Welcome to the Sweet Tea Stories Privacy Policy! This page was last updated on September 21st, 2020 and may be adapted or updated at any point in the future with or without notice. Please check back to this page for the most current information concerning your privacy on this site. The use of any information that you provide to the Company via the Site is governed by this Privacy Policy. By using this website, its features, or its content, you agree to the terms set forth in this Privacy Policy, whether or not you have read it. If you are under the age of 18 and/or do not agree with any of the terms set forth in this privacy policy, you are prohibited from accessing or using this website or its content.

 

1. Please read carefully!

 

Sweet Tea Stories (referred to on this page as “Sweet Tea Stories”, “we”, “us”, or “our”,) sells original erotic fiction content and offers custom erotica-writing services. We care deeply about the privacy of our visitors and users. To that end, this Privacy Policy (“Privacy Policy”) describes how Sweet-tea-stories.com (referred to on this page as the “Website”), together with its affiliates (mainly “Wix”, the platform used to host the site), collect, use, and share your Personal Information, as well as an explanation of the data rights you may have in that Personal Information. This Privacy Policy applies to all Sweet Tea Stories users, including unsubscribed visitors, subscribed users, and paying customers (collectively, “Users”, “you”, or “your”), and related services (collectively, the “Services”). This Privacy Policy is not intended to override the terms of any contract you have with us, nor any rights you may have under other applicable data privacy laws.

 

Prior to accessing or using our Services, please read this policy and make sure you fully understand our practices in relation to your Personal Information.  If you read and fully understand this Privacy Policy, and remain opposed to our practices, you must immediately leave this website and discontinue all use of any of our Services.  If you have any questions or concerns regarding this policy, please contact us at info@sweet-tea-stories.com. You may also check out the Wix Privacy Policy here.

 

2. Personal Information

 

To provide you the Services, we must collect Personal Information relating to an identified or identifiable natural person (“Personal Information”). We collect Personal Information you provide us, from your use of the Services, and from other sources. Here are the types of Personal Information we collect about you:

 

• Information you provide us. When you subscribe to our mailing list, use any of our Services; and/or when you contact us directly by any communication channel (e.g., emails), you may provide us Personal Information, such as name, email address, password, payment information (relating to PayPal), and information you include in your communications with us (e.g., information provided in emails or comments).    

• Information we collect automatically when you use the Services. When you visit, download, and/or use any of our Services, we may collect aggregated usage Personal Information, such as Visitors’ and Users’ browsing and ‘click-stream’ activity on the Services, session heatmaps and scrolls, non-identifying Personal Information regarding the Visitor’s or User’s device, operating system, internet browser, screen resolution, language and keyboard settings, internet service provider, referring/exit pages, date/time stamps, etc

• Information we collect from other sources. We may receive Personal Information about you from third-party sources, such as i) security providers , fraud detection and prevention providers for example to help us screen out users associated with fraud, ii) social media platforms, when you log-in or sign-up using your social media account, we may receive Personal Information from that service (e.g., your username, basic profile Personal Information) and in some cases, we may collect Personal Information from lead enhancement companies which help us to improve our service offering; iii) advertising and marketing partners in order to monitor, manage and measure our ad campaigns.

​

3. Why We Collect Personal Information

 

We use your Personal Information for the following purposes:

 

• To provide and operate the Services;

• To further develop, customize, expand, and improve our Services, based on Users’ common or personal preferences, experiences, and difficulties;

• To provide our Users with ongoing customer assistance and technical support;

• To be able to contact our Users with general or personalized service-related notices and promotional messages (e.g., emails to subscribers on our mailing list);

• To help us to update, expand, and analyze our records to identify new customers;

• To create aggregated statistical data and other aggregated and/or inferred information, which we or our business partners may use to provide and improve our respective services;

• To enhance our data security and fraud prevention capabilities; and

• To comply with any applicable laws and regulations.

