PRIVACY POLICY-Vastshield.net

Effective Date: October 15, 2025

Last Updated: October 15, 2024

Version: 1.0

1. INTRODUCTION AND OVERVIEW

VastShield Series ("VastShield," "we," "us," or "our") respects your privacy and is committed to protecting the personal information you share with us. This Privacy Policy describes how we collect, use, disclose, and safeguard your information when you visit our website VastShield.net (the "Website") or purchase our educational products and services (the "Products"). This Privacy Policy applies to all information collected through our Website, email communications, and any other interactions you have with VastShield Series.

By accessing or using our Website, purchasing our Products, or otherwise providing information to us, you acknowledge that you have read, understood, and agree to be bound by the terms of this Privacy Policy. If you do not agree with the terms of this Privacy Policy, please do not access the Website or purchase our Products. We reserve the right to make changes to this Privacy Policy at any time and for any reason. We will alert you about any changes by updating the "Last Updated" date of this Privacy Policy.

This Privacy Policy is designed to comply with applicable privacy laws and regulations, including the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) for European Union residents, the California Consumer Privacy Act (CCPA) for California residents, and other applicable data protection laws. We are committed to processing your personal information lawfully, fairly, and transparently, and only for legitimate purposes as described in this Privacy Policy.

VastShield Series operates as an educational resource company providing digital guides, toolkits, books, and other materials on topics including Medicare, health insurance, estate planning, and financial security. We collect only the information necessary to provide our services, process transactions, and improve our offerings. We do not sell, rent, or trade your personal information to third parties for their marketing purposes.

2. INFORMATION WE COLLECT

We collect information from you in various ways when you interact with our Website and services. The types of information we may collect include personal information that can be used to identify you individually, as well as non-personal information that does not directly identify you. We collect information that you voluntarily provide to us, information that is automatically collected when you use our Website, and in some cases, information from third-party sources.

Personal Information You Provide.

When you make a purchase, create an account (if applicable), subscribe to our newsletter, contact us with questions, or otherwise voluntarily provide information to us, we may collect personal information including your first and last name, email address, billing address, shipping address (for future physical products), telephone number, and payment information. When you pay by credit or debit card, payment card information is collected and processed directly by our third-party payment processor, Stripe, Inc., and we do not store complete credit card numbers on our servers. When you pay through PayPal, your payment is processed directly through PayPal's secure platform, and we receive only limited transaction information from PayPal such as transaction ID, payment status, and the email address associated with your PayPal account.

Transaction Information.

When you purchase Products from us, we collect information about the transaction, including the Products purchased, purchase date and time, purchase amount, and any promotional codes used. We maintain records of your purchase history to provide customer support, process refunds when applicable, and comply with legal obligations such as tax reporting requirements.

Communication Information.

When you contact us via email, contact forms, or other communication methods, we collect the information you provide in your communications, including your name, email address, the subject of your inquiry, and the content of your message. We use this information to respond to your inquiries and provide customer support.

Automatically Collected Information.

When you visit our Website, we automatically collect certain information about your device and browsing activities, including your Internet Protocol (IP) address, browser type and version, operating system, referring website addresses, pages viewed on our Website, time and date of visits, time spent on pages, and other standard server log information. We may also collect information about your device, including device type, unique device identifiers, and mobile network information.

Cookies and Tracking Technologies.

We use cookies, web beacons, pixel tags, and similar tracking technologies to collect information about your browsing activities and to enhance your experience on our Website. Cookies are small data files stored on your device that help us recognize you when you return to our Website, remember your preferences, understand how you use our Website, and improve our services. You can control the use of cookies through your browser settings, but disabling cookies may limit your ability to use certain features of our Website.

Analytics Information.

We use third-party analytics services, including Google Analytics, to collect information about Website usage patterns, user demographics, and user interests. These services use cookies and similar technologies to collect and analyze information about Website usage and report on activities and trends. The information collected by these services may include your IP address, device information, browsing activities, and geographic location.

3. HOW WE USE YOUR INFORMATION

We use the information we collect for various legitimate business purposes necessary to provide our services, fulfill our contractual obligations to you, comply with legal requirements, and pursue our legitimate interests in operating and improving our business. We process your personal information only when we have a lawful basis for doing so under applicable privacy laws.

