Privacy Policy

Terms & Conditions and Privacy Policy

Effective February 2024

This Notice explains how the Society of American Military Engineers and the SAME Foundation (“SAME”, “we”, “group” or “us”) collects and processes your Personal Data. Each time you use our Site, the current version of this Notice will apply. Accordingly, whenever you use our Site, you should check the date of this Notice (which appears at the top) and review any changes since the last version. This Notice is applicable to all Site visitors, registered users, and all other users of our Site.

“Personal Data” is any information that enables us to identify you, directly or indirectly, by reference to an identifier such as your name, identification number, location data, online identifier or one or more factors specific to your physical, physiological, genetic, mental, economic, cultural or social identity.

By visiting same.org or related properties, (together the “Site”), you acknowledge that you have read and understood the processes and policies referred to in this Notice.

For the purposes of the General Data Protection Regulation 2016/679 (the “GDPR”), the Data Controller is the Society of American Military Engineers registered in Virginia, USA and located at 607 Prince Street, Alexandria, Virginia.

Our Database Administrator, Natasha Rocheleau, is responsible for overseeing questions in relation to this Notice for the purposes of the GDPR.

SAME respects the privacy of our members and other visitors to our web site. To protect online privacy, SAME has implemented the following policy, which may be amended at any time by posted amendments to this page.

What Information Does SAME Collect?

SAME collects data to better serve our members and the military engineering community. It is our policy to collect and store only personal information that our members and visitors knowingly provide.

With regard to each of your visits to the Site we will automatically collect the following information:
  • Contact information, which you provide when corresponding with us by phone, e-mail or otherwise. This includes information you provide when you participate in social media functions on our Site and when you report a problem with our Site. The information you give us may include your name, address, e-mail address, phone number, financial information and/or credit card information.
  • Membership information, about your membership including your name, contact details such as address, phone number and email address (business or personal), age, job title, year of admission into the Society, and any other information related to your membership. Membership information may be provided by you during the registration process, or by your employer on your behalf.
  • Dues payment information, including financial information such as credit/debit card and account numbers used to register or renew your membership.
  • Purchase information, relating to purchases made by members and non-members of event participation, journals, or newsletter subscriptions either in-person or via our Site. Purchase information will include financial information as well as information concerning the content and time of the purchase.
With regard to each of your visits to the Site we will automatically collect the following information:
  • Technical information, including the Internet protocol (IP) address used to connect your computer or device to the Internet, browser type and version, time zone setting, browser plug-in types and versions, operating system and platform;
  • Information about your visit, including pages you viewed or searched for, page response times, download errors, length of visits to certain pages, page interaction information (such as scrolling, clicks, and mouse-overs), methods used to browse away from the page, and any phone number used to call our customer service number; and
  • Location information
Personal Data we collect from others
  • We may receive information about you from publicly available and third-party databases or services that provide information about business people that we believe will help us identify provide products and services that may be of interest to you. We will obtain your consent before contacting you if required by the law of the country in which you are located.
Non-Personal Data

We collect information that is sent to us automatically by your web browser and we may use this information to generate aggregate statistics about visitors to our Site, including, without limitation:

  • IP addresses
  • Browser type and plug-in details
  • Device type (e.g., desktop, laptop, tablet, phone, etc.)
  • Operating system
  • Local time zone

We may use non-Personal Data for various business purposes such as providing customer service, fraud prevention, market research, and improving our Site. Please check your web browser if you want to learn what information your browser sends or how to change your settings.

Your rights
  • If any of the information that we have about you is incorrect, or you wish to have information (including Personal Data) removed from our records, you may do so by visiting your Profile in your membership dashboard or contacting us at member@asaecenter.org.
  • Additionally, if you prefer not to receive marketing messages from us, please let us know by clicking on the unsubscribe link within any marketing message that you receive, by visiting your preferences page, or by sending a message to us at member@asaecenter.org.
How long we retain your data

Anonymous Information from General Users. SAME does not collect personal information from users browsing our web site. Users to the public areas of SAME’s web site browse anonymously. SAME collects aggregate data from users browsing our web site. SAME uses this information for purposes of statistical analysis of web site traffic. Aggregate data are only used for internal and marketing purposes, and SAME does not provide any personal identification information.

