Last updated: June 16, 2016
The Adobe Marketing Cloud solutions enable our business customers to personalize and improve the performance of their websites, apps, and social networking pages. These companies use Adobe Marketing Cloud solutions to collect and analyze information, such as clicks made by visitors on their websites, apps, and social networking pages. The solutions also allow the companies to provide you with more relevant messages within their emails, text messages, and other online and offline marketing campaigns. In general, companies use Adobe Marketing Cloud solutions when they want to better understand and improve their online resources and marketing.
What types of solutions are part of the Adobe Marketing Cloud?
The Adobe Marketing Cloud solutions fall into four general categories:
Measurement solutions, which help companies measure and understand how you use their websites, apps, social networking pages, as well as how you interact with their online marketing campaigns.
Personalization solutions, which help companies test new content and make their websites, apps, social networking pages, and emails more relevant to you.
Content management solutions, which help companies store, update, and deliver images and other content on their websites, within their apps, and in online marketing materials.
Advertising solutions, which help companies improve their online advertising on websites, search engines, and social media platforms. These solutions also help companies send emails, text messages, and other online and offline marketing campaigns.
What information is collected when a company uses Adobe Marketing Cloud?
When a company uses Adobe Marketing Cloud solutions, that company chooses how to use the solutions, including what information to collect and send to its Adobe Marketing Cloud account. Examples of the types of information that may be collected include the following, depending on the particular Adobe Marketing Cloud solution and the jurisdiction of the company:
- Where you go and what you do on that company's websites, apps, or social media pages
- Your web browsing activity, including the URLs of the company’s web pages you visit
- The URL of the page that displayed the link that you clicked on, which brought you to that company's website
- The web search you performed that led you to that company's website
- Information about your web browser and device, such as device type, browser type, advertising identifier, operating system, connection speed, and display settings
- Your IP address (or partial IP address, depending on how the company has configured the solution), which may be used to approximate your general location
- Location information from your mobile device or web browser
- Social network profile information
- Information you may provide on that company's website, app, or when interacting with that company’s social media pages, such as information you provide on registration forms
- Ad campaign success rates, such as whether you clicked on a company's ad and whether viewing or clicking on the ad led to your purchase of that company's product
- Items you've purchased or placed in your shopping cart on that company's website or app
How do companies use Adobe Marketing Cloud to collect information?
Cookies and Similar Technologies. Adobe Marketing Cloud solutions use cookies and similar technologies, such as web beacons (also known as tags or pixels), to enable companies to collect information in connection with their websites. If you look at your cookie settings in your browser, you may notice cookies from Adobe-owned domains, such as omtrdc.net and demdex.net. Most Internet browsers classify these as "third-party cookies” because they are not set by the website you are visiting. Companies using the Adobe Marketing Cloud sometimes choose to use their own cookies (often called "first-party cookies”).
Mobile. A company may also use Adobe Marketing Cloud technologies within its mobile apps. These technologies allow the company to send information to its Adobe Marketing Cloud account -- for example, how you use the company’s mobile apps as well as other information your mobile device may make available to apps, such as location information. For more information, please review the privacy policy of the company as well as privacy information provided by your mobile device manufacturer.
Social Media. When you use a company’s social media pages, the social media site you visit (on which the page is located) may allow the company to send certain information about you to its Adobe Marketing Cloud account. Most social media sites allow you to configure your settings regarding how your information is used. For more information, please refer to the privacy policies of the social media sites you use.
What privacy choices do you have about a company's use of Adobe's Marketing Cloud solutions?
For more information about how a company uses Adobe’s Marketing Cloud solutions, please refer to that company's privacy policy. Adobe asks its business customers to provide privacy policies describing:
- Their privacy practices in connection with Adobe Marketing Cloud
- How you can opt out of the collection or use of information gathered by the company in connection with Adobe Marketing Cloud
Cookies and Similar Technologies. Adobe's Marketing Cloud uses cookies and similar technologies to enable companies to collect information. Most browsers automatically accept cookies, but you can usually configure your browser to block all cookies, or to block only those set by companies other than the one whose website you are visiting. If you configure your browser to block cookies, you may prevent a company from collecting information using Adobe Marketing Cloud solutions on its websites. Please see Your Privacy Choices to learn more about your choices for opting out of companies’ use of Adobe Marketing Cloud solutions.
