Privacy policy

Haaretz (hereinafter referred to as “the Company”) wishes to clarify, insofar as possible in the scope of this document, its privacy policy for users of the websites managed and operated by it (hereinafter for the sake of convenience referred to as “the Company’s websites” or “the websites”).

The Company intends giving users of the Company’s websites an explanation of its practices in relation to the handling of details and information received from the websites’ users, and how it uses them.

This privacy policy is drawn up in the masculine gender for convenience purposes only, and, of course, also includes the feminine gender.

Collection and receipt of information by the Company’s websites
Information furnished to the Company’s websites on the user’s initiative

Certain services provided on or through the Company’s websites require advance registration and the entry, inter alia, of essential identifying details. These details are entered independently by you, for example – name, residential address, type of products and/or services sought, payment means insofar as relevant, suitable channels of communication with the user, including e-mail, and the like.

This is the information that you knowingly furnish when registering for websites or the services provided on and/or through them. The relevant fields in which details must be entered will be expressly marked. Of course, failure to furnish the essential details requested in the “mandatory fields” means that you may not be registered for services or applications requiring registration.

Insofar as personal details are required for marketing purposes or at the time of registering for services on the websites, or at the time of purchasing products/services, you will be asked to furnish only the information necessary for the service for which you have registered. Accordingly, in the case of some services you will be asked to furnish additional details obliged by the nature of the service.

Information collected on the user’s browsing of the Company’s websites

Some of the information collected while you are browsing the Company’s websites is of a statistical nature and does not identify you personally, nor is it kept together with your details. Examples of this are advertisements that you have read on the site, the pages that you have viewed, the offers and services that interested you, the IP address from which you logged on and the operating system (user agent) that you use. All the aforesaid are not details that are identified with your name.

The database

The information that you furnish when registering for services on the websites shall be stored in the Company’s websites’ database, which is duly registered. You are not under any statutory duty to furnish the information; however, without furnishing the details that are necessary and essential for the provision of certain services, the Company will be unable to provide these services to you.

Use of information

While you are browsing the Company’s websites, the Company might accumulate information about your various browsing preferences, such as news that you read, products that you sought to purchase, advertisements to which were exposed, pages that you viewed and the like. The Company stores this information in its databases, and it will only be used in accordance with the law and the privacy policy stipulated in this document, for the objects set out below:

• To improve and enrich the services and content offered by the websites, and to adapt them, insofar as possible, to the users’ preferences. The information serving the Company’s websites for such purpose shall essentially be statistical information that does not identify you personally.

• To enable you to use the websites’ various services, including for the purpose of creating personal zones on the websites, or sending articles and news consistent with your preferences.

• For the purchase of products and services on the websites.

• The Company’s websites may from time to time send you, by e-mail, information about services, as well as other marketing and advertising material, including of third parties. Such information shall be sent to you if you have given your express consent thereto, and you may notify the Company at any time that you wish to be removed from the relevant distribution list, in the manner stipulated in the e-mail sent to you. Nonetheless, the Company’s websites shall not furnish your personal details to advertisers.

• To contact you where necessary.

• For the purpose of analyzing, collecting and furnishing statistical information to third parties, including advertisers. Such information will not identify you personally.

• For the satisfactory operation and development of the websites; the information used to this end shall not be transferred to third parties, save insofar as permitted in the scope of this privacy policy, as updated from time to time.

• For any other object detailed in this privacy policy or in the terms of use of any of the relevant services on the Company’s websites.

Furnishing information to a third party

The Company’s websites shall not transfer your personal details and the information collected about your activity on the websites to third parties, insofar as such details and information identify you personally, except in the following cases:

• If the Company is legally obliged to furnish your details or the information about you to a third party, or if the Company is served with a judicial order directing it to furnish your details or the information about you as aforesaid.

• When you purchase products or services on the websites from third parties, or the necessary details are transferred to the third party for the purpose of supplying the products/services and maintaining contact with you. In addition, in the event that you participate in other activity that is common to the Company and a third party, the third party may also be exposed to information about your browsing and your participation in such activity.

• In the event that you breach and/or try and breach the terms of use of the Company’s websites and/or any of the services offered on them, or in the event that you act contrary to the law on the Company’s websites and/or in connection with them and their activity.

• In the event of any dispute, claim or legal proceedings between you and the Company.

• In the event that the Company believes that the furnishing of the information is necessary to prevent significant damage being caused to you or a third party.

• The Company’s websites may transfer your details and the information collected in consequence of your use of the websites to other related companies, provided that they use this information in accordance with this privacy policy.

• In the event that the activity of any of the Company’s websites is integrated with or transferred to another corporation, including because of an internal re-organization in Haaretz group or because of a merger with another corporation – it will of course be possible to transfer to the relevant new corporation a copy of the information that has been stored about you on the site or any other statistical information in the Company’s possession, provided that such corporation acts in accordance with the principles of this privacy policy.

• The Company’s websites are expected to enable you to use various applications on the Company’s websites, as well as on other websites (such as the social network Facebook), which might inform third parties, including other browsers of the various social network websites, that you have been exposed to or read certain content that was published on any of the Company’s websites. It is expressed that by approving the relevant application, you are confirming that you have been informed thereof and that you shall not have any plea against the Company in such regard.

Cookies

The Company’s websites uses “cookies” for their routine and satisfactory operation, including for the purpose of collecting statistical data about the websites’ users and verifying details, in order to adapt your browsing of the websites to your personal preferences, and for information security purposes.

Cookies are text files that your browser creates on the command of the company's relevant sites. Some cookies (session cookies) expire when you close your browser and others are saved on your computer's hard disk. If, for example, you use the Windows operating system and Microsoft's Explorer Internet browser, you will be able to find them in the directory c:/windows/cookies and also in c:/windows/temporary internet files. The cookies contain data like the pages that you have visited, the length of time that you stay on the sites, the page you visited before the sites, sections and information that you wish to see when entering the sites and more. The cookies also make it unnecessary for you to enter your details whenever you go back to the various sections or pages of the company's sites that require registration. The information in the cookies is encrypted and the company's sites take precautions so that only the company's computers can identify the information.

You can refrain from creating cookies by changing the definitions of your browser. To that end, you should consult the browser help file. You should nevertheless bear in mind that neutralising cookies might make you unable to use some of the services and applications of the company's sites or other Internet sites. In addition, you should be able to delete the cookies on your computer at any time. It is suggested that you do so only if you are sure that you do not want the company's sites to be adapted to your preferences. Since the cookies sometimes avoid your having to enter user names and passwords, do not delete them unless you are sure that you have first kept a safe record of all the details necessary for using the sites.

The Company’s sites also use web beacons for their routine satisfactory operation, including for the collection of statistical data about the use of the sites, for the verification of details, in order to adapt the sites to your personal preferences and for information security purposes. The beacons are tiny graphic files embedded in the web pages whose function is to assist the collection of information about the viewing and use of the sites. The information collected does not identify you and is designed to monitor site use patterns and visitors' preferences in respect of various content and services.

So for as known, web beacons may be removed by deleting the browser history (like deleting cookies).

Third party services

Certain services on the Company’s websites, such as “Zirat Hakniyot” [the shopping arena], Outbrain and Facebook-related services are in fact managed by entities other than the Company. In these cases, the services are provided or operated not only through the Company’s computers, but through the other entities as aforesaid.

Third party advertisements

Certain advertisements on the Company’s websites are in fact operated from the computers of the advertising companies and/or by someone on their behalf. We wish to inform you that for the purpose of the advertisements’ management, these companies place cookies on your computer and embed web beacons on the advertisements or the website’s pages. The information collected does not identify you but seeks to adapt the advertisements displayed to you to the subjects that interest you. The use that these companies make of the cookies and web beacons are subject to their privacy policy and not to that of the Company’s websites.

Collection of information for statistical purposes

The Company’s websites are assisted by various companies which provide it with statistical analyses of the websites’ use. The companies collect and analyze information of a statistical nature that is intended for analysis, research and control purposes.

Information security

The Company ensures that its systems and websites are managed at a proper level of information security. It must be understood that while the information security limits the risks of the Company’s computers and websites being hacked, they do not afford complete and unconditional immunity against hacking.

Right to inspect information

According to section 13 of the Protection of Privacy Law, 5741-1981, “every person is entitled to inspect, either himself or through a representative authorized by him in writing or his guardian, any information about him kept in a database’’. A person who has inspected information about him that he has found to be incorrect, incomplete, unclear or out of date may apply to the database owner for the information to be amended or deleted. Such an application may be directed to Customer-htz@haaretz.co.il or through fax no. 03-5133600 or through regular mail to: P.O Box 35029, Shocken 21, Tel Aviv, Israel, 61350.

Changes to the privacy policy

The Company and its websites may from time to time alter the privacy policy’s provisions. Suitable notice shall be given on the Company’s websites of any material change that is made to the provisions concerning the use of personal information furnished by you.