  • Information from SAME Members, Conference Registrants, and Other Customers. There are a number of areas in the SAME web site where we ask for and collect information about you, including personally identifiable information. Where we do, it is in order to serve you better, or is necessary to accomplish the service you are requesting. Examples include membership information (which may include name, address, email, telephone number and educational and professional experience information), conference and seminar registrations, security identifiers, shipping information, and product purchase information stored in online shopping carts.
  • Membership Information. Membership information is used in the SAME database, which is used to generate SAME mailing lists. This includes lists provided to SAME Posts. The mailing list may be used in connection with informing you about SAME services, products, conferences, meetings and events. In addition, SAME also makes member contact available through the SAME Membership Directory to other members and registrant contact information to conference exhibitors and attendees. SAME does not provide mailing lists in part or whole to members for promotional purposes (occasionally, this information is provided to third-parties for specific business reasons; see below on Third-Party Disclosure). Users may request SAME refrain from disclosing the data it collects to third parties on the membership application form, conference registration form or any other form on which they are providing information; an opt-out box will appear on each form on which a user provides information. If you do not agree with our policies, your choice is to not use the SAME Website or provide SAME with your information.
  • Public Information.  Some information on the SAME website is viewable by any visitor to the site. By listing your contact information in one of those areas, you accept that people may contact you as a result.  Contact information for staff members, officers, event chairs, and committee members are listed on the appropriate pages, so that members and attendees can reach them with questions. Volunteers and officers choose what information they want to have listed, but they must be reachable.
  • International Web Site Access and Cross-Border Data Transfers. If you are visiting the SAME website from outside the United States, your information will be transferred to, stored and processed in the United States where our servers are located and SAME is based.  In addition, information that SAME collects may be stored and processed in and transferred between any of the countries in which SAME operates to enable the use of the information in accordance with this Privacy Policy.  You agree to such cross-border transfers of information.
  • Third-Party Disclosure. SAME does not sell or rent email addresses to anyone outside of SAME and its organizational entities. From time to time, to better serve our members and to supplement member dues, the SAME mailing list, in part or as a whole, is released to other carefully selected third-party organizations to provide you with information on products and services related to your profession, or that we otherwise believe is useful to our members for business reasons. You may instruct us not to share information about you in the SAME mailing list with third-parties by indicating this preference on your membership application when you join SAME, on your renewal form when you renew your membership, when you register to participate in an event, org by notifying us at member@same.org, or by calling us at 703-549-3800.
How Long do we Store your Personal Data?

We will store your Personal Data, in a form which permits us to identify you, for no longer than is necessary for the purpose for which the Personal Data is processed. We may retain and use your Personal Data as necessary to comply with our legal obligations, resolve disputes, and enforce our agreements and rights, or if it is not technically reasonably feasible to remove it. Consistent with these requirements, we will try to delete your Personal Data quickly upon request.

We will retain your information for as long as your account is active or as needed to provide you with our Site. If you wish to cancel your account or request that we no longer use your information to provide you service, contact us at member@same.org. We will retain and use your information as necessary to comply with our legal obligations, resolve disputes, and enforce our agreements. We maintain one or more databases to store your Personal Data and may keep such information indefinitely.

Where we store your personal data

The Personal Data that you provide to us is generally stored on servers located in the United States. If you are located in another jurisdiction, you should be aware that once your Personal Data is submitted through our Site, it will be transferred to our servers in the United States and that the United States currently does not have uniform data protection laws in place

Transfer of Personal Data outside of the European Economic Area (“EEA”) and International Users

We are headquartered in the United States. Your Personal Data may be accessed by us or transferred to us in the United States or to our affiliates, partners, merchants, or service providers who are located worldwide. If you are visiting our Site from outside the United States, be aware that your information may be transferred to, stored, and processed in the United States where our servers are located, and our central database is operated. By using our Service, you consent to any transfer of this information.

How Does SAME Use Cookies?

Cookies are small text files that may be stored on your computer, smart phone, or tablet when you access an SAME website. This information can be read by the SAME website when you return to this site. SAME uses cookies to speed up your future visits by storing preferences and log-in information you provide, and to support a better experience through tailored content. In addition, cookies provide statistical and other information to SAME about how the website is used in order for SAME to monitor access and use of the site, assess the effectiveness of particular content, and suggest areas for improvement.

