Welcome to Mohamed bin Zayed University of Artificial Intelligence (“MBZUAI”) privacy policy.

MBZUAI respects your privacy and is committed to protecting your personal data. This privacy policy will inform you as to how we look after your personal data when you visit our website (regardless of where you visit it from) and tell you about your privacy rights and how the law protects you.

This privacy policy is provided in a layered format so you can click through to the specific areas set out below.

Please also use the Glossary to understand the meaning of some of the terms used in this privacy policy.

1. Important information and who we are
2. The data we collect about you
3. How is your personal data collected?
4. How we use your personal data
5. Disclosures of your personal data
6. International transfers
7. Data security
8. Data retention how long will you use my personal data for?
9. Your legal rights
10. Glossary

1. Important information and who we are

Purpose of this privacy policy

This privacy policy aims to give you information on how MBZUAI collects and processes your personal data through your use of this website and web services provided or managed by MBZUAI (collectively, “Services”), including any data you may provide through this websitewhen you submit your application, sign up to our newsletter, or sign up to or use our Services.

It is important that you read this privacy policy together with any other privacy policy or fair processing policy we may provide on specific occasions when we are collecting or processing personal data about you so that you are fully aware of how and why we are using your data. This privacy policy supplements other notices and privacy policies and is not intended to override them.

Controller

MBZUAI is the controller and responsible for your personal data (collectively referred to as “we”, “us” or “our” in this privacy policy.

MBZUAI is the controller and responsible for this website and our Services.

If you have any questions about this privacy policy, including any requests to exercise your legal rights, please contact info@mbzuai.ac.ae using the details set out below.

Contact details

If you have any questions about this privacy policy or our privacy practices, including any requests to exercise your legal rights, please contact MBZUAI in the following ways:

Full name of legal entity: Mohamed bin Zayed University of Artificial Intelligence Email address: info@www.mbzuai.ac.ae

Changes to the privacy policy and your duty to inform us of changes

We keep our privacy policy under regular review. This version was last updated on 23 June, 2023.

It is important that the personal data we hold about you is accurate and current. Please keep us informed if your personal data changes during your relationship with us.

Third-party links

This website may include links to third-party websites, plug-ins and applications. Clicking on those links or enabling those connections may allow third parties to collect or share data about you. We do not control these third-party websites or social media platforms and are not responsible for their privacy statements. When you leave our website, we encourage you to read the privacy policy of every website and social media site you visit.

2. The data we collect about you

Personal data, or personal information, means any information about an individual from which that person can be identified. It does not include data where the identity has been removed (anonymous data).

We may collect, use, store and transfer different kinds of personal data about you which we have grouped together as follows:

• Identity Data:includes first name, last name, username or similar identifier, title, date of birth and gender.
• Contact Data:includes residence address, email address and telephone numbers.
• Financial Data:includes bank account and payment card details.
• Technical Data:includes internet protocol (IP) address, your login data, browser type and version, time zone setting and location, browser plug-in types and versions, operating system and platform, and other technology on the devices you use to access this website.
• Profile Data:includes your username and password, feedback and survey responses, your interests and preferences.
• Usage Data:includes information about how you use our website and services.
• Marketing and Communications Data:includes your preferences in receiving marketing from us and your communication preferences.

We also collect, use and share Aggregated Data; such as statistical or demographic data for any purpose. Aggregated Data could be derived from your personal data but is not considered personal data in law as this data will not directly or indirectly reveal your identity. For example, we may aggregate your Usage Data to calculate the percentage of users accessing a specific website feature. However, if we combine or connect Aggregated Data with your personal data so that it can directly or indirectly identify you, we treat the combined data as personal data which will be used in accordance with this privacy policy. We do not collect any Special Categories of Personal Data about you (this includes details about your race or ethnicity, religious or philosophical beliefs, sex life, sexual orientation, political opinions, trade union membership, information about your health, and genetic and biometric data). Nor do we collect any information about criminal convictions and offences. Please do not submit sensitive personal information to us. If you have inadvertently or intentionally shared sensitive personal data, you will be considered to have explicitly consented to us processing it for the purpose of its deletion.

If you fail to provide personal data

Where we need to collect personal data by law, or under the terms of a contract we have with you, and you fail to provide that data when requested, we may not be able to perform the contract we have or are trying to enter into with you (for example, to provide you with services). In this case, we may have to cancel your application or restrict/stop your access to our Services, but we will notify you if this is the case at the time.

3. How is your personal data collected?

We use different methods to collect data from and about you including through:

• Direct interactions. You may give us your Identity and Contact and Financial Data by filling in forms or by corresponding with us by phone, email or otherwise. This includes personal data you provide when you:
  • when you visit our website;
  • submit an application form;
  • create an account for our website or Services;
  • use our Services;
  • subscribe to our publications, such as newsletters;
  • request marketing to be sent to you;
  • enter a survey;
  • when you download content from our website; or
  • give us feedback, write a review or contacting us through an online form or telephone.
• Automated technologies or interactions. As you interact with our website, we will automatically collect Technical Data about your equipment, browsing actions and patterns. We collect this personal data by using cookies, server logs and other similar technologies. We may also receive Technical Data about you if you visit other websites employing our cookies. Please see our Cookie Policy [www.www.mbzuai.ac.ae/ privacy-policy] for further details.
• Third parties or publicly available sources. We will receive personal data about you from various third parties as set out below:

Technical Data from the following parties:

• (a) analytics providers such as Google;
• (b) search information providers such as Google, Yahoo; and
• (c) social medial platforms such as Facebook, Twitter, Instagram.

