Earnest Data and Privacy Policy

Last updated: November 24, 2023

A note from Earnest:

Earnest is committed to protecting your personal data and upholding your privacy. This means being transparent about what we do with your personal data, and why we do it. You can be confident that we take your safety and privacy seriously.

 

In summary

Your data is protected both by law and the data policies of the Metropolitan Bank & Trust Company (or “Metrobank”), of which Earnest is one of the online services it offers.

You are always in full control of your data. This means you get to choose what data Earnest receives. Some features of Earnest will require certain types of data.  

What data Earnest collects from you:
  • Your personal details (e.g. your full name, your date of birth)
  • Your personal circumstances (e.g. the city you live in, your occupation)
  • Your account details (e.g. your email address, your mobile number, your bank account number)
  • Your behavior on the platform (e.g. what parts of the platform you use most, your ratings on the platform)
Why Earnest collects and stores your data:
  • To keep your account safe

Earnest uses data like your full name and date of birth to validate your identity and so that only you have access to your account. This also helps us protect your account from fraud.

  • To keep you informed

Earnest uses data like your email address and mobile number so we can send you important information, updates, and occasional promotions.

  • To keep your details updated

Earnest uses your data to make sure that your information and documents are always current.

  • To let you invest with ease

Earnest makes investing easy by letting you do it all online. This includes letting you enroll a settlement account and making all the paperwork digital. We may share your data within the Metrobank Group and with carefully selected third-party service providers to facilitate transactions and let you know about products and services relevant to you.

  • To help you find and discover products

Earnest uses a combination of financial expertise and data analytics to help recommend products that are most suited to you, as well as develop new ones to help you achieve your financial goals.

  • To perform legal duties

Earnest uses your data to constantly improve all legal duties and due diligence in anti-money laundering and counter-terrorism efforts, and other activities that are required by law.

  • To settle claims or disputes

Earnest will use your data in case there are claims or disputes involving its use. If needed, your data can be used for prosecuting or defending Metrobank or its employees.

How Earnest protects your data:
  • Your data is protected by law

We will keep your data confidential and use it only within the bounds of applicable Philippine laws, rules, and regulations.

  • Your data is collected through secure channels.

We collect your data through secure contact points such as the Earnest app.

  • Your data is stored in our systems and protected by our high security standards.

We enforce very strict policies on data within the Metrobank Group, making use of physical, technological, and procedural safeguards to keep our systems secure. Our employees regularly train in matters of protection, privacy, and confidentiality and we impose sanctions and penalties for non-compliance.

Finally, we only engage with outside companies who meet our security standards. Sharing of information shall be subject to authorization procedures and proper approvals. Appropriate security controls shall be put in place in the transmission of data using secure channels.

How Earnest handles your data:
  • Collection: We only collect data that you give voluntarily, and that means we explicitly obtain it with your consent. Note that you have the responsibility of keeping your data updated, especially if there are changes.
  • Storage: We will keep your data safe and secure in our system where it will be protected by Metrobank’s high security standards.
  • Sharing: We will always keep your data confidential and intact and will never sell your data. Transactions may require your data to be shared with a third-party service provider. In this case, we will only share what data is necessary to complete the transaction and only to the service provider concerned. Only authorized parties will have access to your data for the purpose of the transaction and keeping records thereof.
  • Disclosure: We may disclose your data but only when ordered by law, by regulation, by a court, or by a regulatory body like the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas.
  • Analytics: We may use your anonymized data to better understand how you use the Earnest platform. However, we will never share information that can be used to identify you without your consent.
  • Deletion: If you choose to close your account(s) with Earnest, we are obligated to delete records of your data within 5 years. We are also obligated to destroy physical copies of your data if there are any with us.

Always protect and update your information

Make sure others cannot access your account details, username, and password. Use a strong password and change it regularly. Use devices that are safe and keep your software updated.

We will not be able to serve you properly if your information is not updated. Make sure the information you submit is accurate, complete, and not misleading. Keep documents that can verify your information safe and available. If there are changes to your information, inform us immediately. 

Your Rights Under the Data Privacy Act

Below are your specific rights under the Data Privacy Act. However, please note this does not constitute legal advice. For something more comprehensive, please visit the National Privacy Commission’s website, refer to Republic Act 10173, or consult a lawyer.

Your rights under the Data Privacy Act of 2012:

  • The right to know if your data is being processed or has been processed, what data is being processed, and for what purposes.
  • The right to demand reasonable access to your data and obtain a copy of such data in either electronic or structured format.
  • The right to object to the processing of your personal data, including processing for direct marketing, automated processing or profiling, and to dispute and correct inaccuracies and errors in your data.
  • The right to revoke, block, remove, or destroy your data if it’s proven to be incomplete, outdated, unlawfully obtained, or used for unauthorized transactions.
  • The right to damages sustained from inaccurate, incomplete, outdated, false, unlawfully-obtained data as well as damages from unauthorized uses of your data.
  • The right to file a complaint. 
In case of data privacy violations:

Please contact our Data Protection Officer if you feel like your data privacy rights has been violated or if you believe your account has been tampered with.

Data Privacy Department

2nd Floor, The Shops Grand Central Park
7th Avenue corner 36th and 38th Streets North Bonifacio District
Bonifacio Global City Taguig, 1637 Metro Manila

Telephone Number: 63-02-8-857-5539
E-mail Address: dataprotectiondept@metrobank.com.ph

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