Privacy Policy

Effective Date: October 26, 2024

Japan Startup Navigator ("we," "us," or "our") is committed to protecting your privacy. This Privacy Policy explains how we collect, use, disclose, and safeguard your information when you visit our website https://koomiu.com (the "Site"). Please read this privacy policy carefully. If you do not agree with the terms of this privacy policy, please do not access the site.

Information We Collect

We may collect information about you in a variety of ways, including:

Personal Data

Personally identifiable information, such as your name, email address, phone number, and demographic information, which you voluntarily give to us when you register with the Site, subscribe to our newsletter, fill out a form, or contact us. For example, when you express interest in mentoring opportunities or startup funding, we collect the contact information you provide.

Derivative Data

Information our servers automatically collect when you access the Site, such as your IP address, browser type, operating system, access times, and the pages you have viewed directly before and after accessing the Site. This information helps us improve the performance and user experience of our website.

Financial Data

Information related to financial transactions, such as banking details and investment interests, which you provide when participating in funding opportunities or other financial services offered through the Site. We use secure encryption methods to protect this sensitive information.

Third-Party Data

Information from third parties, such as social networking sites, if you connect your accounts to the Site. This may include your name, profile picture, and email address, depending on the settings you have configured on the social network. We only collect this data with your explicit consent.

Data From Contests, Giveaways, and Surveys

Personal and other information you may provide when entering contests or giveaways and/or responding to surveys. We use this data to administer the contests and surveys, as well as to analyze the results and improve our services. Participation in these activities is entirely voluntary.

How We Use Your Information

We use the information we collect in various ways, including to:

• Create and manage your account
• Send you newsletters and promotional materials
• Respond to your inquiries and provide customer support
• Personalize your experience on the Site
• Analyze website usage and improve our services
• Offer new products, services, and/or recommendations to you
• Administer contests, promotions, and surveys
• Prevent fraudulent activities and maintain the security of the Site
• Comply with legal and regulatory requirements

Sharing Your Information

We may share your information with third parties in the following circumstances:

• Service Providers: We may share your information with third-party service providers who perform services on our behalf, such as website hosting, data analysis, email delivery, and payment processing. These providers are contractually obligated to protect your information and use it only for the purposes for which we disclose it to them. Examples include Sakura Internet for hosting and SendGrid for email marketing.
• Business Partners: We may share your information with our business partners to offer you certain products, services, or promotions. For example, we might share information with a venture capital firm if you express interest in funding opportunities. We will only do so with your consent.
• Legal Obligations: We may disclose your information if required to do so by law or in response to valid requests by public authorities (e.g., a court or a government agency).
• Protection of Rights: We may disclose your information when we believe it is necessary to investigate, prevent, or take action regarding illegal activities, suspected fraud, situations involving potential threats to the safety of any person, violations of our Terms and Conditions, or as evidence in litigation in which we are involved.
• Affiliates: We may share your information with our affiliates, in which case we will require those affiliates to honor this Privacy Policy. Affiliates include our parent company and any subsidiaries, joint venture partners or other companies that we control or that are under common control with us.
• With Your Consent: We may share your information with third parties when you consent to or request such sharing.

GDPR Compliance

If you are a resident of the European Economic Area (EEA), you have certain rights under the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR), including:

• The right to access your personal data
• The right to rectify inaccurate personal data
• The right to erase your personal data
• The right to restrict the processing of your personal data
• The right to data portability
• The right to object to the processing of your personal data
• The right to withdraw consent at any time (where consent is the legal basis for processing)

To exercise these rights, please contact our Data Protection Officer, Kenji Tanaka, at kenji.tanaka@koomiu.com. We will respond to your request within one month.

Data Security

We implement reasonable administrative, technical, and physical security measures to protect your information from unauthorized access, use, or disclosure. These measures include:

• Using encryption to protect sensitive data transmitted online
• Implementing firewalls and intrusion detection systems
• Limiting access to personal data to authorized personnel only
• Conducting regular security audits and vulnerability assessments

While we strive to protect your personal data, no method of transmission over the Internet or method of electronic storage is completely secure. Therefore, we cannot guarantee its absolute security. In the event of a data breach, we will notify you as required by applicable law.

Cookies and Tracking Technologies

We use cookies and other tracking technologies to collect information about your browsing activity on the Site. This information is used to personalize your experience, analyze website traffic, and improve our services. You can control the use of cookies at the individual browser level, but if you choose to disable cookies, it may limit your use of certain features or functions on our website. For more information, please see our Cookies Policy.

Third-Party Websites

The Site may contain links to third-party websites that are not controlled by us. We are not responsible for the privacy practices of these third-party websites. We encourage you to review the privacy policies of any websites you visit.

Children's Privacy

The Site is not intended for children under the age of 16, and we do not knowingly collect personal information from children under 16. If you are a parent or guardian and believe that your child has provided us with personal information, please contact us, and we will take steps to delete such information.

Updates to This Privacy Policy

We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time to reflect changes in our information practices. We will post any changes on this page and update the "Effective Date" at the top of this Privacy Policy. We encourage you to review this Privacy Policy periodically for any updates. Your continued use of the Site after any changes to this Privacy Policy constitutes your acceptance of the revised Privacy Policy.

Contact Us

If you have any questions or concerns about this Privacy Policy, please contact us at:

Japan Startup Navigator
Attn: Privacy Officer
2 Chome-58-1 Yahiro, Sumida City, Tokyo 131-0041
Email: privacy@koomiu.com
Phone: +81 03-3611-2968

Policy authored by: Ayumi Sato, Legal Counsel, Japan Startup Navigator.