automatically collected log information with other information we collect about you, such as your user profile ID or order number. We do this to improve services we offer you, and to improve marketing, analytics, and site functionality.
When you access our Service by or through a mobile device, we may receive or collect and store a unique identification numbers associated with your device or our mobile application (including, for example, a UDID, Unique ID for Advertisers (“IDFA”), Google Ad ID, or Windows Advertising ID), mobile carrier, device type, model and manufacturer, mobile device operating system brand and model, phone number, and, depending on your mobile device settings, your geographical location data, including GPS coordinates (e.g. latitude and/or longitude) or similar information regarding the location of your mobile device.
Because HealthCodes DNA relies on third-party ad networks who may track you across websites over time for advertising purposes, we are not able to respond to your selection of the “Do Not Track” option provided by your browser. We cannot advise on whether your selection of “Do Not Track” option will have any effect on the collection of cookie information by the third-parties who collect such cookie information on our site.
Third-parties with whom we partner to provide certain features on our site or to display advertising based upon your Web browsing activity use Flash Cookies (Local Shared Objects) to collect and store information. To learn how to manage privacy and storage settings for Flash cookies click here.
Google Analytics. Google Analytics is used to perform some of the tasks listed above. We use the User-ID feature of Google Analytics to combine behavioral information across devices and sessions (including authenticated and unauthenticated sessions). We have enabled the following Google Analytics Advertising features: Remarketing, Google Display Network Impression Reporting, Google Analytics Demographics and Interest Reporting, and DoubleClick Campaign Manager integration. We do not merge information collected through any Google advertising product with individual-level information collected elsewhere by our service. Learn more about how Google collects and uses data here. To opt out of Google Analytics Advertising Features please use Google Ad Settings or the links provided in section 2.b.c.ii (“Targeted advertising” service providers). To opt out of Google Analytics entirely please use this link.
- Other Types of Information.
We are always working to enhance our Services with new products, applications and features that may result in the collection of new and different types of information. We will update our privacy statement, as needed.
- How we use and share information
HealthCodes DNA will use and share your personal information with third-parties only in the ways that are described in this privacy statement.
- Using information to provide, analyze and improve our Services
We use the information described above in Section 3 to operate, provide, analyze and improve our Services. These activities may include, among other things, using your information in a manner consistent with other commitments in this privacy statement, to:
- open your account, enable purchases and process payments, communicate with you, and implement your requests (e.g., referrals);
- host our website, run our mobile application(s), authenticate your visits, provide custom, personalized content and information, and track your usage of our Services;
- conduct analytics to improve and enhance our Services;
- offer new products or services to you, including through emails, promotions or contests;
- implement online marketing campaigns and targeted advertising, including by utilizing third-party ads (subject to your cookie settings and preferences), and to measure the effectiveness of our marketing and targeted advertising;
- conduct surveys or polls, and obtain testimonials;
- process and deliver your genetic testing results;
- perform research & development activities, which may include, for example, conducting data analysis and research in order to develop new or improve existing products and services, and performing quality control activities.
You may be able to opt-in, opt-out or otherwise adjust your preferences of having your information used for certain of these activities. Please see below to learn more.
We use mobile analytics software to allow us to better understand the functionality of our Mobile Software on your phone. This software may record information such as how often you use the application, the events that occur within the application, aggregated usage, performance data, and where the application was downloaded from. We do not link the information we store within the analytics software to any personally identifiable information you submit within the mobile application.
- Using information with your consent
You have the choice to participate in HealthCodes DNA Research by providing your consent. “HealthCodes DNA Research” refers to research aimed at publication in peer-reviewed journals and other research funded by the federal government (such as the National Institutes of Health – NIH) conducted by HealthCodes DNA. HealthCodes DNA Research may be sponsored by, conducted on behalf of, or in collaboration with third-parties, such as non-profit foundations, academic institutions or pharmaceutical companies. HealthCodes DNA Research may study a specific group or population, identify potential areas or targets for therapeutics development, conduct or support the development of drugs, diagnostics or devices to diagnose, predict or treat medical or other health conditions, work with public, private and/or non-profit entities on genetic research initiatives, or otherwise create, commercialize, and apply this new knowledge to improve health care. HealthCodes DNA Research uses your aggregate or individual-level Genetic Information and Self-Reported Information as specified in the Terms of Service.
Consent process for research. Your Genetic Information and Self-Reported Information may be used for HealthCodes DNA Research only if you have consented to this use by completing a Research Initiatives Consent Document. If you have completed a Research Initiatives Consent Document:
- Your aggregated, de-identified Genetic Information may be used for either philanthropic or commercial research purposes as set forth more fully the Research Initiatives Consent Document.
- When your Genetic Information and Self-Reported Informationis being used for research purposes, it will not be linked to your Registration Information.
- Withdrawing your Consent.You may withdraw your consent to participate in HealthCodes DNA Research Initiatives at any time by emailing us at [email protected] HealthCodes DNA will not include your Genetic Information or Self-Reported Information in new research occurring after 30 days from the receipt of your request. Any research involving your data that has already been performed or published prior to our receipt of your request will not be reversed, undone, or withdrawn. If you withdraw your consent for research your Genetic Information and Self-Reported Information may still be used by us and shared with our third-party service providers to provide and improve our Services (as described in Section 4.a), and shared as Aggregate Information that does not identify you as an individual (as described in Section 4.d).
- What happens if you do NOT consent to HealthCodes DNA Research?If you do not complete a Research Initiatives Consent Document or any additional consent agreement with HealthCodes DNA, your information will not be used for HealthCodes DNA Research Initiatives and you will not be able to use HealthCodes DNA Services.
- Recruiting for external research
Academic institutions, healthcare organizations, and other groups are always conducting interesting new research projects. We want to make you aware of these opportunities. While we do not share individual-level Genetic Information or Self-Reported Information with third-parties without your consent, from time to time we may inform you of third-party research opportunities for which you may be eligible. For example, if a university tells us about a new cancer research project, we may send an email to HealthCodes DNA members who potentially fit the relevant eligibility criteria based on their Self-Reported Information to make them aware of the research project and provide a link to participate with the research organization conducting the study.
- Information we share with third-parties
- . General service providers.We share the information described above in Section 3 with our service providers, as necessary to provide their services to us. Service providers are third-parties (other companies or individuals) that help us to provide, analyze and improve our Services. For example, we work with third-party laboratories and contractors to process and analyze your saliva sample for purposes of generating your Genetic Information
NOTE: Our service providers act on HealthCodes DNA’s behalf. While we implement procedures and contractual terms to protect the confidentiality and security of your information, we cannot guarantee the confidentiality and security of your information due to the inherent risks associated with storing and transmitting data electronically.
When you purchase a testing kit and report from HealthCodes DNA, you are instructed to send a saliva sample to our third-party laboratory with a unique barcode label. The unique barcode identifies you to us but not to the laboratory. We may also be required to provide to the laboratory, your sex and date of birth or age pursuant to clinical laboratory requirements such as the Clinical Laboratory Improvement Amendments (CLIA). No other Registration Information such as your name, address, email, phone number or other contact information) is required or provided to the laboratory. The receiving personnel at the laboratory will remove and discard your “sender information” from the packaging (e.g., name, address) before testing personnel receive the samples for processing. Receiving personnel do not perform testing, and testing personnel handle saliva samples that are labeled only with the unique barcode. DNA and saliva samples are destroyed after the laboratory completes its work, provided that laboratory legal and regulatory requirements no longer require the actual samples to be maintained. A de-identified copy of genotyping data may be kept in accordance with CLIA. The laboratory securely sends the resulting Genetic Information to our third party reporting company along with your unique barcode. Genetic Information is stored securely on our servers; the laboratory also stores your Genetic Information, but again, labeled only with the barcode.
