Privacy and Cookies Policy

NCS Pearson, Inc. respects your privacy and has adopted this Privacy and Cookies Policy for the Pearson VUE Business Group described below (hereinafter “Privacy Policy”). Pearson VUE is a business of NCS Pearson, Inc. This Privacy Policy is global in nature and describes our data protection practices and the types of information that you provide to us; information we may collect automatically in the operation of our websites, web pages, and emails that link to this Privacy Policy (collectively this Site(s)”); users of our products and services; individuals purchasing study aides, books, e-books, tests, practice tests, vouchers and our other products and services available on Pearson VUE’s Site; and Personal Data (as defined below) that we may receive from test sponsor’s or collect from you on behalf of certification, credentialing, licensure, regulatory, and academic admission test sponsors. This Privacy Policy is also applicable to those individuals who desire to access, manage, publish, and provide their current credential status to their designated and authorized third parties (for example employers and background checking firms). This Privacy Policy does not apply to the CompTIA Store located at https://store.comptia.org.

In addition, this Privacy Policy describes your rights and responsibilities, our rights and responsibilities, how we use the information we collect or receive; with whom we share the information with; the measures we take to protect the security of Personal Data from loss, misuse and unauthorized access, the choices you can make about providing your Personal Data to us as it relates to your certification, credentialing, licensure, regulatory, and academic admission testing experience; and how you can contact us. All references to ‘our’, ‘us’, or ‘we’, in this Privacy Policy and within the opt-in notice are deemed to refer to the Pearson VUE Business Group, that for purposes of this Privacy Policy includes Pearson VUE and the Certiport businesses of NCS Pearson, Inc. as appropriate.

The rights and responsibilities described in our Privacy Policy do not cover third party websites that may be linked to our Site(s) or referred to on this Site(s). These third party websites have their own privacy policies and we encourage you to read and review them.

For purposes of this Privacy Policy “Personal Data” is any information that can be used to identify you or that when added with other Personal Data can be linked to you and includes, but is not limited to: personal contact detail (name, street address, email address, phone number, fax number, credit/debit card information, company and title). We may also collect or receive the following additional Personal Data at registration or in the testing process, as necessary or appropriate, including, but not limited to: language, date of birth, social security number, test sponsor’s identification number, employment Data, previous examination history, education Data, and source of financing for the test.; assessment details, including candidate ID number; credit card information; residence and country of citizenship; signature and photograph. In some cases, we may handle so-called ‘special categories of Personal Data’ about you, which may be considered sensitive. This would be the case, for example, if you at your test sponsor’s request, (i) provide your race or ethnic origin; (ii) provide your biometric (palm vein) template where permitted by law; or (iii) provide medical or health information when requesting a testing session accommodation. Before we collect sensitive Personal Data we will mark the question(s) as ‘optional’ or require your consent. Such consent may be withdrawn at any time.

EPIDEMIC RESPONSE

In order to comply with local COVID-19 (coronavirus) requirements, Pearson VUE may collect health information, including but not limited to body temperature and health code status. One such example of local COVID-19 (coronavirus) requirements is the local law in China requiring collection of this information in order to allow individuals to take their tests.

This Privacy Policy describes:

YOUR RIGHTS & RESPONSIBILITIES

You agree that by visiting and/or providing, transmitting, or having another party you have authorized provide or transmit your Personal Data to us on any of our Sites, you are accepting the practices described in this Privacy Policy and any updates made to this Privacy Policy. It is your responsibility to read this Privacy Policy and check for updates on a regular basis. By continuing to use our Site, products or services after such updates have been made you are agreeing to be bound by any changes to this Privacy Policy.

You are never required to provide us with your Personal Data. If you do not agree to this Privacy Policy, please do not provide, transmit or allow anyone else to provide or transmit your Personal Data to us; however, if you decide to not provide to us your Personal Data it may affect our ability to allow you to register, schedule, and take a test administered and delivered by us on behalf of the test sponsor; or to provide to you any other products or services offered.

You agree that we may collect or receive, use, process, disclose, transfer and retain your Personal Data as described herein. This Privacy Policy governs your use of any and all of our Sites our testing services, and in purchasing our products and services in general. We will use your Personal Data only for the purposes set forth herein.

As the subject of the Personal Data collected, you have rights related to the Personal Data that we hold about you.

At any time you have the right to:

  • Request access to the information we hold, use, or disclose about you.
  • Ask us to correct or how to correct any inaccurate or incomplete information we have about you or request us to make the corrections.
  • Request us to delete your information from our records, subject to the approval of your test sponsor.
  • Withdraw consents you have given, where our collection and use is based upon your consent.

Ask us to send a copy of your Personal Data to a third party in a data portable format, subject to the approval of your test sponsor.

You may request access, correction, or deletion of the Personal Data you have submitted by contacting a Pearson VUE customer service representative, by logging into your account, or calling our toll-free number at 1-877-460-2204 or +1 763-726-9025. To determine the correct Pearson VUE customer representative click on www.pearsonvue.com and search for the test organization’s name.

Upon receiving your request, we may need additional information from you to verify your identity and to better understand what it is you are requesting. In this case, we may ask you to provide additional information, including information you have previously disclosed to us, to confirm your identity. If you wish to designate an authorized agent under any applicable law, please contact us by any means listed above and we will coordinate that designation. We will respond to access requests within a reasonable amount of time in accordance with state and national laws and requirements. We recognize that you may have a right to not receive discriminatory treatment by exercising any of the rights listed above. We will not charge a fee to respond to a request, unless it is excessive, repetitive or unfounded.  If a fee will apply, we will advise the requester before completing the request, explain why a fee applies and provide an estimate of the fee.

Additionally, if you have questions or requests regarding the above, please contact us as outlined in the HOW TO CONTACT US section below.

OUR RIGHTS & RESPONSIBILITIES

We will provide you access to these Rights and Responsibilities and any subsequent updates.

