Privacy Policy

Application of this policy

This website is operated by Benevity and this Privacy Policy describes our practices concerning the processing of the Personal Information (defined below) which we engage with via this website and other websites and applications that may link to this Privacy Policy and utilize the Benevity Platform.  Such other websites and web applications may include on-demand web applications such as our corporate grantmaking and workplace giving, volunteering and pro-social activity measurement solutions (that are created by or for our clients to present such functionality to users) or any of our other products (collectively, the “Benevity Sites”). These various applications and services in connection with the Benevity Platform or any of our other products are collectively referred to as the "Services".  This Policy applies to users of our workplace programs and our other Services as well as causes and their employees, members of the public accessing our clients’ or other public-facing Benevity Platform grants application and donation portals and other visitors to the Benevity Sites (including without limitation prospective clients and their employees and subscribers to our web-based informational materials).

In this Privacy Policy, “Personal Information” means information about a natural person (a “Data Subject”) which can reasonably be linked to, or identify, the individual, either directly or indirectly. Personal Information does not include information of an aggregate or anonymous nature where a specific individual or individuals cannot be identified.

Note: Benevity Sites may be accessed via or contain links to other websites or applications, such as your employer’s intranet, a charity’s website, informational links that are embedded within content and the like. We are not responsible for the information practices or content of such other websites or providers and encourage you to review the privacy statements of such other websites or application providers to understand their information practices.

Your acceptance

We provide access to and use of the Benevity Sites and Services to you on condition that you accept the terms of this Privacy Policy and any other relevant site documents.  By ticking the appropriate acknowledgement box and proceeding to access or use the relevant Benevity Sites, you have expressly agreed to these terms. If you do not agree with and accept this Privacy Policy, you should not access or use any Benevity Sites nor utilize the Services.

What you are agreeing to

Having expressly provided your agreement to be bound by these terms relating to your use of the Benevity Sites or the Services, you consent to the collection, use and disclosure of your Personal Information in accordance with this Privacy Policy. The terms of this Privacy Policy apply to all Personal Information collected by us on any of the Benevity Sites. We have created this policy pursuant to the Personal Information Protection and Electronic Documents Act (Canada) and various other applicable laws. However, your home jurisdiction may have privacy laws that are more or less protective than Canadian legislation and we encourage you to understand these laws as they apply to you.  For ease of reference, please find information for residents of the European Economic Area, California and the United Kingdom below.

Cookies and other technologies

What are cookies and how do we use them?

Cookies are small text files that are placed on your computer by the websites that you visit; they are widely used to make websites work more efficiently, facilitate user authentication for services, provide analytical information to assess site performance and availability, as well as support personalizing your online experience.

We use cookies for the following purposes:

1. to facilitate secure online access so you do not need to enter your user ID and password again when you access the application;
2. to record your preferences;
3. to ease navigation and increase the user-friendliness of the application; and
4. to analyze the usage of the application and/or to identify the most popular sections.

Benevity cookies collect information that includes the date and time of your visit, authentication identifiers, and session identifiers to store information about your preferences or your past actions on the site.

For further information please review our Cookie Policy.

Consent to collection of Personal Information

Other than the information that is provided by our corporate clients to initiate workplace programs, we only collect Personal Information about you after you have provided us with your consent to collect that specific information by registering as a user of the relevant Benevity Site(s) or when you voluntarily provide Personal Information to us (such as for the purposes of a tax receipt to be issued via the Benevity Platform). By voluntarily providing this information to us, you consent to the collection and use of your Personal Information as set out in this Privacy Policy.

The Personal Information provided by our corporate clients is used to initiate workplace programs and to establish the employee’s eligibility and log-in credentials, implement payroll giving (if applicable) and provide reporting to our clients based on office location and business units. Any processing we complete as regards this Personal Information is also covered by separate legal obligations enshrined in our agreements with corporate clients. To that end, elements of this policy may not apply to you, as they will be superseded by separate provisions concerning your Personal Information in those corporate agreements.

Types of Personal Information we collect

Below is a more detailed look at the types of information we collect, however, this list is not exhaustive.

Benevity.com Website

• Personal Information: first and last name, email address;
• Business contact information: such as company name, business email, business phone, business address, business unit, office or division, geographic business location, job title or role, reporting lines;
• Correspondence: including requests for support with the use of platform and notifications from the site;
• Technical information: including IP address, generalized location, usage data.

