The Norfolk County Fire Chiefs Association (the "Association," "we," "us," or "our") is the recognized fire chiefs organization for Norfolk County, Massachusetts, a round-table of fire, rescue, and emergency medical services leaders. This Privacy Policy applies to norfolkfirechiefs.org (the "Website") and explains what information we collect, how we use and share it, and the choices available to you.

By using the Website, you agree to the practices described in this Privacy Policy.

1. INFORMATION WE COLLECT

1.1 Information Collected Automatically

The Website is built and hosted on the Wix platform. Like most websites, Wix may automatically collect technical information on our behalf, such as your IP address and approximate location, browser type and device information, pages visited, referring pages, and date and time of access, through server logs, cookies, and similar technologies. You can control cookies through your browser settings, though some features (such as member login) require them.

1.2 Information You Provide Directly

Contact form: collects your name, phone number, email address, and message so we can respond to your inquiry.

Comments: where commenting is enabled on a post or page, we collect your name, email address (not displayed publicly), and optional website address. Comment content, your name, and website link may be displayed publicly.

Members Only accounts: access to the Members Only area is limited to authorized member fire chiefs and personnel. We maintain a username or email address and password for each account, and a "Remember Me" cookie if you choose that option at login. Authentication and password storage are handled by the Wix platform; we do not see your password.

Direct contact: if you call or email an Association officer, we receive whatever information you choose to share.

The Website does not process payments and does not ask for financial account numbers, Social Security numbers, or other government identifiers. Please do not send emergency information through the Website; call 911.

2. HOW WE USE YOUR INFORMATION

Respond to questions and requests sent through the contact form or by email

Provide and secure member access to Members Only materials such as bylaws, meeting minutes, policies and procedures, training materials, and surveys

Moderate comments and prevent spam or abuse

Share Association news, training opportunities, and public safety information

Maintain, secure, and improve the Website

We do not sell your personal information.

3. SHARING YOUR INFORMATION

We share information only as needed to operate the Website and the Association. This includes our website platform and hosting provider (Wix) and other service providers who act on our behalf and may use your information only to provide services to us. We do not sell or rent personal information. We may also disclose information when required by law, subpoena, or court order, including the Massachusetts Public Records Law (M.G.L. c. 66, § 10) to the extent it applies, or to protect the rights, property, or safety of the Association, its members, or the public.

4. MEMBERS ONLY AREA

Materials in the Members Only area (which may include meeting minutes, contracts, salary surveys, ambulance rate information, policies and procedures, and collective bargaining agreements) are provided for authorized members. Members are responsible for keeping their login credentials confidential and for not sharing restricted materials with unauthorized persons. Whether any particular record is a public record is determined under Massachusetts law and is not changed by its placement behind a login.

5. THIRD-PARTY SERVICES AND LINKS

The Website may embed or link to third-party content, including a Twitter/X feed for Norfolk County Control, embedded video (such as the recruitment video), and external sites such as Mass.gov and member department websites. These third parties may collect information such as your IP address and interaction with their content under their own privacy policies, which we do not control.

6. COOKIES

We use cookies provided through the Wix platform that are necessary for site functionality, such as maintaining a login session, security, and basic site analytics. Embedded third-party content may set its own cookies. You can disable cookies in your browser settings, though member login will not work without them.

7. DATA RETENTION

We keep contact inquiries, comments, and member account information for as long as reasonably necessary for the purposes above and for recordkeeping and legal obligations. Member accounts are removed or deactivated when access is no longer authorized.

8. CHILDREN'S PRIVACY AND MINIMUM AGE

The Website is intended for a general audience, including parents and community members, and for fire service professionals. Any account registration, comment, or form submission is limited to individuals who are at least 13 years of age, consistent with the Children's Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA). We do not knowingly collect personal information from children under 13. If you believe a child under 13 has submitted personal information, contact us and we will delete it.

9. YOUR PRIVACY CHOICES

You may contact us to ask what personal information we hold about you and to request correction or deletion, and we will honor reasonable requests to the extent permitted by law and our recordkeeping obligations. This is a voluntary practice and is not a right created by Massachusetts statute.

10. MASSACHUSETTS DATA BREACH NOTIFICATION

If we learn of a breach of security involving personal information, we will provide notice as required by M.G.L. c. 93H and applicable regulations. Chapter 93H governs breach notification only; it does not create general consumer data rights.

11. DATA SECURITY

We maintain reasonable administrative and technical safeguards appropriate to the information we hold, consistent with 201 CMR 17.00, including password-protected member access and the security measures of the Wix platform, but no method of transmission or storage is completely secure and we cannot guarantee absolute security.

12. EMAIL COMMUNICATIONS

If you contact us, we will use your email address or phone number to reply. If we send any Association news or announcements by email, they will include an unsubscribe option consistent with the CAN-SPAM Act.

13. CHANGES TO THIS PRIVACY POLICY

We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time by posting the revised version here. Last updated: XXX.

14. CONTACT US

Questions about this Privacy Policy may be directed to:

Online: norfolkfirechiefs.org/contact-us

Phone: 781-784-1522 (Secretary, Chief Michael Madden, Sharon Fire Department)

Mail: Norfolk County Fire Chiefs Association, c/o Sharon Fire Department, 211 S Main St, Sharon, MA 02067

In Case of Emergency Call 9-1-1