We encourage you to periodically review this Privacy Policy to learn more about our information practices as they change over time. We reserve the right to update this Privacy Policy periodically, without notice. A change in the effective date will indicate that the Privacy Policy has been updated. Any changes to our Privacy Policy will become effective upon posting of the revised Privacy Policy on our Site(s). Your use of our Site(s), and any of our products and services following such changes constitutes your acceptance of the revised Privacy Policy then in effect.

We rely on the following legal grounds to process your Personal Data:

  • Performance of a contract. We may need to collect and process your Personal Data as necessary to perform services subject to a contractual agreement with you. Examples of our legal grounds to process your Personal Data as being necessary for the performance of a contract include, but are not limited to: (i) when you make an online purchase in order for the purpose of allowing us to deliver the purchased product; and (ii) when you register and schedule to take a test sponsor’s test on Pearson VUE’s or Certiport’s website you will be entering into a Candidate Agreement by and between you, Pearson VUE or Certiport, and the test sponsor for the purpose of permitting us to collect, use, transfer, process and store your Personal Data consistent with this Privacy Policy.
  • Consent. Where we ask you for your consent, we will collect and use your Personal Data only to the extent you have consented.
  • Legitimate interests. We may use your Personal Data for our legitimate interests for the purposes of improving our products and services and improving the content of our Site(s); and improving our applications and systems; and for the legitimate interest of our test sponsors.

The Pearson VUE Business Group and its subcontractors will at all times protect your Personal Data with operational, administrative, technical, and physical security safeguards.

We do not disclose your Personal Data to third parties unless otherwise stated herein. We do not monetize Personal Data. We have not sold, within the last twelve (12) months, any Personal Data collected through this site, except to the extent that third party targeted advertising cookies are ultimately determined to involve a sale of personal information under California law. The following categories of personal information may have been collected and shared through such cookies and related technologies during the past 12 months within the digital advertising ecosystem:   Identifiers (limited to a numeric identifier, such as an IP address) Commercial Information, Internet or Similar Network Activity, Geolocation Data and Inferences draw from other Personal Information.

COMPLIANCE WITH THE EU-U.S. DATA PRIVACY FRAMEWORK (EU-U.S. DPF); UK EXTENSION TO THE EU-U.S DPF; AND THE SWISS-U.S. DATA PRIVACY FRAMEWORK (SWISS-U.S. DPF)

The Pearson VUE Business Group has certified to the U.S. Department of Commerce that it adheres to the EU-U.S. Data Privacy Framework Principles (EU-U.S. DPF Principles) with regard to the processing of Personal Data received from the European Union/European Economic Area (EU/EEA) in reliance on the EU-U.S. DFP and from the United Kingdom (and Gibraltar) in reliance on the UK Extension to the EU-U.S. DPF. The Pearson VUE Business Group has certified to the U.S. Department of Commerce that it adheres to the Swiss-U.S. Data Privacy Framework Principles (Swiss-U.S. DPF Principles) with regard to the processing of Personal Data received from Switzerland in reliance on the Swiss-U.S. DPF. If there is any conflict between the terms in this Privacy Policy and the EU-U.S. DPF Principles and/or the Swiss-U.S. DPF Principles, the Principles shall govern. To learn more about the Data Privacy Framework program, and to view our certification, please visit www.dataprivacyframework.gov.

The Pearson VUE Business Group is responsible for the processing of Personal Data it receives, under each Data Privacy Framework and subsequently onward transfers to third parties to perform processing functions or to provide services on our behalf.

The Pearson VUE Business Group has further committed to cooperate and comply respectively with the advise of the EU/EEA data protection authorities (collectively “EU DPAs”); the UK Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) and the Gibraltar Regulatory Authority (GRA); and the Swiss Federal Data Protection and Information Commissioner (FDPIC) with regard to unresolved privacy or Personal Data use concerns. Click on Resolution of Concerns for more detailed information.

Additionally, the Pearson VUE Business Group is subject to the investigatory and enforcement powers of the U.S. Federal Trade Commission for compliance with the EU-U.S. DPF, the UK Extension to the EU-U.S. DPF, and the Swiss-U.S. DPF. As further explained on the Data Privacy Framework program website at www.dataprivacyframework.gov, as a last resort and in limited situations, you may invoke binding arbitration when other dispute resolution procedures have been exhausted.

DATA CATEGORIES

Depending on the Services, we may collect and/or disclose to third parties the following categories of data in order to manage day to day business needs including, but not limited to, providing you with our services, performing services on behalf of a business, payment processing and financial account management, business planning and forecasting, system improvements, security and fraud prevention, and compliance with legal and regulatory obligations:
(A) Identifiers such as a real name, address, unique personal identifiers, or email address
(B) Customer records such as signature
(C) Characteristics of protected classifications under California or federal law
(D) Commercial information, such as products or services purchased, obtained, or considered
(E) Biometric information (any disclosure of biometric information is limited to the purposes described in the OTHER DISCLOSURE AND TRANSFER OF INFORMATION section below)
(F) Internet or other electronic network activity information such as information regarding a consumer’s interaction with an Internet Web site, application, or advertisement
(G) Geolocation data
(H) Sensory data, such as audio, electronic, visual, or similar information
(I) Professional or employment-related information
(J) Education information
(K) Inferences about preferences, characteristics, psychological trends, preferences, predispositions, behavior, attitudes, intelligence, abilities, and aptitudes

DESCRIPTION OF CERTIFICATION, LICENSURE, AND ACADEMIC ADMISSION TEST SERVICES

We provide testing services as a service provider under the instructions of and on behalf of our test sponsors (that act as an autonomous data controller) and we provide testing services on behalf of ourselves. The test sponsor is the company or organization that offers certification, licensure, or academic admission testing and controls the test(s) that must be taken to secure such certification, credentialing, licensure, or academic admission. We collect or receive Personal Data from certification, licensure, and academic admission testing candidates and from the test sponsor. The information we may collect or receive includes, but is not limited to, your test registration, incident resolution (such as fraud prevention), collection of payment for testing services you’ve requested, and your test results of such testing. We use Personal Data in order to perform the testing services related to the administration and delivery of certification, licensure, and academic admission testing on behalf of the test sponsor. Upon completion of your exam we may collect and score your test responses and then derive a test score and generate a report about your certification, credentialing, licensure, or academic admission test results. In most cases, as it is necessary to perform the services, such scoring will be completed through automated means based on the criteria provided by your test sponsor.

