Privacy Policy | AEC Cycling

1. Information We Collect

• Personal Information You Voluntarily Provide: When you place an order, create an account, sign up for marketing communications, or contact our customer support, you may provide us with personal information such as your full name, email address, phone number, shipping address, billing address, and payment method details. Please note that payment information is processed and secured by trusted third-party payment processors (e.g., Stripe); we do not store full credit card numbers or sensitive payment credentials on our servers.
• Automatically Collected Information: When you access our Site, we may automatically collect non-identifiable or pseudonymous information through cookies, web beacons, and similar tracking technologies. This includes your browser type and version, operating system, device type, IP address, browsing history (pages visited, time spent), and referral source. This data is used to analyze Site performance, optimize user experience, and understand how visitors interact with our Services.

2. Legal Bases for Collecting and Using Your Information (GDPR Compliance)

• Performance of a Contract: Processing your information to fulfill an order you placed or provide the Services you requested (e.g., shipping products, sending order confirmations).
• Your Consent: Processing your information for marketing purposes (e.g., sending promotional emails) only if you have explicitly given your consent. You may withdraw your consent at any time (see Section 6 for details).
• Legitimate Interests: Processing non-personal or anonymized data to improve our Site, products, and customer service; preventing fraud; and ensuring the security of our Services (provided that our interests do not override your privacy rights).

3. How We Use Your Information

• Process, fulfill, and track your orders (including coordinating with shipping carriers to deliver your AEC cycling products).
• Communicate with you about your orders, account, or customer support inquiries (e.g., responding to sizing questions, delivery updates).
• Send you marketing communications (e.g., new product launches, exclusive offers, promotional discounts) if you have consented to receive them.
• Optimize and improve our Site, products, and Services (using aggregated, non-identifiable data to analyze user behavior and enhance functionality).
• Detect and prevent fraudulent activities, security breaches, and other illegal or unauthorized activities.
• Comply with applicable legal obligations and regulatory requirements.

4. How We Protect Your Information

• Secure Socket Layer (SSL)/Transport Layer Security (TLS) encryption for all data transmitted between your device and our Site.
• Restricted access to personal information (only authorized AEC Cycling team members with a legitimate business need may access your data, and they are bound by strict confidentiality obligations).
• Regular security audits and updates to our systems and processes to address emerging threats.
• Use of trusted third-party service providers that comply with global data protection standards (see Section 5 for details).

5. Disclosure and Sharing of Your Information

• Third-Party Service Providers: We may share your information with trusted service providers who assist us in delivering our Services (e.g., shipping carriers like UPS/FedEx, payment processors, email marketing platforms). These providers are contractually obligated to use your information only for the purposes we specify and to maintain its confidentiality and security.
• Legal and Regulatory Requirements: We may disclose your information if required by law, regulation, court order, or governmental authority, or to protect our legal rights, property, or safety, or the rights, property, or safety of others.
• Business Transfers: In the event of a merger, acquisition, sale of assets, or bankruptcy, your personal information may be transferred to the relevant third party, provided that the transferee agrees to comply with this Privacy Policy.
• With Your Consent: We may share your information with other third parties if you have explicitly consented to such disclosure.

6. Your Rights Regarding Your Personal Information

• Right of Access: Request access to the personal information we hold about you, including details about how we collect, use, and disclose it.
• Right of Correction: Request correction of any inaccurate or incomplete personal information we hold about you.
• Right of Erasure ("Right to be Forgotten"): Request deletion of your personal information, subject to certain legal exceptions (e.g., if we need to retain it to comply with legal obligations).
• Right to Restrict Processing: Request that we restrict the processing of your personal information in certain circumstances (e.g., if you dispute the accuracy of the data).
• Right to Data Portability: Request a copy of your personal information in a structured, machine-readable format, or request that we transfer it to another data controller (if technically feasible).
• Right to Withdraw Consent: If you have given consent for us to process your information (e.g., for marketing), you may withdraw your consent at any time by clicking the "unsubscribe" link in our marketing emails or contacting us directly (see Section 9).
• Right to Object: Object to the processing of your personal information for direct marketing purposes or based on our legitimate interests, where applicable.

7. Cookie Policy

• Necessary Cookies: These cookies are essential for the basic functionality of our Site (e.g., enabling you to log in, add products to your cart, and complete purchases). They cannot be disabled, as they are critical for delivering our Services. You may block them through your browser, but this may affect Site functionality.
• Analytical/Performance Cookies: These cookies (e.g., Google Analytics) collect anonymous data on how users interact with our Site (e.g., page views, session duration, entry/exit points). This data helps us optimize Site performance, identify areas for improvement, and understand user behavior. We do not use this data to identify individual users.
• Marketing/Targeting Cookies: These cookies track your browsing activity on our Site to deliver personalized marketing content (e.g., product recommendations, promotional offers). We only use these cookies if you have explicitly given your consent. You may withdraw your consent at any time.

8. Changes to This Policy

9. Contact Us