Current stage: Review & Approval
This is the standard privacy-policy foundation BOTH/AND customizes for each parish website. It shows what the policy normally covers; it is not the parish-specific approval copy by itself. During the detailed Website Review, the parish reviews the customized version supplied by BOTH/AND, with every bracketed field replaced and every inactive service removed.
Privacy Policy
Effective date: [MONTH DAY, YEAR]
[PARISH LEGAL NAME] respects the privacy of people who visit [WEBSITE DOMAIN] and contact the parish through this website. This policy explains what information the website receives and how it is used.
Information You Provide
The website may receive information submitted through Contact, Plan a Visit, Ask the Priest, Prayer Request, Meet Up, or another parish form. Depending on the form, this may include a name, email address, telephone number, message, visit plans, prayer request, or other information the visitor chooses to provide.
The parish uses this information to respond, prepare for a visit, answer a question, receive a prayer request, route a message to the appropriate representative, and protect the website from misuse.
Forms may store a protected copy in the website administrative system and send an emailed copy to assigned parish recipients. The parish controls emailed copies and retains them according to its pastoral and recordkeeping practices. Prayer requests go only to the priest and/or prayer-team members designated by the parish.
General website forms should not be used for highly sensitive medical, financial, or confidential pastoral information and are not an emergency service.
Website and Analytics Information
The website and its providers may receive limited technical information needed to operate and protect the site, such as IP address, browser and device type, referring page, pages visited, approximate location derived from network information, timestamps, cookies, and similar identifiers.
The website uses Google Analytics through Google Site Kit to understand general traffic and how visitors find and use the site. Google explains this processing in How Google uses information from sites or apps that use its services.
The parish and BOTH/AND do not intentionally send names, email addresses, telephone numbers, prayer-request text, messages, or other form contents to Google Analytics.
Hosting and Outside Services
The website is managed by BOTH/AND and hosted on BOTH/AND’s managed hosting. Hosting provides daily backups, security monitoring, and technical logs. BOTH/AND maintains the website and its approved software.
The website may also use outside services for forms and spam prevention, Analytics and search information, the parish calendar, maps, videos, livestreams, donations, newsletters, or other verified features. The final policy lists only services actually active on the parish website.
How Information Is Shared
The parish does not sell personal information. Information may be shared with parish representatives who need it to respond, with providers that operate or secure the website, when reasonably necessary to protect people or the site, when required by law or valid process, or at the visitor’s direction or consent.
Retention and Security
The parish keeps information as reasonably needed to respond, maintain appropriate pastoral or organizational records, protect the website, and meet applicable obligations. Reasonable safeguards are used, but no website, email, or online transmission can be guaranteed completely secure.
Children
The website is intended for a general audience and does not knowingly collect personal information directly from children under 13. Information about children and family ministries is intended for parents and guardians. Children should not submit personal information without a parent or legal guardian.
Your Choices and Requests
Visitors may use the parish Contact form to ask about personal information submitted through the website, request a correction, or request deletion. The parish may verify identity and may retain information when reasonably necessary for security, legal, pastoral, or legitimate recordkeeping purposes.
Changes and Contact
The policy may be updated when website practices, services, or requirements change. The final parish policy includes the parish legal name, postal address, public phone, and a link to the parish Contact form.
Why Every Parish Website Has This Policy
Google Analytics requires an appropriate privacy policy that discloses Analytics and explains how Google collects and processes data. The policy also gives visitors one clear place to understand what happens when they use parish forms and outside services.
This standard policy is a practical baseline customized to the services actually used by the parish. It is not legal advice or a guarantee for every jurisdiction. The parish approves its factual accuracy and identifies any unusual requirement needing additional review.
What Happens Next?
BOTH/AND will adapt this foundation to the parish’s verified website services and information. The parish reviews the customized policy as part of the detailed Website Review and approves its factual accuracy before Final Website Approval.