Privacy Policy & DMCA Policy

Privacy Policy

Protecting your private information is our priority. This Statement of Privacy applies to AuthorMedia.com and Castle Media Group and governs data collection and usage. For the purposes of this Privacy Policy, unless otherwise noted, all references to Castle Media Group include AuthorMedia.com and Author Media. The Author Media website is a Training, Blog & Podcast site. By using the Author Media website, you consent to the data practices described in this statement.

Collection of your Personal Information
Author Media may collect anonymous demographic information, which is not unique to you, such as your:

– Age
– Gender
– Race
– Religion
– Political Affiliation
– Household Income

Please keep in mind that if you directly disclose personally identifiable information or personally sensitive data through Author Media’s public message boards, this information may be collected and used by others.

We do not collect any personal information about you unless you voluntarily provide it to us. However, you may be required to provide certain personal information to us when you elect to use certain products or services available on the Site. These may include: (a) registering for an account on our Site; (b) entering a sweepstakes or contest sponsored by us or one of our partners; (c) signing up for special offers from selected third parties; (d) sending us an email message; (e) submitting your credit card or other payment information when ordering and purchasing products and services on our Site. To wit, we will use your information for, but not limited to, communicating with you in relation to services and/or products you have requested from us. We also may gather additional personal or non-personal information in the future.

Sharing Information with Third Parties
Author Media does not sell, rent or lease its customer lists to third parties.

Author Media may, from time to time, contact you on behalf of external business partners about a particular offering that may be of interest to you. In those cases, your unique personally identifiable information (e-mail, name, address, telephone number) is not transferred to the third party. Author Media may share data with trusted partners to help perform statistical analysis, send you email or postal mail, provide customer support, or arrange for deliveries. All such third parties are prohibited from using your personal information except to provide these services to Author Media, and they are required to maintain the confidentiality of your information.

Author Media may disclose your personal information, without notice, if required to do so by law or in the good faith belief that such action is necessary to: (a) conform to the edicts of the law or comply with legal process served on Author Media or the site; (b) protect and defend the rights or property of Author Media; and/or (c) act under exigent circumstances to protect the personal safety of users of Author Media, or the public.

Tracking User Behavior
Author Media may keep track of the websites and pages our users visit within Author Media, in order to determine what Author Media services are the most popular. This data is used to deliver customized content and advertising within Author Media to customers whose behavior indicates that they are interested in a particular subject area.

We may track mouse movement and screen position.

Automatically Collected Information
Information about your computer hardware and software may be automatically collected by Author Media. This information can include: your IP address, browser type, domain names, access times and referring website addresses. This information is used for the operation of the service, to maintain the quality of the service, and to provide general statistics regarding use of the Author Media website.

Use of Cookies
The Author Media website may use “cookies” to help you personalize your online experience. A cookie is a text file that is placed on your hard disk by a web page server. Cookies cannot be used to run programs or deliver viruses to your computer. Cookies are uniquely assigned to you, and can only be read by a web server in the domain that issued the cookie to you.

One of the primary purposes of cookies is to provide a convenience feature to save you time. The purpose of a cookie is to tell the Web server that you have returned to a specific page. For example, if you personalize Author Media pages, or register with Author Media site or services, a cookie helps Author Media to recall your specific information on subsequent visits. This simplifies the process of recording your personal information, such as billing addresses, shipping addresses, and so on. When you return to the same Author Media website, the information you previously provided can be retrieved, so you can easily use the Author Media features that you customized.

You have the ability to accept or decline cookies. Most Web browsers automatically accept cookies, but you can usually modify your browser setting to decline cookies if you prefer. If you choose to decline cookies, you may not be able to fully experience the interactive features of the Author Media services or websites you visit.

Links
This website contains links to other sites. Please be aware that we are not responsible for the content or privacy practices of such other sites. We encourage our users to be aware when they leave our site and to read the privacy statements of any other site that collects personally identifiable information.

Security of your Personal Information
Author Media secures your personal information from unauthorized access, use, or disclosure. Author Media uses the following methods for this purpose:

– SSL Protocol

When personal information (such as a credit card number) is transmitted to other websites, it is protected through the use of encryption, such as the Secure Sockets Layer (SSL) protocol.

We strive to take appropriate security measures to protect against unauthorized access to or alteration of your personal information. Unfortunately, no data transmission over the Internet or any wireless network can be guaranteed to be 100% secure. As a result, while we strive to protect your personal information, you acknowledge that: (a) there are security and privacy limitations inherent to the Internet which are beyond our control; and (b) security, integrity, and privacy of any and all information and data exchanged between you and us through this Site cannot be guaranteed.

