Privacy Policy (Effective Date: 10/01/2025)

This Privacy Policy describes INFORMS' practices regarding the collection, use, and disclosure of the information we collect from and about you when you use any of INFORMS websites, web-based tools, mobile applications, and other online services (collectively, the “Service”).

INFORMS respects the privacy of its members and website visitors. We aim to give our website visitors the opportunity to know what information we collect about them, why we collect that information, and how we use that information to improve their experience.

By accessing or using the Service, you agree to this Privacy Policy and our Terms of Use. If you do not want to be bound by the terms of this Agreement, you are advised to leave the website and not use our service. INFORMS only grants use of and access to this website, its products, and its services to those who have accepted its terms.

INFORMS reserves the right to update our policy at any time. We will post any privacy policy changes on this page. We encourage you to review our privacy policy whenever you use the Service to stay informed about our information practices and the ways you can help protect your privacy.

What this policy covers

This policy is intended to help you understand:

  • Information Collection
  • Information Use and Sharing
  • Information Security
  • Other Important Privacy Information
  • How You Access and Control Your Information
  • Contact Us

Information Collection

We collect information about you when you provide it to us, when you use our Service, and when other sources provide it to us, as further described below.

Account and Profile Information: We collect information about you when you register for an account, modify your profile, set preferences, sign up for or make purchases through the Service. For example, you provide your account and contact information and, in some cases, billing information when you register for an event or renew your membership. You also have the option of adding a display name, profile photo, job title, and other details to your profile information to be displayed in our Service. We keep track of your preferences when you select settings within the Service.

Payment Information: The Service includes the collection of certain payment and billing information when you make a purchase. Our systems work in conjunction with third-party credit card payment processing companies to securely gather the required information for payment. You may choose to save reference to this payment method for future purchases, which is done through a secure token; we never store your Primary Account Number on our systems.

Content You Provide Through Our Products and Websites: The Service includes INFORMS products you use, where we collect and store content that you post, send, receive, and share. This content includes any information about you that you may choose to include. Examples of content we collect and store include: the summary and description added to journals, magazines, or conference abstracts; the pages you create in INFORMS Connect; HubSpot and survey forms you complete; comments you enter in connection with an incident on a feedback page; and any comments you provide to us. Content also includes the files and links you upload to the Service.

Information You Provide Through Our Support Channels: The Service includes our customer support, where you may choose to submit information regarding a problem you are experiencing with a Service.

Information We Obtain Automatically:

Our servers and those of our providers record certain information including log files and analytics. These logs may include information such as the resource you requested, your IP address, information about your device, your browser type and its settings, the URL of the site you visited to get to our site (referrer), the last page you visited on our site, all of the URLs you viewed while on the Service, search terms used, number of clicks, scroll depth, files downloaded, date and time, and other such information. This information helps us improve the efficiency, security, and relevance of the Service.

Cookies: Our Service uses cookies to provide, monitor, analyze, and improve the Service. We use cookies to remember your username when you return to the Service. We may also use cookies to control access to member-only content, to streamline authentication and navigation on the Service. Some cookies are essential for site functionality, while others help us analyze usage patterns (e.g., Google Analytics) or personalize content. You can manage your cookie preferences through your browser settings. Please note, if you block or do not accept cookies in your browser, access/functionality of the Service may be limited and may not function as designed.

Third Party Analytics: We may use third-party analytics tools that use cookies to collect information about usage patterns and traffic. These providers may collect or receive information in accordance with their own privacy policies.

Information Use and Sharing

INFORMS does not sell our customer information.

INFORMS Direct Use: We use the acquired information to provide you with the products and services you purchased or inquired about, as well as communicate products and services that we believe may be of interest to you. We process personal information only when we have a legal basis to do so, such as to fulfill a contract, comply with legal obligations, or based on your consent.

INFORMS Subdivisions: We also share your membership information with our Subdivisions (Societies, Sections, Chapters, Forums) in fulfillment of those optional memberships and services that you have purchased or communicated interest in.

Trusted Business Partners and Service Providers: We use and share information with third-party service providers to assist us in the offering and delivery of products and services. These include services related to your membership, journal article submission, online journal access, online communities, conference registration, conference abstracts submission, membership and conference mobile app, award submissions, certifications, online courses, and potentially other future services. All providers are authorized and under contract with us expressly for these purposes and obligated not to disclose or use the information for any other purpose. We will not disclose any information to any company outside of these parameters unless we are required to do so by law.

Please be aware that some aspects of the Services, such as INFORMS Connect or Committee participation, may be made publicly available, meaning any content posted, including information about you, may be publicly viewed and indexed by and returned in search results of search engines.

Retention

We retain personal information for as long as it is necessary to fulfill the purposes for which it was collected, including to meet legal, regulatory, operational, or reporting requirements. Where no specific retention period is mandated by law, INFORMS may retain personal information for a duration it deems reasonably necessary to support its legitimate interests, such as improving services, maintaining historical records, or conducting analytics. When personal information is no longer needed for these purposes, it will be securely deleted or anonymized in accordance with our data governance policies.

