At IBM we value your privacy and are committed to protecting and processing your personal information responsibly.
This privacy statement describes how IBM collects, uses, and shares personal information about consumers and other individuals within our clients, business partners, supplier and other organizations with which IBM has or contemplates a business relationship. It applies to IBM Corporation and IBM subsidiaries except where a subsidiary presents its own statement without reference to IBM’s.
Where we provide products, services, or applications as a business-to-business provider to a client, the client is responsible for the collection and use of personal information while using these products, services, or applications. This collection and use is covered by the client’s privacy policy, unless otherwise described. Our agreement with the client may allow us to request and collect information about authorized users of these products, services, or applications for reasons of contract management. In this case, this privacy statement, or a supplementary privacy notice, applies.
We may provide additional data privacy information by using a supplementary privacy notice.
This section describes the various types of information that we collect and how we use it.
It includes information on Your Account, IBM Websites, IBM Applications, Cloud and Online Services, Marketing, Contractual Relationships, Support Services, Protecting You and IBM, IBM Locations, Recruitment and Former Employees, Conducting our Business Operations, Cookies and Similar Technologies, and Children.
The information that we collect and use may include profile information, interactions on webpages, marketing preferences, information to investigate malicious activities, recordings or transcripts of your conversations with us for support purposes, information to improve our business operations, and more.
An IBMid uniquely identifies you when you access our websites, make a request or order, or use a product or service. If you log into our websites with an IBMid we may link the information we collect with your account. An IBMid is also used to give you access to IBM Applications, Cloud and Online Services and allows you to manage your contract and billing history. The email address in your IBMid may be used to contact you in relation to any services to which you subscribe.
Business contact information is typically information that you would find on a business card, such as name and business contact details. We use this information to contact or communicate with you about business matters. If we receive business contact information from a third party, such as an IBM Business Partner or supplier, we will confirm that the information was shared appropriately.
We may also combine your business contact information with other business-relevant information, such as information about your professional education, skills, work experience, or other publicly available information, such as business-related blogs, publications, job roles, and certifications. This information may be used to tailor our interactions with you in any part of IBM’s business, for example in the sales process, to maintain a relationship with you, and for post-contractual relationships.
We collect information about your use of our websites, such as:
We use this information to improve and personalize your experience with our websites, provide you with content that you may be interested in, create marketing insights, and to improve our websites, online services, and related technologies.
We also collect the information that your browser or device automatically sends, such as:
We use this information to provide you with access to our webpages, improve the webpage view on your device and browser, adapt to your settings and language, and adapt content for relevancy or any legal requirements for your country. We also use this information to comply with system and network security requirements, and to provide support. For more information see, Support Services and Protecting You and IBM.
We also provide platforms and forums that enable online sharing, support, and collaboration among registered members. Any information that you submit to these platforms may be made available to others on the internet, or removed by us, as covered in the platform privacy notice or terms. We are not responsible for any content that you make available through your use of our products or services.
We prepare reports on the use of our websites to derive insights into trending topics and general market knowledge. These reports may be provided to third parties with details on how users interacted with or showed interest in the third-party products or services that were presented on our websites.
We accept no responsibility for the content provided on, or privacy practices, of third-party websites or applications.
The information that we collect on our cloud and online services may include:
This information is collected to provide you with access, to operate the service, for support, to personalize and improve your experience of the service, to develop other services and technologies, and generate technical and market insights. For more information on the technologies that we use to collect this information, and setting your preferences, see Cookies and Similar Technologies.
As a public cloud provider, IBM does not use personal information processed under a contract for the purposes of marketing and advertising without express consent.
Mobile application privacy notices may provide details about the information that is collected by the app, such as geo-location information or the unique User-ID of a device. Unique User-IDs are used to connect to servers and to connect the use of the device across apps. Depending on the functions of the app, you can tailor your privacy settings by using the settings menu or in your user profile.
IBM Learning offers education services and collects information on course completions to be able to provide you with credentials, certificates, or further information when needed.