 

4. How We Use Your Personal Information

 

We use your Personal Information for the following purposes:

 

• Our use of your Personal Information is necessary to email you in the case that you contact us or subscribe to our mailing list;

• Our use of your Personal Information is necessary to regulate and permit your use of comments on this site;

• Our use of your Personal Information is necessary to perform a contract or to take steps to enter into a contract with you (e.g. to provide you with custom writing services in the context of commissioned projects);

• Our use of your Personal Information is necessary to comply with a relevant legal or regulatory obligation that we have; or

• Our use of your Personal Information is necessary to support legitimate interests and business purposes (for example, to maintain and improve our Services and the effectiveness of Sweet Tea Stories by identifying technical issues), provided it is conducted in a way that is proportionate and that respects your privacy rights.

 

In the event that we suspect the information you have provided may be untrue or incomplete, (such as the suspicion that you may be under 18,) we have the authority to suspend or permanently terminate your subscription.

 

It is the policy of Sweet Tea Stories not to send spam to users of the Website. We have taken the necessary steps to comply with the 2003 CAN-SPAM Act by never sending out misleading information. We will not sell or rent out your email address.

 

5. How We Share Your Personal Information

 

We may share your Personal Information with service providers and others (or otherwise allow them access to it) in the following manners and instances:

 

• Third Party Service Providers: Wix, the platform used to host this website, has partnered with a number of selected service providers, whose services and solutions complement, facilitate, and enhance our own. These include hosting and server co-location services, communications and content delivery networks (CDNs), data and cyber security services, billing and payment processing services, domain name registrars, fraud detection and prevention services, web analytics, e-mail distribution and monitoring services, session recording and remote access services, performance measurement, data optimization and marketing services, content providers, and our legal and financial advisors (collectively, “Third Party Service Provider(s)”). Wix may share the following categories of Personal Information with Third Party Service Providers for a business purpose, including identifiers such as your name, alias, unique personal identifier, online identifier, internet protocol address, email address, account name, or other similar identifiers, or commercial information, for example information regarding products or services purchased, obtained, or considered.

• Law Enforcement, Legal Requests, and Duties: Sweet Tea Stories may disclose or otherwise allow access to your Personal Information pursuant to a legal request, such as a subpoena, legal proceedings, search warrant or court order, or in compliance with applicable laws, if we have a good faith belief that the law requires us to do so, with or without notice to you.

• Protecting Rights and Safety: Sweet Tea Stories may share your Personal Information if we believe in good faith that this will help protect the rights, property, or personal safety of Sweet Tea Stories, any of our Users, or any member of the general public, with or without notice to you.

• Connection With a Change in Corporate Control: In addition, should Sweet Tea Stories or any of its affiliates undergo any change in control, including by means of merger, acquisition, or purchase of substantially all of its assets, your Personal Information may be shared with the parties involved in such events.

• Upon Your Further Direction: Sweet Tea Stories may also share your Personal Information with third parties for other purposes upon your further direction or with your explicit approval.

 

6. Where We Store Your Personal Information

 

In accordance with the Privacy Policy set forth by Wix, the company that hosts this Website, Users’ Personal Information may be stored in data centers located in the United States of America, Ireland, Japan, and Israel. They may use other jurisdictions as necessary for the proper delivery of our Services and/or as may be required by law.

 

Transfer of EU Personal data : If you are located in Europe, when we transfer your Personal Information to the United States or anywhere outside Europe, Wix ensures that (i) there is a level of protection deemed adequate by the European Commission or (ii) that the relevant Model Standard Contractual Clauses are in place. Wix participates in, and has certified its compliance with, the EU-U.S. Privacy Shield Framework and the Swiss-U.S. Privacy Shield Framework.

 

7. Processing of Your Personal Information

 

Wix may collect, store and process certain Personal Information of Users solely on Sweet Tea Stories’ behalf and at our direction. For example, Sweet Tea Stories is able to import our email contacts from third-party services like Gmail, or otherwise collect and manage contacts via our Website. Such contacts are then stored with Wix, on our behalf.

 

For such purposes, Wix serves and shall be considered as a “Processor” and not as the “Controller” (as both such capitalized terms are defined in the European Union General Data Protection Regulation (“GDPR”)) of such Users’ Information. Sweet Tea Stories shall be considered as the “Controllers” of such Users’ Information.