- “Targeted advertising” service providers.We may permit third-party advertising networks and providers to collect Web Behavior Information on our Service to help us to deliver targeted online advertisements (“ads”) to you. They use cookies and similar technologies (such as JavaScript, beacons, device identifiers, location data, and clear gifs) to compile information about your browser’s or device’s visits and usage patterns on our Services and on other websites over time, which helps to better personalize ads to match your interests, and to measure the effectiveness of ad campaigns.
If you wish to not have this information used for the purpose of serving you targeted ads, you may be able to opt-out of many advertising networks by visiting here and here (if you are located in Canada, click here; or if you are located in the European Union click here). Please note this does not mean that you have opted-out of being served advertising. You will continue to receive generic ads.
- Aggregate information.We may share aggregate information with third-parties, which is any information that has been stripped of your Registration (e.g., your name and contact information) and aggregated with information of others so that you cannot reasonably be identified as an individual (“Aggregate Information”). This Aggregate Information is different from “individual-level” information. Individual-level Genetic Information or Self-Reported Information of data about a single individual’s genotypes, diseases or other traits/characteristics information. For example, Aggregate Information may include a statement that “30% of our female users share a particular genetic trait,” without providing any data or testing results specific to any individual user. We may provide such Aggregate Information in commercial arrangements with our business partners. In contrast, individual-level Genetic Information could reveal whether a specific user has a particular genetic trait, or all of the Genetic Information about that user. HealthCodes DNA will ask for your consent to share individual-level Genetic Information or Self-Reported Information with any third-party, other than our service providers as necessary for us to provide the Services to you.
- Information we share with commonly owned entities.We may share some or all of your information with other companies under common ownership or control of HealthCodes DNA, which may include our subsidiaries, our corporate parent, or any other subsidiaries owned by our corporate parent in order to provide you better service and improve user experience. We may provide additional notice and ask for your consent if we wish to share your information with our commonly owned entities in a materially different way than discussed in this Privacy Statement.
- Disclosures required by law
Under certain circumstances your information may be subject to disclosure pursuant to judicial or other government subpoenas, warrants, or orders, or in coordination with regulatory authorities, we may be required to disclose personal data in response to lawful requests by public authorities, including to meet national security or law enforcement requirements. HealthCodes DNA will preserve and disclose any and all information to law enforcement agencies or others if required to do so by law or in the good faith belief that such preservation or disclosure is reasonably necessary to: (a) comply with legal or regulatory process (such as a judicial proceeding, court order, or government inquiry) or obligations that HealthCodes DNA may owe pursuant to ethical and other professional rules, laws, and regulations; (b) enforce the HealthCodes DNA Terms of Service and other policies; (c) respond to claims that any content violates the rights of third-parties; or (d) protect the rights, property, or personal safety of HealthCodes DNA, its employees, its users, its clients, and the public.
NOTE: If you are participating in HealthCodes DNA Research, HealthCodes DNA will withhold disclosure of your personal information involved in such research in response to judicial or other government subpoenas, warrants or orders in accordance with any applicable Certificate of Confidentiality that HealthCodes DNA and/or any of its third party providers has obtained from the National Institutes of Health (NIH). There are limits to what the Certificate of Confidentiality covers so please visit the Certificates of Confidentiality Kiosk ( https://grants.nih.gov/grants/policy/coc/index.htm).
- Your choices
- Access to your account
If your Registration Information changes, you may access, correct or update most of it from your Account page. You may also modify and delete certain of your information. Please note that you may not be able to delete User Content that has been shared with others through the Service and that you may not be able to delete information that has been shared with third-parties, though we can work with you to prohibit your data from being shared with third-parties in the future. We will respond to your request to access within 30 days.
- Marketing communications
By registering for an account, you are agreeing that we may send you promotional emails about our Services. You can opt-out of such emails by clicking the “unsubscribe” button at the bottom of any of our or third-party promotional email communications. Please note that you may not opt-out of receiving non-promotional messages regarding your account, such as technical notices, purchase confirmations, or Service-related emails.
- Information you choose to share with others
You may decide to disclose your personal information to friends and/or family members, doctors or other health care professionals, and/or other individuals outside of our Services, including through third-party services such as social networks and third-party apps that connect to our website and mobile apps through our application programming interface (“API”). These third-parties may use your personal information differently than we do under this Privacy Statement. Please make such choices carefully and review the privacy policies of all other third-parties involved in the transaction. For example, if you have enabled a HealthCodes DNA sharing feature with another person who downloads a third-party app that uses our API, your information may also be obtained by that third-party app developer and, potentially, by other users of that third-party app.
In general, personal information, once shared or disclosed, can be difficult to contain or retrieve. HealthCodes DNA will have no responsibility or liability for any consequences that may result because you have released or shared personal information with others.
- Account closure
If you no longer wish to participate in our Services or no longer wish to have your personal information be used, you may close your account by sending a request to [email protected]. When closing an account, we remove all Genetic Information within your account (or profile) within thirty (30) days of our receipt of your request. As stated in any applicable Consent Document, however, Genetic Information and/or Self-Reported Information that you have previously provided and for which you have given consent to use in HealthCodes DNA Research cannot be removed from ongoing or completed studies that use the information. Our contracted genotyping laboratory may also retain your Genetic Information as required by local law and we may retain backup copies for a limited period of time pursuant to our data protection policies. In addition, we retain limited Registration Information related to your order history (e.g., name, contact, and transaction data) as long as your account is active or as needed to provide you services, as well as for accounting, audit and compliance purposes.
- Important Information
- Security measures
HealthCodes DNA takes seriously the trust you place in us. To prevent unauthorized access or disclosure, to maintain data accuracy, and to ensure the appropriate use of information, HealthCodes DNA uses a range of physical, technical, and administrative measures to safeguard your Personal Information. In particular, all connections to and from our website and mobile application are encrypted using Extended Validation Secure Socket Layer (EV SSL) technology.
Please recognize that protecting your Personal Information is also your responsibility. We ask you to be responsible for safeguarding your password, secret questions and answers, and other authentication information you use to access our Services. You should not disclose your authentication information to any third-party and should immediately notify HealthCodes DNA of any unauthorized use of your password. HealthCodes DNA cannot secure Personal Information that you release on your own or that you request us to release.
Your information collected through the Service may be stored and processed in the United States or any other country in which HealthCodes DNA or its subsidiaries, affiliates or service providers maintain facilities and, therefore, your information may be subject to the laws of those other jurisdictions which may be different from the laws of your country of residence.
- Business transactions
In the event that HealthCodes DNA goes through a business transition such as a merger, acquisition by another company, or sale of all or a portion of its assets, your information will likely be among the assets transferred. In such a case, your information would remain subject to the promises made in any pre-existing Privacy Statement.
- Linked websites
HealthCodes DNA provides links to third-party websites operated by organizations not affiliated with HealthCodes DNA. HealthCodes DNA does not disclose your information to organizations operating such linked third-party websites. HealthCodes DNA does not review or endorse, and is not responsible for, the privacy practices of these organizations. We encourage you to read the privacy statements of each and every website that you visit. This Privacy Statement applies solely to information collected by HealthCodes DNA.
- Children’s privacy
HealthCodes DNA is committed to protecting the privacy of children as well as adults. Neither HealthCodes DNA nor any of its Services are designed for, intended to attract, or directed toward children under the age of 18. A parent or guardian, however, may collect a saliva sample from, create an account for, and provide information related to, his or her child. The parent or guardian assumes full responsibility for ensuring that the information that he/she provides to HealthCodes DNA about his or her child is kept secure and that the information submitted is accurate.
- Changes to this Privacy Statement
Whenever this Privacy Statement is changed in a material way, a notice will be posted as part of this Privacy Statement and on our customers’ account login pages for 30 days. After 30 days the changes will become effective. In addition, all customers will receive an email with notification of the changes prior to the change becoming effective.
- Contact Information
If you have questions about this Privacy Statement, please email HealthCodes DNA at [email protected].
