PRIVACY | taurusresearch

Taurus Research Privacy Policy

Introduction

This privacy policy concerns the organisation, the existing website and online applications linked to Taurus Research.

Our commitment to privacy

Your privacy is very important to Taurus Research. To better protect your privacy, we provide this notice explaining our information practices and the choices you can make about the way your information is collected, stored and used.

The information we collect

On our contact page you can choose to send your information to us. The types of personal information collected here are Name and Email address.

Cookies and Social Media

Cookies are small text files that are placed on your computer by websites that you visit. Please note Taurus Research does NOT use cookies to collect information

Any social media posts or comments you send to us will be shared under the terms of the relevant social media platform (e.g. LinkedIn or Twitter) on which they’re written and could be made public. Other people, not us, control these platforms. We’re not responsible for this kind of sharing.

You should always review the terms and conditions and privacy policies of the social media platforms you use. That way you’ll understand how they will use your information, what information relating to you they will place in the public domain and how you can stop them from doing so if you’re unhappy about it.

Clients

The information we hold about you are business name, address, telephone numbers, mobile, email and VAT. This information is only used for the purpose of trading and communicating with yourselves.

We may also use this to keep you updated with our activities but will only do so with your express permission. You have the right to change, amend or withdraw your consent to receive direct marketing messages at any time. You can do this by contacting julie@taurusresearch.co.uk.

Supervisors, Interviewers and Recruiters

We will collect all personal information required e.g. your name, address, postcode, telephone number, mobile, email address, age, gender, national insurance and banking details to undertake your role with us. This information is collected on your application form and other personal data that is generated during the work you have undertaken. We will only collect the minimum about of information necessary. We also collect the time, date, location and topic of any market research you carry out.

Members of the Public - how we process your information

In our role as a fieldwork agency we interview and recruit members of the public to take part in research projects on behalf of our clients. The information collected may be personal data, due to the nature of some market research projects we may need to process ‘sensitive’ personal data about you. By this we mean personal data such as your ethnic origin, religious beliefs or beliefs of a similar nature, your physical or mental health, trade union membership or sexual life. You would always be told the reason for being asked these questions. Your participation is always optional.

Other personal data that we require to fulfil the quotas for some market research projects e.g. name, address, postcode, telephone number, email, family status. We also record this information as part of our back-checking process to ensure validity of interviews.

We use the personal data we collect about you for our legitimate interests which include some or all of the following:

If you have taken part in market research, we will retain your personal data to verify that any future attendance does not exceed the levels recommended by the Market Research Society
To make sure you get any incentives you’re promised
To reply to and deal with any questions, suggestions or issues you have contacted us about.
To respond to any social media posts or other public comments you might make, whether they are directly to us or about us.
To protect you and our business from any potentially criminal behaviour, including fraud
For internal monitoring and training purposes to check and improve the way we handle our communications with you

Market Research gives consumers the opportunity to give opinions and feedback about services, products or concepts covering many different topics. The insights that are generated are vital in the manufacturing, service and marketing process and can shape the way a product is designed, developed or advertised and the customer service you receive. It’s our job as Market Researchers to be curious about people’s opinions and ask questions.

The purpose is always for genuine market research - we are not trying to sell anything to respondents. The answers you give us are completely confidential, used for market research purposes only. We may share your name, contact details and your responses to the third party companies who have commissioned the market research that you take part in, however it will be limited to what is absolutely necessary for the project and not for any other purpose. It will also be transferred and stored securely in line with GDPR regulations.

We will always be fully transparent in what we are asking you to do and how the information will be used.

Why have we contacted you?

We will contact you either in person (i.e. face to face on street, store exit, central location) or by email/phone or online from contact lists supplied by our client. With most market research projects, we aim to speak to a sample from the general population, thus you may have been approached as you are representative of the population, because of this you may be asked details on your age, income, marital status, address etc. Again all the information gathered will be kept completely confidential, this is so we can guarantee we have recruited a representative section of the “population”, as well as being able to analyse the research findings by certain ‘groups’.

All of the interviewers and recruiters that work for us and that may contact you are fully aware of GDPR, data privacy, and work within the MRS Code of Conduct.

If you are contacted via email you will have actively opted into take part in market research with the client we are conducting the research for, however if contacted you will still have the option to withdraw from that particular study.

You may also be contacted/recruited via telephone which would also mean your details have been supplied by our client. Sometimes we don’t disclose the name of the client straightaway – this is so your knowledge of this doesn’t bias your opinion in any way. However, you have the right to ask where we received your details from.

We will only ask your permission to re-contact you to conduct a quality control check on the interviewer that approached you initially, this will only be for that study. We do not store your details for future contact and participation unless specifically requested and with your express permission.

What happens if you don’t want to take part?

With any research project you as the individual have the right to refuse to take part. The project (background, subject and what you would be asked to take part in) would be carefully explained and you have the right to refuse or opt-in (give consent), should you wish to take part. If you choose to take part you also have the right to withdraw at any time, should you change your mind.

Our Commitment to Data Security

To prevent unauthorised access, maintain data accuracy, and ensure the correct use of information, we have put in place appropriate physical, electronic, and managerial procedures to safeguard and secure the information we collect.

Changes to this Privacy Policy

We may update our Privacy Policy from time to time. Any changes to this privacy notice will be posted to this Privacy Policy page.

We are registered with the Information Commissioners Office (ICO) for the purpose of processing personal data, our registration reference is Z6390407.

We are also a member of the MRS (Market Research Society) and adhere to the MRS Code of Conduct.

GDPR – General Data Protection Regulation

The six principles are, that any data must be:

Processed lawfully, fairly and in a transparent manner
Collected for the specified explicit and legitimate purposes and not further processed.
Adequate, relevant and limited to what is necessary in relation to the purposes for which it is processed
Accurate and where necessary, kept up to date; every reasonable step must be taken to ensure that inaccurate personal data is erased or rectified without delay
Kept in a form which permits identification of data subjects for no longer than is necessary.
Processed in a manner that ensures appropriate security of the personal data

As a consumer/member of the public you have individual rights (with any company) to access any data they may hold about you, you have the right for data to be rectified, erased or restricted. You also have the right to be ‘forgotten’.

Retention Policy

We have a retention policy that we abide by and only store necessary information for a limited amount of time to enable us to meet the requirements of our projects and abide by the Market Research Code of Conduct.

Should you have any questions or concerns about this policy, please email us at: julie@taurusresearch.co.uk