Privacy Policy

At Light in the Dark Counseling, safeguarding your privacy is a core aspect of our commitment to providing you with exceptional care. We understand the importance of protecting the confidentiality of your personal information and ensuring that your sensitive data remains secure. This Privacy Policy elucidates the measures we undertake to collect, use, and safeguard the information you entrust to us, whether it’s through our website or during counseling sessions.

 

Information We Collect:

Personal Information: When engaging with our services, we may collect personal details like your name, email address, phone number, and billing information. These details are necessary for scheduling appointments, communicating with you, and facilitating payments.

Counseling Information: During counseling sessions, we may collect additional personal and sensitive information pertinent to your mental health and well-being. This information is vital for tailoring our counseling services to address your specific needs and concerns effectively.

 

How We Use Your Information:

The information you provide is utilized primarily to manage appointments, correspond with you regarding counseling sessions, and process payments. Additionally, your counseling information aids us in delivering personalized counseling services and tracking your progress toward your therapeutic goals.

We collect Personal Information in the normal course of business to serve you better.

  • Unless otherwise stated, we do not sell, trade, or give away your Personal Information to anyone.
  • Unless otherwise stated, we do not disclose your Personal Information to third parties.

 

We may also use Personal Information:

  • to respond to your inquiries and fulfill your requests;
  • to inform you about important information regarding the Site or services that may interest you or changes to terms, conditions, and policies and/or other administrative information;
  • to deliver marketing communications that we believe may be of interest to you, including, ads or offers tailored to you, including ads on other websites;
  • to personalize your experience on the Site;
  • to verify your identity and/or location (or the identity or location of your representative or agent) to allow access to your services, conduct online transactions, and to maintain measures aimed at preventing fraud and protecting the security of your Personal Information;
  • to allow you to participate in surveys and other forms of market research;
  • to send you e-mails regarding system downtime and/or changes to this Privacy Policy or the Terms and Conditions of Use.
  • for business purposes, including data analysis, audits, developing and improving services, enhancing the Site, identifying usage trends, and determining the effectiveness of web pages; and
  • for risk control, for fraud detection and prevention, to comply with laws and regulations, and to comply with other legal processes and law enforcement requirements.

 

Information Sharing:

We hold your personal and counseling information in the strictest confidence and do not disclose it to third parties without your explicit consent, except where required by law or deemed necessary to safeguard our legal rights.

Upholding confidentiality is a cornerstone of our practice, and we adhere to rigorous confidentiality protocols in alignment with legal statutes and ethical standards.

 

Data Security:

To safeguard your personal and counseling information from unauthorized access, disclosure, alteration, or destruction, we implement robust security measures. These measures comply with industry standards and encompass encryption protocols, firewalls, and stringent access controls.

Our website is secured with SSL (Secure Sockets Layer) encryption technology to ensure the secure transmission of data between your browser and our server, further fortifying your privacy.

 

Cookies and Tracking:

We may utilize cookies and similar tracking technologies on our website to enhance your browsing experience and analyze website traffic. You retain the ability to manage the use of cookies through your browser settings.

We and our third-party service providers may collect and use other information in a variety of ways, including:

Through your browser or device: Certain information is collected by most browsers and/or through your device, such as your Media Access Control (MAC) address, device type, screen resolution, operating system version, and internet browser type and version. We use this information to ensure Sites function properly, for fraud detection and prevention, and security purposes.

Using cookies: Cookies are pieces of information stored directly on the device you are using. Cookies we use do not contain or capture unencrypted Personal Information. Cookies allow us to collect information such as browser type, time spent on the Site, pages visited, language preferences, and your relationship with us. We use the information for security purposes, to facilitate navigation (i.e. to store your account information between sessions), to display information more effectively, to personalize/tailor your experience while engaging with us, and to recognize your device to allow your use of our online products and services.

We collect statistical information about the usage of the Site to continually improve the design and functionality, monitor responses to our advertisements and content, understand how visitors use the Site, and assist us with resolving questions regarding the Site. We also utilize cookies for advertising purposes. Please see the Advertising section below for more information.