Terms of Service
- Definitions
a.”HealthCodes DNA” means HealthCodes DNA, LLC, whose principal place of business is at:
- 244 Madison Avenue, New York, NY 10016
b.”HealthCodes DNA Research” means scientific research that HealthCodes DNA performs with the intent to publish in a peer-reviewed scientific journal, and/or philanthropic and commercial research purposes. HealthCodes DNA Research only uses Genetic and Self-Reported Information from users who have given informed consent according to the applicable Consent Document.
c.”Product Development” means research performed for the purpose of new product development and new product development activities performed by HealthCodes DNA on de-identified user data. These activities may include, among other things, improving our Services and/or offering new products or services to you; performing quality control activities; conducting data analysis that may lead to and/or include commercialization with a third party.
d.”Service” or “Services” means HealthCodes DNA’s products, software, services, and website (including but not limited to text, graphics, images, and other material and information) as accessed from time to time by the user, regardless if the use is in connection with an account or not.
e.”Personal Information” is information that can be used to identify you, either alone or in combination with other information. HealthCodes DNA collects and stores the following types of Personal Information:
- “Registration Information”is the information you provide about yourself when registering for and/or purchasing our Services (e.g. name, email, address, user ID and password, and payment information).
g.”Genetic Information” is information regarding your genotype (e.g. the As, Ts, Cs, and Gs at particular locations in your genome), generated through processing of your saliva by HealthCodes DNA or by its contractors, successors, and assignees; or otherwise processed by and/or contributed to HealthCodes DNA.
h.”Self-Reported Information” is all information about yourself, including your disease conditions, other health-related information, personal traits, ethnicity, family history, and other information that you enter into surveys, forms, or features while signed in to your HealthCodes DNA account. Self-Reported Information is included in HealthCodes DNA Research only if it has been indicated for HealthCodes DNA Research use on the website and if you have given consent according to the applicable Consent Document.
i.”User Content” is all information, data, text, software, music, audio, photographs, graphics, video, messages, or other materials – other than Genetic Information and Self-Reported Information-generated by users of HealthCodes DNA Services and transmitted, whether publicly or privately, to or through HealthCodes DNA.
j.”Web Behavior Information” is information on how you use the HealthCodes DNA website (e.g. browser type, domains, page views) collected through log files, cookies, and web beacon technology.
k.”Aggregated Genetic and Self-Reported Information” is Genetic and Self-Reported Information that has been combined with that of other users and analyzed or evaluated as a whole, such that no specific individual may be reasonably identified.
- Acceptance of Terms
Your use of HealthCodes DNA’s Services (excluding any services provided by HealthCodes DNA under a separate agreement) is subject to the terms of the legal agreement between you and HealthCodes DNA set forth in these Terms of Service (“TOS”). Except as specified herein, these TOS apply to any use of the Services, including but not limited to: a) submitting a saliva sample for DNA extraction and processing and/or b) creating and using a free HealthCodes DNA account without providing your saliva sample or Genetic Information In order to use the Services, you must first agree to the TOS. You may not use the Services if you do not accept the TOS. You can accept the TOS by (1) clicking to accept or agree to the TOS, where this option is made available to you by HealthCodes DNA for any Service; or by (2) actually using the Services. In this case, you acknowledge and agree that HealthCodes DNA will treat your use of the Services as acceptance of the TOS from that point onwards. In addition, when using particular HealthCodes DNA Services, you shall be subject to any guidelines or rules applicable to such services that may be posted from time to time. All such guidelines or rules are hereby incorporated by reference into the TOS. HealthCodes DNA also may offer other services from time to time that are governed by different terms of service.
- Prerequisites
- Whether you submit your own saliva sample, a saliva sample for anyone for whom you have legal authority to agree, or otherwise provide your own Genetic Information, you may not use the Services and may not accept the TOS if (1) you are not of legal age to form a binding contract with HealthCodes DNA, or (2) you are a person barred from receiving the Services under the laws of the jurisdiction in which you are resident or from which you use the Services.
- If your use of the Services includes creating a HealthCodes DNA account, without submitting a saliva sample or otherwise providing Genetic Information, you must be eighteen (18) years of age or older to use the Services and accept the TOS.
- Description of the Services
The Services include access to the HealthCodes DNA public website and personal genotyping services, including the collection and analysis of your saliva sample. Unless explicitly stated otherwise, each new feature that augments or enhances the current Service shall be subject to the TOS. You acknowledge and agree that the Services are provided “AS-IS” and are based on the current state of the art of genetic research and technology in use by HealthCodes DNA at the time of the purchase or viewing. As research progresses and scientific knowledge and technology evolve, HealthCodes DNA is constantly innovating in order to provide the best possible experience for its users. You acknowledge and agree that the form and nature of the Services which HealthCodes DNA provides may change from time to time without prior notice to you. As part of this continuing innovation, you acknowledge and agree that HealthCodes DNA may stop (permanently or temporarily) providing some Services (or any features within the Services) to you or to users generally at HealthCodes DNA’s sole discretion, without prior notice to you. You may stop using the Services at any time. You do not need to specifically inform HealthCodes DNA when you stop using the Services.
In order to use the Services, you must obtain Internet access, either directly or through devices that access web-based content, and pay any service fees associated with such access. You are solely responsible for paying such fees. In addition, you must provide all equipment necessary to make such Internet connection, including a computer and modem or other access device. You are solely responsible for providing such equipment. You acknowledge and agree that while HealthCodes DNA may not currently have set a fixed upper limit on the number of transmissions you may send or receive through the Services or on the amount of storage space used for the provision of any Service, such fixed upper limits may be set by HealthCodes DNA at any time, at HealthCodes DNA’s discretion.
- Risks and Considerations Regarding HealthCodes DNA Services
Once you obtain your Genetic Information, the knowledge is irrevocable. You should not assume that any information we may be able to provide to you, whether now or as genetic research advances, will be welcome or positive. You should also understand that as research advances, in order for you to assess the meaning of your DNA in the context of such advances, you may need to obtain further services from HealthCodes DNA, your physician, a genetic counselor, or other health care provider.
We encourage you to talk to a genetic counselor, a health professional with special training in genetic conditions, prior to collecting your sample for testing to learn more so you can make an informed decision about whether testing is right for you. A genetic counselor also can help you understand your results and options.
Some people feel a little anxious about getting genetic health results. This is normal. If you feel very anxious, you should speak to your physician or a genetic counselor prior to collecting your sample for testing.
You may learn information about yourself that you do not anticipate. This information may evoke strong emotions and has the potential to alter your life and worldview. You may discover things about yourself that trouble you and that you may not have the ability to control or change (e.g., your father is not genetically your father, surprising facts related to your ancestry, or that someone with your genotype may have a higher than average chance of developing a specific condition or disease). These outcomes could have social, legal, or economic implications.
The laboratory may not be able to process your sample, and the laboratory process may result in errors. The laboratory may not be able to process your sample a small percentage of the time if your saliva does not contain a sufficient volume of DNA, you do not provide enough saliva, or the results from processing do not meet generally accepted standards for accuracy. If the initial processing fails for any of these reasons, HealthCodes DNA will reprocess the same sample at no charge to the user. If the second attempt to process the same sample fails, HealthCodes DNA will offer to send another kit to the user to collect a second sample at no charge. If the user sends another sample and HealthCodes DNA’s attempts to process the second sample are unsuccessful, HealthCodes DNA will not send additional sample collection kits and the user will be entitled solely and exclusively to a complete refund of the amount paid to HealthCodes DNA, provided, however, that any claim for refund must be received by HealthCodes DNA within sixty (60) calendar days from the date you were notified that the second sample was also insufficient, and further provided the user shall not resubmit another sample through a future purchase of the service. If the user breaches this policy agreement and resubmits another sample through a future purchase of the service and processing is not successful, HealthCodes DNA will not offer to reprocess the sample or provide the user a refund. Even for processing that meets our high standards, a small, unknown fraction of the data generated during the laboratory process may be un-interpretable or incorrect (referred to as “Errors”). As this possibility is known in advance, users are not entitled to refunds where these Errors occur.