In the event that you submit a request for an accommodation for your certification, licensure or academic admission test, you may be asked to submit health information records in compliance with your test sponsor’s requirements, including but not limited to, documentation from your physician evidencing your need for the accommodations. We will work with the test sponsor to evaluate your eligibility for an accommodation and if an accommodation is granted we will implement an acceptable accommodation solution.

Providing your Personal Data is voluntary, but may be necessary if you wish to receive certification, licensure, or academic admission testing services. We will retain your Personal Data for as long as needed to provide our services and for such period of time as instructed by the test sponsor. To the extent that you request Pearson VUE to delete your Personal Data, it may affect our ability to allow you to register, schedule, and take a test administered and delivered by us on behalf of the test sponsor; or to provide to you any other products or services offered, and such deletion may affect your certification, licensure or academic admission status, dependent on the policy of your test sponsor.

In addition to the Personal Data that we may collect or receive in registering a candidate (“you”) for certification, licensure, or academic admission testing the test sponsor may also provide to us or instruct us to collect the following additional Personal Data, as necessary or appropriate, including, but not limited to: language, date of birth, social security number, test sponsor’s identification number, employment information, previous examination history, education information, and source of financing for the test. For candidate verification and identification purposes, we may be instructed to collect all or part of a government-issued identification number and mother’s maiden name.

At the test center, depending upon the test sponsor and/or test security requirements, you may be required to provide two (2) forms of identification, your signature, photographic image, a palm vein pattern digitally where permitted by law (for the purposes of identity verification and to protect the security and integrity of the test) and you may be audio- and video-recorded during your testing session. In addition, you may be required to provide your palm vein pattern where permitted by law if your ID does not meet the requirements of identity verification. Where palm vein pattern collection is required by your test sponsor, by continuing with the test, you are consenting to such collection and use. Should you desire to not provide your palm vein scan you may contact Pearson VUE at PearsonVUEContracts@pearson.com or contact your test sponsor to discuss alternative identification measures. For more information, please see our Biometric Data Policy.

We will handle and treat all Personal Data collected or received by us in connection with certification, licensure, and academic admission test registration and test administration in the manner as described in this Privacy Policy.

How We Use the Personal Data We Collect.

We use Personal Data to provide services and information, to administer testing programs on behalf of your test sponsor, and for our legitimate purposes in operating our business. Examples of our use or disclosure of your Personal Data include, but is not limited to:

  • Providing test delivery services to you, including test scheduling and administration, maintaining the integrity of the testing process, and score reporting as directed by your test sponsor. Where required by your test sponsor and permitted by law, your palm vein pattern will be used as described herein and to authenticate your identity, detect, and aide in the prevention of fraud or misrepresentation.
  • Our legitimate business purposes as needed to manage day to day business needs including, but not limited to, performing services on behalf of a business, payment processing and financial account management, business planning and forecasting, security and fraud prevention, and compliance with legal and regulatory obligations.
  • As part of the testing process Pearson VUE uses operational and technical measures to maintain the integrity of the tests and test results. This includes security reviews of potential fraudulent activity and monitoring of testing events using comprehensive analytics tools that analyze testing records, video from testing sessions, and test center data to provide Pearson VUE's security team with information to detect fraudulent test activity.

Independent Testing Centers

Certain certification, credentialing, licensure, and academic admission tests are administered through independent authorized testing centers. These authorized testing centers are required to use any data collected in compliance with this Privacy Policy. If you have unaddressed concerns about an independent testing center relating to certification, credentialing, licensure, or academic admission services provided by the Pearson VUE Business Group please contact us at PearsonVUEContracts@pearson.com or you may call us at +1 726-726-9025 or 1 877-460-2204.

ONLINE PROCTORING TEST SERVICES

Description of Online Proctoring Test Services

If a test sponsor offers their test outside of a Pearson VUE Business Group’s authorized testing center through online proctoring and if you choose to take the test through Pearson VUE’s online proctoring platform, in addition to the requirements of Description of Certification, Licensure, and Academic Admission Test Services, you will be monitored over the Internet through your computer via your webcam and microphone. Online proctoring means that you will log on to a test platform through the internet to take your test and you will be monitored during your entire testing session in real-time so that your face, voice, desk and workspace will be captured and a recording will be made of these images for the purposes of test security and the integrity of the testing process. It is your responsibility to monitor your online proctored testing environment. You must make sure that only you will be recorded during your testing session and that no one else will be physically in the room where you are testing and that no one speaks to you during your testing session. If at any time during an online proctored testing session another person enters the work space or if another person’s voice is detected on the audio recording your testing session may be immediately terminated and the test stopped. If this event occurs you will not receive a test refund or be credited for any portion of the test fee.

Some test sponsors’ may elect to automate the check-in process. During this automated check-in process you will check yourself in, upload the photo you’ve taken of yourself, and share your identification documents (“IDs”) on camera. Images of your IDs will be used for the purpose of ID validation through the use of ID authentication protocols. We will use the ID authentication protocols in conjunction with biometric facial comparison technology to authenticate your identity. You understand and agree that Pearson VUE may, for some test sponsor’s, use facial comparison technology for the purpose of verifying your identity during the testing session by comparing your facial image to that presented on your ID and to your facial images captured during the testing session. 

Pearson VUE may use facial images collected during the testing process to develop, upgrade, and improve our online proctoring application in the event that automated facial comparison processes are determined to have resulted in a matching failure. In these cases, facial images will be reviewed manually to determine the cause and the results from such a review may be used to develop, upgrade, and improve our online proctoring application. For more information, please see our Biometric Data Policy.