We accept no responsibility for the content provided on, or privacy practices, of third-party websites or applications.
We use information that we collect for marketing purposes. This may include information:
Subject to your preferences, we may use this information to market to you regarding IBM products, services, and offerings. For example, we may:
To set or update your preferences with regards to marketing activities using your email address, phone, or postal address, visit the IBM Privacy Preference Center. You may also submit an opt-out request, or select Unsubscribe in each marketing email.
To opt out of the use of your hashed email for personalization or targeted advertising, you can withdraw your email consent by using any of these options.
To review or set your preferences regarding the information that we collect about you online on our websites, select Cookie Preferences in the website footer.
We also use this information to develop marketing and business intelligence, which is essential for our business operations. For example, we may:
The information collected in a contractual relationship may include the business contact information of the requester, an IBMid, and the order details. Information that is required for shipment and payment, for the implementation of services, or to grant access to the product or service may also be collected.
This information may be collected for various purposes, depending on the nature of the products or services, for example, for contractual management and compliance, to provide support, for the improvement or development of our products and services, to contact you for customer satisfaction surveys, and to generate technical and market insights. For more information, see IBM Applications, Cloud and Online Services.
The information collected in a contractual relationship is not used for the purposes of marketing and advertising without obtaining consent before processing.
The information that we collect may include any information exchanged during our phone conversations or provided during Live Chat support sessions on our websites. This may include a recording or transcript of your conversations with us. We may use this information to inform you of products or services that are related to your support request. This can include product updates or fixes, and we may combine the information that is collected through other interactions with you or your organization to provide more valuable suggestions in relation to product support, such as any available training regarding the issue.
While we handle the support case, we may have incidental access to information that you have provided or information that is on your system. This information may contain information about you, your organization's employees, customers, or other relevant parties. The conditions regarding the handling and processing of this information is covered by the applicable Terms of Use or other agreements between your organization and IBM, such as the Terms of Use for Exchanging Diagnostic Data.
The security solutions we use to protect your information, our infrastructure, and our networks may collect information such as IP addresses and log files. This is necessary for the functionality and utility of security programs to enable the investigation of any potential security incidents and generate insights on security threats.
We may use specialized tooling and other technical means to collect information at access points to, and in, IT systems and networks to detect unauthorized access, viruses, and indications of malicious activities. The information we collect may be used to conduct investigations when unauthorized access, malware or malicious activities are suspected, and to remove or isolate malicious code or content.
The information that is collected at our locations is used to issue access badges. We may verify the identity of visitors where legally permissible and, for supplier personnel working on site, a badge with a photo identification may be requested for identification purposes.
Camera supervision and access management are used for reasons of security and safety of our locations, employees, and assets. More information may be available at the IBM location.
Regarding recruitment, we may look for prospective candidates with the help of recruitment intermediaries and may use publicly available information on social media platforms to identify prospective candidates for a specific function.
When an employee leaves IBM, we retain basic information from the former employee about their employment at IBM.
After an employee retires, we process information about the retiree for fulfilling the pension obligations toward the retiree. Information about the processing of pension information, or other retirement programs, can be found with the local organization responsible for pensions. In some countries, this may be an independent organization. In some cases, retirees may still participate in IBM-organized initiatives or programs, such as volunteer and social responsibility programs. Such participation is voluntary, and more information is provided on the relevant websites or information pages for those initiatives.
We collect information about our business operations to make informed decisions about the organization, the business, and to report on performance, audits, and trends. For example, we use this information to analyze the costs and quality of our operations. Where possible, this is done by using aggregated information, but may use personal information.
We collect and use information from our business systems, which may include personal information, to:
We collect information from the use of our business processes, websites, cloud and online services, products, or technologies. This information may include personal information and is used for product and process development. For example, we may use this information to increase efficiency, decrease costs, or improve services by developing automated processes and tools, or to develop or improve the technologies on which these are based.