You should not change your health behaviors solely on the basis of information from HealthCodes DNA. Make sure to discuss your Genetic Information with a physician or other health care or fitness professional before you act upon the Genetic Information resulting from HealthCodes DNA Services. For most common diseases, the genes we know about are only responsible for a small fraction of the risk. There may be unknown genes, environmental factors, or lifestyle choices that are far more important predictors. If your data indicate that you are not at elevated genetic risk for a particular disease or condition, you should not feel that you are protected. The opposite is also true; if your data indicate you are at an elevated genetic risk for a particular disease or condition, it does not mean you will definitively develop the disease or condition. In either case, if you have concerns or questions about what you learn through HealthCodes DNA, you should contact your physician or other health care or fitness professional. Please note that genetic risk assessment is not applicable to results of carrier screening tests.
Genetic research is not comprehensive. While we measure many hundreds of thousands of data points from your DNA, only a small percentage of them are known to be related to human traits or health conditions. The research community is rapidly learning more about genetics, and an important mission of HealthCodes DNA is to conduct and contribute to this research. In addition, many ethnic groups are not included in genetic studies. Because interpretations provided in our service rely on these published studies, some interpretations may not apply to you. Future scientific research may change the interpretation of your DNA. In the future, the scientific community may show previous research to be incomplete or inaccurate.
Genetic Information you share with others could be used against your interests. You should be careful about sharing your Genetic Information with others. Currently, very few businesses or insurance companies request genetic information, but this could change in the future. While the Genetic Information Nondiscrimination Act was signed into law in the United States in 2008, its protection against discrimination by employers and health insurance companies for employment and coverage issues has not been clearly established. In addition, GINA does not cover life, long-term care, or disability insurance providers. Some, but not all, states and other jurisdictions have laws that protect individuals with regard to their Genetic Information. You may want to consult a lawyer to understand the extent of legal protection of your Genetic Information before you share it with anybody.
Furthermore, Genetic Information that you choose to share with your physician or other health care or fitness professional may become part of your medical record and through that route be accessible to other health care providers and/or insurance companies in the future. Genetic Information that you share with family, friends or employers may be used against your interests. Even if you share Genetic Information that has no or limited meaning today, that information could have greater meaning in the future as new discoveries are made. If you are asked by an insurance company whether you have learned Genetic Information about health conditions and you do not disclose this to them, this may be considered to be fraud.
HealthCodes DNA Services are for research, informational, and educational use only. We do not provide medical advice. The Genetic Information provided by HealthCodes DNA is for research, informational, and educational use only. Many of the genetic discoveries that we report have not been clinically validated, and the technology we use, which is the same technology used by the research community, to date has not been widely used for clinical testing. As a result of the current state of genetic knowledge and understanding, our Services are for research, informational, and educational purposes only. The Services are not intended to be used by the customer for any diagnostic purpose and are not a substitute for professional medical advice. You should always seek the advice of your physician or other health care or fitness professional with any questions you may have regarding diagnosis, cure, treatment, mitigation, or prevention of any disease or other medical condition or impairment or the status of your health.
HealthCodes DNA does not endorse, warranty or guarantee the effectiveness of any specific course of action, resources, tests, physician or other health care or fitness professionals, drugs, biologics, medical devices or other products, procedures, opinions, or other information that may be mentioned on our website. If we provide to you on our website any recommendations that identify for you, based on your Genetic and Self-Reported Information and scientific literature or research, potentially actionable information, this information is intended for informational purposes only and for discussion with your physician or other healthcare provider. As explained on our website, HealthCodes DNA believes that (a) genetics is only part of the picture of any individual’s state of being, (b) the state of the understanding of Genetic Information is rapidly evolving and at any given time we only comprehend part of the picture of the role of genetics, and (c) only a trained physician or other health care or fitness professional can assess your current state of health or disease, taking into account many factors, including in some cases your genetics as well as your current symptoms, if any. Reliance on any information provided by HealthCodes DNA, HealthCodes DNA employees, others appearing on our website at the invitation of HealthCodes DNA, or other visitors to our website is solely at your own risk.
We and/or our third party providers will only provide services in states in which we and/or they are properly licensed. Accordingly, there may be circumstances in which we are unable to process samples from a particular jurisdiction.
- User Representations
By accessing HealthCodes DNA Services, you agree to, acknowledge, and represent as follows:
- You understand that information you learn from HealthCodes DNA is not designed to independently diagnose, prevent, or treat any condition or disease or to ascertain the state of your health in the absence of medical and clinical information. You understand that the HealthCodes DNA services are intended for research, informational, and educational purposes only, and that while HealthCodes DNA information might point to a diagnosis or to a possible treatment, it should always be confirmed and supplemented by additional medical and clinical testing and information. You acknowledge that HealthCodes DNA urges you to seek the advice of your physician or other health care or fitness professional if you have questions or concerns arising from your Genetic Information.
- You give permission to HealthCodes DNA, its contractors, successors and assignees to perform genotyping services on the DNA extracted from your saliva sample and you specifically request HealthCodes DNA to disclose the results of analyses performed on your DNA to you and to others you specifically authorize.
- You represent that you are eighteen (18) years of age or older if you are providing a saliva sample. Or, if you are under eighteen (18) years of age and providing a saliva sample, you have a HealthCodes DNA Consent for Minors Form validly executed by a parent/guardian.
- You are guaranteeing that any sample you provide is your saliva; if you are agreeing to these TOS on behalf of a person for whom you have legal authorization, you are confirming that the sample provided will be the sample of that person.
- If you are a customer outside the U.S. providing a saliva sample, you confirm that this act is not subject to any export ban or restriction in the country in which you reside.
- You agree that any saliva sample you provide and all resulting data may be transferred and/or processed outside the country in which you reside.
- You are warranting that you are not an insurance company or an employer attempting to obtain information about an insured person or an employee.
- You are aware that some of the information you receive may provoke strong emotion.
- You take responsibility for all possible consequences resulting from your sharing with others access to your Genetic Information and your Self-Reported Information.
- You understand that all your Personal Information will be stored in HealthCodes DNA databases and will be processed in accordance with the HealthCodes DNA Privacy Statement.
- Waiver of Property Rights: You understand that by providing any sample, having your Genetic Information processed, accessing your Genetic Information, or providing Self-Reported Information, you acquire no rights in any research or commercial products that may be developed by HealthCodes DNA or its collaborating partners. You specifically understand that you will not receive compensation for any research or commercial products that include or result from your Genetic Information or Self-Reported Information.
You agree that you have the authority, under the laws of the state or jurisdiction in which you reside, to provide these representations. In case of breach of any one of these representations HealthCodes DNA has the right to suspend or terminate your account and refuse any and all current or future use of the Services (or any portion thereof) and you will defend and indemnify HealthCodes DNA and its affiliates against any liability, costs, or damages arising out of the breach of the representation.
- Account Creation, Customer Account, Password, and Security Obligations
In consideration of your use of the Services, you agree to: (a) provide true, accurate, current, and complete Registration Information about yourself as prompted by the Service; and (b) maintain and promptly update the Registration Information to keep it true, accurate, current, and complete. If you provide any Registration Information that is untrue, inaccurate, not current, or incomplete, or if HealthCodes DNA has a reasonable ground to suspect that such information is untrue, inaccurate, not current, or incomplete, HealthCodes DNA has the right to suspend or terminate your account and refuse any and all current or future use of the Service (or any portion thereof). The Services are for use only in the country to which your sample collection kit was shipped from HealthCodes DNA.
After you elect to use our Service, you will create a password and account designation. You are responsible for maintaining the confidentiality of the password and account, and are fully responsible for all activities that occur under your password or account. If you allow third parties to access HealthCodes DNA’s website through your username and password, you will defend and indemnify HealthCodes DNA and its affiliates against any liability, costs, or damages, including attorney fees, arising out of claims or suits by such third parties based upon or relating to such access and use. You agree to (a) immediately notify HealthCodes DNA of any unauthorized use of your password or account or any other breach of security, and (b) ensure that you exit from your account at the end of each session. HealthCodes DNA cannot and will not be liable for any loss or damage arising from your failure to comply with this Section.