How to opt-out of cookies: You can refuse to accept these cookies and most devices and browsers offer their privacy settings for cookies. You will need to manage your cookie settings for each device and browser you use. However, if you do not accept these cookies, you may experience some inconvenience in your use of the Site and some online services. The site may not load or display properly. You also may not receive tailored advertising or other offers from us that may be relevant to your interests and needs.

To find out more about cookies, including how to see what cookies have been set and how to block and delete cookies, please visit https://www.aboutcookies.org/.

Other technologies including pixel tags, web beacons, and clear GIFs: May be used in connection with some Site pages, downloadable mobile applications, and HTML-formatted email messages to measure the effectiveness of our communications, the success of our marketing campaigns, to compile statistics about usage and response rates, for fraud detection and prevention, for security purposes, for advertising, and to assist us in resolving account holders’ questions regarding use of our Site. 

Google Analytics: We may use a tool called “Google Analytics” to collect information about the use of this site. Google Analytics collects information such as how often users visit this site, what pages they visit when they do so, and what other sites they used before coming to this Site. We use the information we get from Google Analytics only to improve this Site.

Google Analytics collects only the IP address assigned to you on the date you visit this Site, rather than your name or other identifying information. We do not combine the information collected through the use of Google Analytics with personally identifiable information.

Although Google Analytics plants a permanent cookie on your web browser to identify you as a unique user the next time you visit this Site, the cookie cannot be used by anyone but Google. Google’s ability to use and share information collected by Google Analytics about your visits to this Site is restricted by the Google Analytics Terms of Use and the Google Privacy Policy. You can prevent Google Analytics from recognizing you on return visits to this Site by disabling cookies on your browser.

IP Address: Your IP Address is a number that is automatically assigned to the device that you are using by your Internet Service Provider (ISP). An IP Address is identified and logged automatically in our server log files whenever a user visits the Site, along with the time of the visit and the page(s) that were visited. Collecting IP Addresses is standard practice on the internet and is done automatically by many websites. We use IP Addresses for purposes such as calculating Site usage levels, helping diagnose server problems, advertising, for compliance and security purposes, and administering the Site. Please see the Advertising section below for more information.

Aggregated and De-identified Data: Aggregated and De-identified Data is data that we may create or compile from various sources, including, but not limited to accounts and transactions. This information, which does not identify individual account holders, may be used for our business purposes, which may include offering products or services, research, marketing or analyzing market trends, and other purposes consistent with applicable laws.

 

Linking to Other Sites:

We may provide links to third-party sites. If you follow links to sites not affiliated with or controlled by us, you should review their privacy and security policies and other terms and conditions, as they may be different from those of our Sites. We do not guarantee and are not responsible for the privacy or security of these sites, including the accuracy, completeness, or reliability of their information.

 

Protecting Children’s Privacy Online:

The Site is not directed to individuals under the age of thirteen (13), and we request that these individuals do not provide Personal Information through the Site. We do not knowingly collect information from children under 13 without parental consent. Visit the Federal Trade Commission website for more information about the Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA).

If you believe that we have received information from a child or other person who is not of a majority age in their relevant jurisdiction, please contact us at our email or physical mailing address listed in the Contact Us section below and we will take all reasonable efforts to remove the information.

 

Your Rights:

You retain certain rights concerning your personal information, including the right to access, update, or delete the information stored in our records. Should you have any inquiries or concerns regarding your privacy rights, we encourage you to reach out to us.

 

Changes to This Policy:

We retain the prerogative to revise or amend this Privacy Policy periodically. Any modifications will be promptly reflected on our website, and we recommend that you review this policy intermittently to stay informed about any updates.

By availing yourself of our website and counseling services, you implicitly consent to the collection, utilization, and disclosure of your information as delineated in this Privacy Policy. Should you require further elucidation or have queries regarding our privacy practices, please don’t hesitate to contact us.