Privacy Policy for Manitoulin.com and The Manitoulin Expositor

Effective Date: June 2026

Manitoulin.com and The Manitoulin Expositor ("we," "us," or "our") is committed to protecting the privacy and security of the personal information of our readers, subscribers, advertisers, contributors, and website visitors. This Privacy Policy outlines how we collect, use, disclose, retain, transfer, and safeguard personal information in connection with our print publication, website, digital applications, newsletters, subscriptions, advertising services, classifieds, obituaries, community notices, contests, and other commercial services (collectively, the "Services").

This Privacy Policy applies to our commercial activities. It does not apply to personal information collected, used, or disclosed solely for journalistic, artistic, or literary purposes, including news-gathering, editorial decisions, interviews, reporting, commentary, photography, publication, archiving, or related editorial activities, where Canadian privacy law provides an applicable exemption.

We are accountable for the personal information under our control and have designated a privacy contact responsible for privacy-related questions, complaints, access requests, correction requests, and withdrawal of consent requests.

1. Information We Collect

We may collect personal information from you when you interact with our Services. The types of information we collect depend on how you interact with us and may include the categories below. We do not intentionally collect sensitive personal information unless it is necessary for a specific Service or submission and you provide it voluntarily.

  • Account and Subscription Information: Name, delivery address, billing address, email address, phone number, and account credentials when you purchase a print or digital subscription.
  • Payment Data: Credit card numbers, expiration dates, and security codes required to process your payments. (Note: Payment processing details may be handled securely by a third-party payment gateway).
  • User-Submitted Content: Information you provide when submitting letters to the editor, obituaries, advertisements, classified advertisements, community calendar events, photos, announcements, corrections, tips, comments, contest entries, or other material for review, publication, or communication. User-submitted material may include personal information about you or about other individuals identified in the material.
  • Automatically Collected Technical Data: When you visit our website, we may automatically collect information such as your IP address, device identifiers, browser type, operating system, referring URLs, pages viewed, search terms, approximate location derived from technical data, interaction data, and the dates and times of visits through cookies, web beacons, pixels, analytics tools, server logs, and similar technologies.

Where you submit information for publication, you are responsible for ensuring that you have the authority or consent necessary to provide personal information about other individuals. Once information is published in print, online, in archives, or through syndicated or third-party search tools, it may be accessible to the public and may be difficult or impossible to remove completely.

2. How We Use Your Information

We use the personal information we collect for the following commercial and operational purposes:

  • To fulfill, manage, and renew your print and digital subscriptions.
  • To process financial transactions and prevent fraudulent billing activity.
  • To deliver newsletters, marketing communications, promotional offers, subscription notices, event notices, and updates that you have requested or consented to receive, and to manage unsubscribe or communication-preference requests.
  • To publish and distribute user-submitted classifieds, obituaries, and advertisements as requested.
  • To improve our website functionality, analyze user traffic patterns, measure audience engagement, understand readership trends, troubleshoot technical issues, protect website security, and optimize user experience using analytics tools and similar technologies.
  • To comply with applicable legal, regulatory, or audit requirements.

3. Disclosure of Your Information

We do not sell or rent our subscriber lists or reader data to third parties. However, we may disclose, transfer, or make available personal information in the following limited circumstances.

  • Service Providers: We may share or transfer personal information to trusted third-party vendors who perform services on our behalf, such as newspaper delivery providers, payment processors, email deployment services, subscription management platforms, website hosting providers, analytics providers, advertising technology providers, cloud storage providers, and IT support providers. We require service providers to protect personal information and use it only for the purposes for which we authorize them to process it
  • Legal Obligations: We may disclose information if required to do so by law, court order, search warrant, or valid government regulation, or to protect the safety, rights, and property of The Manitoulin Expositor, our staff, or the public.
  • Business Transactions: We may disclose or transfer personal information in connection with a proposed or completed sale, financing, merger, reorganization, transfer, or other disposition of all or part of our business or assets, subject to appropriate safeguards and applicable law.
  • Publicly Submitted or Published Material: If you submit information for publication, we may publish, archive, edit, distribute, syndicate, or otherwise make that content available as part of our newspaper, website, archives, or related editorial and commercial services, subject to our editorial policies and applicable law.
  • Cross-Border Processing: Some of our service providers may store or process personal information outside Ontario or Canada. In those cases, personal information may be subject to the laws of the jurisdiction where it is processed, including lawful access by courts, law enforcement, or government authorities.

We collect, use, and disclose personal information with your consent, except where applicable law permits or requires otherwise. Consent may be express or implied depending on the sensitivity of the information and the circumstances. You may withdraw consent at any time, subject to legal or contractual restrictions and reasonable notice; however, withdrawing consent may affect our ability to provide certain Services, such as subscriptions, delivery, billing, contest administration, or communications.

  • Email Communications: You may opt out of receiving promotional emails or newsletters at any time by clicking the "unsubscribe" link at the bottom of the email.
  • Cookies and Similar Technologies: You can configure your internet browser settings to reject cookies or alert you when cookies are being sent. You may also be able to manage certain analytics or advertising preferences through browser, device, or third-party platform settings. Disabling cookies may affect the performance or availability of certain website features.