 

The Processing of the Users’ Personal Information shall take place within the territory of the European Union, Israel, or a third country, territory or one or more specified sectors within that third country of which the European Commission has decided that it ensures an adequate level of protection and such processing and transfer will be in accordance to the Data Processing Agreement – Users (“DPA"). Any transfer to and Processing in a third country outside the European Union that does not ensure an adequate level of protection according to the European Commission, shall be undertaken in accordance with the the Standard Contractual Clauses (2010/87/EU) set out in Annex 1of the DPA. For the sake of clarity, “Processing” should be understood as per the definition provided in the DPA.

 

Wix has no direct relationship with Sweet Tea Stories’ Users whose Personal Information it processes. If you are a visitor, user, or customer of Sweet Tea Stories and would like to make any requests or queries regarding your Personal Information, please contact Sweet Tea Stories directly. For example, if you wish to request to access, correct, amend, or delete inaccurate Personal Information processed by Wix on behalf of Sweet Tea Stories, please direct your query to Sweet Tea Stories (who is the “Controller” of such data).

 

8. Use of Cookies and Other Third-Party Technologies

 

We, our host Wix.com, and our Third Party Service Providers use cookies and other similar technologies (“Cookies”) in order for us to provide our Service and ensure that it performs properly, to analyze our performance and marketing activities, and to personalize your experience. For general information about how cookies work, check out allaboutcookies.org.

 

Sweet Tea Stories and Wix.com use cookies for important reasons, such as:

• To provide a great experience for our visitors, subscribers, and customers.

• To identify our subscribed members.

• To monitor and analyze the performance, operation, and effectiveness of this Website.

• To ensure our platform is secure and safe to use.

 

You may choose to disable cookies via your web browser's settings, but doing so may negatively impact some features of the Website and your user experience..To opt out of being tracked by Google Analytics across all websites, visit this link: https://tools.google.com/dlpage/gaoptout

​

9. Communications from Sweet Tea Stories

 

If you subscribe to our mailing list, we may use your Personal Information to send you promotional content and messages by email, notifications within our platform, and similar forms of communication. If you do not wish to receive such promotional messages, you may notify Sweet Tea Stories at any time or follow the “unsubscribe” instructions contained in the promotional communications you receive.

 

We may also contact you with important information regarding our Services, or your use thereof. For example, we may send you a notice (through any of the means available to us) if a certain Service is temporarily suspended for maintenance; reply to your e-mail; send you reminders or warnings regarding payments for your current or upcoming commissions; or notify you of material changes in our Services. It is important that you are always able to receive such messages. For this reason, you are not be able to opt-out of receiving such messages unless you are no longer a subscriber or customer of this site or our Services.

​

10. Your Rights in Relation to Your Personal Information

 

Sweet Tea Stories agrees that it is imperative that you have control over your Personal Information. You may contact us at any time to request that we update, amend, delete, or limit the use of your Personal Information. Before fulfilling your request, we may ask you for additional information in order to confirm your identity and for security purposes. We reserve the right to charge a fee where permitted by law (e.g. if your request is unfounded or excessive). You have the right to file a complaint with your local supervisory authority for data protection (but we still recommend that you contact us first).

 

11. Additional Information for California Residents

 

If you are a California resident using the Services, the California Consumer Privacy Act (“CCPA”) may provide you the right to request access to and deletion of your Personal Information.

 

Sweet Tea Stories does not sell user Personal Information to third parties for the intents and purposes of the CCPA.  

 

​As informed above, Wix may collect, store and process certain Personal Information of Users, solely on our behalf and at our direction.  For such purposes, Wix serves and shall be considered as a “Service Provider” and not as the “Business” (as both such capitalized terms are defined in the CCPA. Wix does not and will not sell your Personal Information.

 

Users of the Services who are California residents and under 18 years of age may request and obtain removal of content they posted by emailing us at info@sweet-tea-stories.com. All requests must be labeled “California Removal Request” on the email subject line. All requests must provide a description of the content you want removed and information reasonably sufficient to permit us to locate that content. We do not accept California Removal Requests via postal mail, telephone, or facsimile. We are not responsible for notices that are not labeled or sent properly, and we may not be able to respond if you do not provide adequate information. Please note that your request does not ensure complete or comprehensive removal of the material. For example, materials that you have posted may be republished or reposted by another user or third party.

 

12. Children Under the Age of 18

 

Minors under the age of 18 are not permitted to visit, subscribe to, or use the Services of Sweet Tea Stories. We do not knowingly collect information from anyone under the age of 18. If you are under 18, please do not use, contact, or provide any information to this website.