Volunteer, Donate, Employee Groups, Challenges, and Impact Reports

• Personal Information: first and last name, preferred email address, postal address and possible profile picture (should you choose to upload one);
• Business contact information: such as company name, business email, business phone, business address, business unit, office or division, geographic business location, job title or role, reporting lines;
• Business demographic information: such as employee ID or workforce ID number, business unit, office or division, geographic business location, job title or role, reporting lines, hire date;
• Transactional information: including donation amount, volunteer hours, missions completed, account histories and other interactions generated using the platform;
• Correspondence: including requests for support with the use of platform and notifications from the platform;
• Technical information: including IP address, generalized location, usage data, usernames and other account information or credentials;
• Categories of personal data: as otherwise agreed upon between your employer (corporate client) and Benevity in agreements between us, including in exhibits, appendices, attachments and amendments to such agreements.

Grants Management

• Personal Information: first and last name, email address;
• Organization contact information: such as organization name, email address, phone, postal address, and registration information;
• Grant application information: such as the grant applicant’s contact, registration and other requested information noted on the application forms;
• Transactional information: including grants, disbursements, account histories and other interactions generated using the platform;
• Correspondence: including requests for support with the use of platform and notifications from the platform;
• Technical information: including IP address, generalized location, usage data, usernames and other account information or credentials.

Nonprofits

• Personal Information: first and last name, email address for registered users supporting the cause;
• Cause Claimant Information: such as ID forms to confirm claimant identity, including driver’s licence, passport or other documents to confirm identity of cause claimant;
• Cause Contact Information: such as cause name, email address, phone, postal address, business unit, office or division, geographic business location, job title or role, reporting lines;
• Organization Contact Information: such as organization name, email address, phone, business address, and registration information;
• Transactional information: including grants, disbursements, account histories and other interactions generated using the platform;
• Correspondence: including requests for support with the use of platform and notifications from the platform;
• Technical information: including IP address, generalized location, usage data.

The Benevity Platform is designed to facilitate efficient employer and corporate matching programs and is explicitly not intended to handle or process personal information generally classified as sensitive. This includes, (but is not limited to) personal health information, genetic or biometric data, financial account information, social security numbers, government-issued identification documents, or any data that may be considered sensitive or confidential by applicable laws and regulations. We kindly request that you refrain from providing such information while using our service. The categories of Personal Information that we may collect include: (a) limited identifiers including without limitation name, alias, postal address, unique personal identifier, Internet Protocol (IP) address and email address; and (b) some internet activity information including without limitation search (for a cause) history, donation and volunteering activity and information regarding your interaction with our Sites, application or advertisement. The purposes for the collection, use and disclosure of this information are described below.  

Use of your Personal Information

We use Personal Information to provide the Services to you, enhance the operation of the relevant Benevity Site, and tailor your experience for the Benevity sites. Where applicable based upon your usage of a particular Benevity Site, we may collect and use your Personal Information to:

• create and manage your user account;
• process and report upon your donation, volunteering, charitable gift card, pro-social activities or other transactions;
• provide client service and related assistance to you or the corporate client of the Benevity Site;
• display or provide content that is created by you or customized to your interests and preferences;
• operate interactive areas of the relevant Benevity Site;
• if you are a contributor to any of the third-party charitable foundations that form part of the Benevity Platform, to facilitate your donation transactions and prepare donation receipts or other acknowledgments;
• interact with our client that has licensed the Site for its employees and other users;
• if you are a contributor to a news or information forum feature or a user-generated or team fundraising or volunteering event within one of the Benevity Sites, to identify your uploaded content as your content;
• communicate with you about your donation and volunteering transactions, your use of the Services and new products and services; and
• carry out other purposes which are disclosed to you and to which you consent or as otherwise permitted or required by applicable law.

We may send you transaction-related communications such as welcome letters, reminders, donation confirmations, thank-you letters, impact statements and the like. If you are an administrator of a program, we may also send you surveys or marketing communications to inform you of new products or services or other information or offers that may be of interest to you/your company. If you do not wish to receive surveys or marketing communications, you may opt-out by following the “unsubscribe” instructions included within each email communication. Please note that if you choose not to receive marketing or survey communications, you will continue to receive transactional and account communications (e.g. confirmation emails, account balance statements, etc.).  If you wish to receive communications from us, you have the right to opt-in at the time of signing up for Services.

