Welcome to the Shielders.com website. This website is associated with the Shielders^® Company (“Shielders^®,” “we,” “us,” or “our”). This Privacy Policy describes how we collect, use, and protect your information when you visit our site and participate in our courses and other Shielders^® related activities (both on this site and externally). By using our website and services, you agree to the collection and use of information in accordance with this policy.

1. Introduction

The Shielders website provides courses that primarily teach the Shield Method, a personal control method developed by Dr. Deborah Hill, D.C. This method utilizes advanced cognitive techniques for enhanced personal control. Our primary course is the Shield Method Weight Loss Course. 

2. Information We Collect

We collect several types of information to provide and improve our service to you:

• Personal Identifiers: Your name, email address, phone number, and physical address.
• Personal Health Information & Baseline Statistics: Before you learn the Shield Method Weight Loss Course, we document your current levels of eating control, starting weight, height, age, sex, health conditions, and history of previous methods tried to measure your progress.
• Progress Documentation: As you move through the Shield Method Weight Loss Course, we document the improvements you make in your levels of eating control and how these affect you.
• User-Generated Content: Any comments, stories, pictures, videos, and other information shared in tests, evaluations, uploads, or at events where “Shielders” (people who have learned the Shield Method) may gather.
• Automatic Data: IP addresses, browser type, device information, and geolocation data.
• Cookies and Tracking: We use cookies and web beacons to track user activity and website usage.

3. Use of Information

• Documentation: To document and study the changes that you (and others, collectively) make as a result of learning the Shield Method’s proprietary techniques.
• User Confidence: To increase your confidence by helping you see the progress that you make.
• Public Familiarization: To familiarize the public with the Shield Method and our courses by publishing results in reports and in the media.
• Service Provision: To provide lessons and give personalized directions based on your progress and test results. 
• Communication: To provide updates via email regarding lessons, new courses or other items of interest.
• Website Improvement: To analyze website usage and enhance functionality.
• Legal Compliance: To comply with legal obligations, such as law enforcement subpoenas.
• General Usage Rights: Shielders^® reserves the right to use, process, and disclose the information collected through this website and Shielders^® activities in any manner we deem appropriate for our business purposes, subject to regulatory compliance and applicable law.

4. Confidentiality of Your Identity and Records

We take the following precautions to protect your identity unless you agree otherwise:

• Anonymized Testimonials: We use only your first name and last initial for publicly released comments, testimonials, or promotions.
• Visual Privacy: We disguise your face in “before and after” pictures unless you consent to show it. Note: Uploads to our online newsletter, “Sterling Shielders,” constitute automatic consent to use your face within that newsletter.
• Statistical Results: Publicly released results list your data by file number, not by your name.
• Document Redaction: We obscure your identity on other documents (such as medical reports) shared with us.
• Third-Party Disclosure: We will not give your information to insurance companies or other entities without your signed permission or a court-ordered subpoena.

5. Retention Policy

Because the information obtained is used for research and documentation of results, there is no expiration date for the authorization to disclose it. We may keep, study and use your information for many years. We may also add or correct information about you even after your participation is over.

6. Sharing and Disclosure

• No-Sale Clause: We do not sell user data to third parties.
• Third-Party Vendors: We share data with identifying partners for essential services, including IT services, payment processors, and cloud storage providers.
• Legal Requirements: We may disclose data if required by law, subpoena, or to protect user safety.

7. User Rights and Controls

• Opt-Out Mechanisms:
  • Email: You may unsubscribe from emails at any time by clicking “unsubscribe.” However, we need to be able to email you to inform you when your next lesson is available for you to take, and for other purposes. If you opt out of these communications, we may not be able to deliver the course to you or contact you for things you have requested, etc. (Check your Spam Folder.)
  • Closing Your Account: You may opt out of data sharing by closing your account. Notify us through the Upload Portal (located at the bottom of our Home Page). Once closed, you will no longer have access to your account, courses and restricted areas of the website.
• File Access & Correction: You have the right to view, correct, or request deletion of personal information (such as personal pictures or comments). However, we will only remove information that does not affect our report results or validations Requests should be sent through the Upload Portal. 
• Specific Regulatory Disclosures: As we operate in the United States and Canada, this policy is designed to comply with the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA), and the Personal Information Protection and Electronic Documents Act (PIPEDA).[1]

8. IT Security

• Payment Security: User payment and related ID records are retained solely by independent, trusted financial service providers using high-level encryption and “https” protocols.
• Image Metadata: Users are advised to avoid uploading images that include embedded location data (EXIF GPS), as this can be extracted by others on the internet.
• Links: If you use a link on our site and are taken to an unexpected or inappropriate page, please report it immediately through the Upload Portal.
• Account Security: You are responsible for keeping your User ID and passwords confidential.
• Spam Detection: Visitor data, IP addresses, and browser user agent strings are collected to support spam detection.

9. User Acceptance of This Privacy Policy

By using the Shielders website, and participating in Shielders^® activities, you actively accept these terms. Continued use constitutes implicit consent. Shielders^® reserves the right to make changes to this agreement at any time; users are encouraged to consult this policy periodically for updates.

10. Inquiries & Other Communications

The Shielders^® Company is operated by Underscore Management, Inc., DBA Shielders^®. This Privacy Policy is governed by the laws of the state of Nevada, USA. For any legal or business questions regarding this document, please direct all correspondence to 

Underscore Management, Inc., DBA Shielders^®
3225 McLeod Drive, Suite 100
Las Vegas, Nevada 89121