Mobile. Most mobile devices allow you to the limit use of mobile advertising identifiers for interest-based advertising. For more information, please review the instructions provided by your mobile device manufacturer. The Digital Advertising Alliance’s AppChoices app may also provide you with more options to opt out of receiving interest-based advertising within mobile apps. Please see Your Privacy Choices to learn more about your choices for opting out of companies’ use of Adobe Marketing Cloud solutions.
Email and Text Messages. To learn more about how to opt out from commercial email or text messages sent by a company using Adobe Marketing Cloud, please follow the opt out process specified within the message itself, or review the company’s privacy policy. To opt out from receiving mobile push notifications, please review the information provided by your mobile device manufacturer.
Adobe Marketing Cloud Device Co-op. The Adobe Marketing Cloud Device Co-op is a data co-operative that enables participating Adobe Marketing Cloud companies to better recognize their consumers across devices. Each participating company provides the Co-op with technical information, such as cryptographically hashed login IDs and HTTP header information, about its consumers. But no personally identifiable information such as name, email address, or phone number is shared with the Co-op. The Co-op then combines and processes the technical information to recognize when multiple devices are used by the same individual (who is not personally identifiable by the Co-op), and creates links among those devices. These device links are used by participating companies to link devices they have already seen visit their sites or advertising, and to provide consistent experiences and marketing activities across the devices. You can learn more about how the Co-op works or opt-out.
Interest-Based Advertising. Adobe is a member of the following interest-based advertising self-regulatory groups:
- Australian Digital Advertising Alliance (ADAA)
- Digital Advertising Alliance (DAA)
- European Digital Advertising Alliance (EDAA)
- Network Advertising Initiative (NAI)
Adobe complies with the member requirements of these groups, including the NAI Code of Conduct and other applicable NAI guidance. Please visit these groups' sites for more information about interest-based advertising, including how to opt out of companies' use of Adobe Marketing Cloud advertising solutions.
Please also see Your Privacy Choices to learn more about your choices for opting out of companies’ use of Adobe Marketing Cloud advertising solutions.
If you opt out, you will no longer receive interest-based ads using Adobe Marketing Cloud advertising solutions that are based on your previous activity on websites. You may still receive ads from companies that use our advertising solutions, but they will no longer be based on your previous web browsing or likely interests. When you opt out, Adobe will place at least one opt out cookie on your browser. If you delete your cookies, change browsers, or change devices, you will need to repeat this opt-out process. Also, please note that this opt-out process will work only if your browser is set to accept third-party cookies.
How long is information collected on behalf of companies using Adobe Marketing Cloud advertising solutions retained?
As described above, the Adobe Marketing Cloud advertising solutions use cookies and similar technologies, and mobile technologies, to help companies collect information about how you use their websites and apps so they can provide you with more relevant ads. These ads are often called “interest-based ads.” Adobe generally retains this information within the Adobe Marketing Cloud advertising services for a maximum of 37 months from the time it was collected. The companies that use the Adobe Marketing Cloud advertising services may use Adobe’s technologies to collect data, or, as explained below, add additional information to the information they collect using the Adobe Marketing Cloud. In these situations, Adobe retains data in accordance with the company’s instructions.
What information can a company upload to Adobe Marketing Cloud?
Some of the Adobe Marketing Cloud solutions are designed to enable a company to upload information into its Adobe Marketing Cloud account. Therefore, companies sometimes upload information that they have collected from their own websites, apps, social media pages, or from other sources, such as third party data providers.
Does Adobe share any of the information its business customers collect using Adobe Marketing Cloud?
Adobe does not share its business customers’ information except as described in the Adobe Privacy Policy, in the Adobe Marketing Cloud Device Co-op, or when asked to do so by the business customer. Please review the privacy policy of the company using Adobe Marketing Cloud for more information about that company's privacy practices.
Companies often allow Adobe to aggregate their data in a way that does not identify individuals for the purpose of publishing reports, such as the Adobe Digital Index.