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Makers Empire Terms of Service | Legal | Privacy

Makers Empire believes every child can make their world better. We also believe that all children deserve to create in an environment where they are safe and where teachers and parents can control how information is shared. This Terms of Service governs your use of this website at www.makersempire.com, and the Makers Empire 3D app (collectively “Makers Empire”, “Makers Empire app” or “Makers Empire 3D Learning Program”). By creating an account on Makers Empire, you agree to be bound by our Terms of Service (our “Terms”). If you don’t agree, please don’t use Makers Empire.

Contents

The below policies are separated into the following sections:

Privacy Policy

This privacy policy has been compiled to better serve those who are concerned with how their ‘Personally Identifiable Information’ (PII) is being used online. PII, as used in US privacy law and information security, is information that can be used on its own or with other information to identify, contact, or locate a single person, or to identify an individual in context. 

Please read our privacy policy carefully to get a clear understanding of how we collect, use, protect or otherwise handle your Personally Identifiable Information in accordance with our website.

 

What personal information do we collect from people that use our app?

We respect the privacy of children and do not collect any more personal information than reasonably necessary to enable them to use Makers Empire. Data is retained only for education purposes.

When registering an account (either as a teacher or student), you may be asked to enter your name, username, email address or other details to help you with your experience.

The Makers Empire 3D app is accessed by students using accounts with unique usernames. These usernames can be chosen by the school and designed to not identify the child. Teachers have the ability to associate usernames with students names, but are able to make these general (e.g. “Mark H”).

It is possible for anyone to use Makers Empire 3D app without entering any personally identifiable information. Email addresses can be added to accounts but are not necessary. If desired, teachers can use their own email address for all students in their class.

What privacy settings are possible for students?

Schools can choose privacy settings for their students. Student designs can be shared:

  1. only within a class;
  2. only with designers within a school;
  3. only with designers from other schools; and
  4. publicly i.e. with the whole design community via the Makers Empire Gallery;

Any shared designs will also include the username of the designer.

All app users can choose to make their individual designs public or private from within the app by choosing ‘showing’ or ‘hidden’ when publishing their design.

All app users can decide who comments on their designs through the account settings – users can choose from allowing comments from everyone, people I follow or nobody. See more information about our commenting policy below under Acceptable Content Policy.

What personal information do we collect from people that use our website?

We collect information from you when you register on our site, subscribe to a newsletter or enter information on our site.

 

How do we use your information?

We may use the information we collect from you when you register, make a purchase, sign up for our newsletter, respond to a survey or marketing communication, surf the website, or use certain other site features in the following ways:

  • To improve our website in order to better serve you.
  • To allow us to better service you in responding to your customer service requests.
  • To administer a contest, promotion, survey or other site feature.
  • To send periodic emails regarding your order or other products and services.

We do not have any agreements with outside organizations to collect personal information on our website or 3D app.

We do not share children’s (or adults’) personal information with any third party.

What data do we retain from users?

We retain information of users of our app (i) for so long as reasonably necessary (ii) to permit the user to participate on the app, (iii) to ensure the security of our users and our services, or (iv) as required by law or contractual commitment.

User data is stored on our secure company servers hosted in Microsoft Azure’s Washington State (USA) data center. Data is backed up nightly to our office in Adelaide, Australia.

Schools are able to delete student data via the Teacher’s Dashboard.

If requested by a school, we will delete all information of the school’s users, including its teachers and students, as the school directs. Deleting this information will prevent the school user from engaging in some or all features of Makers Empire. Where required by local law, we will delete such information.

In order to remove or correct your child’s or student’s information please contact us via email to: info@makersempire.com. 

How do we protect visitor information?

Your personal information is contained behind secured networks and is only accessible by a limited number of persons who have special access rights to such systems, and are required to keep the information confidential. In addition, all sensitive/credit information you supply is encrypted via Secure Socket Layer (SSL) technology.

We implement a variety of security measures when a user places an order enters, submits, or accesses their information to maintain the safety of your personal information.

All transactions are processed through a gateway provider and are not stored or processed on our servers.

Do we use 'cookies'?

Yes. Cookies are small files that a site or its service provider transfers to your computer’s hard drive through your Web browser (if you allow) that enables the site’s or service provider’s systems to recognize your browser and capture and remember certain information. For instance, we use cookies to help us remember and process the items in your shopping cart. They are also used to help us understand your preferences based on previous or current site activity, which enables us to provide you with improved services. We also use cookies to help us compile aggregate data about site traffic and site interaction so that we can offer better site experiences and tools in the future.

We use cookies to:

  • Understand and save user’s preferences for future visits.
  • Compile aggregate data about site traffic and site interactions in order to offer better site experiences and tools in the future. We may also use trusted third party services that track this information on our behalf.

