Privacy Policy
Last updated: July 28, 2026
Who We Are
This website is operated by Kindred Genealogical Society. Our website address is: https://demo.getsocietypress.org/
For privacy-related inquiries, contact us at info@kindredgenealogy.org.
What Personal Data We Collect and Why
Membership Information
When you join as a member, we collect:
- Your name (first, last, and optionally preferred name, middle name, maiden name, prefix, and suffix)
- Email address
- Mailing address (and optionally a seasonal address)
- Phone number(s) (home, cell, work)
- Optional: date of birth, profile photo, personal website
- If you have a joint (couple/household) membership: your partner's name, email, and phone number
We use this information to manage your membership, communicate with you about society activities, process renewals, and (if you opt in) display your information in the member directory.
Sensitive contact information — including phone numbers and street addresses — is encrypted at rest using modern cryptographic methods. Even in the unlikely event of a database breach, these fields cannot be read without the encryption key.
You control which of your personal details are visible to other members through the directory privacy settings on your account page.
Genealogical Research Information
Members may optionally provide:
- Surnames being researched, including geographic location and date ranges
- Geographic research areas of interest
- Links to profiles on external genealogy platforms (such as WikiTree, FamilySearch, Ancestry, and others)
- Research interests and skills
This information is entirely optional and exists to help connect members with shared research interests. It is visible to other logged-in members through the membership directory.
Event Registration
When you register for an event, we record your name and registration details. We use this to manage attendance, send confirmation and reminder emails, and track capacity. If you register as a guest (non-member), your information is stored separately from the membership database.
You can view your upcoming and past event registrations, and cancel upcoming registrations, from your account page.
Donations
If you make a donation, we record your name, donation amount, date, and method. You may choose to donate anonymously — your name will not be displayed publicly, but is retained in our records for acknowledgment and tax purposes. If you request data erasure, your donor identity will be anonymized while the financial record is retained as required for tax reporting.
Volunteer Activity
If you sign up for volunteer opportunities, we record your participation, hours, and any skills you provide. This information is used to coordinate volunteer activities, track contributions, and recognize service.
Contact Form
If you use a contact form on this site, the information you submit (name, email address, message) is sent via email to our organization. Contact form submissions are not stored in a database on this website.
Profile Photos
If you upload a profile photo, avoid uploading images with embedded location data (EXIF GPS). Other members may be able to download images from the site and extract any location data from them.
Cookies
Cookies are small text files stored on your device by your web browser. This site uses cookies for the following purposes:
| Cookie | Purpose | Duration |
|---|---|---|
wordpress_logged_in_* |
Keeps you logged in after you enter your username and password. | 2 days (2 weeks with "Remember Me") |
wordpress_test_cookie |
Checks whether your browser accepts cookies. Contains no personal data. | Session (deleted when you close your browser) |
wp-settings-* |
Remembers your display preferences (e.g., screen layout choices). | 1 year |
This site does not use tracking cookies, advertising cookies, or third-party analytics cookies.
Email Communications
As a member, you may receive the following types of email from us:
- Welcome message when your membership is activated
- Membership renewal reminders and expiration notices
- Event registration confirmations and reminders
- Society news and announcements (mass emails)
You can control which categories of email you receive through the communication preferences on your account page, including opting out of mass emails entirely. Renewal and transaction-related emails cannot be opted out of, as they relate directly to your membership.
All outgoing emails are logged internally for troubleshooting and administrative purposes.
Embedded Content from Other Websites
Pages on this site may include embedded content (such as videos or maps) from other websites. Embedded content from other websites behaves in the same way as if you visited those websites directly. These websites may collect data about you, use cookies, embed additional third-party tracking, and monitor your interaction with the embedded content.
Who We Share Your Data With
We do not sell, trade, or rent your personal information to anyone. Your data may be shared with the following parties for the purposes described:
- Other members — only the information you choose to make visible through your directory privacy settings. You control this entirely from your account page.
If you request a password reset, your IP address will be included in the reset email for security purposes.
How Long We Retain Your Data
- Membership records: retained for the duration of your membership and for a reasonable period afterward for administrative continuity.
- Event registrations: retained indefinitely for historical reporting and attendance records.
- Financial records (payments, donations, purchases): retained as required for tax and accounting purposes. If you request data erasure, financial records are anonymized rather than deleted.
- Email logs: retained for administrative troubleshooting and are periodically cleaned up.
- Audit logs: retained for security and accountability purposes.
What Rights You Have Over Your Data
If you have an account on this site, you have the right to:
- View and update your personal information through your account page at any time.
- Control exactly which personal details are visible to other members in the directory.
- Choose which types of email communications you receive.
- Request a complete export of all personal data we hold about you.
- Request erasure of your personal data. This does not include data we are legally obligated to retain for tax, accounting, or security purposes.
To request a data export or erasure, contact us at info@kindredgenealogy.org. We will respond within 30 days.
How We Protect Your Data
We take the security of your personal information seriously:
- Sensitive contact information (phone numbers, street addresses) is encrypted at rest using modern cryptographic methods.
- All administrative actions are logged for accountability.
- Access to member data is restricted to authorized administrators.
- All pages on this site are served over HTTPS (encrypted connections).