While these cookies alone do not allow SAME to personally identify visitors to the website, information collected by SAME cookies may be used to streamline communications with members and customers by facilitating targeted content consistent with users’ email preferences and SAME’s privacy policy. No information collected by SAME through cookies will be shared with third parties, except as required by law.

Terms of Use: SAME Online Membership Directory

In exchange for access to the information in SAME’s various Membership Directories including but not limited to the individual member directory, Sustaining Member directory, Communities of Interest roster, Post membership rosters, all users agree to the following terms and conditions contained in this non-exclusive, non-transferable, limited license agreement. Please read this agreement carefully before accessing the directory. By accessing the directory online, you hereby accept and agree to be bound by the following terms and conditions.

The directory and its contents are proprietary products of SAME. The directory is intended primarily for use by members as a means to contact and collaborate with their fellow professionals.

The contents of this directory may not, in whole or part, be reproduced, copied, disseminated, or entered into a computer database for the purpose of marketing a product or service to the individuals and companies listed in the directory. The listing of any individual or firm in the directory does not represent their consent to receive any marketing or related information. This prohibition against use of the directory for marketing purposes extends to all individuals and companies, regardless of membership status in SAME.

While individual and organizational members of the SAME are listed in the directory, SAME is not responsible for examining or evaluating the products and services offered, nor does it warrant the products or services of any of these organizations or individuals or the content of their websites.

General SAME Web Server Security

All of the SAME web servers are registered as secure servers using industry-standard certificate techniques. This enables all communication between our servers to be verified when services are requested between computers.

All the personal information collected from you on our site, including names and addresses, is stored behind a “firewall,” and defenses have been erected to seek to enhance the protection of your information from outside attack by hackers and curious visitors.

Secure Transactions. For your protection, we have taken a number of steps to maximize the security of financial transactions that are accepted on the SAME web site. Credit card numbers and expiration dates are taken when you place your order, but the full credit card number is never stored by SAME except temporarily in memory on the server while the order is being processed. We do store the last 4 digits of your credit card number for auditing purposes, but we never record the full number in any permanent medium. Credit Card processing is accomplished using secure processing services. Your entry of credit card information is encrypted when transmitted in secure mode. If for any reason you still feel uncomfortable submitting your credit card over the Internet, you can mail your information to us.

Regardless of the Precautions Taken by you or by SAME, “Perfect Security” Does Not Exist on the Internet. SAME Cannot Ensure or Warrant the Security of Any Information You Transmit To This Site Or SAME, and you transmit such information at your own risk.

What Privacy Issues Arise With Links To Other Sites?

This website contains links to other web sites, including third party organizations that provide SAME member benefit programs. SAME is not responsible for the privacy policies or content of such sites and you should read their terms and privacy policies before using them.

Artificial Intelligence (AI) Policy
  • SAME prohibits the entry of content from any SAME publication or related SAME intellectual property (IP) into any AI tool, including but not limited to ChatGPT. Additionally, creating derivative works of SAME IP using AI is also prohibited without express written permission from SAME.
  • Users who elect to use AI tools in virtual meetings operated by SAME entities must disclose use of the tool to participants. The use of AI tools to record and/or take notes in “off the record” meetings, virtual or in-person, is prohibited.
Legal Compliance

SAME cooperates with law enforcement and other third parties to enforce laws. You authorize and recognize SAME’s right and intention to disclose any information about you to law enforcement or other government officials as we, in our sole discretion, believe necessary or appropriate, in connection with an investigation of fraud, intellectual property infringements, or other activity that is or may be illegal or may expose us, service or content providers we work with, or you to possible legal liability.

What Means Of Redress Are Available?

If any user suspects SAME has handled its personal information in a manner that does not comply with this Privacy Policy, please notify us by email at member@same.org or by calling 703-549-3800.

Changes to this Notice

If we make any material changes to this Notice or the way we use, share or collect personal Data, we will notify you by revising the “Effective Date” at the top of this Notice, prominently posting an announcement of the changes on our Site, or sending an email to the email address you most recently provided us (unless we do not have such an email address) prior to the new policy taking effect.

Any changes we make to this Notice in the future will be posted on this page and, where appropriate, notification sent to you by e-mail. Please check back frequently to see any updates or changes to this Notice.