- HealthCodes DNA Privacy Statement and Disclosure of Information
In order to use the Services, you must first acknowledge and agree to the Privacy Statement. You may not use the Services if you do not accept the Privacy Statement. You can acknowledge and agree to the Privacy Statement by (1) clicking to accept or agree to the Privacy Statement, where this option is made available to you by HealthCodes DNA for any Service; or by (2) actually using the Services.
You acknowledge and agree that HealthCodes DNA has the right to monitor any use of its systems by its personnel at any time and maintain copies documenting such monitoring. Our Privacy Statement sets forth the only expectations of privacy any individual should have in terms of usage of the HealthCodes DNA Services, website, or other systems. If you have given consent for your Genetic Information and Self-Reported Information to be used in HealthCodes DNA Research as described in the applicable Consent Document, we may include your information in the Aggregated Genetic Information and Self-Reported Information we disclose to third parties for the purpose of publication in a peer-reviewed scientific journal. HealthCodes DNA may also include your information in Aggregated Genetic and Self-Reported Information disclosed to third-party non-profit and/or commercial research partners who will not publish that information in a peer-reviewed scientific journal. HealthCodes DNA Research may be sponsored by, conducted on behalf of, or in collaboration with third parties, such as non-profit foundations, academic institutions or pharmaceutical companies. HealthCodes DNA Research may study a specific group or population, identify potential areas or targets for therapeutics development, conduct or support the development of drugs, diagnostics or devices to diagnose, predict or treat medical or other health conditions, work with public, private and/or non-profit entities on genetic research initiatives, or otherwise create, commercialize, and apply this new knowledge to improve health care. HealthCodes DNA will never release your individual-level Genetic Information and/or Self-Reported Information to any third party without asking for and receiving your explicit consent to do so, unless required by law.
Further, you acknowledge and agree that HealthCodes DNA is free to preserve and disclose any and all Personal Information to law enforcement agencies or others if required to do so by law or in the good faith belief that such preservation or disclosure is reasonably necessary to: (a) comply with legal process (such as a judicial proceeding, court order, or government inquiry) or obligations that HealthCodes DNA may owe pursuant to ethical and other professional rules, laws, and regulations; (b) enforce the HealthCodes DNA TOS; (c) respond to claims that any content violates the rights of third parties; or (d) protect the rights, property, or personal safety of HealthCodes DNA, its employees, its users, its clients, and the public. In such event we will notify you through the contact information you have provided to us in advance, unless doing so would violate the law or a court order. You understand that the technical processing and transmission of the Services, including your Personal Information, may involve (a) transmissions over various networks; and (b) changes to conform and adapt to technical requirements of connecting networks, or devices. Finally, HealthCodes DNA may, in its sole discretion, restrict access to the website for any reason.
Please refer to our Privacy Statement to read about data protection related to your information.
- Limited License
You acknowledge that all User Content, whether publicly posted or privately transmitted, is the sole responsibility of the person from which such User Content originated. This means that you, and not HealthCodes DNA, are entirely responsible for all User Content that you upload, post, email, or otherwise transmit via the Service
You acknowledge that the Services content presented to you as part of the Services, whether original HealthCodes DNA Services content or sponsored content within the Services, is protected by copyright and/or other intellectual property rights that are owned by HealthCodes DNA and/or the sponsors who provide that content to HealthCodes DNA (or by other persons or companies on their behalf). HealthCodes DNA grants you a Limited License to copy and distribute free of charge, for non-commercial purposes only, any of the Services content with the exception of content marked as not subject to this Limited License on the website, provided you: (i) provide the Services content as it appears on the HealthCodes DNA website with no changes including but not limited to presenting selections which might tend to misrepresent the substance of the Services content; (ii) include the following attribution on the first page of any materials you distribute: © HealthCodes DNA, LLC 2018. All rights reserved; distributed pursuant to a Limited License from HealthCodes DNA; (iii) agree you have no right to offer anyone else any further right with respect to this Services content. Aside from the Limited License provided in this paragraph, you may not modify, rent, lease, loan, sell, distribute, or create derivative works based on this Services content (either in whole or in part) unless you have been specifically told that you may do so by HealthCodes DNA or by the owners of that content, in a separate agreement.
- Customer Conduct – Unlawful and Prohibited Use
As a condition of your use of the Services, you warrant to HealthCodes DNA that you will not use the Services for any purpose that is unlawful or prohibited by these terms, conditions, or notices. You may not use the Services in any manner that could damage, disable, overburden, or impair the Services or interfere with any other party’s use and enjoyment of the Services. You may not obtain or attempt to obtain any materials or information through any means not intentionally made available or provided for through the Services. You may not use the Services outside of the country to which your sample collection kit was shipped from HealthCodes DNA. Furthermore you agree not to use the Services to: (1) upload, post, email, or otherwise transmit any material that is derogatory, defamatory, obscene, or offensive, such as slurs, epithets, or anything that might reasonably be construed as harassment or disparagement based on race, color, national origin, sex, sexual orientation, age, disability, religious or political beliefs, or other statutorily protected status; (2) impersonate any person or entity, including, but not limited to, anyone affiliated with HealthCodes DNA, or falsely state or otherwise misrepresent your affiliation with a person or entity; (3) add your own headers, forge headers, or otherwise manipulate identifiers in order to disguise the origin of any content transmitted through the Service; (4) “stalk” or otherwise harass another; (5) upload, post, email, or otherwise transmit any content that you do not have a right to transmit under any law or under contractual or fiduciary relationships (such as inside information, proprietary and confidential information learned or disclosed as part of employment relationships or under nondisclosure agreements); (6) use any information received through the Services to attempt to identify other customers, to contact other customers (other than through features for contacting other users such as DNA Relatives offered pursuant to the Services), or for any forensic use; (7) download any file posted by another user of the Service that you know, or reasonably should know, cannot legally be distributed in such manner; (8) upload, post, email or otherwise transmit any content that infringes any patent, trademark, trade secret, copyright, or other proprietary rights (“Rights”) of HealthCodes DNA or any other party; (9) harm minors in any way; (10) advertise or offer to sell or buy any goods or services for any business purpose, unless such area specifically allows such messages; (11) upload, post, email, or otherwise transmit any unsolicited or unauthorized advertising, promotional materials, “junk mail,” “spam,” “chain letters,” “pyramid schemes,” or any other form of solicitation, except in those areas that are designated for such purpose and only to the extent such content is authorized by law; (12) upload, post, email, or otherwise transmit any material that contains software viruses or any other computer code, files, or programs designed to interrupt, destroy, or limit the functionality of any computer software or hardware or telecommunications equipment; (13) use manual or automated software, devices, scripts robots, other means or processes to access, “scrape,” “crawl” or “spider” any web pages or other services contained in the site, unless explicitly permitted by HealthCodes DNA; (14) engage in “framing,” “mirroring,” or otherwise simulating the appearance or function of HealthCodes DNA’s website; (15) attempt to or actually override any security component of HealthCodes DNA web services; (16) interfere with or disrupt the Service or servers or networks connected to the Service, or disobey any requirements, procedures, policies, or regulations of networks connected to the Service; (17) violate these Terms of Service, any code of conduct or other guidelines which may be applicable for any particular area of the Service or have been communicated to you by anyone affiliated with HealthCodes DNA; (18) intentionally or unintentionally violate any applicable local, state, national, or international law, any regulations having the force of law; or (19) engage in our services to try to replicate our services.
You acknowledge and agree that you are solely responsible for (and that HealthCodes DNA has no responsibility to you or to any third party for) any breach of your obligations under the TOS and for the consequences (including any loss or damage which HealthCodes DNA may suffer) of any such breach. In case of breach of any one of these agreements HealthCodes DNA has the right to suspend or terminate your account and refuse any and all current or future use of the Services (or any portion thereof) and you will defend and indemnify HealthCodes DNA and its affiliates against any liability, costs, or damages arising out of the breach of the representation.
If you violate the terms of this Section and/or HealthCodes DNA has a reasonable ground to suspect that you have violated the terms of this Section, HealthCodes DNA has the right to suspend or terminate your account and refuse any and all current or future use of the Service (or any portion thereof).
- Export Control and Applicable Laws and Regulations
Recognizing the global nature of the Internet, you agree to comply with all local rules regarding online conduct and acceptable content. Specifically, you agree 1) that providing your sample is not subject to any export ban or restriction in the country in which you reside, 2) that your sample and data may be transferred and/or processed outside the country in which you reside, and 3) that you will comply with all applicable laws regarding the transmission of technical data exported from the United States or the country from which you access HealthCodes DNA’s Services online.
- Material Posted Through The Service
HealthCodes DNA will not, at all times, control any of the User Content posted via the Service and, as such, does not guarantee the accuracy, integrity, or quality of such non-HealthCodes DNA content. You understand that by using the Services, you may be exposed to content that is offensive, indecent, or objectionable. Under no circumstances will HealthCodes DNA be liable in any way for any non-HealthCodes DNA content, including, but not limited to, any errors or omissions in any such content, or for any loss or damage of any kind incurred as a result of the use of any such content posted, emailed, or otherwise transmitted via the Services.
You acknowledge that HealthCodes DNA and its designees shall have the right (but not the obligation) in their sole discretion to pre-screen, review, filter, modify, refuse, or move any content that is available via the Services. Without limiting the foregoing, HealthCodes DNA and its designees shall have the right to remove any content that violates the TOS or is deemed by HealthCodes DNA, in its sole discretion, to be otherwise objectionable. You acknowledge and agree that you must evaluate, and bear all risks associated with, the use of any content, including any reliance on the accuracy, completeness, or usefulness of such content.
- Material Provided to HealthCodes DNA – Your Proprietary Rights
User Content. HealthCodes DNA does not claim ownership of the User Content you provide to HealthCodes DNA (including feedback and suggestions) or post, upload, input, or submit to the Service. Unless otherwise specified, you retain copyright and any other rights you already hold over User Content that you create and submit, post, or display on or through the Services. However, by submitting, posting, or displaying User Content, you give HealthCodes DNA, its affiliated companies, sublicensees (including but not limited to sublicensees who avail themselves of the Limited License granted in Section 9 above) and successors and assigns a perpetual, irrevocable, worldwide, royalty-free, and non-exclusive license to reproduce, adapt, modify, translate, publish, publicly perform, publicly display, distribute, reproduce, edit, reformat, and create derivative works from any User Content that you submit, post, or display on or through the Services. You acknowledge and agree that this license includes a right for HealthCodes DNA to make such User Content available to other companies, organizations, or individuals with whom HealthCodes DNA has relationships, and to use such User Content in connection with the provision of those services.
You understand that HealthCodes DNA, in performing the required technical steps to provide the Services to our users, may (a) transmit or distribute your User Content over various public networks and in various media; and (b) make such changes to your content as are necessary to conform and adapt that content to the technical requirements of connecting networks, devices, services, or media. You acknowledge and agree that this license shall permit HealthCodes DNA to take these actions. You represent and warrant to HealthCodes DNA that you have all the rights, power, and authority necessary to grant the above license.
Genetic and/or Self-Reported Information. Disclosure of individual-level Genetic and/or Self-Reported Information to third parties will not occur without explicit consent, unless required by law. Note that HealthCodes DNA cannot control any further distribution of Genetic and/or Self-Reported Information that you share publicly on the HealthCodes DNA website. You acknowledge and agree that you are responsible for protecting and enforcing those rights and that HealthCodes DNA has no obligation to do so on your behalf.
Your saliva sample, once submitted to and analyzed by us, is processed in an irreversible manner and cannot be returned to you. See our website for more information on sample processing. Any Genetic Information derived from your saliva remains your information, subject to rights we retain as set forth in these TOS. You understand that you should not expect any financial benefit from HealthCodes DNA as a result of having your Genetic Information processed or any report generated through the use of our services, or as provided in our Privacy Statement and Terms of Service, shared with or included in Aggregated Genetic and Self-Reported Information shared with research partners, including commercial partners.
Waiver of Property Rights. As stated above, you understand that by providing any sample, having your Genetic Information processed, accessing your Genetic Information, or providing Self-Reported Information, you acquire no rights in any research or commercial products that may be developed by HealthCodes DNA or its collaborating partners. You specifically understand that you will not receive compensation for any research or commercial products that include or result from your Genetic Information or Self-Reported Information.
- Indemnity
You agree to defend and hold HealthCodes DNA, and its subsidiaries, affiliates, officers, agents, contractors, partners, employees, successors, and assigns harmless from any claim, or demand, including reasonable attorneys’ fees, made by any third party due to or arising out of User Content you submit, post to, or transmit through the Service; your use of the Service; your connection to the Service; your violation of the TOS; or your violation of any rights of another.
If you have submitted a saliva sample, you will defend and hold harmless HealthCodes DNA, its employees, contractors, successors, and assigns from any liability arising out of the use or disclosure of any information obtained from genotyping your saliva sample and/or analyzing your Genetic Information, which is disclosed to you consistent with our Privacy Statement or results from any third-party add-ons to tools we provide. In addition, if you choose to provide your Genetic and/or Self-Reported Information to third parties – whether individuals to whom you facilitate access, intentionally or inadvertently, or to third parties for diagnostic or other purposes – you agree to defend and hold harmless HealthCodes DNA, its employees, contractors, successors, and assigns from any and all liability arising from such disclosure or use of your Genetic and/or Self-Reported Information.
- No Resale of Service
Other than pursuant to the terms of the Limited License in Section 9 of this TOS or unless otherwise agreed in a separate agreement between you and HealthCodes DNA, you agree not to display, distribute, license, perform, publish, reproduce, duplicate, copy, create derivative works from, modify, sell, resell, exploit, transfer, or transmit for any commercial purposes, all or any portion of the Service, use of the Service, or access to the Service.
- General Practices Regarding Use and Storage
You acknowledge that HealthCodes DNA may establish general practices and limits concerning use of the Services, including without limitation the maximum number of days that Personal Information and Services content will be retained by the Service, the maximum disk space that will be allotted on HealthCodes DNA’s servers on your behalf, and the maximum number of times (and the maximum duration for which) you may access the Services in a given period of time. You acknowledge and agree that HealthCodes DNA has no responsibility or liability for the deletion of or failure to store any messages, other communications, or other content maintained or transmitted by the Services; or for the loss of Genetic Information due to malfunction or destruction of data servers or other catastrophic events. You further acknowledge that HealthCodes DNA reserves the right to change these general practices and limits in its sole discretion.
- Modifications to Service
HealthCodes DNA reserves the right at any time and from time to time to modify or discontinue, temporarily or permanently, the Services (or any part thereof) with or without notice. You acknowledge and agree that (i) modifications may result in a delay in computations for some of the HealthCodes DNA features or Services, and (ii) HealthCodes DNA shall not be liable to you or to any third party for any modification, suspension, or discontinuance of the Services.
The Software that you use may from time to time automatically download and install updates from HealthCodes DNA. These updates are designed to improve, enhance, and further develop the Services and may take the form of bug fixes, enhanced functions, new software modules, and completely new versions. You agree to receive such updates (and permit HealthCodes DNA to deliver these to you) as part of your use of the Services.
You acknowledge that HealthCodes DNA may offer different or additional technologies or features to collect and/or interpret Genetic Information in the future and that your initial purchase of the Service does not entitle you to any different or additional technologies or features for collection or interpretation of your Genetic Information without fee, and that you will have to pay additional fees in order to have your Genetic Information collected, processed, and/or interpreted using any future or additional technologies or features.
