USU Privacy Notice

Effective Date: August 18, 2023

Utah State University (USU) is committed to respecting your privacy. This privacy notice governs the collection and use of information collected through official USU websites and USU-published mobile applications.

This Privacy Notice does not cover the practices of our third-party partners (e.g., vendors), nor does it apply to information that we collect from or about our employees, vendors, consultants, or contractors. Additionally, this notice does not apply to websites that are created and maintained for purposes other than conducting official university business by individual faculty, staff, or students using resources made available within a university domain.

By using USU websites or USU-published mobile applications, you agree to the Terms and Conditions of this Privacy Notice and to our processing of Personally Identifiable Information (PII) for the purposes stated below. If you do not agree to the Terms and Conditions of the Privacy Statements, please do not use the site or the mobile applications.

International Visitors
USU is located in the United States (State of Utah). By providing information to USU, you are transferring your personal data to the United States. If you are providing Personally Identifiable Information and are not a resident of the United States, your country’s laws governing data collection and use may differ from those in the United States. The United States has not sought nor received a finding of “adequacy” from the European Union under Article 45 of the GDPR, and USU relies on derogations for specific situations as set forth in Article 49 of the GDPR.

Definitions

Personally Identifiable Information (PII)

PII, or Personally Identifiable Information, refers to any information that can be used to identify or distinguish an individual. It includes but is not limited to names, addresses, phone numbers, email addresses, or any other data that, when combined, can be used to identify a specific person.

USU Websites

USU Websites refers to the official online platform owned and operated by USU. It provides information, services, and resources related to the institution.

USU-Published Mobile Applications

USU-published mobile applications are mobile software developed and owned by USU, available for download on authorized app stores. They provide tailored functionalities, services, and access to features on mobile devices.

User or Users

In the context of this privacy notice, ‘User’ or ‘Users’ refers to individuals who visit, access, or use USU websites or USU-published mobile applications. Users may include visitors, customers, or any other individuals who engage with USU websites or USU-published mobile applications and their features.

What Information We Collect

We only collect personal information from visitors to USU websites if it is explicitly and voluntarily provided. We never collect sensitive data regarding political opinions, religious beliefs, health status, or sexual orientation. When browsing our website, no Personally Identifiable Information is gathered. However, some services may require account registration to access specific features. These accounts may include personal information for authentication purposes.

USU Websites

As do most websites, USU websites automatically collect the following information about your device:

  • The public Internet Protocol (IP) address of the device through which you access USU websites.
  • The Uniform Resource Locator (URL) of the website from which a device reaches a USU website (called a referrer), typically by following a link.
  • The webpages requested from the USU websites.
  • The Date and Time of Access.
  • The Operating System of the device through which you access USU websites.
  • The Browser Type and Version, the Monitor Screen Size and Color Depth, and other plugin and program information as sent by your browser.
  • Similar data and information that may be used in the event of attacks on our information technology (IT) systems

USU uses this information for specific purposes, including delivering and optimizing website content, maintaining the stability of our IT systems, and cooperating with law enforcement in the event of cyber-attacks.

Mobile Applications

When you install mobile applications with the publisher name “Utah State University” from the Google Play store and Apple’s App Store, the application may ask for permission to use or access various features on your device. Please note, USU regularly partners with third-party organizations that publish apps on our behalf. As examples, “MyUSU” is published by Pathify, “Canvas Student” is published by Instructure, “Utah State Athletics” is published by From Now On.

These applications may ask for permission to use or access the following:

  • Personal Information, such as name, age, home address, phone number, email address, User ID, or any information you are prompted to provide to use the mobile app platform.
  • GPS services to provide location-based features or services.
  • Contacts to store or retrieve contact information within the application.
  • Internet access to enable communication with servers and provide online functionality.
  • Calendar access to store or set events within the application.
  • External storage access to save and retrieve images, downloads, or other related files.
  • Notifications to send you relevant alerts, updates, or messages.

Please note that the general information mentioned above may be combined with that of other visitors or users. This helps us analyze usage patterns, improve application content and structure, and share aggregated insights with partners or the public. The shared aggregate data does not include any personally identifiable information.

Web Analytics

Some USU websites and mobile applications use Google Analytics, a service provided by Google, Inc. We use this data to determine the number of people using our site, their journey through the websites, as well as how they find and use our web pages. Google Analytics records data such as your geographical location, device type, internet browser, operating system, and associated information (for a full list visit https://policies.google.com/privacy?hl=en#infocollect); none of this information personally identifies you. Google Analytics also records your IP address, which could be used to personally identify you, but Google does not grant USU access to this, see Google Privacy Policy.

Cookies and Tracking

USU may also collect certain information passively, such as collecting online, non-identifying information through the use of cookies technology and/or Internet Protocol (“IP”) address tracking. Through the use of cookies, USU provides more user-friendly services. Non-personal identification information might include the browser used by you, the type of computer, the operating systems, the Internet service providers, and other similar information. The USU system also automatically gathers information about the areas you visit on the websites and about the links you may select from within the site to other sites. Most browsers are set to accept cookies. You can set yours to refuse cookies, or to alert you when cookies are being sent; however, if you disable cookies, the full functionality of some our sites may not be available to you.

Please note that we do not currently respond to web browser “do not track” signals or other mechanisms that may allow you to opt out of the collection of information across networks of websites and online services as there is no standard for how online services should respond to such signals. As standards develop, we may develop policies for responding to do-not-track signals that we will describe in this Privacy Notice.

Other Sources and Third-party Services

USU may receive information about you from other sources, including third parties that help us update, expand, and analyze our records, identify new customers, or prevent or detect fraud. USU may also receive information about you from social media platforms, including but not limited to, when you access our social media content or interact with us on these platforms. The information we may receive is governed by the privacy settings, policies, and/or procedures of the applicable social media platform; therefore, we encourage you to review them.