Providing Products and Services.

We use your information primarily to fulfill our contract with you when you purchase our Products. This includes processing your orders, accepting payments, delivering digital Products via email, providing customer support, responding to your inquiries, and communicating with you about your purchases. We also use your information to maintain your account (if applicable) and provide you with access to the Products you have purchased.

Communications.

We use your email address to send you transactional communications related to your purchases, including order confirmations, delivery notifications, and important updates about our Products or services. With your consent, we may also send you promotional emails about new Products, special offers, or other information we think you may find interesting. You can opt out of promotional communications at any time by following the unsubscribe instructions in our emails or contacting us directly.

Improving Our Services.

We use aggregated and anonymized information to understand how users interact with our Website and Products, identify areas for improvement, develop new Products and features, and enhance the overall user experience. This includes analyzing usage patterns, monitoring Website performance, and conducting research to better serve our customers' educational needs.

Legal Compliance and Protection.

We use your information as necessary to comply with applicable laws, regulations, and legal processes, including responding to subpoenas, court orders, or government requests. We also use information to protect our rights, property, and safety, as well as the rights, property, and safety of our users and others, including detecting, preventing, and addressing fraud, security issues, or technical problems.

Business Operations.

We use your information for internal business purposes, including financial reporting, auditing, data analysis, and maintaining appropriate business records. We may also use your information to enforce our Terms and Conditions, investigate potential violations, and protect against fraudulent transactions.

4. HOW WE SHARE YOUR INFORMATION

We do not sell, rent, or trade your personal information to third parties for their marketing purposes. We share your information only in specific circumstances as described below, and we require all third parties who receive your information to protect it in accordance with applicable privacy laws and use it only for the purposes for which it was shared.

Service Providers.

We share your information with trusted third-party service providers who perform services on our behalf and help us operate our business. These service providers have access to your information only as necessary to perform their specific functions and are contractually obligated to maintain the confidentiality and security of your information. Our service providers include payment processors (Stripe, Inc. and PayPal) who handle secure payment transactions, email service providers who deliver transactional and marketing emails, web hosting providers who maintain our Website infrastructure, analytics providers who help us understand Website usage, customer support tools that help us manage inquiries, and cloud storage providers who store data securely. We share your information with trusted third-party service providers who perform services on our behalf and help us operate our business. These service providers have access to your information only as necessary to perform their specific functions and are contractually obligated to maintain the confidentiality and security of your information. Our service providers include:

Payment Processors:

Stripe, Inc. for credit and debit card transactions and PayPal, Inc. for PayPal payments, both of which handle secure payment processing according to industry standards

• Email service providers who deliver transactional and marketing emails

• Web hosting providers who maintain our Website infrastructure

• Analytics providers who help us understand Website usage

• Customer support tools that help us manage inquiries

• Cloud storage providers who store data securely

Legal Requirements.

We may disclose your information if required to do so by law or in response to valid legal processes, including subpoenas, court orders, search warrants, or other governmental requests. We may also disclose information when we believe in good faith that disclosure is necessary to protect our rights, protect your safety or the safety of others, investigate fraud or security threats, or respond to a government request.

Business Transfers.

In the event of a merger, acquisition, reorganization, bankruptcy, or sale of all or a portion of our assets, your information may be transferred to the acquiring entity or successor organization. In such cases, we will require the receiving party to continue to honor this Privacy Policy with respect to your information, and we will notify you of any material changes to how your information is handled.

Consent.

We may share your information with third parties when you have given us your explicit consent to do so. For example, if you request that we share information with a specific third party or participate in a joint promotion with another company, we will share information as you have directed.

Aggregated Information.

We may share aggregated, anonymized, or de-identified information that cannot reasonably be used to identify you individually. This information may be shared publicly or with third parties for research, marketing, or other business purposes without restriction.

5. DATA RETENTION

We retain your personal information for as long as necessary to fulfill the purposes for which it was collected, provide our services to you, comply with legal obligations, resolve disputes, and enforce our agreements. The specific retention period depends on the type of information, the purpose for which it was collected, and applicable legal requirements.

Customer Account Information.