Information Security

INFORMS applies commercially reasonable and industry-standard technical, administrative, and organizational security measures to protect the integrity of the data we collect and to guard against unauthorized or unlawful access to, use of, or accidental destruction of such data. Although we take reasonable steps to maintain the security of our systems and the information associated with your account, please be aware that no security measures are perfect or impenetrable.

Other Important Privacy Information

International Customers: If you are accessing the Service from outside the United States, please note that your information will be transferred to, stored, and processed in the United States. The data protection laws of the United States may not be equivalent to the data protection laws in your country.

Children’s Privacy: **Under 13**: Our Service is not intended or available to children under the age of 13. We do not knowingly collect personal information from children under 13. If you are under 13, do not use or provide any information to our Service.

**Ages 13-17**: We may collect information from teens participating in supervised INFORMS programs, but only with verified parental consent. Parents can review, update, or delete their teens’ information by contacting us.

If we learn we've collected information from a child under the age of 13, or from a 13–17-year-old without proper consent, we will promptly delete it.

If you believe we’ve collected information from a child under 13 or from a 13–17-year-old without proper consent, please email [email protected] and we will investigate it immediately.

Links to Third-Party Sites: The Service may include links that direct you to other websites or services whose privacy practices may differ from ours. INFORMS is not responsible for the contents of any linked site or any link containing a linked site. INFORMS neither assumes responsibility for, nor does it control, endorse, or guarantee any aspect of your use of the linked site. INFORMS provides the linked sites to you only as a convenience, and the inclusion of any link does not imply endorsement, affiliation, sponsorship, or approval of the linked site.

If you submit information to any of those third-party sites, your information is governed by their privacy policies, not this one. We encourage you to carefully read the privacy policy of any website you visit.

How to Access and Control Your Information

You have certain choices available to you when it comes to your information. Below is a summary of those choices, how to exercise them, and any limitations.

Access and Update Your Information: Our Service gives you the ability to access and update certain information about you via your online account. For example, you can access your profile information from your account and edit it. Additionally, third-party systems tied into our Single Sign-On service may also be easily accessed to edit your online account information in those systems.

Deactivate Your Account: If you no longer wish to use our Service, you may request your account be deactivated by contacting Customer Service at [email protected]. Please be aware that deactivating your account does not delete your information.

Request for Account Deletion: If you no longer want to do business with INFORMS and would like your account deleted, please send an email to Customer Service at [email protected] with the subject line “Account Deletion Request.” Include your full name, email address, and any other information that will help us identify your account and verify your identity. Once we can verify your identity, we will work to remove your information from our system and notify you of completion. In accordance with legal, regulatory, business requirements, we may retain certain data for a specified period even after your account has been deleted. This data will be securely stored and only used for those purposes.

Opt-Out of Communications: You may opt out of receiving promotional communications from us by using the unsubscribe link within the promotional email, updating your email preferences within your member profile, or by contacting Customer Service at [email protected]. Even after you opt out from receiving promotional messages from us, you will continue to receive transactional messages from us regarding our Service. Transactional messages include information related to your membership, event registration, subscriptions, and other products and services you have purchased or subscribed to.

Your Choices/State Privacy Rights: Depending on your state of residency, you may have certain rights related to your personal data, including:

  • Access and Data Portability. You may confirm whether we process your personal data and access a copy of the personal data we process. To the extent feasible and required by state law, depending on your state, data will be provided in a portable format. Depending on your state, you may have the right to receive additional information, and it will be included in the response to your access request.
  • Correction. You may request that we correct inaccuracies in your personal data that we maintain, taking into account the information's nature and processing purpose.
  • Deletion. You may request that we delete personal data about you that we maintain, subject to certain exceptions under applicable law.
  • Opt Out of Using Personal Data for Targeted Advertising, Profiling, and Sales. You may request that we do not use your personal data for these purposes.

We are committed to complying with all relevant privacy regulations and honoring your rights under the laws of your jurisdiction. If you have questions about your specific rights or wish to exercise them, please contact Customer Service at [email protected].

Turn Off Cookie Controls: Relevant browser-based cookie controls may be deactivated through your browser settings. This may prevent you from taking full advantage of our website and Service.

Send "Do Not Track" Signals: Some browsers have incorporated "Do Not Track" (DNT) features that can send a signal to the websites you visit indicating you do not wish to be tracked. Because there is not yet a common understanding of how to interpret the DNT signal, our Service does not currently respond to browser DNT signals.

Contact Us

If you have questions or concerns about how your information is handled, please direct your inquiry to Customer Service, [email protected].

Institute for Operations Research and the Management Sciences (INFORMS)

Attn. Customer Service
5521 Research Park Drive, Suite 200
Catonsville, MD 21228 USA