Avera Audiovisual (“Avera”, “We”, “Our”, or “Us”) is committed to protecting the personal information and privacy of our employees, customers, visitors and business partners, and other individuals who interact with us as (“Users”).

As part of our operations and interactions with users, we collect, use, store, and where appropriate, may disclose personal information for the purposes of providing services, improving our products and services, protecting our organization and its partners, and for the other purposes described in this Privacy Policy (the “Policy”).

This Policy explains:

• What personal information we collect
• How we collect, use, disclose, store and protect personal information;
• How we use cookies and similar technologies;
• The practices we take to safeguard personal information; and
• Users’ choices and rights regarding their personal information

We maintain internal policies and procedures to ensure personal information is handled securely and in compliance with applicable laws. For questions or comments, please contact our Privacy Officer under the Contact Us section.

This policy may be updated periodically to reflect changes in our business practices or legal obligations. This policy also works in conjunction with our internal Data and Retention and Governance Policy.

What We Consider Personal Information

Personal information is any information that identifies, or can reasonably identify, a person directly or indirectly, including when combined with other information.

Certain categories of personal information may be considered sensitive personal information due to their nature or the context in which they are collected. 

What Personal Information We Collect

Depending on the nature of the relationship with a User, we may collect the following categories of personal information:

• Identifying Information
  • This may include name, physical address, email address, phone number and username.
• Health Information
  • Where necessary and appropriate, this may include, date of birth, gender, gender identity or expression, and limited medical related information to support accessibility or accommodation requirements where necessary.
• Financial or Payment Information
  • This may include but is not limited to salary information, credit history, credit or debit cards, social insurance number, banking and payment account information.
• Demographic Information
  • This may include age, nationality, ethnic origin, place of residence, and any other demographic information the user may voluntarily provide.
• Business Information
  • This may include products or services rendered, preferred products or services and client feedback and communications.
• Account Information
  • When Users create an account through our website or services, we may collect usernames, passwords, account preferences and other registration information.
• Technical and Technological Information
  • This may include information about the device used to access our services, including Internet Protocol (IP) address and other related information such as length of visit browser type, operating system used.
• Browsing and Usage Information
  • This may include information about how users interact with our website, and their browsing activity, such as what they access while using our services and the pages visited before and after visiting our website.
• On-site Wi-Fi Information
  • When Users access our Wi-Fi services, we may collect technical information relating to network usage, including destination URLs visited.
• Audio and Video Recordings
  • We may capture images of a person or user using video surveillance footage from our offices, warehouses, parking lots and other facilities, audio recordings of customer service interactions and meeting notes or recordings where appropriate for business purposes.

How We Collect Personal Information

We collect personal information in several ways.

Directly from Users

We may collect information when users:

• Request or purchase products or services;
• Contact us through our website with inquiries, questions or feedback;
• Participate in surveys or subscribe to newsletters, blog posts or other marketing initiatives;
• Apply for employment;
• Interact with us through social media;
• Visit our facilities;

Through Technology

We may collect technical and usage information through:

• Cookies;
• Scripts;
• Web beacons;
• Analytics technologies;
• Similar tracking tools.

These technologies may enable identification, tracking and profiling, subject to applicable legal requirement and user consent. See Cookies and Similar Technologies section for more information.

Social Media and Third-Party Platforms

Our website and online services may include links to or integrations with third-party social media platforms and other external services. When users interact with these platforms, they may choose to share certain information with us, depending on their individual privacy settings and the permissions they grant.

This may include a user’s name, username, email address, telephone number, or other profile information made available through the platform.

Users’ interactions with third-party platforms are governed by their respective privacy policies and terms of service. We encourage users to review these policies, as we are not responsible for the privacy practices of third-party websites or services.

Third-Party Partners/Vendors

We may share personal information with third-party service providers who assist us in operating our website and business, including providers of analytics services, human resources information and payroll systems (HRIS), customer relationship management systems (CRM), marketing platforms, hosting providers and other technical service providers.

Where these services involve analytics, marketing, or targeted advertising, personal information will only be shared or processed where you have provided your consent, where required by law.

In order to provide services for our clients, we may receive information from:

• Transportation and shipping providers;
• Marketing and analytics providers;
• Social media platforms;
• Mailing service providers;
• Financial institutions and payment processors;
• Security and fraud prevention providers;
• Other business partners.

The information collected from these sources may have been aggregated or anonymized, however, depending on the context, it may still be considered personal information.

Consent and Your Rights

We obtain clear, free, and informed consent for the collection, use and disclosure of personal information, including for specific purposes such as marketing, analytics, and targeted advertising where required by law. Your consent will be obtained before collecting or using your personal information, including through website forms, cookie settings or other interactions.

