Privacy Policy

The Friendship Baptist Church of Beaufort, South Carolina ("the Church," "we," "us," or "our") is committed to protecting the privacy of our members, visitors, and all users of our website at thefriendshipbaptist.com (the "Services"). This Privacy Policy explains how we collect, use, safeguard, and share your personal information when you interact with our Services.

By using our Services, you agree to the practices described in this Privacy Policy. We encourage you to read this document carefully and to review our Terms of Service for additional information about your use of our website.

We collect information that you provide directly to us, as well as information that is collected automatically when you use our Services.

Personal Information You Provide

When you create an account, make a donation, submit a prayer request, or otherwise interact with our Services, we may collect the following information:

• Full name, email address, phone number, and mailing address
• Date of birth (for membership registration and age verification)
• Prayer requests, testimonies, and other content you choose to submit
• Donation amounts and frequency (payment card details are processed and stored exclusively by our third-party payment processor and are never stored on our servers)
• Ministry preferences, volunteer interests, and group membership information

Information Collected Automatically

When you visit our website, we may automatically collect certain usage data, including:

• Browser type, operating system, and device information
• Pages visited, time spent on pages, and navigation patterns
• IP address and general geographic location
• Referring website or source that directed you to our Services

Cookies

Our website uses essential cookies that are necessary for the proper functioning of the Services, such as authentication tokens to keep you logged in. We do not use advertising or tracking cookies. For more details, see the Cookie Policy section below.

We use the information we collect to serve our congregation and community faithfully. Specifically, we use your information to:

• Provide and maintain member services, including your account profile, ministry participation, and event registration
• Process tithes, offerings, and donations securely, and provide annual giving statements for tax purposes
• Share prayer requests with our prayer team and pastoral staff (with your consent and in accordance with your privacy preferences)
• Send church communications such as newsletters, event announcements, service updates, and ministry information
• Respond to your inquiries, feedback, and contact form submissions
• Improve our Services, understand how our website is used, and enhance the overall user experience
• Comply with legal obligations and protect the rights and safety of our church community

We take the protection of your personal information seriously. We implement a range of security measures to safeguard your data, including:

• Encryption of data in transit using TLS/SSL protocols and encryption of sensitive data at rest
• Access controls that limit who can view and manage personal information to authorized church staff and ministry leaders on a need-to-know basis
• Secure, authenticated access to administrative systems and databases
• Regular security reviews and updates to our systems and practices

While we strive to protect your personal information, no method of electronic transmission or storage is completely secure. We cannot guarantee absolute security, but we are committed to taking every reasonable step to protect your data.

The Friendship Baptist Church does not sell, rent, or trade your personal information to third parties. We may share your information only in the following limited circumstances:

• Payment Processing: We share transaction information with our secure, third-party payment processor solely for the purpose of processing your tithes, offerings, and donations. The payment processor operates under its own privacy policy and PCI-DSS compliance standards.
• Email Communications: We use a third-party email service provider to deliver newsletters, announcements, and other church communications. Your name and email address are shared with this provider solely for the purpose of sending these communications.
• Legal Requirements: We may disclose your information if required to do so by law or in response to a valid legal process, such as a court order or subpoena.

We respect your rights regarding your personal information. You have the right to:

• Access: Request a copy of the personal information we hold about you
• Correction: Request that we correct any inaccurate or incomplete personal information
• Deletion: Request that we delete your personal information from our systems, subject to certain legal and operational requirements
• Data Portability: Request a copy of your data in a commonly used, machine-readable format
• Opt-Out: Unsubscribe from our email communications at any time by clicking the unsubscribe link in any email or by contacting us directly

To exercise any of these rights, please contact us at info@thefriendshipbaptist.com. We will respond to your request within 30 days.

Our website uses only essential cookies that are necessary for the proper operation of our Services. These include:

• Authentication cookies: Used to keep you signed in to your account and maintain your session
• Preference cookies: Used to remember your settings such as dark mode preference

We do not use advertising cookies, tracking cookies, or any third-party analytics cookies that monitor your browsing activity across other websites. We believe in respecting your privacy and keeping our use of cookies to the absolute minimum necessary to serve you well.

We retain your personal information for as long as your account is active or as needed to provide you with our Services. Specifically:

• Account data: Retained while your account remains active. Upon your request to delete your account, we will remove your personal information within 30 days, except where retention is required by law
• Donation records: Retained for a minimum of seven years in accordance with IRS requirements for tax-exempt organizations and to support your annual giving statements
• Communication preferences: Your opt-out preferences are retained indefinitely to ensure we continue to honor your communication choices
• Prayer requests: Retained for the duration of the prayer cycle and then archived or removed based on the nature of the request

The Friendship Baptist Church is committed to protecting the privacy of children. Our Services are not directed to children under the age of 13, and we do not knowingly collect personal information from children under 13 without verifiable parental consent, in compliance with the Children's Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA).

If we become aware that we have inadvertently collected personal information from a child under 13 without appropriate parental consent, we will take steps to delete that information as promptly as possible.

If you are a parent or guardian and believe that your child has provided personal information to us without your consent, please contact us at info@thefriendshipbaptist.com so that we can take appropriate action.

We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time to reflect changes in our practices, technology, legal requirements, or other factors. When we make material changes, we will update the "Last Updated" date at the top of this page and, where appropriate, notify registered users by email or through a notice on our website.

Your continued use of our Services after any changes to this Privacy Policy constitutes your acceptance of the updated policy. We encourage you to review this page periodically to stay informed about how we are protecting your information.

If you have any questions, concerns, or requests regarding this Privacy Policy or our data practices, please contact us: