What data do we collect?
FG Connect collects the following data:
- postcode, occupation, age and gender
- ‘Sensitive’ personal data. Due to the nature of some market research projects we may need to process ‘sensitive’ personal data about you. By this we mean personal data such as your racial or ethnic origin, religious beliefs or beliefs of a similar nature, your physical or mental health, trade union membership or sexual life. You would always be told the reason for being asked these questions. Your participation is always optional.
- Other personal data that we require to fulfil the quotas for some market research projects e.g., whether you have children
- Information on what you view, click on and access through our websites. This information may also include where you came to our site from, and where you went when you left it. We also track how often you visit and use our websites. We do this via website cookies (our cookie policy is below);
- Technical information about the devices you use to access our websites. We collect each device’s unique identifying codes (MAC address or IMEI number) device model, device name, operating system and version, web browser and version and geographic location;
- The time, date, location and topic of any market research you participate in.
How do we collect your data?
You directly provide FG Connect with most of the data we collect. We collect data and process data when you:
- From our sub-processors (recruiters) who have recruited you to take part in projects for our clients;
- Through paper forms you have completed;
- Through emails and text messages you send to us, or that we send to you;
- During our conversations with you, whether in person or on the phone. We record our telephone conversations with you;
- Through your use of community forums in which we participate;
- Via messages you send to us directly through social media;
- Using information about you from other organisations where you have given consent for them to share information, they have about you with us or, with organisations like us, and where other organisations can lawfully share information on you with us;
- Information collected independently by online advertising networks (Google for example) through which we place advertisements.
How will we use your data?
We use the personal data we collect about you for our legitimate interests which include some or all of the following:
- If you have taken part in market research, we will retain your personal data to verify that any future attendance does not exceed the levels recommended by the Market Research Society;
- To provide you with our website – this requires a certain amount of technical information to work efficiently;
- To make sure you get any incentives you’re promised;
- To make a contract with you;
- To provide market research services as per our contract with you;
- To reply to and deal with any questions, suggestions, issues, complaints or disputes you have contacted us about. We may share your data, including our recorded telephone conversations, with our clients to respond to a dispute or complaint that you or they raise about how we carried out the market research on their behalf;
- To respond to any social media posts or other public comments you might make, whether they are directly to us or about us, our websites, services or other activities;
- To protect you and our business from any potentially criminal behaviour, including fraud;
- To power our security measures and services so you can safely access our website. It also lets us do things such as recognise your username and password, as well as reset them if you happen to forget what they are;
- For internal monitoring and training purposes to check and improve the way we handle our communications with you;
- For recruitment purposes if you have applied for a position with us including to contact you to discuss a role with us and to assess your suitability;
- To tell you about any changes to our services and website. For example, if we change our terms and conditions or this privacy policy;
- To help us maintain administrative and statutory records about our business so we can better understand who we’ve recruited and pay our taxes.
If you agree, FG Connect will share your data with our partner companies so that they may offer you their products and services.
We recruit individuals to participate (“participants”) in market research on behalf of third parties (“clients”). We therefore can’t run our business or provide many of the services and incentives you receive from us without sharing your information with other people and organisations from time to time.
Participant information may be shared with:
- Third party companies who have commissioned market research that you take part in. We may share your name, contact details and your responses to the market research;
- Rewards companies which you have signed up to in order for you to receive the incentives we may offer if you complete market research with us. (We may share your name and email address. They may keep this information);
- Any new business partners we may have over time, for example, in the event of a joint venture, reorganisation, business merger or sale that affects us;
- Our professional advisors including our lawyers and technology consultants when they need it to give us their professional advice;
- The police, local authorities, Her Majesty’s Revenue and Customs (HMRC), the courts and any other government authority if they ask us to do so (but only if it is lawful);
- Emergency services or local authorities where there is reason to believe a safeguarding issue exists;
- Other people who make a ‘subject access request’, where we are allowed to provide your personal data by law.
Client information may be shared with:
- The name, and very occasionally contact details of moderators may be shared with participants with your explicit consent to do so;
- Any new business partners we may have over time, for example, in the event of a joint venture, reorganisation, business merger or sale that affects us;
- Our professional advisors including our lawyers and technology consultants when they need it to give us their professional advice;
- The police, local authorities, Her Majesty’s Revenue and Customs (HMRC), the courts and any other government authority if they ask us to do so (but only if it is lawful);
- Emergency services or local authorities where there is reason to believe a safeguarding issue exists;
- Other people who make a ‘subject access request’, where we are allowed to provide your personal data by law.
SOCIAL MEDIA, BLOGS, AND REVIEWS
Any social media posts or comments you send to us (on our Facebook page, for instance) will be shared under the terms of the relevant social media platform (e.g., Facebook or Twitter) on which they’re written and could be made public. Other people, not us, control these platforms. We’re not responsible for this kind of sharing. So, before you make any such remarks or observations, you should review the terms and conditions and privacy policies of the social media platforms you use. That way you’ll understand how they will use your information, what information relating to you they will place in the public domain and how you can stop them from doing so if you’re unhappy about it.
It’s worth remembering too that any blog, review, or other posts or comments you make about us, our products and services on any of our blogs, reviews or user community services will be shared with all other members of that service and the public at large.
You should take extra care to ensure that any comments you make on these services are not offensive, insulting, or defamatory. Ultimately, you are responsible for ensuring that any comments you make comply with any relevant policy on acceptable use of those services.
INTERNATIONAL TRANSFER OF YOUR INFORMATION
Although we’re based in the UK we recruit participants on behalf of clients around the world, and also recruit participants outside of the UK. If you take part in market research for a client who is not located within the UK or an EU country which provides adequate data protection in line with UK GDPR (an “adequate country”) we will ask your consent before any personal data is transferred.
How do we store your data?
All data retained is stored within secure GDPR compliant systems with multiple levels of authenticated access.
We only retain the data we require for the research projects we undertake. Once a project is complete, we retain data within our secure compliant systems for a maximum of 12 months in line with current regulation.
What are your data protection rights?
FG Connect would like to make sure you are fully aware of all your data protection rights. Every user is entitled to the following:
The right to access – You have the right to request FG Connect for copies of your personal data.
The right to rectification – You have the right to request that FG Connect correct any information you believe is inaccurate. You also have the right to request FG Connect to complete information you believe is incomplete.
The right to erasure — You have the right to request that FG Connect erase your personal data, under certain conditions.
The right to restrict processing – You have the right to request that FG Connect restrict the processing of your personal data, under certain conditions.
The right to object to processing – You have the right to object to FG Connect’s processing of your personal data, under certain conditions.
The right to data portability – You have the right to request that FG Connect transfer the data that we have collected to another organization, or directly to you, under certain conditions.
If you make a request, we have one month to respond to you. If you would like to exercise any of these rights, please contact us at our email:
Call us at: UK: +44 (0)20 7993 4880, Middle East: +971 (0)4 313 2557
Or write to us: FG Connect, 3rd Floor, 207 Regent Street, W1B 3HH, London
Privacy policies of other websites
The FG Connect website contains links to other websites. Our privacy policy applies only to our website, so if you click on a link to another website, you should read their privacy policy.
Changes to our privacy policy
FG Connect keeps its privacy policy under regular review and places any updates on this web page. This privacy policy was last updated on 12 July 2022.
How to contact us
If you have any questions about FG Connect’s privacy policy, the data we hold on you, or you would like to exercise one of your data protection rights, please do not hesitate to contact us.
Email us at: [email protected]
Call us: +44 (0)20 7993 4880
Or write to us at: FG Connect, 3rd Floor, 207 Regent Street, W1B 3HH, London
How to contact the appropriate authority
Should you wish to report a complaint or if you feel that FG Connect has not addressed your concern in a satisfactory manner, you may contact the Information Commissioner’s Office.
Email: [email protected]
Address FG Connect, 3rd Floor, 207 Regent Street, W1B 3HH, London
