Your Rights & Choices
Please read our Cookie Policy, which more fully describes the cookies, pixel tags, web beacons and other similar technologies used on the Merriam-Webster Services and includes a “Cookie Settings” button that explains each cookie category and enables you to opt-out of certain cookies, such as personalization cookies, which are related to interest-based advertising.
Browser controls
You can instruct your browser to refuse all cookies or to indicate when a cookie is being sent. However, if you do not accept cookies, you may not be able to use some portions of our Services. For more information about cookies, please visit http://www.allaboutcookies.org/. Please note that limiting third-party cookies via your browser controls does not prevent our first-party cookies from being set in this way.
To manage or delete browser cookies, please see your browser's privacy settings.
To manage or delete Flash cookies, please use the Adobe Flash Player Settings Manager here: http://www.macromedia.com/support/documentation/en/flashplayer/help/settings_manager07.html
Google Analytics Ad Settings
You can opt-out of this Google Analytics Advertiser feature using the Ads Settings located at https://www.google.com/settings/ads. You also can use the Google Analytics Opt-Out Browser Add-on to disable tracking by Google Analytics. To delete these cookies, please see your browser's privacy settings or follow the above instructions.
IX & LiveRamp
You can control the use of your personal data by IX and LiveRamp as follows:
IX's options for users to opt-out of personalized advertising can be found on the IX website at this link: https://www.indexexchange.com/privacy/. IX may continue to add opt-out options.
To opt out of LiveRamp's use of your personal data, please head here: https://liveramp.com/opt_out/.
Interest-based, behavioral advertising opt-out choices
You can exercise choice about the collection of data for interest-based, behavioral advertising, including by DigiTrust, by visiting the Digital Advertising Alliance's choice page and opting out from DigiTrust. Opting out from DigiTrust will stop DigiTrust Partners from using the DigiTrust identifier. Through the DAA choice page, you may make other choices for companies that participate in the DAA, some of which are DigiTrust Partners.
Some advertising networks require that we specifically list their opt-out links below. When you opt-out of a network, you may receive an "opt-out" cookie so that the network will know not to assign you new cookies in the future. Please know:
If you opt-out of interest-based, behavioral advertising you will continue to receive ads on our free, ad-supported Services, but not behaviorally targeted ads. Also, if you opt-out of Merriam-Webster's practices, you may continue to receive interest-based, behavioral advertising through other companies.
If you erase your browser's cookies, you may need to perform this process again.
If you would like to learn more about interest-based, behavioral advertising or to opt-out of having this information used by companies that are part of the Network Advertising Initiative to deliver targeted ads, please visit http://www.networkadvertising.org. Many of the same companies are members of the Self-Regulatory Program for Online Behavioral Advertising. You can learn more and opt-out of receiving interest-based, behavioral ads from them at http://www.aboutads.info/choices.
If you would like to avoid all advertisements on our Services, sign up for a paid-for subscription service or upgrade your mobile application.
You also can opt-out of interest-based, behavioral advertisements on the Services by Merriam-Webster (and other companies employing online advertising) via the following options:
Digital Advertising Alliance
Digital Advertising Alliance Canada
European Digital Advertising Alliance
Network Advertising Initiative
How we respond to “Do Not Track” signals
When you visit a website in any browser, you automatically share information with that website, such as your IP address, and other standard PC information. If the website contains content provided by a third-party website (for example a web measurement tool such as a web beacon or scripts), some information about you may be automatically sent to the content provider. This type of arrangement has several benefits, such as allowing you to access third-party content from our Services conveniently. Some internet browsers or other tools include “Do Not Track” (DNT) features that, when turned on, send a signal to websites you visit indicating you do not wish to be tracked across websites over time. However, since no technology standard for DNT signals has been developed or adopted to date, Merriam-Webster does not currently respond to DNT signals.
Children's Privacy
A note to minors: If you are under the age of 16, please get permission from your parent/legal guardian or school before using the Services, including Puku, or sending any email to us. If we discover that we have collected any personally identifiable information from a child under the age of 16 without parental consent, we will suspend the associated account and/or remove that information from our database as soon as possible.
Merriam-Webster does not knowingly collect or solicit personally identifiable information from or about children under 16, except as permitted by law or otherwise provided herein. If we discover we have received any information from a child under 16 in violation of this policy, we will delete that information immediately. If you believe Merriam-Webster has any information from or about anyone under 16, please email us at privacy@m-w.com.
Puku Privacy Notice
Puku is owned and operated by Merriam-Webster, Incorporated. By accessing and using Puku, you confirm that you accept Puku's and our collection, use, and sharing of your data in the manner provided herein. We will not collect, use, or share your information with anyone except as described in this Puku Privacy Notice.
Puku can be downloaded and the free content can be used without requiring a user to subscribe or provide any personal data beyond the usage and analytics data that is necessary to support our internal operations.
We may send alerts or notifications to your device as part of the usage and features of Puku. These may include prompts or reminders that notify you on your device of details about your child's use of Puku. Also, your child may use Puku to share word lists created by them with others, including friends and teachers, but this information is not collected or used by us. Puku requests that your child creates a unique username and provide their age, however, this information is stored locally in Puku on your device and is not used, collected, accessed, or stored by us.
