Privacy Policy

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What information do we collect?

When you access the Shinnyo-en websites, we will collect some technical data including internet protocol (IP) address, your login data, browser type and version, time zone setting and location, browser plug-in types and versions, operating system and platform, and other technology on the devices you use to access the relevant Shinnyo-en website.

Our websites use cookies to distinguish you from other users. This helps us provide you with a good experience when you browse our website and allows us to improve our sites. A cookie is a small file of letters and numbers that we store on your browser or the hard drive of your computer if you agree.

In addition, this Website uses "Google Analytics 4 (GA4)," an access analysis tool provided by Google, to improve our services and understand usage conditions. GA4 uses cookies to collect anonymous traffic data. If you do not wish to have your data collected, please adjust your browser settings or use the opt-out tool provided by Google.

We collect information regarding your religious beliefs, which constitutes a special category of personal data, during the period of your membership and while you seek guidance regarding your faith. In these circumstances, when you seek faith-related guidance from us, you may voluntarily disclose your race or ethnicity, details of medical conditions, or your religious or philosophical beliefs.

This Website may feature testimonial videos from our members. These videos may include information relating to special categories of personal data, and individuals may disclose their race or ethnicity, details of medical conditions, or their religious or philosophical beliefs. This information is provided voluntarily by the individuals appearing in the videos, and we publish it only with their explicit consent. We do not use this information for any purpose other than displaying the videos on our website or at our temples.

The videos on this Website are hosted on Wistia, a third-party video platform. By viewing these videos, certain information such as your IP address and viewing behavior may be collected and stored by Wistia. For more details, please refer to Wistia’s Privacy Policy (https://wistia.com/privacy).

We will only collect data which is relevant to the purpose for which you have given it.

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How we use your personal data

Your name, contact details, and other personal data may be stored electronically and accessible only by authorized users within our organization. The purpose of collecting personal data is to answer your questions and ensure you receive the materials, resources, and service you may have requested.

We will use your personal data only for the purposes for which it was collected. However, if we reasonably consider that we need to use it for another reason and that reason is compatible with the original purpose, this shall not apply. If you wish to receive an explanation as to how the processing for the new purpose is compatible with the original purpose, please contact us.

If we need to use your personal data for an unrelated purpose, we will notify you and we will explain the legal basis which allows us to do so.

Please note that we may process your personal data without your knowledge or consent, in compliance with the above rules, where this is required or permitted by law.

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Legal basis for processing personal data

• Explicit consent of you as the data subject so that we can keep you informed about news, events, activities, and services.

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How will we contact you?

We may contact you via email.

You can grant or withdraw your consent to the information and our purposes of the processing for which the personal data is intended at any time by writing to us at the address above, emailing (dpo.gdpr@shinnyo.org), or by calling (+81 42-527-0111). Please let us know if you change your contact details or if you believe any information we hold is incorrect.

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Storing and sharing your data

We store your data on a secure paper-based or local-based database in each entity’s premise or database hosted by our own servers based in Japan.

Your data will not be processed outside of Shinnyo-en and will not be disclosed to any parties outside of Shinnyo-en.

With respect to the storing and other processing of your personal data, we have put in place appropriate security measures to prevent your personal data from being accidentally lost, used, or accessed in an unauthorised way, altered, or disclosed. As part of our responsibilities to ensure that data we hold is accurate and up to date, we may occasionally undertake a process of data cleansing and we will employ a specialist third party to carry out that process.

We only enter into relationships with third parties who have appropriate data protection policies and procedures in place. All data held by third parties is destroyed when it is no longer needed.

We will not disclose your data to any other third parties unless we have your explicit consent to do so. At no time will your data be passed to a third party for marketing purposes.

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Personal data retention period

Your personal data will be held on our database until your personal data is not required for or by our services and activities or relevant laws and regulations. There may be statutory reasons beyond our control for storing data. To determine the appropriate retention period for personal data, we consider the amount, nature, and sensitivity of the data, the potential risk of harm from unauthorized use or disclosure, the purposes for which we process the data, and whether we can achieve those purposes through other means, as well as applicable legal requirements. We will not keep your personal data for any longer than is necessary. Once it is no longer required, we will take all reasonable steps to destroy it or erase it from our systems.

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Your Rights

Unless subject to an exemption under the GDPR, you have the following rights with respect to your personal data:

• The right to request that Shinnyo-en corrects any personal data if it is found to be inaccurate or out of date;

• The right to request your personal data is erased where it is no longer necessary for Shinnyo-en to retain such data;

• The right to withdraw your consent to the processing at any time;

• The right to request that the data controller provide the data subject with his/her personal data and where possible, to transmit that data directly to another data controller (known as the right to data portability) (where applicable);

• The right, where there is a dispute in relation to the accuracy or processing of your personal data, to request a restriction is placed on further processing;

• The right to object to the processing of personal data (where applicable);

• The right to lodge a complaint with the supervisory authority in your country or with the lead supervisory authority for us.

Usually, you will not have to pay a fee to access your personal data (or to exercise any of the other rights). However, we may charge a reasonable fee if your request is clearly unfounded, repetitive, or excessive. Alternatively, we may refuse to comply with your request in these circumstances.

We may need to request specific information from you to help us confirm your identity and ensure your right to access your personal data (or to exercise any of your other rights). This is a security measure to ensure that personal data is not disclosed to any person who has no right to receive it. We may also contact you to ask you for further information in relation to your request to speed up our response.

We try to respond to all legitimate requests without undue delay, usually within one month. Occasionally it may take us longer than a month if your request is particularly complex or you have made a number of requests. In this case, we will notify you and keep you updated.

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What else you should know about privacy

If you access any of Shinnyo-en’s internet site, please remember to close your browser when you have finished your session. This will help ensure others cannot access your personal information and correspondence if you share a computer with someone else or are using a computer in a public place like a library or internet café. You, as an individual, are responsible for the security of, and access to, your own computer.

Please be aware that whenever you voluntarily disclose personal information over the internet, this information can be collected and used by others. In short, if you post personal information in publicly accessible online forums, you may receive unsolicited messages from other parties in return. Ultimately, you are solely responsible for maintaining the secrecy of your usernames, passwords, and any account information. Please be careful and responsible whenever you are using the internet.

This Website may contain links to other websites, and you should be aware that we are not responsible for the privacy practices on other websites.

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Contact Us

For any questions you may have regarding this Privacy Policy and our processing of your personal data, please do not hesitate to contact us by email at (dpo_international@shinnyo.net). You may also contact our Data Protection Officer (DPO) via email at (dpo.gdpr@shinnyo.org). If at any time you have any concerns about the way your data has been processed by us and those concerns cannot be resolved by us directly, you have the right to take those concerns externally and raise them with the relevant data protection authority.