We retain information associated with your purchases and customer account for as long as necessary to provide ongoing customer support, maintain records of transactions for tax and accounting purposes, and comply with applicable legal requirements. In general, we retain transaction records for a minimum of seven years from the date of purchase to comply with tax and financial reporting obligations.

Communication Records.

We retain records of communications between you and VastShield, including customer support inquiries and email correspondence, for as long as necessary to resolve any issues and maintain appropriate business records. These records may be retained for up to three years from the date of the communication unless longer retention is required by law.

Marketing Information.

If you have consented to receive marketing communications from us, we retain your contact information and marketing preferences until you withdraw your consent or request that we delete your information. We will honor unsubscribe requests promptly and remove you from marketing lists within a reasonable timeframe.

Legal Compliance.

We may retain certain information for longer periods when required by law, regulation, or legal process, or when necessary to protect our legal rights or defend against potential claims. The specific retention period in these cases will depend on the applicable legal requirements and the nature of the legal matter.

6. DATA SECURITY

We implement appropriate technical and organizational security measures designed to protect your personal information against unauthorized access, alteration, disclosure, or destruction. While we strive to protect your personal information, no method of transmission over the internet or electronic storage is completely secure, and we cannot guarantee absolute security.

Security Measures.

Our security measures include but are not limited to encryption of data in transit using Secure Socket Layer (SSL) technology, secure storage of data on protected servers with restricted access, regular security assessments and updates to our systems, employee training on data protection and privacy practices, contractual requirements for service providers to maintain appropriate security measures, and regular monitoring for security vulnerabilities and potential breaches.

Payment Security.

All payment transactions are processed through our authorized payment processors: Stripe, Inc. and PayPal, Inc. Both payment processors maintain high-level security standards. Stripe is PCI-DSS Level 1 compliant, the highest level of certification in the payment industry. PayPal employs sophisticated encryption and fraud prevention tools to protect payment information. We do not store complete credit card information on our servers. For PayPal transactions, authentication and payment processing occur entirely on PayPal's secure servers, and we receive only transaction confirmation data.

Account Security.

If we provide you with account credentials or access to password-protected areas of our Website, you are responsible for maintaining the confidentiality of your login information and for all activities that occur under your account. Please notify us immediately if you become aware of any unauthorized use of your account or any other security breach.

Data Breach Response.

In the event of a data breach that compromises your personal information, we will notify you in accordance with applicable law and take appropriate steps to mitigate harm. This may include notifying affected individuals, cooperating with regulatory authorities, and implementing additional security measures to prevent future incidents.

7. YOUR RIGHTS AND CHOICES

Depending on your location and applicable privacy laws, you may have certain rights regarding your personal information. We are committed to honoring these rights and providing you with control over your information. To exercise any of these rights, please contact us using the information provided in the Contact Information section below.

Access and Portability.

You have the right to request access to the personal information we hold about you and to receive a copy of your information in a structured, commonly used, and machine-readable format. We will respond to access requests within the timeframe required by applicable law and may require verification of your identity before providing access to your information.

Correction and Update.

You have the right to request that we correct or update any inaccurate or incomplete personal information we hold about you. You can update certain information directly through your account settings (if applicable) or by contacting us with your correction request.

Deletion.

You have the right to request that we delete your personal information, subject to certain exceptions. We may retain certain information as required by law, for legitimate business purposes, or to complete transactions you have initiated. For example, we may retain transaction records for tax and accounting purposes even after you request deletion of your account.

Opt-Out of Marketing.

You have the right to opt out of receiving promotional emails from us at any time. You can unsubscribe from marketing communications by clicking the "unsubscribe" link in our emails or by contacting us directly. Please note that even if you opt out of marketing emails, we may still send you transactional or administrative communications related to your purchases or account.

Cookie Preferences.

You can control the use of cookies and similar tracking technologies through your browser settings. Most browsers allow you to block or delete cookies, but doing so may impact your ability to use certain features of our Website. For more information about managing cookies, please refer to your browser's help documentation.

Do Not Track Signals.

Some web browsers incorporate a "Do Not Track" (DNT) feature that signals to websites that you do not want your online activities tracked. Our Website does not currently respond to DNT signals, but you can control tracking through your cookie preferences and browser settings.