Children's Online Privacy Protection
To respect your and your child's privacy, Puku collects the minimum amount of information necessary to operate and provide Puku's services to you and your child. In addition, we have taken steps to ensure that Puku complies with the Children's Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA). For example, we do not use Puku to collect personal information (as broadly defined by COPPA) without a parent or guardian's consent or for purposes of online behavioral advertising. We do, however, use COPPA-compliant, third party services that automatically collect or share certain information and usage data with us to support our internal operations as described under How we use your information and Puku third-party service providers below.
If you believe that we have collected personal information from someone under the age of 13, please contact us at: privacy@m-w.com.
Information collection and use
Any information you provide or we collect automatically through yours or your child's use of Puku is used to enable us to deliver Puku to you and your child as described, and as otherwise provided below. We never rent or sell yours or your child's information.
Information you provide about yourself or your child.
We receive and store personal information a parent or guardian knowingly provides to us. This information may include a parent or guardian's email address and other personal information. You can choose not to provide us with certain personal information, but then you and your child may not be able to take advantage of some of Puku's subscription features.
Parent or guardian email address and payment card information. We may ask for and collect a parent or guardian's email address when you provide it to us. It is always your choice to provide us with this information, and this information will be retained by us and used as described in this Puku Privacy Notice and under Purposes for processing (using) personal data provided directly by you and Communications from our approved, third-party partners and us above and Security of Your Information below. If a parent or guardian has given their email address to us, they may receive information about their child's use of Puku or information from us about related Merriam-Webster products and services that we believe they might also enjoy. You can stop receiving emails from us anytime with just one click. At the bottom of every email we send we offer a link to unsubscribe. You can also contact us at privacy@m-w.com anytime so that we can help.
If a parent or guardian chooses to unlock Puku's subscription features, you may be required to provide a credit card number, which will be processed as provided under Payment card information above.
Information we collect automatically
When you open Puku, our servers (or those of our authorized, third-party service providers) automatically record certain information that your device sends. This information may include data such as your device's IP address and location, device name and version, operating system type and version, unique device identifier, word lists your child interacts with on Puku, access times and dates, and other statistics. See also Third-party service providers below.
How we use your information
We use the personal and non-personal information we collect from you or automatically through yours or your child's use of Puku to improve both Puku and our internal operations, and we do not allow sharing of your personal information with third parties and their products or services, except as described herein. Specifically, we use this information to:
store user profiles and provide wordlist recommendations;
provide a leveling process in order to help direct your child to the best beginning word list;
keep track of your child's activities on Puku; and
alert you to new Merriam-Webster products or services, including new Puku features.
In addition, we use this information for internal operation purposes that include conversion tracking, frequency tracking, attribution, and improving Puku's services. For more information, see Puku third-party service providers below.
Puku third-party service providers
To help us provide you with the best service, we work with the following authorized, third-party service providers to include their tracking tools, such as device identifiers, within Puku. See Mobile device identifiers above. Using tracking tools, these third-party service providers collect information automatically on our behalf from about yours and your child's use of Puku, store collected information on their servers, and provide us with both analytics and push notification services. You may opt-out of certain activities performed by our third-party service providers through your mobile device settings, such as your device advertising settings for mobile phones, or as otherwise provided below.
Google Inc. analytics services
Google Analytics for Firebase. Firebase is an analytics service provided by Google Inc. Firebase specifically collects these data: online identifiers, browser type and settings, operating system, mobile network information, crash reports, device identifiers as well as App-Instance Identifier (a randomly generated number that identifies a unique installation of an App for the first time). We use Firebase's own unique user ID (app.instance id), which does separate one mobile phone from another, but does not personally identify you or your child. All data collected by Firebase on our behalf is stored by Firebase on its own servers. For more information, including length of time this information is stored by Firebase, please see:
https://firebase.google.com/policies/analytics/
https://support.google.com/analytics/answer/6004245?hl=en
https://policies.google.com/technologies/partner-sites
https://firebase.google.com/terms/
Google Ads conversion tracking. Google Ads conversion tracking is an analytics service provided by Google that connects data from the Google Ads advertising network with actions performed in connection with Puku. Personal data that may be collected by Google Ads conversion tracking includes usage data.
All data collected by Google is processed by Google in the United States and Google is a Privacy Shield participant. You may opt-out of certain Google features by following the instructions provided by Google in their Privacy Policy: https://policies.google.com/privacy?hl=en. We encourage you to review Google's policy for safeguarding your data: https://support.google.com/analytics/answer/6004245. For more information on what type of information Google collects, please visit please visit the Google Privacy & Terms web page: https://policies.google.com/privacy?hl=en.
Facebook Ads conversion tracking (Facebook, Inc.)
Facebook Ads conversion tracking (Facebook pixel) is an analytics service provided by Facebook, Inc. that connects data from the Facebook advertising network with actions performed in connection with Puku. The Facebook pixel tracks conversions that can be attributed to ads on Facebook, Instagram, and Audience Network. The Facebook Ads conversion tracking pixel collects usage data. Facebook processes this data in the United States and is a Privacy Shield participant. We encourage you to review Facebook's Privacy Policy.
