We’re proud to announce that we have achieved membership into the EU-US and Swiss-US Privacy Shield program. This certification is a respected framework for complying with EU data protection requirements and is designed to protect the rights of European Union and Switzerland-based citizens when their personally identifiable data is transferred to the United States.
This certification demonstrates how seriously we take our commitment to safeguarding the privacy of those who use our platform to deliver their products. Particle has long held a commitment to the privacy and security of the data that passes through our Device Cloud platform.
We’re in an era where retaining end-user trust is as critical a component of successfully delivering an IoT product as reliability and usability. At Particle we know it is crucial to be responsible and always ‘do the right thing’ when it comes to handling sensitive and personal data.
What is the Privacy Shield Program?
The Privacy Shield framework outlines a series of principles designed to safeguard the rights of individuals in EU member states, the United Kingdom and Switzerland when their personally identifiable data is transferred to the United States for processing. As a US-based company, to achieve membership in the Privacy Shield program, Particle’s privacy policies were reviewed to ensure that they aligned with these principles. Particle also established a dispute resolution channel for any issues relating to the use of personally identifiable data from the EU, UK or Switzerland.
Heightened consumer awareness of privacy issues has resulted in the development of increasingly strict and specific privacy legislation. Such legislation provides new levels of protection and choice as to how personally identifiable information can be used. Consumers now have more power than ever to make assertions around personal data usage, and withdraw consent. Building on the Particle platform, you’ll take full advantage of our Privacy Shield compliant practices, and will acquire a trusted partner to assist in aligning with your company’s own privacy needs.
What if I live outside the EU?
While the Privacy Shield framework is focused on Europe, Particle’s privacy practices extend to all users of our platform. We believe that we should offer a common set of privacy rights to users of our service, regardless of their geographical location. Therefore, we’ve designed our privacy program to support not just the Privacy Shield framework but also comply with other new and evolving privacy legislation, such as the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) or California Consumer Privacy Act (CCPA).
More details on Particle’s privacy practices can be found in our newly updated Privacy Policy.