 

13. Questions and Complaints

 

If you have any questions or concerns about our collection, use, or disclosure of Personal Information, or if you believe that we have not complied with this Privacy Policy or applicable data protection laws, please contact us via email at info@sweet-tea-stories.com. We will investigate the complaint and determine whether a breach has occurred and what action, if any, to take. We take every privacy complaint seriously and will make all reasonable efforts to resolve your complaint promptly and in accordance with applicable law.  

 

​You can file a complaint with your local supervisory authority for data protection at any time, however we recommend that you contact us first so we can try to resolve it.

 

14. Data Retention

 

We may retain your Personal Information for as long as your User subscription is active, as indicated in this Privacy Policy, or as otherwise needed to provide you with our Services. We may continue to retain your Personal Information after you unsubscribe from our mailing list and/or cease to use any particular Services, as reasonably necessary to comply with our legal obligations, to resolve disputes regarding our Users, prevent fraud and abuse, enforce our agreements and/or protect our legitimate interests.

 

15. Security

 

Wix, the company that hosts this Website, has implemented security measures designed to protect the Personal Information you share with us, including physical, electronic, and procedural measures. Among other things, Wix offers HTTPS secure access to most areas on their Services. We also regularly monitors its systems for possible vulnerabilities and attacks, and regularly seeks new ways and Third Party Services for further enhancing the security of our Services and protection of our Visitors’ and Users’ privacy.

 

PayPal, the service through which Sweet Tea Stories accepts payments, including donations and fees related to commissioned projects, operates according to its own unique Safety and Security policies, which you can read about here.

 

Regardless of the measures and efforts taken by Wix, PayPal, and Sweet Tea Stories, we cannot and do not guarantee the absolute protection and security of your Personal Information or any other information you upload, publish, or otherwise share with Sweet Tea Stories or anyone else. We encourage you to set strong passwords when signing up for commenting capabilities, and avoid providing us or anyone with any sensitive Personal Information of which you believe its disclosure could cause you substantial or irreparable harm.

 

Furthermore, because certain areas of our Services are less secure than others (for example, comments are viewable by anyone using our Website), and since e-mail is not recognized as a secure form of communication, we request and encourage you not to share any Personal Information on any of these areas or via any of these methods. 

 

16. Third-Party Websites

 

Our Services may contain links to other websites or services. We are not responsible for such websites’ or services’ privacy practices. We encourage you to be aware when you leave our Services and to read the privacy statements of each and every website and service you visit before providing your Personal Information. This Privacy Policy does not apply to such linked third party websites and services.

​

17. Public Comments and User Content

 

Our Services offer publicly accessible comments. Please be aware that any Personal Information you provide in any such areas may be read, collected, and used by others who access them. To request removal of your Personal Information from our Website, feel free to contact us at: info@sweet-tea-stories.com. We advise against posting any Personal Information you don’t wish to publicize. If you upload any user content or post it on our Website and provide it in any other way as part of the use of any Service, you do so at your own risk.

 

We have put adequate security measures in place to protect your Personal Information.  However, we cannot control the actions of other Users or members of the public who may access your User Content, and are not responsible for the circumvention of any privacy settings or security measures we or Wix may have placed on our Website. You understand and acknowledge that, even after its removal by you or us, copies of User Content may remain viewable in cached and archived pages or if any third parties (including any other Users) have copied or stored such User Content. To clarify, we advise against uploading or posting any information you do not wish to be public.

 

18. Updates and Interpretation

 

We may update this Privacy Policy as required by applicable law, and to reflect changes to our Personal Information collection, usage, and storage practices. We encourage you to periodically review this page for the latest Information on our privacy practices. Unless stated otherwise, our most current Privacy Policy applies to all information that we have about you, with respect to our Website and other Services.

 

This Privacy Policy was written in English. If a translated (non-English) version of this Privacy Policy conflicts in any way with its English version, the provisions of the English version shall prevail.

 

19. Contacting Us

 

If you have any questions about this Privacy Policy or wish to exercise any of your rights as described, please email Sweet Tea Stories at info@sweet-tea-stories.com. We will attempt to resolve any complaints regarding the use of your Personal Information in accordance with this Privacy Policy.