How we handle personal information.

This Privacy Policy explains how Credit Consensus Index collects, uses, discloses, and protects information when you visit CreditConsensusIndex.com, interact with our content, contact us, subscribe to communications, click links, or use other services we make available.

It also explains choices and privacy rights that may be available to you.

For purposes of this Privacy Policy, “Credit Consensus Index,” “we,” “us,” and “our” refer to Credit Consensus Index and the legal entity that operates the website: Credit Consensus Index.

This policy applies to information collected through CreditConsensusIndex.com and services that expressly link to it. It does not govern the independent privacy practices of lenders, credit card issuers, credit repair companies, debt relief providers, credit monitoring services, affiliate networks, advertisers, or other third parties.

Credit Consensus Index is primarily a research and publishing website. We may collect information when you visit the site, use site features, contact us, subscribe to communications, click affiliate or advertising links, request information from a third-party provider, or interact with analytics, advertising, or consent technologies.

We may automatically receive information about your browser, device, approximate location, pages viewed, referrals, and interactions. We use this information to operate the site, understand readership, conduct research, improve content, prevent abuse, measure marketing, administer commercial relationships, and comply with applicable law.

Information you provide directly

You may provide information when you contact us, submit a correction, send editorial feedback, subscribe to a newsletter, participate in a survey, request information, use a form, or communicate with us about a commercial relationship.

• Name
• Email address
• Telephone number
• Company and job title
• Message content
• Information in documents you voluntarily provide
• Communication preferences
• Other information you choose to send us

Please do not send highly sensitive financial or authentication information through ordinary contact or editorial forms.

Information about financial circumstances

Some parts of Credit Consensus Index may connect readers with third-party financial providers. Depending on the service, a form may ask for general credit range, approximate debt amount, loan amount sought, type of debt, state of residence, general financial need, or other eligibility-related information. The form should identify who will receive the information where required. In some cases, information may be transmitted directly to a third-party provider rather than stored by Credit Consensus Index.

Information we do not need for ordinary site use

• Full Social Security number
• Bank account password
• Online banking login credentials
• Credit card PIN or security codes
• Passwords for credit bureau accounts
• Complete payment card credentials
• Other authentication credentials

Credit Consensus Index does not need this information to provide ordinary research content.

Information collected automatically

We and service providers acting on our behalf may automatically collect IP address, browser type, operating system, device type, device identifiers, approximate geographic location, referring page, pages viewed, links clicked, visit dates and times, session duration, navigation patterns, advertising and affiliate interactions, consent preferences, and diagnostic information through cookies, pixels, scripts, tags, server logs, local storage, and similar technologies.

We may use cookies and similar technologies to keep the website functioning, remember preferences, measure traffic, understand content usage, detect technical problems, prevent abuse, measure affiliate referrals and advertising, support marketing, and understand which content leads to commercial interactions.

Some cookies may be necessary; others may be optional depending on applicable law and your choices. Additional information should be available through the Cookie Policy and, where implemented, Your Privacy Choices.

Affiliate links may contain cookies, click identifiers, referral parameters, transaction identifiers, and conversion information used to determine whether compensation is owed. Advertising and analytics technologies may process site visits, device and browser information, IP address, pages viewed, advertising interactions, referring sites, and other online activity.

• Operating the website and maintaining functionality.
• Publishing and improving research and understanding readership.
• Responding to questions, correction requests, editorial inquiries, and business inquiries.
• Sending newsletters, research updates, or other communications you request.
• Measuring traffic, engagement, conversions, and site performance.
• Administering affiliate referrals and commercial relationships.
• Displaying, measuring, managing, or evaluating advertising.
• Detecting fraud, attacks, automated abuse, unauthorized activity, and other security problems.
• Complying with applicable laws, legal process, and regulatory obligations.
• Protecting Credit Consensus Index, readers, partners, and others from fraud, abuse, or unlawful activity.

Artificial intelligence and data processing

Credit Consensus Index studies artificial intelligence systems and may use AI tools within portions of its research and editorial workflow. We do not intentionally submit highly sensitive reader information to general-purpose AI systems merely to generate website content. If we later introduce an AI-powered reader feature that materially changes how personal information is processed, this policy may be updated.

We may disclose personal information to service providers for hosting, cloud infrastructure, analytics, security, email delivery, newsletter management, customer support, consent management, storage, development, affiliate tracking, and advertising technology.

When you affirmatively request information or ask to connect with a financial provider, relevant information may be disclosed to lenders, credit repair companies, debt relief providers, credit monitoring services, credit-building providers, affiliate networks, lead-generation partners, or other companies involved in fulfilling the request. Once information is provided to an independent third party, that company’s privacy policy may govern its use.

We may also disclose information to advertising and analytics partners, professional advisers, governmental authorities, or transaction participants where reasonably necessary for legitimate business, legal, safety, or compliance purposes. Aggregated and de-identified information may be used for research, analytics, publishing, commercial analysis, and other lawful purposes.

Our proprietary research primarily concerns AI platform responses, company and product recommendations, citation sources, recommendation frequency, ranking positions, research prompts, research dates, and market-level patterns. Standard studies use defined hypothetical consumer scenarios rather than confidential credit files of individual readers.

Visiting Credit Consensus Index does not authorize us to obtain your credit report, credit score, consumer report, bank balance, or loan history. Credit Consensus Index is a research and publishing service, not a consumer reporting agency.

If you subscribe to emails, we may use your address to send requested communications. Marketing emails should provide an unsubscribe method, though unsubscribing may not prevent necessary administrative communications.

We use reasonable administrative, technical, and organizational safeguards appropriate to the information processed. No website, server, database, internet transmission, or storage system can be guaranteed completely secure.

We retain personal information as reasonably necessary for collection purposes and legitimate business, legal, security, accounting, and compliance purposes. Third-party websites and external platforms operate under their own privacy policies.

Depending on where you live, applicable privacy law may give you rights to access, delete, correct, or obtain a portable copy of personal information; opt out of sale, sharing, or targeted advertising; limit certain uses of sensitive information; appeal a decision; and avoid unlawful discrimination. Rights vary by jurisdiction and may be subject to exceptions.

California residents may have rights under the California Consumer Privacy Act, including rights to know, access, delete, correct, opt out of sale or sharing, limit certain sensitive-information uses, and receive non-discriminatory treatment. Where applicable, we honor recognized opt-out preference signals such as Global Privacy Control.

Exercising your privacy rights

Submit an applicable privacy request through the Contact Us page. Where required, we may verify your identity before disclosing, correcting, or deleting information. Authorized agents may submit requests where permitted by law.

Credit Consensus Index is designed for a general adult audience and is not directed to children under 13. We do not knowingly seek to collect personal information from children under 13 through ordinary services.

The site is primarily focused on the United States consumer-credit market, but visitors elsewhere may access it. Information may be processed in the United States or other locations where service providers operate.

We may update this policy as our website, data practices, vendors, commercial relationships, technologies, or legal obligations change. When changes are made, we will update the Last Updated date and may provide additional notice where required or appropriate.

Questions about this Privacy Policy or our privacy practices can be submitted through the Contact Us page.

Credit Consensus Index may earn revenue from affiliate referrals, lead generation, advertising, sponsorships, research, data licensing, and other commercial relationships. Privacy and editorial independence are separate issues. Commercial compensation does not determine the underlying AI recommendation results published by Credit Consensus Index.

Our privacy principle is simple: collect and use information for legitimate purposes, explain those purposes clearly, avoid requesting sensitive information we do not need, provide applicable privacy choices, and do not confuse third-party financial applications with our own research activities.

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