4. How we use your personal data

We will only use your personal data when the law allows us to. Most commonly, we will use your personal data in the following circumstances:

• Where we need to process the application you submitted through our website or perform the contract we are about to enter into or have entered into with you;
• To provide, administer, maintain and/or analyze the Services;
• To improve our Services and conduct research;
• To develop new programs and services;
• As necessary to operate our business, fulfil our legitimate interests (or those of a third party) as described below, or to uphold the data security and integrity of our company, except where your interests and fundamental rights override those interests.
• Where we need to comply with a legal obligation or a particular piece of law.
• Where applicable, with your consent.

Generally, we do not rely on consent as a legal basis for processing your personal data. You have the right to withdraw consent to marketing at any time by contacting us.

Purposes for which we will use your personal data

We have set out below, in a table format, a description of all the ways we plan to use your personal data, and which of the legal bases we rely on to do so. We have also identified what our legitimate interests are where appropriate.

Note that we may process your personal data for more than one lawful ground depending on the specific purpose for which we are using your data. Please contact us if you need details about the specific legal ground we are relying on to process your personal data where more than one ground has been set out in the table below.

Marketing offers from us

We may use your Identity, Contact, Technical, Usage and Profile Data to form a view on what we think you may want or need, or what may be of interest to you. This is how we decide which services and offers may be relevant for you (we call this marketing).You will receive marketing communications from us if you have requested information from us or made an application, through our website or services and you have not opted out of receiving that marketing.

Third-party marketing

We will get your express opt-in consent before we share your personal data with any third party for marketing purposes.

Opting out

You can ask us to stop sending you marketing messages at any time by logging into the website and checking or unchecking relevant boxes to adjust your marketing preferences or by following the opt-out links on any marketing message sent to you or by contacting us at any time.

Cookies

You can set your browser to refuse all or some browser cookies, or to alert you when websites set or access cookies. If you disable or refuse cookies, please note that some parts of this website may become inaccessible or not function properly. For more information about the cookies we use, please see [www.www.mbzuai.ac.ae/privacy-policy].

Change of purpose

We will only use your personal data for the purposes for which we collected it, unless we reasonably consider that we need to use it for another reason and that reason is compatible with the original purpose. If you wish to get an explanation as to how the processing for the new purpose is compatible with the original purpose, please contact us. If we need to use your personal data for an unrelated purpose, we will notify you and we will explain the legal basis which allows us to do so. Please note that we may process your personal data without your knowledge or consent, in compliance with the above rules, where this is required or permitted by law.

5. Disclosures of your personal data

We may share your personal data with the parties set out below for the purposes set out in the table Purposes for which we will use your personal data above and third parties who process your information on our behalf where necessary to enable us to run our business.

• We have a legitimate interest in sharing information to better develop, modify, enhance or improve our services and/or communications.
• Service providers: acting as processors who provide the following services:
  • Data storage and hosting;
  • IT security;
  • Workplace productivity and e-mail;
  • Customer relationship management;
  • Marketing automation, solutions and analytics;
  • Communication services;
  • Website and app developers and hosts;
  • Accounts receivable, accounts payable and credit control; and
  • Independent contractors.
• Professional advisers: including lawyers, bankers, auditors and insurers based in the United Arab Emirates, who provide consultancy, banking, legal, insurance and accounting services.
• Third parties to whom we may choose to sell, transfer or merge parts of our business or our assets. Alternatively, we may seek to acquire other businesses or merge with them. If a change happens to our business, then the new owners may use your personal data in the same way as set out in this privacy policy.

We require all third parties to respect the security of your personal data and to treat it in accordance with the law. We do not allow our third-party service providers to use your personal data for their own purposes and only permit them to process your personal data for specified purposes and in accordance with our instructions. In certain circumstances we will need to disclose your personal data for legal reasons:

• (a) Compliance with a legal obligation: we may be required to disclose your personal data pursuant to a court order or subpoena;
• (b) Suspicion of criminal acts or threats to public security: if we suspect potential or actual criminal conduct, we will, in certain circumstances need to contact the appropriate authority. We have a legitimate interest in sharing your personal data in order to prevent or stop criminal activity; and
• (c) Enforcing our legal rights: we have a legitimate interest to enforce our legal rights or to take steps to do so and will share your personal data in connection with the same.

6. International transfers

MBZUAI the collector of personal data, is based in the United Arab Emirates. We also share your personal data within the Group 42 group based in the United Arab Emirates. We ensure your personal data is protected by requiring all our group companies to follow the same rules when processing your personal data.