5. Data Security and Retention

We implement administrative, technical, and physical safeguards appropriate to the sensitivity of the information to protect personal information against loss, theft, unauthorized access, collection, use, disclosure, copying, modification, or disposal. No method of transmission or storage is completely secure. We retain personal information only for as long as necessary to fulfill the purposes for which it was collected, to provide the Services, to resolve disputes, to enforce agreements, to maintain business records, or as required or permitted by law. When personal information is no longer required, we will securely destroy, delete, anonymize, or de-identify it, subject to legal, archival, journalistic, and business record requirements.

6. Access and Correction

You may request access to the personal information we hold about you and may request corrections if you believe the information is inaccurate or incomplete. We may need to verify your identity before responding. We will respond within the time required by applicable law and may refuse or limit access where permitted or required by law, including where disclosure would reveal personal information about another individual, confidential commercial information, legally privileged information, or information connected to journalistic, editorial, archival, or legal processes. To make an access or correction request, please contact our Privacy Officer using the details provided below.

7. Changes to This Privacy Policy

We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time to reflect changes in our business practices, Services, technologies, vendors, or legal requirements. When updates are made, we will revise the "Effective Date" at the top of this policy and post the updated version on our website. Where required by applicable law, we will provide additional notice or seek renewed consent for material changes.

8. Contact Us

If you have questions, concerns, or complaints regarding our privacy practices, if you wish to withdraw consent, or if you wish to exercise your access or correction rights regarding your personal information, please contact us at:

The Manitoulin Expositor
1 Manitowaning Rd, P.O. Box 369, Little Current, ON P0P 1K0
Email: [email protected]
Phone: (705) 368-2744

SMS Terms and Conditions for The Manitoulin Expositor

Effective Date: June 2026

The Manitoulin Expositor ("we," "us," or "our") offers mobile text messaging programs to communicate with our subscribers, readers, and community members. By opting into any of our text messaging services, you agree to these SMS Terms and Conditions ("SMS Terms"). Please read them carefully.

When you provide your mobile phone number and expressly opt in to a specific SMS program, you consent to receive text messages from The Manitoulin Expositor for the purpose disclosed at the point of opt-in. Consent must be obtained separately for materially different message categories, including service/account messages, news/editorial alerts, and marketing/promotional messages.

  • Service/account messages: subscription account updates, payment reminders, renewal notices, customer service communications, and print delivery updates.
  • News/editorial alerts: breaking news alerts and editorial updates.
  • Marketing/promotional messages: promotional offers, contests, and community event announcements.

At the point of opt-in, we will identify the message purpose, The Manitoulin Expositor as sender, our contact information, and your right to withdraw consent. Consent to receive marketing or promotional text messages is voluntary and is not a condition of purchasing or maintaining any print or digital subscription, product, or service.

2. Message Frequency

Message frequency varies by the SMS program and preferences you selected. Account and delivery alerts are sent as needed; news and promotional messages will be sent only at the frequency disclosed or reasonably expected for that program. We will not materially increase message frequency without appropriate notice or renewed consent where required.

3. Message and Data Rates May Apply

The Manitoulin Expositor does not charge a fee for our text messaging programs. However, standard message and data rates may apply according to your mobile service provider鈥檚 plan. You are solely responsible for any mobile carrier charges, fees, or taxes incurred by participating in our SMS services.

4. How to Opt-Out (Stopping Messages)

In compliance with Canada鈥檚 Anti-Spam Legislation (CASL), you can cancel and unsubscribe from our SMS text services at any time.

  • To stop receiving text messages from a program, reply STOP to any mobile message from that program.
  • Where technically available, we will provide a simple way to stop all commercial SMS messages or manage SMS preferences.

After texting STOP, you may receive one final confirmation message. Your unsubscribe request will be processed without delay and no later than 10 business days after receipt. If we operate multiple SMS programs, we will clearly identify the applicable program and provide a readily available method to manage commercial SMS preferences where feasible.

We will maintain reasonable records of SMS consent and withdrawal, including the phone number, date, method, program, and consent language used where available.

5. How to Get Help

If you are experiencing issues with our text messaging service or need assistance, you can reply HELP to any text message you receive from us, or contact our customer support team directly using the information provided in Section 8 below.

6. Supported Carriers

Our text messaging service is compatible with major Canadian mobile carriers. However, delivery of SMS messages is subject to effective transmission by your wireless provider and is outside of our direct control. Neither The Manitoulin Expositor nor the mobile network carriers are liable for delayed, misdirected, or undelivered messages.

7. Privacy

We respect your privacy. Any mobile information or phone numbers collected through our SMS programs will be handled in accordance with our primary Privacy Policy. We do not sell, rent, or share your mobile opt-in data with third parties for their independent marketing purposes.

8. Contact Us

If you have any questions about these SMS Terms or your text messaging preferences, please reach out to us at:

The Manitoulin Expositor
1 Manitowaning Rd, P.O. Box 369, Little Current, ON P0P 1K0
Email: [email protected]
Phone: (705) 368-2744