A quick note about these policies – they weren’t really obtained on the advice of any legal eagle which is why they are written in human speak and not obscure legalese. They are just promises I make to you as one person to another. Which in some cases is more binding than anything else!
Privacy Policy
I will never sell, share, rent, publish, or otherwise intentionally compromise your personal contact information. I will not sell your email address, or share personally identifying information that you have not given me explicit permission to use (such as with participation in my Featured Couples program) with anyone without your express permission. Because spam is yucky!
Social Media Policy
When you book an online wedding, I will ask if you would like to be congratulated on social media. This means that I would post an image of you and your first name only, with a congratulatory text. Most of the time, this is simultaneously shared on my Instagram, Twitter and my business Facebook page. If you agree to this initially, and later change your mind, just contact me and let me know you’d like it taken down. I respect your right to privacy and will never share anything about your wedding without your consent.
A special note about YouTube – Most couples want a copy of their wedding video to be able to relive the happy moments and share it with friends and family. In order to facilitate this while still respecting your privacy, I upload the wedding ceremony videos to YouTube but publish them as an unlisted link. This means that you may share the link, once you have it, but it will not be listed in any search for YouTube videos, they are not viewable through my YouTube channel, and you have control over who gets to see them or not. If you do not want the video uploaded to YouTube, just contact me. If you would like a copy of the raw video for yourself, also, just contact me.
Data Retention Policy
By its very nature, getting a wedding license feels a bit invasive, right? All kinds of questions are asked about every aspect of your life, and wow, those bits of data could be a goldmine for someone who does identity theft! Then you are asked to share it with me! So what happens after the wedding is done, and what information do I keep? I’m so glad you asked.
What I keep – Just for my own business records, I keep your full legal name, your email address, the date and time of your wedding, and the country you live in, along with data about how you paid me, the date you obtained your wedding license and whether you said it was ok to mention you on my social media. I also keep your wedding video, if recorded, any email or text conversations between us that pertain to your ceremony or other details and any notes about your account such as refunds, cancellations, rescheduling, or other housekeeping. This data is kept indefinitely. In general, my records are kept as securely as possible. Having worked in IT in the government, financial, and healthcare sectors for over 25 years, I am well trained in data security.
What I don’t keep – I don’t keep any record of anything else about you. No residence addresses, no birth data or parent information, or other personally identifying data is ever recorded by me from the wedding license application. Also with the new license handling process from Utah County in place, I generally do not ever need to see this information to begin with, unless you are willing to share it with me. If you DO share it with me, the following applies:
The wedding license emails with all that personal information are permanently deleted from my email account within 3 days of the completion of your ceremony. I want you to feel safe about sharing your information with me, and to know that I take great care with your personal data, just as I do with my own.
What about transaction data? From a financial record standpoint, since I use third-party services such as PayPal, Stripe, Square and Venmo, I never even see your credit card information, so it cannot be compromised from my end of the transaction. I do not take credit card numbers over email, text or chat – or at all – and you should be very wary of anyone asking you to do that.
The bottom line
Sloppy data handling is just bad. It’s bad for me, it’s terrible for you, and I’ll do my best to handle your precious information with all the care and concern that I would have for my own data. In rare cases, probably MORE care and concern. If I make mistakes, I will own up to them, and if my mistakes put anything of yours at risk, I’ll do everything I can to make it right, as soon as possible.
That’s my promise to you.
All this being said – I beg of you. PLEASE do not send me photos of your IDs. I don’t want them, I can’t use them to help with your license application, and then I have to delete your emails with them in it. I don’t need the photos of your witnesses IDs or any other ID or documents. Please. Don’t send them to me. Thanks so much!