The video and audio recordings are standard test procedures for all test sponsors’ online proctored tests and your video and audio recording will be used for purposes of identity verification, remote observation, incident resolution, such as fraud prevention, test security, and for the integrity of the test and the testing process. For more information about how the test sponsor may collect and use your Personal Data we encourage you to review the test sponsor’s privacy policy.

Personal Data Collected for Online Proctoring Test Services

All of the same Personal Data that we collect or receive as described above applies to you when you register to take a test sponsor’s online proctored test. Prior to the start of your online proctored test you may be required to hold up your ID documentation, (for example your driver license, passport or other approved ID that the test sponsor designates), to be recorded on the video for the purpose of identity verification. The collection of such data is optional, but necessary if you choose to use the online proctoring function. You understand that the audio- and video-tapes of your testing session will be supplied to the relevant test sponsor and any of their appointed agents to assist with their management of your test.

CERTIPORT EXAMS FROM HOME

Description of Certiport Exams from Home

In limited circumstances, Pearson VUE’s Certiport business offers testing candidates the ability to take Certiport tests on their own device from home. The requirements of Description of Certification, Licensure, and Academic Admission Test Services will apply to your testing session along with additional requirements described on the Certiport Exams From Home webpage. Certiport Exams from Home are delivered in a virtual environment where you will log on to a test platform through the internet to take your test and Certiport or testing center staff will view and monitor your activities in that virtual environment for the purposes of test security and the integrity of the testing process.

You may communicate with Certiport or test center staff via the Notepad application in the virtual environment if you have any questions during the Certiport Exams at Home process. TEST CANDIDATES SHOULD NOT ENTER ANY PERSONAL INFORMATION INTO THE NOTEPAD DURING THEIR TESTING SESSION. SHOULD A CANDIDATE PROVIDE PERSONAL INFORMATION IN THE NOTEPAD DURING A TESTING SESSION, THE CERTIPORT REPRESENTATIVE WILL IMMEDIATELY TERMINATE THE EXAM SESSION.

Personal Data Collected for Certiport Exams from Home

All of the same Personal Data that we collect or receive as described above applies to you when you register to take a Certiport Exam from Home.

PEARSON VUE BIOMETRIC DATA POLICY

Pearson VUE, a business of NCS Pearson, Inc.(“Pearson”), is a global computer-based testing company that is committed to respecting the privacy of its test candidates while ensuring the security of test content and the integrity of test results. As part of this effort, where elected by a test sponsor, Pearson utilizes processes that offer a comprehensive level of integrity and security for those test programs that wish to use this technology that is quick and easy to use.

When directed to do so by your test sponsor, Pearson relies upon palm vein scans and/or comparisons of facial geometry and data that may be generated by those processes (“Biometric Data”) to verify a test taker’s identity (“Biometric Verification”). The purpose of Biometric Verification is to ensure the integrity of the testing process by verifying a test-taker’s identity and identifying proxy test takers who impersonate others or use assumed identities to take tests outside the windows allowed by the sponsor (including to become familiar with the test content). Testing integrity requires Pearson to retain some Biometric Data longer than the duration of the test that led to its collection because this purpose concerns the integrity of future tests as well. Biometric Data is retained by Pearson as long as deemed necessary by the test sponsor. If you took a test at a test center In Illinois, or if you provided an Illinois address during registration for an Online Proctored Test that utilized a facial comparison, Pearson will not retain Biometric Data for more than three (3) years after your last interaction with Pearson and will permanently destroy it after the expiration of that period, unless otherwise required by law.

Pearson will not sell, lease, trade, or otherwise profit from Biometric Data used to identify you. Pearson may disclose Biometric Data to the test sponsor for purposes consistent with this Policy, and to third parties involved in supporting or providing Biometric Verification services for Pearson, based upon your having provided advance consent, as well as when required by law or pursuant to a valid warrant, subpoena, or court order.

Palm Vein Scan: Not every testing program uses the palm vein scan as part of their admittance procedures. An individual who wishes to take a test which uses palm vein scans (“Applicable Test”) simply places their hand on a device that uses sensors with palm vein scanning technology. This device works by scanning the veins inside of your hand using a safe, near-infrared light source like that in a TV remote control. Data points, or measuring points, from the scan are immediately converted through a proprietary software program to a unique mathematical representation of that data, which is encrypted and saved in a template (“Template”). This technology does not actually collect or store images of the palm veins or scan.

Each individual who wishes to take an Applicable Test will have their palm scanned when they arrive at the testing center to check-in for the test. To verify an individual’s identity, that individual’s Template will be compared with the Template assigned to the individual (should one exist from a prior exam), and again when he/she returns to the testing room after a break. Lastly, if, in its sole discretion, the test sponsor deems it necessary to investigate or otherwise audit test results, each individual’s Template may be compared with those of other individuals who have taken, or are taking, an Applicable Test, to allow Pearson or the test sponsor to determine whether individuals may have tested under multiple names. After an individual finishes taking the Applicable Test, their Template is stored in Pearson VUE’s central hub. That individual’s Template is then kept separately from other information about that individual in the system. Any individual who wishes to take an Applicable Test will be required, as a condition of taking the examination, to agree to Pearson’s use of the palm scanning technology, and the Biometric Data which results, as described here.

The Templates or Biometric Data derived from your palm vein scans will only be retained for as long as they are needed as directed by the exam sponsor. If you take a test at a testing center in Illinois, Pearson will not retain your Template or Biometric Data for more than three (3) years after your last interaction with Pearson and will permanently destroy it after the expiration of that period, unless otherwise required by law.

During the retention period specified above, the Templates from the palm vein scanning system will be kept by Pearson. Pearson may disclose the Templates or Biometric Data to the test sponsor for purposes consistent with this Policy, and other third parties involved in supporting or providing Biometric Verification services for Pearson, based upon your having provided advance consent, as well as when required by law or pursuant to a valid warrant or valid subpoena.