- Termination
The TOS will continue to apply until terminated by either you or HealthCodes DNA as set out in this Section.
If you want to terminate your legal agreement, i.e., your account, with HealthCodes DNA, you may do so by notifying HealthCodes DNA at any time in writing, which will entail closing your accounts for all of the Services that you use. Your notice should be sent, in writing, to HealthCodes DNA’s address, which is set out at the beginning of the TOS, or online via [email protected] If you provide notice online, HealthCodes DNA will send you an email asking you to confirm your request, and your notice will be effective following receipt of a second email confirmation from you.
HealthCodes DNA may at any time, terminate its legal agreement with you (and in conjunction therewith, your password and account(s)) if: (1) you have breached any provision of the TOS (or have acted in manner which shows that you do not intend to, or are unable to comply with, the provisions of the TOS); (2) HealthCodes DNA is required to do so by law (for example, where the provision of the Services to you is, or becomes, unlawful); (3) the partner with whom HealthCodes DNA offered the Services to you has terminated its relationship with HealthCodes DNA or ceased to offer the Services to you; (4) HealthCodes DNA is transitioning to no longer providing the Services to users in the country or state in which you reside or from which you use the Services; or (5) the provision of the Services to you by HealthCodes DNA is, in HealthCodes DNA’s opinion, no longer commercially viable.
Any suspected fraudulent, abusive, or illegal activity that may be grounds for termination of your use of the Services may be referred to appropriate law enforcement authorities. You acknowledge and agree that HealthCodes DNA shall not be liable to you or any third party for any termination of your access to the Services.
- Survival of Terms
When the TOS come to an end, all of the legal rights, obligations, and liabilities that you and HealthCodes DNA have benefited from, been subject to (or which have accrued over time while the TOS have been in force) or which are expressed to continue indefinitely, shall be unaffected by this cessation, and the provisions of sections 1.(Definitions); 2.(Acceptance of Terms); 3.(Prerequisites); 4.(Description of the Services); 5.(Risks and Considerations Regarding HealthCodes DNA Services); 6.(User Representations); 7.(Account Creation, Customer Account, Password and Security Obligations); 8.(HealthCodes DNA Privacy Statement and Disclosure of Information); 10.(Customer Conduct – Unlawful and Prohibited Use); 11.(Export Control and Applicable Laws and Regulations); 12.(Material Posted through the Service); 13.(Material Provided to HealthCodes DNA – Your Proprietary Rights); 14.(Indemnity); 15.(No Resale of Services); 18.(Termination); 19.(Survival of Terms); 20.(Dealings with Information Providers and Listed Resources); 21.(Hyperlinks and HealthCodes DNA Website); 22.(HealthCodes DNA Proprietary Rights); 23.(DISCLAIMER OF WARRANTIES); 24.(LIMITATION OF LIABILITY); 25.(Notice); 27.(Violation or Suspected Violation of Terms of Service); and 28.(Miscellaneous) shall continue to apply to such rights, obligations, and liabilities indefinitely.
- Dealings with Information Providers and Listed Resources
Your correspondence or business dealings with-or participation in promotions of-information providers, vendors, and/or resources found on or through the Service, including payment and delivery of related goods or services, and any other terms, conditions, warranties, or representations associated with such dealings, are solely between you and such information provider or resource. You acknowledge and agree that HealthCodes DNA shall not be responsible or liable for any loss or damage of any sort incurred as the result of any such dealings or as the result of the presence of such information provider or resources on the Service.
- Hyperlinks and the HealthCodes DNA Website
The Service provides, and third parties may provide, links to other sites and resources on the Internet. Because HealthCodes DNA has no control over such sites and resources, you acknowledge and agree that HealthCodes DNA is not responsible for the availability of such external sites or resources, and does not endorse and is not responsible or liable for any content, advertising, products, or other materials on or available from such sites or resources. You further acknowledge and agree that HealthCodes DNA shall not be responsible or liable, directly or indirectly, for any damage or loss caused or alleged to be caused by or in connection with use of or reliance on any such content, goods, or services available on or through any such hyperlinked site or resource.
- HealthCodes DNA’s Proprietary Rights
You acknowledge and agree that HealthCodes DNA (or HealthCodes DNA’s licensors, as applicable) own all legal right, title, and interest in and to the Services, including any intellectual property rights (including but not limited to patents) which subsist in the Services (whether those rights happen to be registered or not, and wherever in the world those rights may exist). You further acknowledge that the Services may contain information which is designated confidential by HealthCodes DNA and that you shall not disclose such information without HealthCodes DNA’s prior written consent.
You further acknowledge and agree that the Services and any necessary software used in connection with the Services (“Software”) contain proprietary and confidential information that is protected by applicable intellectual property and other laws. You further acknowledge and agree that information presented to you through the Services or sponsors is protected by copyrights, trademarks, service marks, patents, or other proprietary rights and laws. Except as expressly authorized by HealthCodes DNA, you agree not to-and not to permit anyone else to-modify, rent, lease, loan, sell, distribute, or create derivative works of, reverse engineer, decompile, or otherwise attempt to extract the source code of the Services or Software or any part thereof, in whole or in part. Software, if any, that is made available to download from the Services, excluding software that may be made available by end-users through the Services, is the copyrighted work of HealthCodes DNA and/or its suppliers. Your use of the Software is governed by the terms of the end user license agreement, if any, which accompanies or is included with the Software (“License Agreement”). You may not install or use any Software that is accompanied by or includes a License Agreement unless you first agree to the License Agreement terms.
HealthCodes DNA, LLC, HealthCodes DNA, and other HealthCodes DNA logos and product and service names are trademarks of HealthCodes DNA and these marks together with any other HealthCodes DNA trade names, service marks, logos, domain names, and other distinctive brand features are the “HealthCodes DNA Marks”. Unless you have agreed otherwise in writing with HealthCodes DNA, other than through the Limited License in Section 9, nothing in the TOS gives you a right to use any HealthCodes DNA Marks and you agree not to display, or use in any manner, HealthCodes DNA Marks.
You agree that you shall not remove, obscure, or alter any proprietary rights notices (including copyright and trade mark notices) that may be affixed to or contained within the Services.
Unless you have been expressly authorized to do so in writing by HealthCodes DNA, you agree that in using the Services, you will not use any trade mark, service mark, trade name, logo of any company or organization in a way that is likely or intended to cause confusion about the owner or authorized user of such marks, names, or logos.
For any Software not accompanied by a License Agreement, HealthCodes DNA grants you a personal, non-transferable, and non-exclusive right and license to use the object code of its Software on a single computer. You may not (and may not allow any third party to) copy, modify, create a derivative work of, reverse engineer, reverse assemble, or otherwise attempt to discover any source code, sell, assign, sublicense, grant a security interest in, or otherwise transfer any right in the Software unless this is expressly permitted or required by law, or unless you have been specifically told that you may do so by HealthCodes DNA, in writing. This license is for the sole purpose of enabling you to use and enjoy the benefit of the Services as provided by HealthCodes DNA, in the manner permitted by the TOS. Unless HealthCodes DNA has given you specific written permission to do so, you may not assign (or grant a sublicense of) your rights to use the Software, grant a security interest in or over your rights to use the Software, or otherwise transfer any part of your rights to use the Software. You agree not to modify the Software in any manner or form, or to use modified versions of the Software, including (without limitation) for the purpose of obtaining unauthorized access to the Service. You agree not to access the Service by any means other than through the interface that is provided by HealthCodes DNA for use in accessing the Service. Any rights not expressly granted herein are reserved.
