Japan-Studies.com is committed to protecting your privacy. This privacy statement explains data collection and use practices of Japan-Studies.com. By accessing Japan-Studies.com, you are consenting to the information collection and use practices described in this privacy statement.

Collection of your Personal Information
We will ask you when we need information that personally identifies you (personal information) or allows us to contact you to provide a service or carry out a transaction that you have requested such as receiving information about Japan-Studies.com's services; registering for the forum, or e-mailing pages of our web site. The personal information we collect may include your name, e-mail, web site information or other personal information.

Japan-Studies.com may collect certain information about your visit, such as the name of the Internet service provider and the Internet Protocol (IP) address through which you access the Internet; the date and time you access the Site; the pages that you access while at the Site; the Internet address of the Web site from which you linked directly to our site; and information about your computer such as operating system, browser and screen resolution. This information is used to help improve the site, analyze trends, manage advertisements and administer the site.

While we endeavor to prevent your e-mail address from being gathered and used by others for inappropriate or harmful purposes through the use of JavaScript protection and by hiding your e-mail address from non-registered forum users, we cannot guarantee your e-mail address is safe from such actions when posted on public pages such as on the forum or on comments. In order to prevent your e-mail address from being gathered and abused we advise that you do not post your e-mail address on such pages.

Use of your Personal Information
The personal information collected on this Site will be used to operate the Site and to provide the service(s) you have requested or authorized.

We may use the e-mail address submitted on our forum to contact our members to provide you with important information concerning the availability or use of our forum.

The Friends service on Japan-Studies.com is hosted by the Meta4 Group. For more information on the use of your personal information by Meta4 please check Meta4's Privacy Policy.

Payment and credit card information are handled by Paypal. Japan-Studies.com does not have access to the information you provide on Paypal. For more information on Paypal's use of your personal information please check Paypal's Privacy Policy.

Japan-Studies.com may disclose personal information 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 Japan-Studies.com; (b) protect and defend the rights or property of Japan-Studies.com; or (c) act in urgent circumstances to protect the personal safety of Japan-Studies.com employees or agents, or members of the public.

Passwords used for our forum are encrypted and stored in a password protected database. Japan-Studies.com's staff cannot retrieve these passwords for you. If you need a new password you may click the "I forgot my password" link on the log-in page. The forum will then generate a new random password and send it to the e-mail address you registered on the forum.

The name and e-mail address you submit for e-mailing pages of Japan-Studies.com are not recorded. They are sent with the page to allow the recipient to identify you as the sender of the e-mail.

Except as otherwise described in this statement, personal information you provide on Japan-Studies.com will not be shared outside Japan-Studies.com without your express permission.

Use of Cookies
We use cookies on this site to ensure the integrity of the registration process, control voting processes, remember menu status and to personalize the forum. A cookie is a small 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. For example, if you personalize a web page, or navigate within a site, a cookie helps the site to recall your specific information on subsequent visits. This simplifies the process of delivering relevant content, eases site navigation, and so on. When you return to the Web site, the information you previously provided can be retrieved, so you can easily use the site's features that you customized.

Web beacons, also known as clear gif technology, or action tags, may be used to assist in delivering the cookie on our site. This technology is a tool we use to compile aggregated statistics about Japan-Studies.com's Web site usage, such as how many visitors advertisement display and click-through rates. We may share aggregated site statistics with partner companies.

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 this or other Web sites you visit.

Unsollicited E-mail (Spam)
We do not send unsollicited e-mail other than described in this statement. If you received unsollicited e-mail which appears to come from our web site or server, please let us know so we can investigate and take steps to prevent such occurances in the future.

Changes to this Statement
We may occasionally update this privacy statement. When we do, we will also revise the "last updated" date at the top of the privacy statement. We encourage you to periodically review this privacy statement to stay informed about how we are helping to protect the personal information we collect. Your continued use of the service constitutes your agreement to this privacy statement and any updates.

If you have questions regarding this statement, you should contact us.