PRIVACY POLICY (Last modified: October, 2023)
Webzen Inc. (“Webzen”) maintains this Privacy Statement (“Statement”) that outlines our policies and processes to protect the information gathered from customers, prospective customers, and visitors of our website(s) or those who download and/or use Webzen’s products and services which can be used to identify individual(s) (hereinafter referred to as “Personal Data”). Statement lays out when and how Personal Data is collected, used, and protected. This Statement also explains about methods of how users may review, update, correct, or delete Personal Data and specifies what information, if any, such users would like to receive from Webzen on an on-going basis.
Introduction
Webzen is committed to ensuring your privacy and protecting the security of your personal information. This Statement covers public Webzen website available at http://www.webzen.com (hereinafter referred to as "Website") and forms affiliated with Website that may collect Personal Data.
Please note that this Statement applies only to sites maintained exclusively by Webzen or its affiliates and NOT by any other third-party sites, even if the site is linked to/from Website. Moreover, the scope of this Statement does NOT extend to information collected by Webzen via offline basis. In addition, this Statement does NOT apply to entities or agents beyond Webzen’s control nor people who are not Webzen’s employees.
Any information gathered by Webzen is treated confidential, and all such information shall be stored securely and accessed only by authorized personnel. Webzen maintains and implements appropriate technical, security and organizational measures to protect Personal Data against unauthorized or unlawful processing, and against accidental theft or disclosure.
By using Website, you acknowledge that you agree to the terms and conditions of this Statement and such, your using or downloading of Webzen ’s products and services from Website will be subject to provisions of Webzen ’s Terms of Service. If you do not agree with any of provisions described in this Statement or those available at Terms of Service, please immediately cease from using Website.
Collecting Personal Information
You can access our Website without providing us with any personal information. However, Webzen may collect personal information in various locations on our Website as more particularly described below. Our primary goal in collecting the information described below is to provide you, the user, with a customized experience on our Website and to deliver better service, products, and more relevant content to our customers, prospective customers, and visitors.
Personal Data We Collect
Personal information may be collected from you during (a) the registration process, (b) promotional campaigns, (c) customer support and technical service requests, and/or (d) ordering of products and other services from the Website or from third party service providers. This information may include your e-mail address, account ID, passwords, and/or payment and billing information. We ask you provide your own personal information only, which does not include personal information of anyone else. Personal information may be collected by WEBZEN and/or our business partners such as co-sponsors.
Cookies
We use "Cookies", which are text files that are stored on your computer for operational purposes, and to collect data to analyze user patterns in order to improve the browsing experience of our website. Cookies are only read by the server that placed them, and the server is unable to execute any code or implant virus. Control and access of information from first party Cookies will not be shared with any other parties.
Only non-personal information is stored and collected on an aggregated and anonymous basis from Cookies, and the use will be limited to one of below cases from our websites:
1. To remember your settings and actions so that some of the entry fields or selections from our website can be automatically completed for your convenience.
2. To gather anonymous statistics to analyze which videos were watched and/or which banner was clicked etc. to make our site more useful and interesting to our users.
3. For website operation related purposes such as login authentication.
The types of Cookies used in our website are:
1. Session Cookies are used for login authentication purposes and will be automatically deleted from your hard drive after closing your browser.
2. Persistent Cookies are used to remember your settings for predefined duration and will be automatically deleted from your hard drive upon expiry.
There may be third-party server networks to serve advertisements within or in connection with our websites. Third-party companies can send their own cookies to your hard drive since your web browser must request such advertising banners from the third-party network servers. However, we would only authorize third-party servers to employ anonymous cookies for anonymous targeting. We would NOT permit the third-party server to collect information about you. If you want to prevent the third-party server and/or third-party service provider from sending and reading cookies on your computer, you must visit each third-party website and opt out.
You may prevent the use of cookies by changing the related setting of your browser software. In this case, please note that some features (such as billing) of the Site may not function properly or may be slower. If you wish to prevent cookies from being installed or would like to delete individual cookies, please refer to the documentation of the browser software that you use.