Use of E-mail Addresses

E-mail addresses obtained as a result of a request to the USU Websites will not be sold or provided to private companies by USU for marketing purposes. The information collected is subject to the access and provisions of GRAMA, other applicable sections of the Utah Code or federal law. E-mail or other information requests sent to the USU Websites may be maintained in order to respond to the request, forward that request to the appropriate department, communicate updates to the USU Websites that may be of interest to the public, or to provide the USU Websites designer with valuable customer feedback to assist in improving the site. Individuals will be provided with the ability “opt out” at any time of any communications regarding new service updates.

Children

USU does not believe our websites are appealing to children, nor are they directed to children under 13. USU does not knowingly collect personally identifiable data from persons under the age of 13 and strives to comply with the provisions of COPPA (The Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act). If you are a parent of a child under 13, and you believe that your child has provided us with information about him or herself, please contact us at privacy@USU.edu.

How We Use Collected Information

USU may use the information we collect:

  • To respond to your inquiries
  • To provide services or materials you request
  • To operate and understand how services are utilized
  • To maintain our contact list
  • To provide business services for which the information is intended
  • To assess the effectiveness of our events, campaigns, and publications
  • For information processing that is reasonably appropriate or necessary within our legal obligations

As a responsible organization, we do not use automatic decision-making or profiling. Moreover, your personal information will not be used in ways unrelated to the ones described without a clear notice and without providing an opportunity to opt-out or otherwise prohibit unrelated uses.

How We Share Collected Information and Our Legal Basis for This

USU may share collected information with third parties and other University parties for legitimate business purposes without your consent, including but not limited to, the following reasons or in the following circumstances:

  • As necessary to complete a transaction for you.
  • To vendors or third parties who deliver or provide goods and services or otherwise act on behalf of or at the direction of USU, such as exam testing agencies and partners, product-fulfillment companies, third-party event hosts, other third parties who may provide services on websites that are accessible from links on one of our sites, and credit card companies processing payment;
  • To USU administration;
  • To investigate potentially fraudulent or questionable activities;
  • To cooperate with law enforcement or in response to a government or regulatory request, including if specifically requested or required, as otherwise permitted by law, and for other valid USU business purposes.
  • Required by law or by an order of a court, regulatory bodies, or governmental authority.
  • As we deem necessary to protect the rights, safety, or property of Utah State University.

USU may utilize your profile information in an aggregated form, without personal identifiers, to inform the University administration, third parties, sponsors, and others about user patterns, develop new features and content, and provide aggregate information.

Access to Personally Identifiable Information From Governmental Websites and the Governmental Records Access and Management Act

Because USU is a state institution, some information collected from USU websites and USU-published mobile applications may be subject to the Government Records Access and Management Act (“GRAMA”), Utah Code Section 63G-2-101 et seq. In addition, USU may disclose information to third parties when such disclosure is required or permitted by law.

If an appropriate request is made to USU for information that is subject to disclosure under GRAMA and not made confidential elsewhere in the Utah Code, USU may be required to disclose the information requested, even if it may include your personally identifiable information.

All records that are prepared, owned, received, or retained by a governmental entity that may be reproduced by certain means are considered public, unless they are private, controlled, or protected, as outlined in GRAMA, or are records to which access is restricted according to court rule, other State law, federal law, or federal regulation.

Information that is generally considered public record under GRAMA and not made confidential elsewhere in the Utah Code or by federal law, may be subject to electronic access through the USU website. Personally Identifiable Information (PII) is not a classification of records under GRAMA.

Information about GRAMA can be found on the USU Website and on the Utah State Legislature website.

How We Protect Collected Information

USU uses reasonable measures to safeguard personal information collected on its sites depending on its sensitivity. In order to prevent unauthorized access or disclosure, we have suitable physical, technical, and administrative controls and procedures to safeguard the information we collect online. Our measures follow applicable laws regarding the safeguarding of information under our control. However, no information system can be 100 percent secure.

USU is not responsible for the security of information you transmit to us over networks that we do not control, including the Internet, email systems, and wireless networks. Moreover, you are responsible for protecting your username and password and for selecting strong passwords.

We retain the information we collect online no longer than as reasonably necessary to fulfill the purposes for which we collect the information and to comply with our legal obligations.

Non-USU Websites

Various websites may be linked through www.usu.edu. Many of these sites, including private sector sites, are not subject to GRAMA and may also not be subject to other sections of the Utah Code or federal law, such as the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA). Visitors to those sites are advised to check the privacy notices of these sites and be cautious about providing Personally Identifiable Information (PII) without a clear understanding of how the information will be used. Visitors may want to consult guidelines on protecting your personal information such as those recommended by the Privacy Alliance, at http://www.privacyalliance.org/protection/.

USU and USU Websites are not responsible for the privacy practices, privacy notices, or content regarding these other sites.

How a User May Request Access and/or Correct the User’s PII

Subject to local law, you may have certain rights regarding information that we have collected and that is related to you. We encourage you to contact us to access, update, or correct your information if it changes or if you believe that any information that we have collected about you is inaccurate.

To help us keep your personal information up-to-date or if you no longer wish to receive communications from us, please log in to the USU website that collected your data and update your information. For general inquiries, please contact USU Data Privacy Officer at 435.797.1747, or email us at privacy@usu.edu.

Changes to this Privacy Notice

We reserve the right to modify this Privacy Statement in whole or in part at any time. The modified policy will be posted on this page with an updated effective date.

Effective date: August 31, 2023.

For questions concerning this Privacy Notice, please contact USU Data Privacy Officer at 435.797.1747, or email us at privacy@usu.edu.