Privacy Policy

This policy applies to all information collected or submitted on The Association of Bone & Joint Surgeons® (ABJS®) website www.abjs.org and via email or other forms of communication including but not limited to Clinical Orthopaedics and Related Research® (CORR®). ABJS takes our data responsibilities seriously and we want you to have confidence in how we handle your personal information.

Acknowledgement

By visiting the ABJS website (the site) and providing information to ABJS via email or other forms of communication, you are accepting and consent to the practices and provisions of this Privacy Policy.

Information We Collect

We collect information about you in a variety of ways depending on how you interact with us and our products and services. This may include:

Information you provide to us, such as when you register for an account, sign up for and/or attend an event or conference, participate in a survey, subscribe to one of our publications or newsletters, make a purchase, or contact us;
Information we collect automatically from your browser or device when you visit our websites or interact with our communications or advertisements. For more information, please see the “Cookies and other data collection technologies” section below;
Information we get from third parties, such as our service providers, your employer or organization, licensing or governmental agencies, or individuals who provide reference data; and
Information from other sources, such as publicly available sources or social media and third-party platforms and networks that you use.

Some of the information we collect includes information that can be used to identify you. The type of service you are using affects the types of information you are requested, or required, to provide. You may be asked for name, title, organization, mailing address, email address, phone and fax numbers, credit/debit card information and other personal contact details. We also may collect information on your views and preferences as they relate to our services. You may always refuse to supply information, except that it may prevent you from engaging in certain site-related activities or receiving certain services.

In some cases, such as profile pages, user forums, job postings, and interactive site features, any information you provide may become publicly available to other users and the general public and is not considered confidential. When you voluntarily disclose such personal information, that information may be collected and used by others, resulting in unsolicited messages from others. Where you have publicly posted personal information, we are free to reproduce, publish, or otherwise use such information for any purposes.

Non-Personal Information

We may also collect information that cannot be used to identify you. For example, we may aggregate non-personal information about you and other individuals who visit our site. Knowing more about who uses our site and how they use it helps us to make improvements. Aggregated information will not contain any information that can be linked directly back to you.

How We Use Collected Information

In addition to purposes and uses described elsewhere in this policy, we use the information we collect for other legitimate purposes, including to do the following:

Identify you when you visit our site.
Provide you with products and services, such as processing, maintaining, and servicing your account(s), membership, certification, purchases, education, publication, volunteer activities, and subscriptions.
Communicate with you, such as responding to your requests or inquires, performing timely customer service, sending you information about our products, services, conferences and events, and administering our surveys.
Improve our products, services, and site, and provide you with a more consistent and personalized experience when interacting with us.
Operate our site effectively, analyze and report on website usage, and improve the overall security and functionality of our website.
Provide you with editorial, marketing, and advertising information that we think is relevant to your areas of interest, including sending materials on behalf of our third-party business partners.
Enable research and promote the innovation of our products and services.
Manage our business operations and administer our business activities, such as accounting, recordkeeping, and any other business purpose that is permitted by law.
Detect security incidents, and investigate, prevent, or take action regarding possible malicious, deceptive, or illegal activity, including attempts to manipulate or violate our policies, procedures, and terms and conditions.
Comply with legal obligations, establish or exercise our rights, and defend against legal claims.

We may share your information with business partners and other third parties to deliver content, materials, and services available on or through the site and to provide you with products or services that may be of interest to you, including with the following categories of recipients:

Third party service providers who perform services to support our core business functions and internal operations. Among other things, third party service providers help us to administer our website, customize our products or services, send marketing and communications related to our business, process payments and fulfill orders, and analyze and improve our websites.
Other members or organizations who may receive some of your information as part of a membership directory or through collaboration portals. In addition, if you sign up to attend a member meeting or other ABJS-sponsored event, all other attendees who sign up for the event will be notified of your intended attendance at the event and may be given your full name, address, company name, and email address. We are not responsible for other attendees’ use or misuse of your information.
Affiliated business partners with whom we jointly create and offer a product or service such as exhibitors, sponsors and advertisers, who may receive your information for their own use. We are not responsible for the use or misuse of your information by our affiliated partners.
For legal purposes if we reasonably believe that release of information is necessary to: 1) comply with legal requirements or legal process; 2) protect or defend our rights or property; or 3) protect other users of the site or the public.
During corporate changes in the event of a merger, sale, acquisition, or other change of corporate form or control of our company (whether in whole or in part), including at the negotiation stages, or if necessary to undertake certain business transactions.