Credit card processing

We utilize third-party payment processors to manage credit card processing through the platform. Neither Benevity, its affiliates, nor the third-party charitable foundations receive or hold your credit card information. Instead, the information you provide for payment purposes will be transmitted directly to the third-party payment processor, which will handle the processing and security of such data. These payment processors are certified and compliant with the Payment Card Industry Data Security Standard (PCI DSS). Please note that the processing of payment information will be governed by the terms and privacy policy of the third-party payment processor.  Details of their respective privacy and information practices are accessible through their respective merchant platforms that may be accessed via or integrated with a Benevity Site.

Bluesnap - https://www.bluesnap.com/legal/privacy-policy

PayPal US - https://www.paypal.com/us/legalhub/privacy-full

PayPal Global - https://www.paypal.com/eu/webapps/mpp/ua/privacy-full

Use of anonymized & aggregated data

At Benevity, we aim to improve the philanthropic landscape to enhance the impact of our client’s social purpose programs. Benevity may aggregate and anonymize data we receive to conduct analysis and gain insights into general trends, usage patterns, and preferences of our user base without compromising individual privacy. This may include (but not be limited to):

• Performing research and analysis aiming at improving our Services and the Benevity Platform;
• Understanding user behavior and preferences to enhance user experience;
• Conducting research and providing insights to improve the overall corporate purpose landscape, which can be shared with our corporate clients, partners and the philanthropic community at large; and
• Enhancing our overall business and marketing programs.

Anonymizing data means processing it with the aim of irreversibly preventing the identification of the individual to whom it relates. Aggregating data is the process of combining or summarizing from multiple records, transactions or sources to provide a broader overview or higher-level perspective. Both of these processes are carried out with utmost care to protect your privacy and confidentiality, and, for clarity, data that is anonymized & aggregated is not considered to be Personal Information.

Disclosure of your information

We may, with your prior written consent, share your Personal Information with the cause that you have made a donation or grant in respect of, volunteered with or engaged in other pro-social activities with, unless otherwise directed by applicable law. Please note that if you have provided such consent, you acknowledge that, although Benevity takes steps to obtain assurances from such causes to not (unless required by law), disclose your Personal Information without your consent, Benevity is not responsible for that organization’s use of such information.

We do not sell your Personal Information to any third party but only transfer Personal Information to subprocessors as necessary to provide our Services. Benevity remains responsible to you for any of your Personal Information that is shared with third-party subprocessors.

We reserve the right to disclose your Personal Information when we believe that disclosure is necessary to: protect our rights or comply with a judicial proceeding, court order, law or legal process in respect of the Services or a Benevity Site; enforce or apply this Privacy Policy, the terms of use or other agreements; or to protect the rights, property or safety of a Benevity Site, its users, corporate host or others.

Correcting and updating your Personal Information

Users participating in relevant workplace programs may update or change their registration information by editing their user or organization record on the applicable Benevity Site. To update a user profile, log in to the relevant Benevity Site with your username and password and click on your name in the header or “User Profile” in the footer. Once in the user profile, edit by clicking on “Tax Receipt Information” to update any of your Personal Information. To discontinue your account, contact your employer in the case of a Spark Benevity Site, the corporate host of any other Benevity Site, or email help@benevity.com. Any user may request to access or correct their Personal Information by contacting us at privacy@benevity.com. We will respond to requests to access, change or delete such information within 30 days and may be under an obligation to share such request with the corporate host of the Benevity Site.

Retention and destruction/anonymization of Personal Information

We retain Personal Information we collect from you in accordance with applicable law and where we have an ongoing legitimate business need to do so (for example, to provide you with a service you or your employer have requested or to comply with applicable legal, tax or accounting requirements (typically seven years). Upon expiry of an appropriate retention period, bearing in mind reasonable legal and business requirements, Personal Information will either be destroyed in a secure manner or made anonymous.