Log Files
Like most Internet services, we may also use log files on the server side. The data held in log files includes your IP (Internet Protocol) address, browser type, e-mail application, Internet service provider, referring/exit Web pages, computer platform type, date/time stamp, and user activity (e.g., feature usage, user rankings, game statistics). Webzen uses server log data to analyze trends and administer the services offered through Website; however, IP addresses are not tied to any personally identifiable information. Furthermore, we do not use Personal Data to make any automatic decision based on profiling that could affect your legal status.
The software used to operate Website creates log and temporary files which may be stored in Webzen’s servers. These log and temporary files contain your account information, preference settings, system notifications as well as other data necessary to enable you to participate on the Website. Your information may survive even after regularly performed server backups.
Such information is collected on aggregate and anonymous basis.
Monitoring / Public Information
When any game is updated or “patched”, our patch routine may check your computer to see that you have the most recent version of game-specific files; when you communicate or participate in any communication feature while playing the game (e.g., live chat, instant message services and the like), even if it is purposefully made ”privately” to another person, you do so with the understanding that those communications go through our servers which can be monitored by us, and you have no expectation of privacy in any of those communications. Accordingly, you expressly consent to monitoring of communications that you send and receive.
You may also choose to disclose personal information in our online chat rooms, blogs, bulletin boards, and other public forums made available through Website. Personal information you disclose in such public forums will then be considered public information, and there is no expectation of privacy or confidentiality. Please refer to the Terms of Service for additional information relating to the disclosure of personal information on public forums.
Use of Personal Information
Unless otherwise described elsewhere in this Statement, we will NOT disclose any personal information collected from customers, prospective customers, or visitors.
Use by Webzen
We use the information you provide so that we may better understand the needs of our customers, prospective customers, and visitors. Specifically, we use your personal information for many purposes, including:
1. to allow you to register to use our products and services
2. to ensure the continued smooth operation of our service
3. to analyze user characteristics and usage patterns in order to better understand how our products and service are used and market them more effectively
4. to communicate with you concerning your account or to send you newsletters, surveys, contest and sweepstake announcements, and information about our service or product offerings or the offerings of our business partners
5. to prevent or investigate actual or suspected fraud, hacking, infringement, or other misconduct involving our products and services, or this Website
6. to respond to inquiries, troubleshoot problems, investigate incidents, and handle complaints
7. to develop new products and services.
Sharing with Business Partners
We generally do NOT sell or trade any personal information about our customers, prospects, or visitors to any third parties. We may share, however, aggregated demographic information with our business partners and advertisers. No personal information is shared during this process such that shared information can be used to identify individuals.
We may also periodically engage in co-marketing activities, where we work with a complementary solution provider to launch a joint marketing program. In these situations, we will only send information to you on behalf of the solution provider; we do NOT provide your personal information to such partner. We may also enter into business partnerships with other parties to provide specific services. If a user signs up for these services or responds to a particular marketing offer, we may share personal information such as your contact information that is necessary for our business partner to provide these services or get in contact with you.
Finally, in the unlikely event where Webzen merges with or is acquired by another company in the future through merger, sale, acquisition, liquidation or other corporate process, your personal information may be transferred or sold as a lump of business asset. In such cases, your Personal Data will be used for the same purpose and will be protected at least at the same level as we do in this Statement through adequate security measures.
Storage of Personal Information and Security
We take reasonable precaution to protect personal information we collect from users, prospective users, and visitors. When users submit personal information via Website, the information is kept in a secure in-house database. To prevent unauthorized access, loss, or misuse, maintain data accuracy, and ensure the appropriate use of information, we have adopted physical, electronic, and managerial protective procedures. Webzen uses industry-standard technology, such as firewalls, in an effort to protect confidentiality of your personal information. Moreover, we encrypt your transmission of sensitive information to us (e.g., account passwords and payment-related identifiable information) via SSL (secured socket layer) protocol in the interest of heightened privacy protection and information integrity.
In addition, only employees who need the information to perform their duties are granted access to personally identifiable information. Unauthorized access or use of such information by employee is strictly prohibited, and such practice constitutes grounds for severe disciplinary action. Additionally, our information management systems are configured in such a way as to block or inhibit employees from accessing information that they have no authority to access.