8. CHILDREN'S PRIVACY

Our Website and Products are not intended for children under the age of thirteen (13), and we do not knowingly collect personal information from children under thirteen. If you are a parent or guardian and believe that your child has provided us with personal information without your consent, please contact us immediately at info@vastshield.net, and we will take steps to delete such information from our systems.

We require all users to be at least eighteen (18) years of age to make purchases on our Website. By making a purchase, you represent and warrant that you are at least eighteen years old and have the legal capacity to enter into binding contracts. If we learn that we have collected personal information from anyone under the age of thirteen or processed a purchase from anyone under the age of eighteen, we will delete that information and cancel the transaction as soon as reasonably practicable.

Parents and guardians are encouraged to monitor their children's internet usage and to help enforce this Privacy Policy by instructing their children never to provide personal information on our Website without their permission. If you have reason to believe that a child under the age of thirteen has provided personal information to us, please contact us, and we will endeavor to delete that information from our databases.

9. INTERNATIONAL DATA TRANSFERS

VastShield Series is based in the United States, and our Website and services are hosted on servers located in the United States. If you are accessing our Website from outside the United States, please be aware that your information may be transferred to, stored, and processed in the United States and other countries where our service providers operate.

By using our Website or providing us with your information, you consent to the transfer of your information to the United States and other jurisdictions as necessary to provide our services. The data protection laws in these jurisdictions may differ from those in your country of residence, and your information may be subject to access by government authorities in accordance with the laws of these jurisdictions.

When we transfer personal information from the European Economic Area (EEA), United Kingdom, or Switzerland to other countries, we implement appropriate safeguards to protect your information in accordance with applicable data protection laws. These safeguards may include standard contractual clauses approved by the European Commission, certification under approved frameworks, or other legally recognized transfer mechanisms.

10. CALIFORNIA PRIVACY RIGHTS

If you are a California resident, you have additional rights under the California Consumer Privacy Act (CCPA) regarding your personal information. This section describes your CCPA rights and how to exercise them.

Right to Know.

You have the right to request that we disclose certain information about our collection and use of your personal information over the past twelve months, including the categories of personal information collected, the categories of sources from which personal information is collected, the business or commercial purpose for collecting personal information, the categories of third parties with whom we share personal information, and the specific pieces of personal information we have collected about you.

Right to Delete.

You have the right to request that we delete personal information we have collected from you, subject to certain exceptions. We may deny your deletion request if retaining the information is necessary for us to complete the transaction for which the personal information was collected, detect security incidents or protect against fraudulent or illegal activity, comply with legal obligations, or enable solely internal uses that are reasonably aligned with consumer expectations.

Right to Opt-Out of Sale.

We do not sell your personal information to third parties for monetary consideration. However, under the CCPA's broad definition of "sale," some of our sharing of information with service providers might be considered a sale. You have the right to opt out of any such sale of your personal information.

Right to Non-Discrimination.

You have the right not to receive discriminatory treatment for exercising your CCPA rights. We will not deny you goods or services, charge you different prices, provide you a different level or quality of goods or services, or suggest that you will receive a different price or level of quality of goods or services because you exercised your privacy rights.

Exercising Your Rights.

To exercise your CCPA rights, please contact us at info@vastshield.net or visit our Website. We may request certain information from you to verify your identity before processing your request. Only you, or someone legally authorized to act on your behalf, may make a request related to your personal information.

Shine the Light.

California Civil Code Section 1798.83 permits California residents to request certain information regarding our disclosure of personal information to third parties for their direct marketing purposes. We do not share personal information with third parties for their direct marketing purposes.

11. EUROPEAN PRIVACY RIGHTS

If you are located in the European Economic Area (EEA), United Kingdom, or Switzerland, you have additional rights under the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) and similar data protection laws. This section describes your rights and how we comply with these requirements.

Lawful Basis for Processing.

We process your personal information only when we have a lawful basis for doing so, including performance of a contract when processing is necessary to fulfill our obligations to you, legitimate interests when processing is necessary for our legitimate business interests and does not override your rights, consent when you have given us explicit permission to process your information, and legal obligation when processing is necessary to comply with applicable laws.

Your GDPR Rights.