Facial Comparison: For our Online Proctored Tests, where required by your test sponsor, Pearson VUE uses a process called facial comparison to facilitate the check-in process and validate the identity of the test candidate. This process compares the facial geometry of faces in two photographs to determine if they match. This process works by comparing two photographs of the test candidate – usually a photograph of the test candidate at the time of the test (“Candidate Photograph”) and the photograph on the form of identification that the user has submitted (“ID Photograph”). The purpose of this is to confirm that the person who is checking in for the exam is the same person on the submitted form of identification. In the event that the process is not able to confirm that the photographs are of the same person, the photographs are passed forward to a human to make a final determination.

The photographs are submitted via TLS encrypted HTTP protocol to a third party that conducts a comparison in real time without retaining either of the photographs or any data generated by or derived from the facial comparison process. Pearson provides the third party only the two photographs and the third party returns to Pearson its assessment of whether the two photographs are of the same person (“Assessment”).After the facial comparison check is completed, the ID Photograph and Assessment are deleted, while the Candidate Photograph is stored by Pearson along with the candidate’s testing record.

Pearson may disclose the Assessment or Biometric Data to the test sponsor for purposes consistent with this Policy, and may disclose/receive the Assessment or Biometric Data to/from other third parties involved in supporting or providing Biometric Verification services for Pearson, based upon your having provided advance consent, as well as when required by law or pursuant to a valid warrant or valid subpoena.

This Policy is intended to comply with all federal, state, and local laws, and will be interpreted and applied in order to comply with all applicable laws, including but not limited to, the Illinois Biometric Information Privacy Act. If any provision of this Pearson VUE Biometric Data Policy or any part thereof contravenes any law, or if the operation of any provision hereof is determined by law or otherwise to be unenforceable, then such offending provision or part thereof shall be severed and the remaining provisions given full force and effect. If you have any questions about this Policy, please contact Pearson VUE at pvcontracts@pearson.com.

NCS PEARSON, INC. AS A TEST SPONSOR

PTE Professional

When you take the PTE Professional test NCS Pearson, Inc. is the data controller and the data processor of your Personal Data. When you take the PTE Professional test we may use your Personal Data to:

  • Administer the PTE Professional test, the English for Professionals Exam.
  • Process your requests for products, services, or information and to communicate with you regarding such requests.
  • Verify your identity, process payments and collect debts you owe us.
  • Improve the Site and our other business systems and procedures.
  • Conduct research and produce aggregate statistical studies and analysis related to our products and services.
  • Ask you to participate in brief surveys regarding the products and services offered by PTE Professional.
  • Provide you with information about products, services or special offers from PTE Professional. Please see the section below entitled “Your Choices” to better understand your choices with regard to these communications from PTE Professional.

Your Choices

PTE Professional endeavors to provide you with choices regarding our use of your Personal Data. For example, although we may occasionally use your Personal Data to contact you regarding products or services of PTE Professional we think might be of interest you, you will be given instructions on how to opt out of receiving further communications of this nature by email. Should you elect to opt out of receiving further communications you may still receive program-related messages and similar transactional communications by email. In addition, as noted above, you will have the opportunity to choose not to receive marketing materials and communications from our affiliates or third party partners.

IC3

When you take the IC3 test, NCS Pearson, Inc. is the data controller and the data processor of your Personal Data. When you take the IC3 test we use your Personal Data to:

  • Administer the IC3 test, Internet and Core Computing Certification Exam.
  • Process your requests for products, services, or information and to communicate with you regarding such requests.
  • Verify your identity, process payments and collect debts you owe us.
  • Improve the Site and our other business systems and procedures.
  • Conduct research and produce aggregate statistical studies and analysis related to our products and services.
  • Ask you to participate in brief surveys regarding the products and services.
  • Provide you with information about products, services or special offers. Please see the section below entitled “Your Choices” to better understand your choices with regard to these communications from us.

Your Choices

We endeavor to provide you with choices regarding our use of your Personal Data. For example, although we may occasionally use your Personal Data to contact you regarding IC3 products or services we think might interest you, you will be given instructions on how to opt out of receiving further communications of this nature by email. Note, however, that in such a case, you will still receive program-related messages and similar transactional communications by email. In addition, as noted above, you will have the opportunity to choose not to receive marketing materials from our affiliates or third party partners.

Testing of Minors under the Age of 13 for IC3

When children under the age of 13 wish to take an IC3 test requiring the collection of their Personal Data, we take steps to protect children’s privacy, including:

  • In accordance with applicable law, obtaining consent from parents for the collection of personal information of or from their children, or for sending information about our products and services directly to their children.
  • Limiting our collection of personal information from children to no more than is reasonably necessary to register, take and receive certification on an IC3 test.
  • Provide parents access or the ability to request access to personal information we have collected from their children and the ability to request that the personal information be updated accordingly.

INFORMATION POLICY RELATING TO TEST CENTER APPLICATIONS

Test Center Applications

Through the Test Center Applications available on this Site, a firm may apply to become a Pearson VUE Business Group’s.®

Authorized Test Center. Providing business entity data is voluntary, but necessary for completing a Test Center Application. You may stop completing the Test Center Application at any time before submitting it. We will use the data you provide on the Test Center Application to evaluate and qualify your application. Test Center Applications are subject to our acceptance and an applicant will not be considered a Pearson VUE Business Group’s Authorized Test Center until a definitive written agreement has been signed by both the applicant and the Pearson VUE Business Group.

Transfer of Information

We may disclose and transfer to third parties the information supplied in a Test Center Application in the following situations: (a) in response to a subpoena, court order or legal process, to the extent permitted and required by law; (b) to protect user security or the security of other persons, consistent with applicable law; (c) in connection with a sale, joint venture or other transfer of some or all of the assets of NCS Pearson, Inc.; (d) to organizations who are working as contractors or agents to fulfill a service or supply a product on our behalf and who are committed or obliged to protect your privacy in a manner consistent with this Privacy Policy; and (e) as necessary or appropriate to evaluate and qualify the applicant. By submitting a Testing Center Application, you consent to this disclosure and transfer of information.

Information Access and Corrections

To access and correct any information supplied in a Test Center Application, please contact us at PVAmericasChannelSales@pearson.com or call (800) 247-8719 or +1 (952) 521-0177(toll number).

