CCPA Updates

Note - The following is a brief and straightforward explanation of the California Consumer Privacy Act ("CCPA"). It is important to note that this is not legal advice and should not be interpreted as such. If you require more information regarding the potential effects of the CCPA on your business, it is recommended that you seek advice from a legal professional.

If you have received an email with the phrase "Powered by Hotcrm," but you are not a Hotcrm customer and want to exercise your California Privacy Rights, you should contact the business that sent you the email for guidance. Hotcrm, as a Service Provider, is legally required to handle personal information only as directed and authorized by its customer(s). If you are unsure which Hotcrm customer to contact regarding your California Privacy Rights, you may identify the name of the business and/or email address from which the message was sent.

If you are a resident of California and either an existing customer of Hotcrm or have been contacted by Hotcrm regarding becoming a customer, and you want to exercise your rights under the CCPA, then, please click here

What is the CCPA?

The CCPA stands for the California Consumer Privacy Act. It is a data privacy law in California that grants residents of California certain rights and protections regarding their personal information that is collected by businesses. The CCPA gives Californians the right to know what personal information businesses collect about them, the right to request deletion of that information, and the right to opt-out of the sale of their personal information. The law also requires businesses to disclose certain information about their data collection and sharing practices and imposes various requirements on businesses that handle personal information of California residents.

When did the CCPA take effect?

The CCPA took effect on January 1, 2020. However, there was a six-month grace period for businesses to comply with the law, during which time the California Attorney General's Office was prohibited from bringing enforcement actions. The Attorney General's Office began enforcing the law on July 1, 2020.

Who does the CCPA apply to and what does it cover?

The CCPA applies to businesses that collect, process, or sell the personal information of California residents and meet certain criteria. A business is subject to the CCPA if it meets one or more of the following conditions:

The CCPA covers the personal information of California residents, which includes information that identifies, relates to, describes, is capable of being associated with, or could reasonably be linked, directly or indirectly, with a particular consumer or household. The law gives Californians the right to know what personal information businesses collect about them, the right to request deletion of that information, and the right to opt-out of the sale of their personal information. The law also imposes various requirements on businesses that handle personal information of California residents, such as disclosing certain information about their data collection and sharing practices and implementing reasonable security measures to protect personal information.

It is important to note that the CCPA is not limited to businesses physically located within California. The law has a wide-ranging scope and offers protections to California residents, also known as "consumers," regardless of where the business is located. The definition of "personal information" is also broad and encompasses a wide range of information that can be directly or indirectly linked to an individual, including information that identifies, relates to, describes, or is associated with a particular consumer.

What changes happened with the CCPA?

There have been some changes to the CCPA since it was first enacted. Here are some of the notable changes that have occurred:

Overall, the changes to the CCPA and the introduction of the CPRA demonstrate a continued focus on data privacy in California and suggest that additional changes and requirements may be on the horizon.

Under the CCPA, businesses are required to meet a number of additional obligations, including providing various types of notices to consumers. Many of these notice requirements can be fulfilled through a business's privacy-policy. The law also grants California consumers several rights related to their personal information, such as the right to know what categories of personal information have been collected about them in the past year, the right to access specific pieces of their personal information that were collected in the last year, the right to opt out of the "sale" of their personal information, and the right to request that their personal information be deleted.

One of the most notable requirements introduced by the CCPA is the obligation for businesses to allow consumers to opt out of the "sale" of their personal information. In essence, a "sale" of personal information refers to the disclosure of personal information to a third party in exchange for monetary compensation or some other form of value. If a business engages in the "sale" of personal information of California residents, they must provide a "Do Not Sell My Information" link on their website, which allows consumers to opt out of having their information sold.

How does Hotcrm fit into all of this?

Hotcrm acts as a "service provider" when providing the Hotcrm platform and its services to customers who are considered "businesses" under the CCPA. As a service provider, Hotcrm handles customers' contact data only for the purpose of providing services to the business or on their instructions. Hotcrm does not use, disclose, or sell customers' personal information without the business's consent (unless permitted or required by law), meaning the business remains in control of their customers' data.

How to Exercise Your California Privacy Rights

Kindly be advised that Hotcrm provides an online platform that enables its customers to send emails to their business contacts. Hence, it is possible that any emails you received bearing the phrase "Powered by Hotcrm" did not originate from Hotcrm but rather from one of our customers who used our platform for their email campaigns.

Please note that if you are not an Hotcrm customer but desire to exercise your CCPA Privacy Rights, it is imperative that you contact the individual or business who sent you the email and not Hotcrm.

Hotcrm, being a service provider, is legally bound to manage personal information solely upon the directives and with the consent of its customer(s). In case you are uncertain about the Hotcrm customer to reach out to regarding your California Privacy Rights, you may check the name of the business and/or email address from where the communication originated.

If you are a California resident and have an existing Hotcrm account, you can exercise your CCPA Privacy Rights by clicking on the "Exercise My CCPA Rights/Do Not Sell My Data" button below.

EXERCISE MY CCPA RIGHTS/DO NOT SELL MY DATA

To stop receiving messages from Hotcrm, click on the unsubscribe link in any email previously sent to you if you are a former Hotcrm customer or if Hotcrm has previously communicated with you about becoming a customer.

"If you are a California resident who has received email communications from us about becoming an Hotcrm customer or if you are a former Hotcrm customer and would like to exercise your California Privacy Rights, you can submit a request by clicking on the following link." here