Under the GDPR, you have the right to access your personal information and receive a copy of it, rectify inaccurate or incomplete information, erase your personal information in certain circumstances, restrict processing of your personal information, object to processing based on legitimate interests, data portability to receive your information in a machine-readable format, withdraw consent at any time where we rely on consent for processing, and lodge a complaint with your local supervisory authority.

Data Protection Officer.

While we are not required to appoint a formal Data Protection Officer, we have designated a privacy contact responsible for overseeing our data protection practices. You can contact our privacy team at info@vastshield.net with any questions or concerns about our privacy practices.

International Transfers.

When we transfer your personal information from the EEA to countries outside the EEA that have not been deemed to provide adequate protection by the European Commission, we implement appropriate safeguards such as standard contractual clauses or other approved transfer mechanisms to protect your information.

12. UPDATES TO THIS PRIVACY POLICY

We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time to reflect changes in our practices, technologies, legal requirements, or for other operational reasons. When we make material changes to this Privacy Policy, we will notify you by updating the "Last Updated" date at the top of this policy and, where appropriate, providing additional notice such as adding a statement to our Website homepage or sending you an email notification.

We encourage you to review this Privacy Policy periodically to stay informed about how we are protecting your information. Your continued use of our Website or services after any changes to this Privacy Policy will constitute your acknowledgment of the changes and your consent to abide by and be bound by the updated Privacy Policy.

If we make material changes to how we process children's personal information, we will notify parents or guardians by email or other means as required by applicable law and obtain any necessary consent before continuing to process such information.

13. THIRD-PARTY LINKS AND SERVICES

Our Website may contain links to third-party websites, services, or content that are not owned or controlled by VastShield Series. This Privacy Policy applies only to our Website and services, and we are not responsible for the privacy practices or content of third-party sites. When you click on links to third-party websites, you leave our Website and are subject to the privacy policies and terms of use of those third parties.

We encourage you to review the privacy policies of any third-party websites you visit to understand how they collect, use, and share your information. The inclusion of a link to a third-party website does not imply endorsement of the site by VastShield Series or any association with its operators.

Our use of third-party service providers, such as Stripe for credit and debit card payment processing, PayPal for PayPal payment processing, and Google Analytics for website analytics, is governed by the privacy policies of those services. We have selected service providers that we believe maintain appropriate privacy and security standards, but we cannot control their independent privacy practices. When you choose to pay through PayPal, you will be subject to PayPal's terms of service, privacy policy, and buyer protection policies.

14. CONTACT INFORMATION

If you have any questions, concerns, or requests regarding this Privacy Policy or our privacy practices, please contact us using the following information:

VastShield Series
Email: info@vastshield.net
Website: VastShield.net

For Privacy-Specific Inquiries:
Privacy Team
Email: info@vastshield.net
Subject Line: "Privacy Inquiry"

Response Time:

We aim to respond to all privacy-related inquiries within 30 days or within the timeframe required by applicable law, whichever is shorter. For requests to exercise your privacy rights, we may need to verify your identity before processing your request.

California Residents:

California residents may exercise their rights under the CCPA by contacting us at the email address above or through our Website.

European Residents:

If you are located in the EEA, UK, or Switzerland and have concerns about our privacy practices that we have not addressed satisfactorily, you have the right to lodge a complaint with your local data protection supervisory authority.

Data Protection Authority Contact:

For more information about your privacy rights or to file a complaint, you may contact your local data protection authority. A list of EEA data protection authorities is available at: https://edpb.europa.eu/about-edpb/board/members_en

ACKNOWLEDGMENT

By using our Website, purchasing our Products, or otherwise providing information to us, you acknowledge that you have read and understand this Privacy Policy and consent to the collection, use, and disclosure of your information as described herein. If you do not agree with the terms of this Privacy Policy, please do not use our Website or services.

This Privacy Policy is incorporated by reference into our Terms and Conditions and should be read in conjunction with those terms. In the event of any conflict between this Privacy Policy and our Terms and Conditions, the provisions that provide greater protection for your personal information shall govern.

© 2025-2026 VastShield Series. VastShield.net. All rights reserved.

VastShield Series is a brand providing educational resources on Medicare, insurance, and life protection topics. VastShield.net and all associated products and services are operated independently.

Privacy Policy Version: 1.0
Effective Date: October 15, 2025
Last Updated: October 15, 2025