Questions

If you have any questions or concerns about your Test Center Application or how we handle the data supplied in a Test Center Application, please contact us at PVAmericasChannelSales@pearson.com.

INFORMATION POLICY RELATING TO BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT SUBMISSION FORMS

Through the “Contact Business Development” form on this site, you may provide your contact information for the purpose of having a Person VUE Business Group representative contact you to discuss information about the products and services offered by the Pearson VUE Business Group. Providing your information is completely voluntary. The Personal Data that we collect or receive through the Contact Business Development form includes but not limited to: name, email address, phone number, company, title, primary place of business, and information about your testing program. We will use the information you submit to evaluate your needs and provide you information on services you may be interested in.

Information Access and Corrections

To access and correct any information supplied in the Contact Business Development form, please contact us at pvamericassales@pearson.com.

E-COMMERCE

Description of E-commerce Services

The Pearson VUE Business Group’s e-commerce Sites provide you with the opportunity to purchase certification, credentialing, licensure, and academic admission test related products and services. The Pearson VUE Business Group also provides e-commerce services on behalf of our test sponsors.

Personal Data Collected for Ecommerce Services

We clearly identify what information must be provided by you in order for us to deliver the various products, services, and information that you may have requested. Depending on your choices, we will require different types of information for these various products, services, and information. You may also choose to provide additional or optional information to enhance the services we may provide to you. The Personal Data that we may collect includes:

  • Contact and shipping information, as well as purchase history, and payment information.
  • Information regarding your use of the Site (i.e., pages visited, files downloaded).
  • In the event you wish to ‘email a friend’ telling them about the products available on our e-commerce Sites, you will be given the opportunity to enter the friend’s email address, include your personal message, hit send and your message is on its way. We will not store the ‘email a friend’s’ address and we will not send any email messages to them beyond the ‘email a friend message’ you sent from our Site. No ‘email a friend’ email addresses will be sold or used for promotional purposes.
  • Hardware and software information, such as device and application data

How We Use the Personal Data We Collect

We use the Personal Data you provide to Pearson VUE to provide services and information you request, to process transactions, fulfill product delivery and for legitimate purposes in operating our business, including authenticating users. Additionally, we use information collected about your use of our site for legitimate business interests to understand the habits of our Site users and to improve the products, services, and content we offer.

CREDENTIALING SERVICES

Description of Credentialing Services

We provide credentialing services as a service provider on behalf of credentialing sponsors (that act as an autonomous data controller) and we provide testing services on behalf of ourselves. The credentialing sponsor is the company or organization that offers the credential you are seeking. We collect or receive Personal Data from credentialing candidates on behalf of the credentialing sponsor. We use this Personal Data in order to perform the credentialing services on behalf of the credentialing sponsor. The information we may collect or receive includes, but is not limited to, your credentialing information, collection of payment for credentialing services you’ve requested, your test results resulting from your testing of the credentialing sponsor’s test, and communicating with you about credentialing services. Providing your Personal Data is voluntary, but necessary if you wish to participate in the credentialing services. We will handle and treat all Personal Data collected and received by us in connection with the credentialing services in the manner as described in this Privacy Policy. For more information about how the credentialing sponsor may collect and use your Personal Data we encourage you to review the credentialing sponsor’s privacy policy.

Personal Data Collected for Credentialing Services

The Personal Data that we collect or receive in registering you for credentialing services include: name, address, email address, phone number, fax number, credit/debit card information, company and title. We may also collect or receive the following additional Personal Data at registration, as necessary or appropriate, including but not limited to: language, date of birth, social security number, credentialing sponsor’s identification number, employment information, testing history, education information, and source of financing for your tests. For candidate verification and identification purposes, we may collect all or part of a government-issued identification number and mother’s maiden name.

THIRD PARTY WEBSITES AND SOCIAL MEDIA

We may also collect information via third party websites, or via social media. This information may include your name, address, username, email address, website visited, content posted, IP address, nationality, language, and other publicly available demographics. This information is used to improve the products and services that we offer, to identify and resolve customer service issues, and to provide the information and services you request.

INFORMATION RECEIVED FROM INTERNET SERVICE PROVIDERS THROUGH THIS SITE

This Site receives information that is automatically generated by a user’s Internet service provider (ISP), browser or mobile device. This information may include the IP address, the associated URLs, domain names, the browser type, the approximate location of the ISP’s servers, the pages of our Site that the user views, and any search terms entered on this Site. This information may be collected for system administration purposes, to gather broad demographic information and to monitor the level of activity on the Site. We reserve the right to link this information to your Personal Data in order to protect the integrity of our system and for security purposes.

DISCLOSURE AND TRANSFER OF INFORMATION

We will comply with the privacy and data collection laws of the jurisdiction of the individual from whom the information is being collected. Personal Data and information of test candidates located outside of the United States will be transferred to Pearson VUE, test sponsors and our third party partners in the United States and elsewhere in the world only to facilitate the purpose for which it was collected. For transfers of Personal Data from the European Union, the United Kingdom, and Switzerland, we rely on appropriate transfer mechanisms, including but not limited to, Standard Contractual Clauses, candidate consent, and performance of contract. Our computer operations are currently based in the United States. The Internet is a global environment. By using this Site and sending information and Personal Data to us electronically, you consent to trans-border and international transmission of any data that you may choose to supply us to any country in the world, including countries without an adequate level of data protection. Information and Personal Data transmissions to this Site and emails sent to us may not be secure. Given the inherent operation and nature of the Internet, all Internet transmissions are done at the user’s own risk.

Transfer of Information to Test Sponsors (If applicable)

By registering for a test through us, purchasing services or products from one of our e-commerce Sites, or submitting information to one of our credentialing Sites, or in some cases submitting your Personal Data through another person acting upon your direction and on your behalf, you agree to allow your Personal Data to be transmitted by us to the test sponsor from whom you seek certification, credentialing, licensure, or academic admission or on whose behalf the e-commerce Sites are administered by the Pearson VUE Business Group. The test sponsor requires your Personal Data so that (a) tests can be correctly administered; (b) certification, credentialing, licensure, or academic admission can be processed, granted and administered; and (c) candidates can receive further information about certification, credentialing, licensure, or academic admission testing. For more information about how the test sponsor may collect and use your Personal Data we encourage you to review the test sponsor’s privacy policy.

