Privacy Statement
Updated July 1, 2022
Microfactory, Inc., (owner and operator of the FirstBuild website and community and hereafter “FirstBuild”, “we” or “us”) recognizes that the visitors, users (designers, contributors), and others (known collectively or individually as “Users”) who use the FirstBuild websites and community (the “Website”) value their privacy. This Privacy Statement details important information regarding the use and disclosure of User information collected on the Website. Your use of the Website and any information you provide on the Website remains subject to the terms of this Privacy Statement and the FirstBuild Terms of Use. Please note that any comment or other content you post or send to the Website becomes published content and is publicly accessible. Your messages and other information you make available in public areas of the Website will be seen by people and organizations not related to or controlled by FirstBuild and may be used by others to contact you. This Privacy Statement applies only to the Website and your other interactions with FirstBuild. While other websites may be displayed as links from within the Website, those sites are owned and operated by others and they may have different privacy policies. When linking from the Website to other websites, we urge you to review the privacy policies of those sites.
Information We Collect
When you register, we ask for information such as your name, email address, and other personally identifiable information. In addition, when you visit the Website, FirstBuild’s server logs, through a variety of technologies, automatically receive and record from your browser information related to your usage of the Website, such as your IP address, FirstBuild cookie information and the pages you visit. This occurs even if you do not register or sign in with FirstBuild. You may manage cookies by accessing the Cookie Settings link via the Website.
Information Use
We use your information to operate and improve the quality and design of the Website and to create new features, promotions, functionality, and services by storing, tracking, and analyzing User preferences and trends. We use your information to communicate with you regarding idea submissions, comments, and purchases you initiate on FirstBuild.com, surveys you participate in, and to provide you with information you’ve requested, We use Website Users’ information for marketing purposes.
Children’s Privacy
The Website is not directed to children under the age of sixteen and we do not knowingly collect Personal Information from children under the age of sixteen on the site. If we become aware that we have inadvertently received Personal Information from a visitor under the age of thirteen on the site, we will delete the information from our records.
Information Sharing and Disclosure
We do not rent, sell, or share your information with other people or non-affiliated companies except to operate the Website, provide services you’ve requested, when we have your permission, or as follows:
We provide the information to trusted partners who work on behalf of or with us under confidentiality agreements. These companies may use your information to help us deliver product you have purchased, operate crowdfunds, operate the Website and to communicate with you about offers from FirstBuild and our marketing partners. These trusted partners are not permitted to use this information for any other purposes.
FirstBuild is a wholly owned subsidiary of Haier US Appliance Solutions, Inc. d/b/a GE Appliances (“GEA”). We share Users’ information with GEA, its other subsidiaries and/or affiliates. Any use of your information by GEA, its other subsidiaries and/or its affiliates shall be governed by GEA’s Privacy Statement (https://www.geappliances.com/privacy/privacy_policy.htm) or the privacy policy of such other GEA subsidiary or affiliate.
We will share your information if we have a good faith belief that sharing such information is reasonably necessary to (a) satisfy any applicable law, regulation, legal process or enforceable governmental request (including to meet national security or law enforcement requirements), (b) exercise our legal rights or defend against legal claims, (c) enforce applicable Terms of Service, including investigation of potential violations thereof, (d) detect, prevent, or otherwise address fraud, security or technical issues, or (e) protect against imminent harm to the rights, property or safety of FirstBuild, its Users or the public as required or permitted by law.
We will share Users’ information if FirstBuild is acquired by or merged with another company. In this event, we will notify active known Users of such acquisition or merger.
Keep in mind that any Personal Information, designs, or comments that you voluntarily disclose on the Website (i.e. on comment pages or on the forums) becomes publicly available. Designs submitted in contests will enable the public to view your submission; moreover, designs submitted in profile pages will also be viewable by the public. Your account name is displayed to other Users when you send and/or post messages through the Website.
Choices and Access
If you do not want to receive electronic communications from us on a going-forward basis, you may update your email preferences at any time by clicking the link in the footer of any email we send you. You can also request to opt out of the use of your personal information by contacting us as outlined in the section titled “Contact Information”.
If you want to terminate your account, you can do so as set out in the section titled “Deleting and Editing Your Account.”
We will do our best to comply with your request(s) as soon as reasonably practicable. Please note that if you opt out of receiving communications from us, we may still send you important administrative messages related to products purchased.
When you use FirstBuild services, we make good faith efforts to provide you with access to your information and either to correct this data if it is inaccurate or to delete such data at your request if it is not otherwise required to be retained by law or for legitimate business purposes. We ask individual users to identify themselves and the information requested to be accessed, corrected or removed before processing such requests.
Use of Cookies and Similar Technologies
When you visit or interact with our sites, services, applications, tools or messaging (our “online services”), we or our authorized service providers may use cookies, web beacons, software development kits, and other similar technologies for storing information to help provide you with a better, faster, and safer experience and for advertising purposes. In this Notice, we use the term “cookies” to refer to all of the technologies noted above.
This Notice is designed to help you understand more about these technologies and our use of them on our sites and in our services, applications, and tools. Below is a summary of a few key things you should know about our use of such technologies.
What cookies do we use and why?
We use cookies (technologies that are essentially small data files placed on your computer, tablet, mobile phone, or other device that allow us to record certain pieces of information whenever you visit or interact with our sites, services, applications, messaging, and tools) we may classify them into the following categories:
“Essential” cookies are necessary for our online services to operate and are always enabled.