Children Under Thirteen
Author Media does not knowingly collect personally identifiable information from children under the age of thirteen. If you are under the age of thirteen, you must ask your parent or guardian for permission to use this website.

E-mail Communications
From time to time, Author Media may contact you via email for the purpose of providing announcements, promotional offers, alerts, confirmations, surveys, and/or other general communication. In order to improve our Services, we may receive a notification when you open an email from Author Media or click on a link therein.

If you would like to stop receiving marketing or promotional communications via email from Author Media, you may opt out of such communications by To unsubscribe from emails, click the unsubscribe link at the bottom of the email. You can also ask to be manually removed through our contact form..

External Data Storage Sites
We may store your data on servers provided by third party hosting vendors with whom we have contracted.

Changes to this Statement
Author Media reserves the right to change this Privacy Policy from time to time. We will notify you about significant changes in the way we treat personal information by sending a notice to the primary email address specified in your account, by placing a prominent notice on our site, and/or by updating any privacy information on this page. Your continued use of the Site and/or Services available through this Site after such modifications will constitute your: (a) acknowledgment of the modified Privacy Policy; and (b) agreement to abide and be bound by that Policy.

Contact Information
Author Media welcomes your questions or comments regarding this Statement of Privacy. If you believe that Author Media has not adhered to this Statement, please contact Author Media at:

Castle Media Group
P.O. Box 5690
Austin, Texas 78763

Email Address:
privacy@authormedia.com

Telephone number:
512-582-7290

Effective as of November 13, 2019

DMCA Policy

AuthorMedia (AuthorMedia.com & AuthorMedia.social) is owned and operated by Castle Media Group, LLC which is committed to protecting the property of copyright holders.

You may not use the Service in any manner that infringes upon any copyright. Such infringement may include, but is not limited to selling counterfeit goods, unauthorized copying of photographs, books, music, videos, or any other copyright-protected work. It is our policy to promptly investigate compliant notices of alleged copyright infringement that are provided to us in writing regarding content that may be located on or about authormedia.com and/or the Services. Our response to such notices may include removing or disabling access to the content or website claimed to be the subject of infringing activity, without prior notice, and without regard to the complaint’s substance (or lack thereof). Author Media reserves the right, in its sole discretion, to close any account for which Author Media receives copyright infringement complaints, without prior notice and without a refund of any fees.

How to file a claim

Any person or party who wishes to file a claim of copyright infringement regarding content hosted on or otherwise displayed via our systems may file notice via either email or postal mail. Any person or party who requires assistance filing a claim of copyright infringement should consult a legal professional for assistance. NOTE: Any person who knowingly materially misrepresents that content is infringing, or that it was removed or blocked through mistake or misidentification, may be liable for any resulting damages (including, but not limited to costs and attorney’s fees) incurred by the alleged infringer, the copyright holder or its licensee, or the service provider.

Email complaints to:
dmca@authormedia.com with a subject containing “DMCA”.

Mail complaints to:
Castle Media Group, LLC
Attention: DMCA Compliance
13492 Research Blvd
STE 120 PMB 122
Austin TX 78750-2254

Phone: 512–582-7290

The DMCA requires very specific language be present in any notice of alleged copyright infringement. As set forth in the DMCA, in order to be effective, a notice of copyright infringement must include all of the following:

  1. The physical or electronic signature of complaining party;
  2. Identification of the copyrighted work claimed to have been infringed, or, if multiple copyrighted works at a single online site are covered by a single notification, a representative list of such works at that site;
  3. Identification of the content that is claimed to be infringing or to be the subject of infringing activity and that is to be removed or access to which is to be disabled, and information reasonably sufficient to permit us to locate the content (i.e. the specific URLs where the allegedly infringing activity is said to be taking place);
  4. Information reasonably sufficient to permit us to contact the complaining party, such as an address, telephone number, and, if available, an electronic mail address at which the complaining party may be contacted;
  5. A statement that the complaining party has a good faith belief that use of the material in the manner complained of is not authorized by the copyright owner, its agent, or the law;
  6. A statement that the information in the notification is accurate, and under penalty of perjury, that the complaining party is authorized to act on behalf of the owner of an exclusive right that is allegedly infringed.

