Children's Online Privacy Protection Policy

The Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA) was signed into law on October 21, 1998.

COPPA prohibits unfair or deceptive acts or practices in collection, use or disclosure of personally identifiable information from or about children on the Internet. The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) issued the rule, 16 CFR Part 312, effective April 21, 2000. Please familiarize yourself with this information so you will be able to take maximum advantage of the many products and services available.

We recognize that protecting children's identities and online privacy is important and that responsibility rests with us and with parents. The personally identifiable information we collect will not be not shared or sold to third parties for any reason. Occasionally we may collect personally identifiable information from children for the purpose of contest notification, survey feedback and online communication. We do not collect any more information than is reasonably necessary for a child to participate in an activity as a condition of participation. This information is collected directly from the child and may include name, e-mail address, home address, telephone number, hobbies, or opinions. Reasonable efforts, such as letters, calls or e-mail confirmations are used to gain parental consent or notification when we communicate to children. VCCU does not disclose any of the above information to any third parties.

Parents may at any time request to review the child's personal information, ask to have it deleted and refuse to allow any further collection or use of the child's information. For such requests, e-mail cumarketing@vccuonline.net, call 800.339.0496 or write to: Marketing, VCCU, 2575 Vista Del Mar Drive, Ventura, CA 93001.

Online Safety Basics

Here are some basics to keep in mind when your children are online.

• Use the parental controls available on the commercial online services. These services screen public content and provide online hosts to monitor chat rooms. Check into filtering software to screen out adult sites on the Web.
• Consider placing the computer in a "family room" in your home and make use of the Internet a family activity. Check the screen periodically and let your children know that you are interested in what they are learning online.
• Ask your children where they go online, and have them show you. If your children are more familiar with the Internet than you are, let them teach you about it, you will both enjoy the lesson!
• Monitor online time. Be aware of excessive hours on the Internet.
• Make sure your children are aware of online rules. They should know never to give out their real name, address and/or telephone number, or agree to meet with someone person to person. Advise your children that some people on the Internet conceal their real age and identity. Create a list of online rules and post them by the computer.
• Monitor your telephone bill. Adult Bulletin Board Systems are easy to access by any communications software. Check out any unfamiliar numbers on your bill.
• Support and encourage your child's use of the Internet, and participate in new learning experiences. Acquaint yourself with their online pals and e-mail habits. Be aware of correspondence with strangers.

Parent/Child Agreement

• I will tell my parents right away if I come across any information that makes me feel uncomfortable.
• I will not give out my address, telephone number, or the name and location of my school without my parent's permission.
• I will never agree to get together with someone I "meet" online without first checking with my parents. If my parents agree to the meeting, I will be sure that it is in a public place and bring a parent along.
• If I get a message that is mean, or makes me feel uncomfortable, I will not respond. I will log off and tell my parents. It is not my fault if I get a message like that.