- Disclaimer of Warranties
YOU EXPRESSLY ACKNOWLEDGE AND AGREE THAT: (1) YOUR USE OF THE SERVICES ARE AT YOUR SOLE RISK. THE SERVICES ARE PROVIDED ON AN “AS IS” AND “AS AVAILABLE” BASIS. HealthCodes DNA EXPRESSLY DISCLAIMS ALL WARRANTIES OF ANY KIND, WHETHER EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, INCLUDING, BUT NOT LIMITED TO, THE IMPLIED WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY, FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE, AND NON-INFRINGEMENT. (2) HealthCodes DNA MAKES NO WARRANTY THAT (a) THE SERVICES WILL MEET YOUR REQUIREMENTS; (b) THE SERVICES WILL BE UNINTERRUPTED, TIMELY, UNFAILINGLY SECURE, OR ERROR-FREE; (c) THE RESULTS THAT MAY BE OBTAINED FROM THE USE OF THE SERVICES WILL BE ACCURATE OR RELIABLE; (d) THE QUALITY OF ANY PRODUCTS, SERVICES, INFORMATION, OR OTHER MATERIAL PURCHASED OR OBTAINED BY YOU THROUGH THE SERVICES WILL MEET YOUR EXPECTATIONS AND (e) ANY ERRORS IN THE SOFTWARE WILL BE CORRECTED. (3) ANY MATERIAL DOWNLOADED OR OTHERWISE OBTAINED THROUGH THE USE OF THE SERVICES IS DONE AT YOUR OWN DISCRETION AND RISK AND THAT YOU WILL BE SOLELY RESPONSIBLE FOR ANY DAMAGE TO YOUR COMPUTER SYSTEM OR LOSS OF DATA THAT RESULTS FROM THE DOWNLOAD OF ANY SUCH MATERIAL. (4) NO ADVICE OR INFORMATION, WHETHER ORAL OR WRITTEN, OBTAINED BY YOU FROM HealthCodes DNA OR THROUGH OR FROM THE SERVICES SHALL CREATE ANY WARRANTY NOT EXPRESSLY STATED IN THE TOS. (5) YOU SHOULD ALWAYS USE CAUTION WHEN GIVING OUT ANY PERSONALLY IDENTIFYING INFORMATION ABOUT YOURSELF OR THOSE FOR WHOM YOU HAVE LEGAL AUTHORITY. HealthCodes DNA DOES NOT CONTROL OR ENDORSE ANY ACTIONS RESULTING FROM YOUR PARTICIPATION IN THE SERVICES AND, THEREFORE, HealthCodes DNA SPECIFICALLY DISCLAIMS ANY LIABILITY WITH REGARD TO ANY ACTIONS RESULTING FROM YOUR PARTICIPATION IN THE SERVICES.
- Limitation of Liability
WITHIN THE LIMITS ALLOWED BY APPLICABLE LAWS, YOU EXPRESSLY ACKNOWLEDGE AND AGREE THAT HealthCodes DNA SHALL NOT BE LIABLE FOR ANY DIRECT, INDIRECT, INCIDENTAL, SPECIAL, CONSEQUENTIAL, OR EXEMPLARY DAMAGES, INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED TO, DAMAGES FOR LOSS OF PROFITS, GOODWILL, USE, DATA OR OTHER INTANGIBLE LOSSES (EVEN IF HealthCodes DNA HAS BEEN ADVISED OF THE POSSIBILITY OF SUCH DAMAGES), RESULTING FROM: (a) THE USE OR THE INABILITY TO USE THE SERVICES; (b) ANY ACTION YOU TAKE BASED ON THE INFORMATION YOU RECEIVE IN THROUGH OR FROM THE SERVICES, (v) YOUR FAILURE TO KEEP YOUR PASSWORD OR ACCOUNT DETAILS SECURE AND CONFIDENTIAL, (d) THE COST OF PROCUREMENT OF SUBSTITUTE GOODS AND SERVICES RESULTING FROM ANY GOODS, DATA, INFORMATION, OR SERVICES PURCHASED OR OBTAINED OR MESSAGES RECEIVED OR TRANSACTIONS ENTERED INTO THROUGH OR FROM THE SERVICES; (e) UNAUTHORIZED ACCESS TO OR ALTERATION OF YOUR TRANSMISSIONS OR DATA; (f) THE IMPROPER AUTHORIZATION FOR THE SERVICES BY SOMEONE CLAIMING SUCH AUTHORITY; or (g) STATEMENTS OR CONDUCT OF ANY THIRD PARTY ON THE SERVICES.
- Notice
Notices to you may be made via either email or regular mail. HealthCodes DNA may also provide notices of changes to the TOS or other matters by displaying notices or links to notices to you generally on or through the Services.
Official notices related to this TOS must be sent to us at:
HealthCodes DNA, LLC
ATTN: Chief Legal Officer
244 Madison Avenue
New York, NY 10016
Additionally, HealthCodes DNA accepts service of process at this address. Any notices that you provide without compliance with this section on Notices shall have no legal effect.
- Changes to the Terms of Service
HealthCodes DNA may make changes to the TOS from time to time. When these changes are made, HealthCodes DNA will make a new copy of the TOS available on its website and any new additional terms will be made available to you from within, or through, the affected Services.
You acknowledge and agree that if you use the Services after the date on which the TOS have changed, HealthCodes DNA will treat your use as acceptance of the updated TOS.
- Violation or Suspected Violation of Terms of Service
If you violate the terms of these TOS and/or HealthCodes DNA has a reasonable ground to suspect that you have violated the terms of these TOS, HealthCodes DNA has the right to suspend or terminate your account and refuse any and all current or future use of the Services (or any portion thereof).
- Miscellaneous
- Entire Agreement. The TOS constitute the entire agreement between you and HealthCodes DNA and govern your use of the Services, superseding any prior agreements between you and HealthCodes DNA on this subject. You also may be subject to additional terms and conditions that may apply when you use affiliate services, third-party content, or third-party software
- Applicable law and arbitration. Except for any disputes relating to intellectual property rights, obligations, or any infringement claims, any disputes with HealthCodes DNA arising out of or relating to the Agreement (“Disputes”) shall be governed by Tennessee law regardless of your country of origin or where you access HealthCodes DNA, and notwithstanding of any conflicts of law principles and the United Nations Convention for the International Sale of Goods. Any Disputes shall be resolved by final and binding arbitration under the rules and auspices of the American Arbitration Association, to be held in Chattanooga, Tennessee, in English, with a written decision stating legal reasoning issued by the arbitrator(s) at either party’s request, and with arbitration costs and reasonable documented attorneys’ costs of both parties to be borne by the party that ultimately loses. Either party may obtain injunctive relief (preliminary or permanent) and orders to compel arbitration or enforce arbitral awards in any court of competent jurisdiction.
- The failure of HealthCodes DNA to exercise or enforce any right or provision of the TOS shall not constitute a waiver of such right or provision. If any provision of the TOS is found by a court of competent jurisdiction to be invalid, the parties nevertheless agree that the court should endeavor to give effect to the parties’ intentions as reflected in the provision, and the other provisions of the TOS remain in full force and effect.
- Term for cause of action. You agree that regardless of any statute or law to the contrary, any claim or cause of action arising out of or related to use of the Services or the TOS must be filed within one (1) year after such claim or cause of action arose or be forever barred.
- Admissibility of printed version. A printed version of this agreement and of any notice given in electronic form shall be admissible in judicial or administrative proceedings based upon or relating to this agreement to the same extent and subject to the same conditions as other business documents and records originally generated and maintained in printed form.
- Section titles. The section titles in the TOS are for convenience only and have no legal or contractual effect.
- Severability Clause. If any portion of these TOS is found to be unenforceable, the remaining portion will remain in full force and effect.
- We reserve the right to modify, supplement or replace the terms of the Agreement, effective upon posting at www.healthcodesdna.com or notifying you otherwise. If you do not want to agree to changes to the Agreement, you can terminate the Agreement at any time per Section 18 (Termination).
- Assignment. You may not assign or delegate any rights or obligations under the Agreement. Any purported assignment and delegation shall be ineffective. We may freely assign or delegate all rights and obligations under the Agreement, fully or partially without notice to you. We may also substitute, by way of unilateral novation, effective upon notice to you, HealthCodes DNA for any third party that assumes our rights and obligations under this Agreement.
