TRUSTe For Consumers

File a Complaint

TRUSTe awards its trustmark only to Web sites that adhere to established privacy principles and agree to comply with ongoing TRUSTe oversight and dispute resolution procedures. While we do everything within our power to ensure that the privacy of consumers' personal information is protected by our licensees, we also rely on consumer vigilance.

The Watchdog form is an online mechanism for reporting violations of posted privacy policies, specific privacy concerns pertaining to TRUSTe Web site licensees, or misuse of the TRUSTe trustmark. BEFORE filling out the Watchdog Report, we urge you to complete the following three steps.

Confirm that the Web site is a TRUSTe licensee.

Verify that the complaint is a privacy matter relating specifically to the Web site.

Contact the Web site licensee directly.

If the Web site does not resolve your complaint directly or satisfactorily, then you may: Submit a Watchdog Report to TRUSTe.

The Watchdog: Three Preliminary Steps

STEP 1. Is the Web Site a TRUSTe Licensee?

TRUSTe does not have jurisdiction over Web sites that do not display the TRUSTe trustmark and agree to adhere to our program's principles. As such, we can't help you resolve a privacy issue or complaint unless the Web site is a TRUSTe licensee. To verify whether a Web site is a member of the TRUSTe program, see our updated list of licensees.

STEP 2. Is Your Complaint a Privacy Issue?

Before you file a Watchdog Report with TRUSTe, it's important that you review the Web site's posted privacy policy carefully. We can process and resolve issues that pertain ONLY to violation of a licensee's posted privacy policy or misuse of the TRUSTe trustmark. As a general rule, these are issues that relate to how your personal information is collected, used, shared, and safeguarded by Web sites.

Sample Privacy Complaint:
"I have requested to unsubscribe to a site's mailing list three
times without success."

Sample Non-Privacy Complaints:
     "I sent my payment and have not received my product."
     "I lost my password and can't log into my account."

It is not within our charter to process consumer complaints or issues regarding a Web site's specific commerce, online ordering, and other non-privacy-related company procedures. We suggest that you address such concerns with the site's customer complaint division.

Click here to see some possible privacy violation examples.

STEP 3. Have You Contacted the Web Site Directly?

After you've determined that the Web site is a TRUSTe licensee and that your complaint is indeed a privacy issue, you should contact the Web site directly. All TRUSTe licensees have agreed to acknowledge consumer privacy complaints and report back to consumers with a clear account of their findings in no later than 30 days.

We ask that you contact the Web site licensee before involving TRUSTe for two reasons:

This direct approach usually resolves the issue faster.
We believe our Web site licensees should have the first opportunity to address and expedite resolution of consumer privacy complaints.

Filing a Watchdog Report with TRUSTe

After the elapsed time has passed and you are not satisfied with the results, you may proceed to submit the Watchdog form and file your complaint with TRUSTe. Please keep in mind that insufficient information may slow the evaluation and resolution of the complaint. We may require you to submit additional information before an investigation can be initiated.

Watchdog Report

	NOTE: Before filling out and submitting the Watchdog Report, you should complete Steps 1 through 3 as outlined above. Enter the TRUSTe licensee Web site that you believe is in violation of its posted privacy statement OR the Web site you believe is fraudulently displaying the TRUSTe trustmark.

Web site:
Organization:
	YES, I have read the posted privacy statement of the Web site named above, and I believe my complaint is a privacy issue that falls within TRUSTe's jurisdiction.
	YES, I have contacted the site. They have not provided satisfactory resolution.
	Why do you think your privacy has been violated by this web site?
	What resolution are you seeking for your complaint?

If you want TRUSTe to update you on the status of your inquiry, please provide us with your name and email address.

Name:
Email:
	Example: JSmith@aol.com To get to the bottom of your reported complaint, it may be necessary or even required for TRUSTe to disclose portions of your complaint to the Web site licensee, including your name or email address. However, we WON'T give out this information unless you provide your permission below. May we give your email address or name to the organization you named above if it is necessary to resolve your complaint? YES, if resolving the complaint requires that TRUSTe give my name or email address to the Web site named above, I give my permission for TRUSTe to do so. No, I do not want my name or email address given to the Web site named above, even if it means that TRUSTe may not be able to fully resolve the issue. Note: If you don't want your name or email address given out, TRUSTe will still attempt to resolve your privacy complaint in a timely fashion. To expedite a resolution, in some cases TRUSTe may request that the Web site in question contact you directly. If needed, can we ask the Web site to contact you directly? YES, if the Web site can work with me directly to best resolve this issue, you may have them contact me directly. No, I do not want the Web site to contact me directly. Thank you for completing the TRUSTe Watchdog form. We appreciate your participation in our Watchdog process. We will send you a confirmation of receipt of your watchdog report. Please do not attempt to call TRUSTe about your complaint. If we determine that your complaint is not eligible for resolution by TRUSTe, we will try our best to refer you to a more appropriate resource.