For purposes of validating test and user integrity and security, we may supply audio- and video-tapes of test candidates in a testing center at a particular time to any test sponsor whose test was being administered at that time in such test center. Where you have chosen to take your test through our online proctoring platform, the audio- and video-tapes of your testing session will be supplied to the relevant test sponsor and any of their appointed agents to assist with their management of your test.

Other Disclosure and Transfer of Information

We may disclose Personal Data in the following situations: (a) in response to a subpoena, court order or legal process, to the extent permitted and required by law; (b) to protect your security, or the security of other persons, consistent with applicable law; (c) to address actual or suspected fraud or other illegal activities; (d) in connection with a sale, joint venture or other transfer of some or all of the assets of NCS Pearson, Inc.; (e) where you explicitly agree to allow the Pearson VUE Business Group to disclose your Personal Data to select third parties; and (f) to our subcontractors and/or agents (such as, those third parties hosting one or more of our website’s; processing credit card transactions and payments; fulfilling and processing orders; assisting us with marketing and promotions; collecting web analytics data, etc.), including independent testing centers solely for the purpose of enabling them to perform services on our behalf.

The Pearson VUE Business Group will have agreements in place with its third party subcontractors and/or agents prior to the transfer of any Personal Data requiring that such subcontractors and/or agents (i) only use the Personal Data for purposes identified by the Pearson VUE Business Group; (ii) protect the Personal Data in a manner that is consistent with this Privacy Policy and the Principles as set forth in EU-U.S. DPF ; the UK Extension to the EU-U.S. DPF; and the Swiss-U.S. DPF; and (iii) notify the Pearson VUE Business Group if such subcontractor and/or agent makes a determination that it can no longer meet its obligation to provide the same level of protection as is required by the Principles.

For purposes of validating test and user integrity and security, we may supply audio- and video-tapes of test candidates in a testing center at a particular time to any test sponsor whose test was being administered at that time in such test center. Where you have chosen to take your test through our online proctoring platform, the audio- and video-tapes of your testing session will be supplied to the relevant test sponsor and any of their appointed agents to assist with their management of your test.

By registering for a test through us, or in cases when we receive your Personal Data from another person acting upon your direction and on your behalf, you agree that your Personal Data can be transmitted in the situations outlined above.

In certain situations, we may be required to disclose Personal Data in response to lawful requests by public authorities, including to meet national security or law enforcement requirements.

We do not provide your Personal Data to any third parties who at not connected with the services we provide or relate to such products or services unless you agree. Except as disclosed in this Privacy Policy, we will not provide your Personal Data to third parties.

INFORMATION FROM CHILDREN

We recognize the importance of protecting privacy where children are involved. We are committed to protecting children's privacy and we comply fully with the Children's Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA) and similar laws and regulations. Except in the case of the IC3 Exam, we do not knowingly collect Personal Data from children under the age of 13. If a child under the age of 13 has provided us with Personal Data, without a signed parental consent form, we ask that a parent or guardian contact us at PearsonVUEContracts@pearson.com or you may call us at +1 763-726-9025 or 1 877 460-2204. If you are under 18, please be sure to read this Privacy Policy with your parent(s) or legal guardian(s) and ask questions about things you do not understand.

AGGREGATION OF NON-PERSON-SPECIFIC DATA

We may statistically aggregate in non-person-specific form test responses and other information collected in the certification, credentialing, licensure, and academic admission test registration and delivery process and transfer this information to test sponsors and to independent testing centers. Such aggregated non-person-specific information may be used for quality control, operations management, security and marketing purposes and to enhance develop or improve certification, credentialing, licensure, and academic admission testing processes, testing services, tests and related products and services. By registering for a test through us, you give to us your consent to this non-person-specific data aggregation and the use and transmission of this aggregated statistical data as outlined herein.

EMAIL NEWSLETTERS

We may use your email address to send you email newsletters about certification, credentialing, licensure, or academic admission testing. You may opt out of receiving the newsletter at any time by notifying us by email at PVMarketing@pearson.com or following the opt-out instructions provided in the email newsletter.

PROTECTION OF CREDIT CARD INFORMATION

Individuals who make online purchases will be asked to provide credit/debit card information, which may include payment instrument number (e.g., credit card), name and billing address, the security code associated with the credit/debit card information, organizational tax ID, and other financial data ("Payment Data"). We use Payment Data to complete transactions, as well as to detect and prevent fraud. We will retain your Payment Data for as long as reasonably necessary to complete the transaction, to comply with our legal and reporting requirements, and to detect and prevent credit/debit card fraud. We provide a secured transmission method for the electronic transmission of credit/debit card information.

RESOLUTION OF CONCERNS

The Pearson VUE Business Group commits to resolve privacy or Personal Data use concerns about your privacy and our collection, use, transfer, or processing of your Personal Data. Individuals with inquires or concerns regarding this Privacy Policy should first contact the Pearson VUE Business Group at PearsonVUEContracts@pearson.com or you may call us at +1 763 726-9025 or 1 (877) 460-2204.

In compliance with the EU-U.S. DPF and the UK Extension to the EU-U.S. DPF and the Swiss-U.S. DPF, the Pearson VUE Business Group commits to resolve DPF Principles-related complaints about our collection and use of your Personal Data. EU, UK and Swiss individuals with inquiries or complaints regarding our handling of Personal Data received in reliance on the EU-U.S. DPF, the UK Extension to the EU-U.S. DPF, and the Swiss-U.S. DPF should contact us as set forth above.

