Pinterest: Collect information in a few different ways

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1. When you give it to Pinterest or give them permission to obtain it

When you sign up for or use Pinterest, you voluntarily give Pinterest certain information. This can include your name, profile photo, Pins, comments, likes, the email address or phone number you used to sign up, and any other information you provide them. If you’re using Pinterest on your mobile device, you can also choose to provide them with location data. And if you choose to buy something on Pinterest, you provide them with payment information, contact information (ex., address and phone number), and what you purchased. If you buy something for someone else on Pinterest, you’d also provide them with their shipping details and contact information.

You also may give them permission to access your information in other services. For example, you may link your Facebook or Twitter account to Pinterest, which allows them to obtain information from those accounts (like your friends or contacts). The information they get from those services often depends on your settings or their privacy policies, so be sure to check what those are.

2. They also get technical information when you use their products

These days, whenever you use a website, mobile application, or other internet service, there’s certain information that almost always gets created and recorded automatically. The same is true when you use Pinterest. Here are some of the types of information they collect:

  • Log data. When you use Pinterest, their servers automatically record information (“log data”), including information that your browser sends whenever you visit a website or your mobile app sends when you’re using it. This log data may include your Internet Protocol address, the address of the web pages you visited that had Pinterest features, browser type and settings, the date and time of your request, how you used Pinterest, and cookie data.
  • Cookie data. Depending on how you’re accessing Pinterest, they may use “cookies” (small text files sent by your computer each time you visit their website, unique to your Pinterest account or your browser) or similar technologies to record log data. When they use cookies, they may use “session” cookies (that last until you close your browser) or “persistent” cookies (that last until you or your browser delete them). For example, they may use cookies to store your language preferences or other Pinterest settings so you don‘t have to set them up every time you visit Pinterest. Some of the cookies they use are associated with your Pinterest account (including personal information about you, such as the email address you gave us), and other cookies are not. For more detailed information about how they use cookies, please review their Cookies Policy.
  • Device information. In addition to log data, they may also collect information about the device you’re using Pinterest on, including what type of device it is, what operating system you’re using, device settings, unique device identifiers, and crash data. Whether they collect some or all of this information often depends on what type of device you’re using and its settings. For example, different types of information are available depending on whether you’re using a Mac or a PC, or an iPhone or an Android phone. To learn more about what information your device makes available to Pinterest, please also check the policies of your device manufacturer or software provider.

3. Their partners and advertisers may share information with them

They may get information about you and your activity off Pinterest from their affiliates, advertisers, partners and other third parties they work with. For example:

  • Some websites or apps use Pinterest features like “Save” button. If so, they may collect log information (described above) from those sites or apps.
  • Online advertisers typically share information with the websites or apps where they run ads to measure and/or improve those ads. They also receive this information, which may include information like whether clicks on ads led to purchases or a list of criteria to use in targeting ads.

How do They use the information they collect?

  • They use the information they collect to provide their products to you and make them better, develop new products, and protect Pinterest and their users. For example, they may log how often people use two different versions of a product, which can help them understand which version is better. If you make a purchase on Pinterest, they’ll save your payment information and contact information so that you can use them the next time you want to buy something on Pinterest.
  • They also use the information they collect to offer you customized content, including:

    • Suggesting Pins or boards you might like. For example, if you’ve indicated that you’re interested in cooking or visited recipe websites that have Pinterest features, they may suggest food-related Pins, boards, or people that they think you might like.
    • Showing you ads you might be interested in. For example, if you purchased a camping tent on Pinterest, they may show you ads for other outdoorsy products.

     

    They also use the information they collect to:

    • Send you updates (such as when certain activity, like repins or comments, happens on Pinterest), newsletters, marketing materials and other information that may be of interest to you. For example, depending on your email notification settings, they may send you weekly updates that include Pins you may like. You can decide to stop getting these updates by updating their account settings.
    • Help your friends and contacts find you on Pinterest. For example, if you sign up using a Facebook account, we may help your Facebook friends find your account on Pinterest when they first sign up for Pinterest. Or, they may allow people to search for your account on Pinterest using your email address.
    • Respond to your questions or comments.

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