You may withdraw your consent at any time as described below, subject to legal or contractual restrictions. Withdrawal of consent may affect our ability to provide certain products or services.

You may withdraw your consent by:

• Using available preference settings (such as cookie settings or unsubscribe links); or
• Contacting our Privacy Officer using the contact information listed below.

Users have the right to request access to their personal information and, where applicable, request that it be corrected, updated, or deleted by contacting our Privacy Officer. To submit a request, users may:

• Send a written request to our Privacy Officer using the contact details listed under the Contact Us section of this policy.
• Requests will be processed generally within 30 days of receipt in accordance with our Data Retention and Governance
• We will respond in writing to confirm whether the request has been approved or refused. If a request is refused, we will provide the reason for the refusal.

Use, Access, and Disclosure of Personal Information

We collect and use personal information only for legitimate business or operations purposes as permitted or required by law. These include:

• Managing client and business relationships;
• Providing services and responding to inquiries;
• Operating and maintaining our website;
• Conducting surveys and marketing communications (where consent has been obtained);
• Processing employment applications;
• Processing payments;

We may disclose personal information to:

• Service providers who assist us in operating our business and operations
• Government or regulatory authorities where required by law

We ensure that personal information disclosed to third parties is limited to what is necessary and is protected through appropriate contractual or other safeguards. Before disclosing any personal information to a third-party, we take steps to ensure it is protected.

We respect the purposes for which personal information is collected. Consent remains valid only for as long as it is necessary to fulfill those purposes. If we use or disclose personal information for other purposes, we will seek the user’s consent, except as permitted by law.

Only authorized employees with a legitimate business need may access personal information. Access is limited to what is necessary for their role, and all employees are required to maintain confidentiality as per confidentiality agreements and use personal information appropriately.

Personal information may be processed or stored outside your province or country of residence, including in Canada and the United States, and may be subject to the laws of those jurisdictions.

Cookies and Similar Technologies

We use cookies and similar technologies to identify, analyze user behaviour and interactions, and support website functionality, analytics marketing and targeted advertising.

With the exception of strictly necessary cookies, all non-essential cookies and tracking technologies are disabled by default and will only be activated where you have provided your consent.

Similar technologies, including scripts and web beacons, may also collect information about website activity.

Non-essential cookies are only used with your consent. Where consent has been provided, we and our third-party partners may use non-essential cookies.

Managing Cookies

Except for strictly necessary cookies, we will obtain appropriate consent before placing cookies on a user’s device. At the end of each cookie’s retention period, consent will again be required.

Users may delete or deactivate cookie consent through our cookie settings or browser preferences. Disabling certain cookies may affect website functionality.

For more information on how to manage and/or deactivate non-essential cookies, please visit:

• https://allaboutcookies.org/
• https://youradchoices.ca/
• https://optout.aboutads.info/?c=3&lang=en.

Protection and Retention of Personal Information

We limit access to personal information

• Access is restricted to employees who require it to perform their duties.
• Roles and responsibilities are clearly defined across the information lifecycle, and all employees must follow confidentiality and security requirements.

We implement robust security measures

• We use physical, technological and administrative safeguards to protect personal information from loss, theft, and unauthorized access, use or disclosure. These measures are aligned with the sensitivity, volume, purpose and format of the information.
• Our security measures are continually evolving in line with technological advancements.
• While we take strong precautions, users should also exercise caution online and use secure passwords. Despite our best efforts, we cannot guarantee that use of our website or applications is completely secure.

We retain and securely destroy personal information

• Personal information is kept only as long as necessary to fulfill its purpose and meet legal and contractual requirements. It is protected throughout its lifecycle and permanently and securely destroyed once no longer needed.
• Retention periods may vary depending on the type of information and the purpose for which it was collected.

Privacy Breach Incidents

We maintain procedures to identify, assess and respond to breach of privacy incidents involving personal information. Where required by law, we will notify affected individuals and appropriate regulatory authorities and maintain records of reportable privacy incidents.

Contact Us

We have appointed a Privacy Officer responsible for overseeing compliance with this policy and applicable privacy legislation. Users may contact us to submit questions, comments, or complaints regarding the handling of their personal information using the methods below:

E-mail: privacy@averaav.ca, vieprivee@averaav.ca

Phone: (514) 416-3273

Mailing Address: 7836 Rue Jarry E, Anjou, QC H1J 2A1, Canada

If you require any accommodation supports or alternative formats to this policy, please contact us with your request.