Pearson VUE endeavors to respond to your inquiry within 30 days. If you believe you have not received a timely acknowledgement of your inquiry or concern, or if you believe your inquiry or concern was not satisfactorily addressed by the Pearson VUE Business Group you should contact (at no charge) your state, national, or international data protection authority (i.e. EU/EEA Member State data protection authority ; UK Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) or Gibraltar Regulatory Authority (GRA);or the Swiss Federal Data Protection and Information Commissioner). The Pearson VUE Business Group has committed to cooperate with the Data Protection Authorities and will comply with the information and advice provided to it by the panel of DPAs in relation to such unresolved complaints.

As further explained on the Data Privacy Framework website at www.dataprivacyfamework.gov as a last resort and in limited situations, you may invoke binding arbitration when other dispute resolution processes have been exhausted.

COOKIES AND WEB BEACONS

We use browser cookies and similar technologies (collectively, “Cookies”) to collect and store certain information when you use, access, or interact with our Site(s). We may, for example, collect information about the type of device you use to access the Site(s), the operating system and version, your IP address, your general geographic location as indicated by your IP address, your browser type, the content you view and features you access on the Site(s), the web pages you view immediately before and after you access the Sites(s), whether and how you interact with content available on the Site(s), and the search terms you enter on the Site(s). For information about how we use Cookies and the choices you may have, please see below.

By using our Site(s), you agree to the our use of the cookies as described above and to our use of web beacons for the collection of information in order to provide the products or services you have requested and for improvements, as we deem appropriate for our legitimate purposes, related to our products and services.

Cookies. Cookies are small text files that a web server places on your computer or mobile device. Cookies contain information that can later be read by the web server that originally placed the cookie on your computer or mobile device.

Below is a list of the main types of cookies we use and what we use them for:

  • Strictly Necessary Cookies: These cookies are essential in order to enable you to move around the Site and use its features, such as accessing secure areas of this Site. Without these cookies services you have asked for, like shopping baskets or e-billing, cannot be provided.
  • Performance Cookies: These cookies collect information about how visitors use a website, for instance which pages visitors go to most often, and if they get error messages from web pages. Some of the performance cookies are analytics cookies using third party web analytics software, which allow us to understand more about how our Site is used. Performance cookies are not used to collect information that identifies a visitor. All information these performance cookies collect is aggregated and therefore anonymous. The aggregated data is only used by us to improve how our Site works. We might also use performance cookies to highlight our products or services which we think will be of interest to you based on your use of our Site. By using this Site you agree we may place these types of cookies on your device.
  • Functionality Cookies: These cookies allow the Site to remember choices you make (such as your user name, language or the region you are located in) and provide enhanced, more personal features. For instance, these cookies can be used to remember changes you have made to text size, fonts and other parts of web pages that you can customize. They may also be used to provide services you have asked for such as watching a video or commenting on a blog. The information these cookies is not used to track your browsing activity on other websites. These cookies are known as “functionality cookies” and help to improve a user’s experience of a website by providing a more personalized service. By using this Site you agree we may place these types of cookies on your device.
  • Targeting or advertising cookies: These cookies are used to deliver advertising materials relevant to you and your interests. They are also used to limit the number of times you see an advertisement as well as help measure the effectiveness of the advertising campaign. They are usually placed by advertising networks with the website operator’s permission. They remember that you have visited a website and this information is shared with other organizations such as advertisers. Quite often targeting or advertising cookies will be linked to site functionality provided by the other organization. Most of our Sites do not use targeting cookies. By using this Site you agree we may place these types of cookies on your device. This site may utilize Microsoft Advertising and Microsoft may collect and/or receive Personal Data from visitors to this site. Click here to see Microsoft’s Privacy Statement. This site may also utilize Google Analytics cookies and Google may collect and/or receive Personal Data from visitors to this site. Click Here to see Google’s Privacy Statement.
  • 3rd Party Cookies and Social Networks. If you click on a hyperlink from this Site to any third party websites (for example, if you 'share' content from our Site with friends or colleagues through social networks (such as Facebook or Twitter) or use third party services together with this Site, you may be acquire cookies from these third party websites. Third party websites will have their own privacy and cookie policies which we do not and cannot control. Please check the third-party websites for more information about their cookies and how to manage them. You should always review these third-party websites privacy policies.

How to manage cookies

If you block cookies or cookies are not enabled on your computer, it will mean that your browsing or shopping experience on our websites will be limited. Some active content, movies and online shopping baskets, for example, may not work correctly. To turn cookies on or off for all of our websites via your web browser, you can follow the instructions provided by the UK Information Commission Office at ico.org.uk/for-the-public/online/cookies.

Web Beacons. Web Beacons are small strings of code that provide a method for delivering a graphic image on a web page for the purpose of transferring data. For example, when you visit a page on this Site, the code for the page being visited may be transferred to us. The information transmitted to us is only used internally by us and is not shared with any third parties, except as provided in this Privacy Policy. We use this information for the following purposes:

  • To allow us to better understand the traffic patterns within our websites and, subsequently, to adjust our content to better respond to our visitors interests; and
  • To use the information we obtain to suggest materials and resources that may be of interest to you based on your use of our Site.

Do Not Track Signals. This Site does not respond to web browser “do not track” signals or comparable signals or mechanisms.

UPDATES TO THIS PRIVACY POLICY

We reserve the right to update the terms of this Privacy Policy from time to time. We encourage you to visit and review this Privacy Policy periodically to ensure you agree with any changes or updates. We will post our revised privacy notice on our website and update the ‘Revision Date’ to reflect the date of the changes.

By continuing to use our website after we post any such changes or updates you accept the privacy notice as modified.

HOW TO CONTACT US

  • If you have any questions or concerns about this Privacy Policy or have a request regarding your rights as a data subject, you may email the Pearson VUE Business Group’s privacy representative at PearsonVUEContracts@pearson.com. You may also contact us at +1 763 726-9025 or 1-877-460-2204.
  • If you are in the EEA you may also contact our EU representative at:
    Pearson Benelux B.V., Kabelweg 37, Amsterdam, 1014 BA, Netherlands.
  • To contact a Pearson VUE customer service representative click on this link and you will be taken to the customer service for test takers webpage. On this page, search for your testing program’s name.

Revision Date: November 22, 2024