You can choose to have your computer warn you each time a cookie is being sent, or you can choose to turn off all cookies. You do this through your browser (like Internet Explorer) settings. Each browser is a little different, so look at your browser’s Help menu to learn the correct way to modify your cookies.

If you disable cookies off, some features will be disabled. It will turn off some of the features that make your site experience more efficient and some of our services will not function properly.

Third-Party Disclosure Policy: do you sell information to third parties?

We do not sell or trade your personally identifiable information to outside parties.

We do collect analytics and information about website visits in order to better improve the user experience. This information may run through 3rd party tools to help us view and understand it.

We use cookies to:

  • Understand and save user’s preferences for future visits.
  • Compile aggregate data about site traffic and site interactions in order to offer better site experiences and tools in the future. We may also use trusted third party services that track this information on our behalf.

You can choose to have your computer warn you each time a cookie is being sent, or you can choose to turn off all cookies. You do this through your browser (like Internet Explorer) settings. Each browser is a little different, so look at your browser’s Help menu to learn the correct way to modify your cookies.

If you disable cookies off, some features will be disabled. It will turn off some of the features that make your site experience more efficient and some of our services will not function properly.

What is your California Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA) policy?

CalOPPA is the first state law in the nation to require commercial websites and online services to post a privacy policy. The law’s reach stretches well beyond California to require a person or company in the United States (and conceivably the world) that operates websites collecting personally identifiable information from California consumers to post a conspicuous privacy policy on its website stating exactly the information being collected and those individuals with whom it is being shared, and to comply with this policy. – See more here.

According to CalOPPA we agree to the following:

  • Users can visit our site anonymously
  • Once this privacy policy is created, we will add a link to it on our home page, or as a minimum on the first significant page after entering our website.
  • Our Privacy Policy link includes the word ‘Privacy’, and can be easily be found on the page specified above.
  • Users will be notified of any privacy policy changes on our Privacy Policy Page
  • Users are able to change their personal information by logging in to their account

Please see more details at our COPPA page.

How does your site handle do not track signals?

We honour do not track signals and do not track, plant cookies, or use advertising when a Do Not Track (DNT) browser mechanism is in place.

Does your site allow third-party behavioural tracking?

It’s also important to note that we do not allow third-party behavioural tracking.

When it comes to the collection of personal information from children under 13, the Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA) puts parents in control. The Federal Trade Commission, the nation’s consumer protection agency, enforces the COPPA Rule, which spells out what operators of websites and online services must do to protect children’s privacy and safety online.

Please see our COPPA page.

In order to remove or correct your child’s or student’s information please contact us: info@makersempire.com

Fair Information Practices

The Fair Information Practices Principles form the backbone of privacy law in the United States and the concepts they include have played a significant role in the development of data protection laws around the globe. 

Understanding the Fair Information Practice Principles and how they should be implemented is critical to comply with the various privacy laws that protect personal information.

In order to be in line with Fair Information Practices we will take the following responsive action, should a data breach occur.

Within 30 business days:

  • We will notify the users via in site notification;
  • We will notify teachers users via email

We also agree to the individual redress principle, which requires that individuals have a right to pursue legally enforceable rights against data collectors and processors who fail to adhere to the law. This principle requires not only that individuals have enforceable rights against data users, but also that individuals have recourse to courts or a government agency to investigate and/or prosecute non-compliance by data processors.

CAN-SPAM Act

The CAN-SPAM Act is a law that sets the rules for commercial email, establishes requirements for commercial messages, gives recipients the right to have emails stopped from being sent to them, and spells out tough penalties for violations.

We collect your email address in order to:

  • Send information, respond to inquiries, and/or other requests or questions.
  • Process orders and to send information and updates pertaining to orders
  • We may also send you additional information related to your product and/or service.
  • Market to our mailing list or continue to send emails to our clients after the original transaction has occurred

To be in accordance with CANSPAM we agree to the following:

  • NOT use false, or misleading subjects or email addresses
  • Identify the message as an advertisement in some reasonable way
  • Include the physical address of our business or site headquarters
  • Monitor third-party email marketing services for compliance, if one is used.
  • Honor opt-out/unsubscribe requests quickly
  • Allow users to unsubscribe by using the link at the bottom of each email

If at any time you would like to unsubscribe from receiving future emails, you can email us at info@makersempire.com OR follow the instructions at the bottom of each email and we will promptly remove you from ALL correspondence.

Student Account Policy

Makers Empire is an extension of the classroom. Students agree to use Makers Empire in a manner that is appropriate to the classroom. Students may not violate the policies of their school or school district in their use of Makers Empire.

Students and all users of Makers Empire must adhere to our Acceptable Content Policy below. 

What personal information do we collect from students that use our app?

We respect the privacy of children and do not collect any more personal information than reasonably necessary to enable them to use Makers Empire.

When registering an account (either as a teacher or student), you may be asked to enter your name, username, email address or other details to help you with your experience.

The Makers Empire 3D app is accessed by students using accounts with unique usernames. These usernames can be chosen by the school and designed to not identify the child. Teachers have the ability to associate usernames with students names but are able to make these general (e.g. “Mark H”).

It is possible for anyone to use Makers Empire 3D app without entering any personally identifiable information. Email addresses can be added to accounts but are not necessary. If desired, teachers can use their own email address for all students in their class.

What privacy settings are possible for students using Makers Empire at school?

Schools can choose privacy settings for their students. Student designs can be shared:

  1. publicly i.e. with the whole design community.
  2. only within the same class;
  3. only within a school; and
  4. only with other schools.

Any shared designs will also include the username of the designer.

Students can individually choose to make their design public or private from within the app by choosing ‘showing’ or ‘hidden’.

What information is shared with a user’s followers?

If a user chooses to ‘follow’ another user, they simply receive a notification via in-app messages when the user creates a new design. The user being followed receives no data from their followers other than being able to view their usernames and the date that they began following them.

Who can I speak to if I have any concerns re student accounts?

Please email info[at]makersempire.com and we will be in touch with you – please replace [at] with @.

 

Acceptable Content Policy

At Makers Empire, we provide a safe environment for users to share their own designs and view designs created by other users in our global community. 

To reduce the risk of users being exposed to offensive, inappropriate or sensitive material, we have developed an Acceptable Content policy. 

Our Acceptable Content policy provides guidelines for appropriate user-generated content.

What is user-generated content?

  • Designs made in Makers Empire, including titles and descriptions of designs
  • Usernames
  • Comments added to designs
  • Imported images, designs and other imported content

What user-generated content is prohibited?

  • Hate speech, discrimination or threats including those related to gender, sexuality, race and religion
  • Nudity, pornography or sexual references
  • Threatening, abusive or inappropriate language
  • Any content related to illegal activity
  • Reference to drugs, alcohol or adult content
  • Weapons, including guns, knives and warfare
  • Anything that would be inappropriate for the classroom or violates applicable school or school district policies.
  • Promotions, advertisements or spam.

 

How does Makers Empire protect users from unacceptable content?

Makers Empire protects users from unacceptable content in the following ways:

  • Upon logging into the app, users who have updated to the latest version of Makers Empire will receive an in-app notification to read and sign the Makers Empire promise. This new pledge asks users to promise to abide by three rules in Makers Empire – 1) No violent designs. No weapons; 2) No bad language. No bullying; 3) Be creative. Be positive. Be respectful.
  • Using a text search filter to detect content containing words that contravene our Acceptable Content policy
  • Programatic ‘sentiment analysis’ to block comments flagged as generally negative or nonsensical.
  • Human moderation of content flagged as inappropriate
  • Provision of flexible privacy settings which can be set by teachers in the Teacher’s Dashboard
  • Provision of a safe mode which restricts the ability to view any content that has been flagged as contravening our Acceptable Content policy. The safe mode is activated by default and can be turned on or off in the Teacher’s Dashboard
  • Provision of a Report Button in the Makers Empire software which allows users to report any content they feel contravenes the Makers Empire Acceptable Content policy.
  • Human moderation of user-reported content breaches

If you have any questions or concerns please email info[at]makersempire.com and we will be in touch with you. Please replace [2] with the @ symbol.

How do you manage inappropriate designs in Makers Empire?

If a member of the Makers Empire team comes across a design made using Makers Empire that does not meet our Acceptable Content Policy, the team member will flag that design as ‘sensitive’. This means that the design is now hidden from view from ALL users (except the original designer). 

This ensures that no other users will accidentally stumble across a reported sensitive design. We maintain a list of all flagged sensitive designs so we can monitor patterns in inappropriate user behaviour.

What should I do if I see an inappropriate design in Makers Empire?

Thank you for helping to keep Makers Empire a safe space for our users.

Please report the design by clicking on the ‘report design’ button on the individual design. 

After a design has been reported, a member of the Makers Empire team reviews the design to see if it meets our Acceptable Content Policy. If it does not, the design is flagged as ‘sensitive’ and hidden from view from ALL users (except the original designer).

This ensures that no other users will accidentally stumble across a reported sensitive design.  We maintain a list of all flagged sensitive designs so we can monitor patterns in inappropriate user behaviour.

This ensures that no other users will accidentally stumble across a reported sensitive design. We maintain a list of all flagged sensitive designs so we can monitor patterns in inappropriate user behaviour.

Why do you allow comments in the Makers Empire app?

Comments within Makers Empire help to create a positive online community. Research shows that open and frequent commenting behaviour encourages community building and collaboration. 