Personal Information preferences

In addition to you controlling the marketing and survey information that may be sent to you as described previously in this Privacy Policy, we offer users who provide contact or other Personal Information a means to choose how we use the information you provide. You may manage your receipt of non-transactional communications and whether we share your contact information and donation data with a cause in respect of donations or volunteer time by making the applicable selection in your user profile or the donation forms that are part of the relevant Benevity Site.  Additionally, you may send a request specifying your communications preferences to help@benevity.com.

Data security

Protecting your Personal Information is important to us. We do this by having in place a range of appropriate technological, physical, contractual and organizational measures to protect your Personal Information from loss, theft or unauthorized access, disclosure or use. The only employees who are granted access to your Personal Information are those whose duties reasonably require such access.

Rights of European Economic Area (“EEA”), United Kingdom and California residents

In addition, if you are a resident of the EEA, the United Kingdom or California, you have the following data protection rights, as applicable under relevant data protection laws:

• If you wish to access, correct, update or request deletion (including in the form of anonymization) of your Personal Information, you can do so at any time by contacting us using the contact details provided below;
• You can also object to the processing (including subprocessing and/or data sharing) of your Personal Information, ask us to restrict processing of your Personal Information or request portability of your Personal Information. Again, you can exercise these rights by contacting us using the contact details below;
• Where in the case of a workplace program we derive the custody or control of the Personal Information through our corporate client, the client will be the controller and all requests for access to Personal Information should be forwarded through such controller to us;
• Similarly, if we have collected and process your Personal Information with your consent, then you can withdraw your consent at any time. Withdrawing your consent will not affect the lawfulness of any processing we conducted prior to your withdrawal, nor will it affect processing of your Personal Information conducted in reliance on lawful processing grounds other than consent;
• You have the right to complain to the relevant regulator about our collection and use of your Personal Information. For more information, please contact your relevant regulator; and
• You may receive your Personal Information in an interoperable format or request to have it transmitted to another organization.

We respond to all requests we receive from individuals wishing to exercise their data protection rights in accordance with applicable data protection laws. Our legal basis for collecting and using the Personal Information provided by our clients to initiate workplace programs is a legitimate interests basis.  Any information provided by any user in any other context is on a consent basis or to perform a contract with you.

For California residents, pursuant to the California Consumer Privacy Act (“CCPA”), the above applies to the Personal Information collected during the 12-month period prior to the date of the request.

For clarity, Benevity does not sell Personal Information, nor do we share Personal Information with any third party (except those as necessary to provide our Services).

International data transfers

Personal Information collected by us may be stored and processed in Canada, the United States, the European Union (EU) or any other country in which we or our agents maintain facilities and, by providing us with your Personal Information and using any of the Benevity Sites or Services, you consent to any such transfer of information outside of your country. As a result, this Personal Information may be subject to access requests from the corporate employer, governments, courts or law enforcement officials in those jurisdictions according to laws in those jurisdictions. Subject to applicable laws in such other jurisdictions, we will ensure that appropriate protections are in place regarding all Personal Information.

For EEA and United Kingdom data subjects, note that Canada has been deemed to have adequate safeguards for the protection of personal information by the European Commission and the Government of the United Kingdom. Data is accessible in the United States by our affiliates and data is stored in the United States with our data hosting service provider with whom we have applicable Standard Contractual Clauses and the UK Addendum in place (as updated from time to time) to cover data subjects in both the EEA and the United Kingdom.

Changes to this Privacy Policy

This Privacy Policy may be updated from time to time. When we do this, we will alert you by posting an amended version on our website. The amended version will be effective as of the date it is published. When we make material changes to this Privacy Policy, we will provide you with notice as appropriate, for example by posting an alert the next time you visit our website or by emailing you. If you do not agree with the changes to the Privacy Policy, you should not continue to access or use any Benevity Sites, nor utilize the Services.

Governing Language

This Privacy Policy may be translated from English into one or more language(s). In the event of any conflict between the English language version of this Privacy Policy and any subsequent translation into any other language, the English version is the official version and will govern.

Contacting Us

Whether you are a new or loyal user of our Services, a cause or another user of a Benevity Site, we would like to stay connected and want to hear from you! We are constantly striving to improve the Services and Make Goodness Better. Let us know if you have any ideas, suggestions or issues.

Benevity, Inc.
700, 611 Meredith Road NE
Calgary, AB T2E 2W5

Email: privacy@benevity.com

Last Updated: September 2023