We may occasionally send you offers on behalf of third parties or promote such offers on our site. If you do accept a third party offer or request additional information, the third party may collect other information directly from you. Once a third party has your personal information, it is governed by the third party’s privacy policy.

Choices You Have

You choose what information to supply to this site. Please share only information as is needed or that you believe is appropriate. You are under no obligation to provide us with your information, but without it we may not be able to respond to your request.

You have the right to access, delete, or update the information you submit through our site, or to make any inquiries about the processing of such information. If you wish to do so, please contact us as described below. We provide individuals with access to their information where we believe appropriate, including in situations where you are entitled to access and correct your information under applicable data protection and privacy laws.

You may choose to opt out of having your information used for a purpose materially different from the purpose for which it was originally collected or later authorized by you. If you decide at any time that you no longer wish to receive communications from us, please follow the unsubscribe instructions provided in any of the communications.

If you have any complaints or concerns about the handling of your information, please contact us at abjs@abjs.org. We will investigate and respond to complaints and questions promptly and fairly in order to maintain your confidence in ABJS.

You may have been assigned or have created a user name and password to be used for accessing portions of the site. We maintain that information to allow you to access the site and to maintain our relationship with you as a member or customer or to provide specific services to you.

ABJS expressly reserves the right to contact any member or other user regarding account status, renewals, or other matters relevant to subscription or service.

You are responsible for the confidentiality of your login and password for your account. ABJS is not liable for any loss or damage arising from your failure to keep your password confidential.

Cookies and Other Data Collection Technologies

ABJS uses “cookies,” small files placed on your device or browser when you visit a website, and similar data collection technologies to provide services to you, improve our site, track visited pages, help ensure account security, and for other purposes. You may set your browser to refuse or disable cookies, but if you do so, some features of the site may not work properly or you may be prevented from using certain aspects of the site.

From time to time we may use web beacons or other technologies that allow your information to be tracked across sites for the purposes of advertising or remarketing. The cookies and web beacons we use collect non-personally identifiable information about users, such as browser data, user location, device, operating system, and other information used to access the site. Our technology or advertising partners also may use cookies or web beacons to collect information in order to provide us with information or services to enhance the performance and functionality of the site and to adapt site content to better reflect such users’ needs and interests.

Children’s Privacy

ABJS does not market its products or services to children. We do not knowingly collect information from site users under 18 years of age.

Transfer of Personal Data

Our site is hosted on web servers in the United States. If you are located in a non-U.S. jurisdiction, for example, in the European Economic Area, you agree that by providing your information, you consent to the transfer of such information to the United States, a jurisdiction that may not provide an equivalent level of data protection to the laws in your home country.

Links to Third Party Websites

The privacy practices described in this policy are for our site only. We are not responsible for, and this policy does not apply to, the privacy practices of any other website(s) that you may link to through the site. We encourage you to seek out and read the privacy policy of each website that you visit.

Security

No method of transmission over the Internet, or method of electronic storage, is fully secure. Although we take reasonable precautions to protect your information from unauthorized access, use, or disclosure, we cannot guarantee the security of your information.

It is important to note that you also play a significant role in protecting your information. We take precautions to ensure that no one can view or edit your information on our web site without knowing your password, so do not share your password with others. If you become aware of any unauthorized use of your password or account, or any breach of site security or this policy, please notify us immediately.

Changes to this Policy

ABJS reserves the right to make changes to this policy at any time. When we do, we will revise the updated date at the bottom of this page. Please frequently check the policy and particularly before you submit additional information via the site. All revisions to this policy will be posted on the site via link from the homepage. You acknowledge and agree that it is your responsibility to review this policy periodically and become aware of modifications.

Your continued use of the site following the posting of this policy or any changes to this policy is considered your acceptance of those changes.

If you have questions, contact:

The Association of Bone and Joint Surgeons
300 S. Northwest Highway, Suite 203
Park Ridge, IL 60068
Telephone: (847) 720-4186
Fax: (847) 720-4013
Email: abjs@abjs.org

This Privacy Policy was last updated on March 18, 2023.