7. Data security

We have put in place appropriate security measures to prevent your personal data from being accidentally lost, used or accessed in an unauthorised way, altered or disclosed. In addition, we limit access to your personal data to those employees, agents, contractors and other third parties who have a business need to know. They will only process your personal data on our instructions and they are subject to a duty of confidentiality. We have put in place procedures to deal with any suspected personal data breach and will notify you and any applicable regulator of a breach where we are legally required to do so.

8. Data retention how long will you use my personal data for?

We will only retain your personal data for as long as reasonably necessary to fulfil the purposes we collected it for, including for the purposes of satisfying any legal, regulatory, tax, accounting or reporting requirements. We may retain your personal data for a longer period in the event of a complaint or if we reasonably believe there is a prospect of litigation in respect to our relationship with you. To determine the appropriate retention period for personal data, we consider the amount, nature and sensitivity of the personal data, the potential risk of harm from unauthorised use or disclosure of your personal data, the purposes for which we process your personal data and whether we can achieve those purposes through other means, and the applicable legal, regulatory, tax, accounting or other requirements. In some circumstances you can ask us to delete your data: see your legal rights below for further information. In some circumstances we will anonymise your personal data (so that it can no longer be associated with you) for research or statistical purposes, in which case we may use this information indefinitely without further notice to you.

9. Your legal rights

Under certain circumstances, you have rights under data protection laws in relation to your personal data. Please click on the links below to find out more about these rights:

Request access to your personal data:

Request access to your personal data (commonly known as a “data subject access request” ). This enables you to receive a copy of the personal data we hold about you and to check that we are lawfully processing it.

Request correction of your personal data:

Request correction of the personal data that we hold about you. This enables you to have any incomplete or inaccurate data we hold about you corrected, though we may need to verify the accuracy of the new data you provide to us.

Request erasure of your personal data:

Request erasure of your personal data. This enables you to ask us to delete or remove personal data where there is no good reason for us continuing to process it. You also have the right to ask us to delete or remove your personal data where you have successfully exercised your right to object to processing (see below), where we may have processed your information unlawfully or where we are required to erase your personal data to comply with local law. Note, however, that we may not always be able to comply with your request of erasure for specific legal reasons which will be notified to you, if applicable, at the time of your request.

Object to processing of your personal data:

Object to processing of your personal data where we are relying on a legitimate interest (or those of a third party) and there is something about your particular situation which makes you want to object to processing on this ground as you feel it impacts on your fundamental rights and freedoms. You also have the right to object where we are processing your personal data for direct marketing purposes. In some cases, we may demonstrate that we have compelling legitimate grounds to process your information which override your rights and freedoms.

Request restriction of processing your personal data:

Request restriction of processing of your personal data. This enables you to ask us to suspend the processing of your personal data in the following scenarios:

• If you want us to establish the data’ s accuracy.
• Where our use of the data is unlawful but you do not want us to erase it.
• Where you need us to hold the data even if we no longer require it as you need it to establish, exercise or defend legal claims.
• You have objected to our use of your data but we need to verify whether we have overriding legitimate grounds to use it.

Request transfer of your personal data:

Request the transfer of your personal data to you or to a third party. We will provide to you, or a third party you have chosen, your personal data in a structured, commonly used, machine-readable format. Note that this right only applies to automated information which you initially provided consent for us to use or where we used the information to perform a contract with you.

Right to withdraw consent:

Withdraw consent at any time where we are relying on consent to process your personal data. However, this will not affect the lawfulness of any processing carried out before you withdraw your consent. If you withdraw your consent, we may not be able to provide certain services to you. We will advise you if this is the case at the time you withdraw your consent.

If you wish to exercise any of the rights set out above, please contact us at info@www.mbzuai.ac.ae.

No fee usually required

You will not have to pay a fee to access your personal data (or to exercise any of the other rights). However, we may charge a reasonable fee if your request is clearly unfounded, repetitive or excessive. Alternatively, we could refuse to comply with your request in these circumstances.

What we may need from you

We may need to request specific information from you to help us confirm your identity and ensure your right to access your personal data (or to exercise any of your other rights). This is a security measure to ensure that personal data is not disclosed to any person who has no right to receive it. We may also contact you to ask you for further information in relation to your request to speed up our response.

Time limit to respond

We try to respond to all legitimate requests within one month. Occasionally it could take us longer than a month if your request is particularly complex or you have made a number of requests. In this case, we will notify you and keep you updated.

10. Glossary

Lawful basis

Legitimate Interest means the interest of our business in conducting and managing our business to enable us to give you the best service/product and the best and most secure experience. We make sure we consider and balance any potential impact on you (both positive and negative) and your rights before we process your personal data for our legitimate interests. We do not use your personal data for activities where our interests are overridden by the impact on you (unless we have your consent or are otherwise required or permitted to by law). You can obtain further information about how we assess our legitimate interests against any potential impact on you in respect of specific activities by contacting us.

Performance of Contract means processing your data where it is necessary for the performance of a contract to which you are a party or to take steps at your request before entering into such a contract.

Comply with a legal obligation means processing your personal data where it is necessary for compliance with a legal obligation that we are subject to.