“Performance” or “Analytics” cookies allow gathering of information to help us understand how effective our content is, what interests our users have, and to improve how our online services work. In addition, we use web beacons, tracking pixels and similar services to understand more about the visitors to the Website, and to count visitor numbers and performance cookies to track how many individual users access the Website and how often. This information is used for statistical purposes and to improve how the Website works and it is not our intention to use such information to personally identify any user. However, if at any time you register and sign into our online services, we may combine such data with information from our web analytic services and cookies to analyze how you use the Website in more detail.
“Functional” cookies allow us to offer you enhanced functionality when accessing or using our sites, services, applications, or tools. This may include identifying you when you sign into our sites or keeping track of your specified preferences, interests, or past items viewed so that we may enhance the presentation of content on our sites.
“Advertising” cookies and other technologies may be used by us or by third parties to deliver content, including ads relevant to your interests, on our sites or on third party sites. This includes using technologies to understand the usefulness to you of the advertisements and content that have been delivered to you, such as whether you have clicked on an advertisement. We may use cookies and web beacons (also known as pixel tags) to determine which users have come to the Website after viewing an advertisement we have served on such third-party websites. We also work with such third parties to collect data so that we can determine the effectiveness of our ads and serve ads targeted to your interests. The use of web beacons does not provide us with any personal information and we do not use this technology to access your personal information. It is used only to compile aggregated data about users who visit the Website and to gauge the effectiveness of our ads. Web beacons do not place information on your device, but may work in conjunction with cookies to monitor activity. You cannot remove or block web beacons, but you can remove or block cookies with which they work to block the collection of information about your user activity.
Please see the Cookie Settings link for more detailed information on the cookies we use on the online services you are using. The Cookie Settings link may be located in the page footer or via the menu bar or application settings.
How to control cookies?
Any personal information that we collect and store through use of these technologies for categories 2 through 4 above is based on a conspicuous disclosure on our online services (and, consistent with applicable law, your consent) during your first visit. You can control and manage cookies in various ways. Please bear in mind that removing or blocking cookies can impact your user experience and parts of the online services may no longer be fully accessible.
If you do not accept the use of these cookies or wish to change your cookie preferences, please click the applicable Cookie Settings link on the online services you are using. You may also be able to change your browser settings to manage and control cookies; you can find detailed information on how to do so at https://www.aboutcookies.org/.
Accepting or declining cookies is limited to the online service you are using and will not be reflected on other web browsers, or on other sites, or on pages that may be hyperlinked from the Website. For more information on cookies used by other sites and pages, please refer to the specific Cookie Settings link located on those sites, if available.
Email communications
We may also use tracking technologies to determine whether you have read, clicked on, or forwarded certain email communications we send to you so that we can make our communications more helpful and interesting. If you do not wish us to confirm whether you have opened, clicked on, or forwarded our communications, you will need to unsubscribe, as it is not possible for us to send these emails without tracking enabled. Registered subscribers can update their communication preferences at any time by contacting us at help@FirstBuild.com, or you can unsubscribe following the instructions in the individual email communications you receive from us.
We may modify or amend this Cookie Notice from time to time at our discretion. When we make changes to this notice, we will amend the revision date at the top of this page, and such modified or amended Cookie Notice shall be effective as to you and your information as of that revision date. We encourage you to periodically review this Cookie Notice to be informed about how we are using cookies.
How We Protect Personal Information
We maintain administrative, technical and physical safeguards designed to protect against unauthorized disclosure, use, alteration or destruction of the information you provide on the Website.
How Long We Retain Personal Information
We keep your personal information for as long as needed or as permitted by applicable law in light of the purpose(s) for which it was obtained. The criteria used to determine our retention periods include (i) to execute transactions with you (such as completing your purchase), (ii) for as long as we have an ongoing relationship with you (such as maintaining your online account or sending you a newsletter); (iii) as required by a legal obligation to which we are subject; or (iv) as is advisable in light of our legal position (such as in regard of applicable statutes of limitations, litigation, or regulatory investigations).
Security and Data Integrity
We limit access to information about you to employees, contractors, and agents who we reasonably believe need to access your information to operate the Website, provide services to you, or to perform their jobs. We take reasonable steps to ensure that personal information we process is accurate, complete, and current, but we depend on our Users to update or correct their information whenever necessary.
Editing or Deleting Your Account Information
You can edit your FirstBuild account information at any time by visiting your account profile page. To terminate your FirstBuild account at any time, please email help@FirstBuild.com. This will remove your account information from our records. Information you have entered into public areas of the Website, have provided in idea submissions, and have submitted in other interactions with us will not be deleted. We reserve the right to use your information to send you certain communications relating to the FirstBuild service, such as service announcements and administrative messages
International Users
FirstBuild’s offices are located in the United States of America. If you are a User accessing the Website from outside the United States, please be advised that your information may be processed in and transferred to the United States (or globally as needed for the purposes specified in this notice). By your continued use of the Website, you consent to the transfer, collection, processing and storage of information to and in the United States or such country of transfer and recognize that these laws may not be equivalent to those in your country of residence.
Updates to Our Privacy Statement
This Privacy Statement may be updated periodically. We will post a prominent notice on this web site to notify you of any significant changes to our Privacy Statement and indicate at the top of the Privacy Statement when it was most recently updated.
Contact Information
Please feel free to direct any questions or concerns regarding this Privacy Statement or FirstBuild’s data practices by contacting us as follows:
Emailing us at privacy@FirstBuild.com
Writing us at: FirstBuild 333 E Brandeis Ave Louisville, KY 40208
Notice to California Residents
If you are a resident of the State of California, California Civil Code Section 1798.83 permits you to request information regarding the disclosure of your personal information by FirstBuild to third parties for the third parties’ direct marketing purposes. FirstBuild does not disclose user information to third parties for such third parties’ direct marketing purposes.