Counter Notification

A counter-notification is a legal request for Author Media to restore access to the material claimed to be the subject of infringing activity. The DMCA requires very specific language be present in any counter-notice. As set forth in the DMCA, in order to be effective, a counter-notice must include all of the following:

  1. The physical or electronic signature of the alleged infringer or an agent authorized to act on behalf of the alleged infringer (such as an attorney);
  2. Identification of the material that was removed (or to which access was disabled) and the location at which the material appeared before it was removed or access to it was disabled;
  3. A statement under penalty of perjury that the alleged infringer (or his/her authorized agent) has a good faith belief that the material was removed or disabled as a result of mistake or misidentification of the material to be removed or disabled;
  4. The alleged infringer’s (or his/her authorized agent’s) name, address, and telephone number, and a statement that the alleged infringer (or his/her authorized agent) consents to the jurisdiction of Federal District Court for the judicial district in which the address is located, or if the alleged infringer’s (or his/her authorized agent’s) address is outside of the United States, for any judicial district in which the service provider may be found, and that the alleged infringer (or his/her authorized agent) will accept service of process from the person who provided notification or an agent of such person.

Upon receipt of an infringement counter notice that substantially complies with the counter-notification requirements set forth in the DMCA, Author Media shall promptly provide the complaining party with a full copy of the counter-notice provided to us by the alleged infringer or his/her authorized agent. The DMCA also requires us to permit the alleged infringer to restore access to the material claimed to be the subject of infringing activity, within no less than ten (10) business days and no more than fourteen (14) business days following our receipt of a compliant counter-notice, unless we first receive notice that the complaining party has filed an action seeking a court order to restrain the alleged infringer from engaging in infringing activity. Be advised, regardless of whether or not the complaining party files an action seeking a court order to restrain the alleged infringer from engaging in infringing activity, the complaining party may still maintain the right to seek relief in a court of law. It is our policy to adhere to all orders of the court. Any court order issued in connection with a complaint that has been filed against the alleged infringer with which we are served will, with immediate effect, supersede any allowance we may have made permitting the alleged infringer to re-enable or otherwise restore the access to the material claimed to be the subject of infringing activity. A filing of a copyright infringement counter-notice may result in litigation between and among the parties.

Trademark Infringement Claims

You may not use the Service in any manner that infringes on the rights of any person or party. Such infringement may include, but is not limited to selling counterfeit goods, unauthorized copying of photographs, logos, designs or other lawfully protected works. It is our policy to promptly investigate compliant notices of alleged trademark infringement that are provided to us in writing regarding content hosted on or otherwise displayed via our systems. Our response to such notices may include removing or disabling access to the material claimed to be the subject of infringing activity, without prior notice, and without regard to the complaint’s substance (or lack thereof). Presently, there is no counter notification process in place for trademark law. If you wish to object to the complaint filed against you, you will need to take matter up with the trademark owner in a court of law. In any case, you hold Author Media completely harmless in all matters concerning our action with respect to any trademark infringement complaint. Author Media reserves the right, in its sole discretion, to close any account for which Author Media receives trademark infringement complaints, without prior notice and without a refund of any fees.

How to file a claim

Any person or party who wishes to file a claim of trademark infringement regarding content hosted on or otherwise displayed via our systems may file notice via either email or postal mail. Any person or party who requires assistance filing a claim of trademark infringement should consult or hire a lawyer or other legal professional for assistance. NOTE: Any person who knowingly materially misrepresents that material is infringing, or that it was removed or blocked through mistake or misidentification, is liable for any resulting damages (including, but not limited to costs and attorney’s fees) incurred by the alleged infringer, the trademark owner or its licensee, or the service provider.

Email complaints to:
dmca@authormedia.com with a subject containing “DMCA Trademark”.

Mail complaints to:
Castle Media Group, LLC
Attention: DMCA Trademark
13492 Research Blvd
STE 120 PMB 122
Austin TX 78750-2254

Phone: 512-582-7290

In order for us to investigate any claim of alleged trademark infringement, the notice of trademark infringement must include, substantially, all of the following:

  1. The trademark or service mark (“the mark”) claimed to be the subject of infringing activity;
  2. The registration number of the mark;
  3. The country of origin of the mark;
  4. The contact information of the owner of the mark, including name, address and telephone number;
  5. The goods or services associated with the mark;
  6. A complete description of the manner in which the complaining party believes the mark has been or is being infringed upon;
  7. The precise location of the allegedly infringing activity, specifically, the URLs;
  8. A statement, under penalty of perjury, that the complaining party has a good faith belief that use of the mark in the manner complained is not authorized by the owner of the mark, and use of the mark by in the manner complained infringes upon the rights of owner of the mark.