Furthermore, our trusted vendors and business partners are responsible for processing or handling some of the information that we receive. However, these vendors and business partners are NOT authorized to use such information for purposes beyond scope specified by us, and they are required to preserve the confidentiality with which we treat such information.
However, while we strive to protect your personal information, you should know that information sent over the Internet, whether by e-mail or by using one of our online forms, is not necessarily secure against interception. Therefore, we cannot be responsible for such interception and cannot guarantee the security of such information.
Access, Update, Correct or Delete Personal Information
You have a right to request access to your personal information that Webzen reserves. You may also review, update, correct or delete your personal information collected by the Website. You may also correct factual inaccuracies. Certain types of personal information such as birth date or age, cannot be deleted to check eligibility, but they may be modified with sufficient verification. Note that we reserve the right to terminate or delete any registration or promotional entry if we believe the personal information submitted was knowingly false or fraudulent. You may at any time access and edit, update or delete your general account information by logging into the Website and accessing your account profiles page. You may also access, review, update, correct, delete, or object/limit use of Personal Data by sending an email to contact@webzen.com.
To have access to your personal information, you must provide proof of identification such as full name, address, user ID, and/or information about your recent activity on Website. We reserve the right to deny access to any user if we believe there is error or inaccuracies with matching information. If the burden or expense of providing access to your personal information is disproportionate to the risks to your privacy, or if the legitimate rights of others would be violated, we may decide not to provide access to personal information. Moreover, we may still retain your information in our files to resolve disputes, enforce the Terms of Service, and for technical and legal requirements and constraints related to Website. However, we will not use such personal information for any other purpose.
Retention and Deletion
Webzen will NOT retain Personal Data longer than is necessary to fulfill the purposes for which it was collected or as required by applicable laws/regulations. Also, when your account is terminated, deleted, or expired, all Personal Data will be deleted, unless required by applicable law to retain such Personal Data.
Legal Disclaimer
We may disclose personal information when required by law, regulation, court order, or in response to a subpoena or litigation discovery request.
Notification of Changes
If we decide to change our Statement, we will post those changes on our Statement page so that you are aware of what personal information we collect from customers, prospective customers, and visitors to our Website, and when and how such information is collected, used and protected. If at any time we decide to use personal information in a manner different from that stated at the time it was collected, we will take commercially reasonable measures to obtain consent from you. You will always have a choice as to whether or not we use your personal information in this different manner.
Links to Third Party Websites
Please be advised that Website may contain certain hyperlinks to other websites. Although these websites may have privacy statements, their privacy statements are independent from our Website and this Statement. We are not responsible for compliance with other websites’ privacy statements or data collection practices. You should review their privacy statements carefully before providing personal information to these websites.
Data Obtained from Minors
Webzen does not intentionally process any Personal Data of persons under 16 years of age.
Use Outside the Republic of Korea
Webzen is a company located in the Republic of Korea. Your Personal Data may be processed, stored, and transferred to countries outside your country of residence and beyond the European Economic Area (EEA). Privacy laws in these countries may NOT offer the same level of protection as in your country or in the EEA. However, whenever we share your personal data outside the EEA, we will do so on the basis of EU standard contractual clauses, which are lawful measures to transfer your data and establish adequate protection of your personal data.
Your California Privacy Rights
California residents have the right to receive (a) information identifying any third-party company to whom Webzen may have disclosed (within the previous calendar year) his/her personal information for that company’s direct marketing purposes, and (b) a description of the categories of personal information disclosed. Furthermore, California Residents who have established business relationship with Webzen may, at any time, choose to opt out of Webzen’s disclosure of their personal information to third parties for direct marketing purposes. Thus, if you are a California resident, and wish to obtain such information and/or opt-out of such disclosure, please send a request email to contact@webzen.com.
Contact Us
If you have any questions, complaints, or comments regarding this Statement, or have other questions or suggestions about our Website, please contact us via e-mail at contact@webzen.com.