University at Buffalo, Office of Alumni Relations

Alumni Data Privacy Policy

At the University at Buffalo, your privacy is very important. Accordingly, the university has an official Privacy Policy to protect alumni from unauthorized access to personal information.

Information Collected
The UB Office of Alumni Relations, in cooperation with the UB Office of Advancement Services, maintains a database of biographical information about University alumni, including the following:

• Name, address, telephone numbers and/or e-mail address for both home and business
• Degree(s) and date of degree(s) awarded by UB
• School from which degree(s) was/were granted with major field of study
• Gift/Pledge/Prospect data
• Miscellaneous comments, awards, committee participation, etc.

Release of Information
The university limits the release of information about alumni and does not share information for political purposes or with individuals or companies outside UB except under very limited circumstances. The UB Alumni Association, through a committee of alumni volunteers, seeks out Affinity Partners that will offer services and products to alumni at values that are not generally offered to the general public. These services include financial services (e.g., credit cards), insurance programs (e.g., life, auto and short-term health), travel programs (e.g., exclusive cruises), and various other programs. In these cases:

1. The vendor must agree to use the information only for the purpose approved by the university. The sale or transfer of the information by the vendor is strictly prohibited.
2. If a project results in the publication of directories, all alumni, prior to publication, must be provided the opportunity to decide whether he or she wishes to be excluded.
3. The vendor must ensure the prompt return of any UB-owned computer tapes or electronic software provided in fulfillment of the contract.

The information shared with vendors is limited to that necessary to contact alumni for purposes of the offer. The information is, primarily, restricted to name, address, and phone number.

Aggregated information, e.g., the percentage of alumni who donate to UB, or the number of alumni who donate at certain levels, will be released for general reporting purposes but an individual alumnus will not be identified in this information. For example, US News and World Report's annual report on top universities will receive this information in aggregated form.

The university produces printed alumni directories, and currently maintains an online alumni community (UB Connect), which includes an online alumni directory. Participation in this community is restricted exclusively to UB alumni who choose to register on the site. All UB alumni have the right to opt-out of this service in part or in whole, either by doing it themselves or by contacting the Office of Alumni Relations. Alumni also have the ability to manage the amount of information that is viewable in their directory listing.

Opportunity To "Opt Out"
If an alumnus prefers that the university does not share personal contact information with companies or organizations outside UB, he or she may opt out. That is, alumni may direct the university not to share this information by calling toll-free at 1-800-284-5382 or e-mailing ub-alumni@buffalo.edu. Please note, choosing to opt out of this information sharing may limit an individual's opportunities to receive information that may benefit or be of interest to them.

To decline all affinity mailings choose:

• No commercial solicitation: No mailings regarding our affinity programs including all of the categories listed below (financial, travel, merchandise, directories, etc.) will be sent.

Or, to opt out of various types of affinity mailings choose (please select all that you choose to opt out of):

• No financial services - No information about the financial and insurance programs administered by the Alumni Office (e.g., UB affinity credit card, health insurance, auto insurance, etc.) will be sent.
• No merchandise - No information about alumni merchandise offered by the University and the Office of Alumni Relations (e.g., clothing, license plates, diploma frames, directories etc.) will be sent.
• No travel - No information about the travel programs coordinated by the Office of Alumni Relations will be sent.