Comments provide opportunities for student communication and collaboration by giving students an authentic audience of peers and allowing students to receive positive and constructive feedback on their designs. Comments also enable students to learn from their peers by providing a space for questions to be asked and answered about the design process. 

Comments unrelated to designs may seem unproductive, however, these are key in forming trust between users and helping to build a positive, collaborative community 

How do I switch off comments on my student’s/child’s account?

All app users can decide who comments on their designs through the account settings – users can choose from allowing comments from everyone, people I follow or nobody. 

If your student or child is using Makers Empire through a school account in a school or home setting, they can choose who can comment on their designs as outlined above. In addition, the school is able to disallow all comments and set sharing options (i.e. to all world, all schools, others in the same school or same class)  through the privacy settings in our Teacher Dashboard. If a school chooses to allow comments, students can still choose to allow/disallow comments as per above.

What do I do if my student or child receives a negative or unwanted comment?

The vast majority of comments left by users are positive and help contribute to an active and engaged design community. Very occasionally, a user will leave a negative, unkind or inappropriate comment. If this happens to your student/child, we recommend the following, in order from low to high severity:

  1. Broken Heart a Comment: All app users can now ‘heart’ or ‘broken heart’ comments to indicate an upvote and downvote, respectively. So if the comment is only mildly negative, the user can choose to ‘broken heart’ it.
  2. Delete a Comment: All app users can delete any inappropriate or unwanted comments by clicking on the ‘delete comment’ button next to individual comments. 
  3. Report the User: You can also report any user who you believe has breached our Acceptable Content Policy or left inappropriate comments by clicking on the user’s avatar profile and then clicking on the ‘report’ button. Makers Empire reviews all reported users and reserves the right to suspend or ban users from the app.
  4. Block A User From Commenting: Users can disable another user’s ability to leave comments on their designs by clicking on the other user’s avatar profile and then clicking on the ‘block’ button.
  5. Email Us: If you have strong concerns about a specific comment and/or user, please screenshot the negative comment before deleting it. Then please email us further details including your contact details, the user name, design name and the screenshots to info@makersempire.com. 

What should I do if a user is acting in an inappropriate way?

Please report the user by clicking on their avatar profile, hitting the ‘report user’ button and explaining your concern. Makers Empire reviews all reported users and reserves the right to suspend or ban users from the app.

A Makers Empire moderator will then assess your report and take appropriate steps as per the below.

  • 1st strike = 24-hour ban (from time of next login)
  • 2nd strike = 1-week ban (from time of next login)
  • 3rd strike = shadow ban forever

If you have strong concerns about a specific comment and/or user, please screenshot the negative comment before deleting it. Then please email us further details including your contact details, the user name, design name and the screenshots to info@makersempire.com. 

We are currently working on new reporting tools and resources for users and will update this soon.

What user-generated content is prohibited?

See above – Acceptable Content Policy.

What other activities are prohibited when using Makers Empire?

  • Using Makers Empire in a manner that violates any applicable laws, regulations, ordinances, or directives.
  • Using personal information about other users, including students, without consent or as forbidden by applicable law or regulation.
  • Using Makers Empire in a way that infringes the intellectual property rights of others.
  • Crawling, scraping, or using any manual or automated system to copy any public content available within Makers Empire.

If you have any questions or concerns please email info@makersempire.com and we will be in touch with you.

Account Suspension and Termination Policy

Makers Empire reserves the right to suspend or terminate accounts associated with users who engage in any of the prohibited user-generated content activities or other prohibited activities described above or in any manner that otherwise violates our Terms or other policies.

In-App Design Competition Policy

  1. The competition is open to all students (primary and middle school) around the world.
  2. Winners and runner ups will be selected from schools that are Makers Empire customers.
  3. Entries are to be submitted via the Competition section of the Makers Empire 3D app by the stated due date.
  4. All sections of the online entry form must be completed.
  5. Entries must be original designs from individual students.
  6. Entries will be judged by an independent jury.
  7. Winners and finalists designs will be showcased in the Makers Empire app in the Winners’ Gallery and in the Makers Empire’s Hall of Fame on the Makers Empire website.
  8. Images of the winning and runner up designs and/or the winners and runner ups may be used for publicity purposes by Makers Empire.
  9. The judge’s decision is final.
  10. Students who enter will go in the running to win a Makers Empire prize pack.
  11. Winners will be announced via Makers Empire’s social media and website.

Contact Information

If there are any questions regarding our Terms of Service or privacy policy please contact us using the information below.

Web: www.makersempire.com
Mail: Suite 30, Stone and Chalk, Lot Fourteen, North Terrace, Adelaide SA, 5000, AUSTRALIA
Email: info@makersempire.com
Phone: (415) 652 0206 (USA) or +61 8 7099 4030 (Australia)

Last updated: March 2021