A cookie is a piece of data that a website may send to your browser, which may be stored on your computer and can be used to identify your computer. Web beacons, including pixels and tags, are technologies that are used to track a user visiting an IBM web page or if a web page was copied to another website. Local Shared Objects can store content information displayed on the webpage visited, and preferences. All of these technologies may be used to provide connected features across our websites or display targeted IBM advertising (subject to your cookie preferences) on other websites based on your interests. Web beacons may also be used to track your interaction with email messages or newsletters, such as to determine whether messages are opened or links are selected.
Session cookies can be used to track your progression from page to page so that you are not asked for information that you have already provided during the current session, or information that is needed to be able to complete a transaction. Session cookies are erased when the web browser is closed. Persistent cookies store user preferences for successive visits to a website, such as recording your choice of language and country location. Persistent cookies erase their data within 12 months.
You can use the IBM Cookie Manager to learn more about the online tracking technologies we use and to review or set your preferences regarding the information that we collect about you on our websites. The IBM Cookie Manager is either presented as a notification window when you first visit a webpage or opened by selecting Cookie Preferences in the website footer. The IBM Cookie Manager does not address all types of tracking technologies (for example, email pixels). When using mobile apps, use the options on your mobile device to manage settings.
Blocking, disabling, or rejecting IBM cookies may cause services to not function properly, such as in connection with a shopping cart, or block the use of websites or IBM Cloud services that require you to sign in. Disabling cookies does not disable other online tracking technologies, but prevents the other technologies from accessing any details stored in cookies.
Our websites offer the possibility to use third-party social media options. If you elect to use these options, these third-party sites may log information about you, such as your IP address, access time, and referring website URLs. If you are logged in to those social media sites, they may also link collected information with your profile information. We accept no responsibility for the privacy practices of these third-party services and encourage you to review their privacy policies for more information.
For information on cookies and how to remove these technologies by using browser settings, see https://www.allaboutcookies.org/.
We may share your personal information internally and externally with suppliers, advisors, or Business Partners for IBM’s legitimate business purposes, and only on a need-to-know basis. This section describes how we share information and how we facilitate that sharing.
When sharing personal information, we implement appropriate checks and controls to confirm that the information can be shared in accordance with the applicable law.
If we decide to sell, buy, merge, or otherwise reorganize businesses in some countries, such a transaction may involve disclosing some personal information to prospective or actual business purchasers, or the collection of personal information from those selling such businesses.
Internally, personal information is shared for our business purposes: to improve efficiency, for cost savings, and internal collaboration between our subsidiaries (such as Red Hat). For example, we may share personal information such as managing our relationship with you and other external parties, compliance programs, or systems and networks security.
Our internal access to personal information is restricted and granted only on a need-to-know basis. Sharing of this information is subject to the appropriate intracompany arrangements, our policies, and security standards. For more information, see Legal Basis.
Externally,
In certain circumstances, personal information may be subject to disclosure to government agencies in accordance with judicial proceedings, court orders, or legal processes. We may also share personal information to protect the rights of IBM or others when IBM believes that such rights may be affected, for example to prevent fraud.
Your personal information may be transferred to or accessed by IBM subsidiaries and third parties globally. IBM complies with laws on the transfer of personal information between countries to keep your personal information protected, wherever it may be.
We have implemented various safeguards including:
IBM does business through its subsidiaries worldwide. The privacy laws in some countries consider a Controller to be the legal entity (or natural person) who defines the purposes for which the processing of personal information takes place and how that information is processed. Parties that are involved in processing operations on behalf of a Controller may be designated as Processors. Designations and associated obligations differ, depending on the jurisdiction.
Where this is relevant for the privacy laws in your country, the Controller of your personal information is IBM’s main subsidiary in your country or region, unless International Business Machines Corporation (IBM Corp.) or another IBM subsidiary identifies itself as the Controller for a specific interaction with you.
The contact details of our main subsidiary of a country or region can be found by selecting your country or region and selecting Contact on the footer of ibm.com websites. IBM Corp. can be contacted at: International Business Machines Corporation, 1, North Castle Drive, Armonk, New York, United States of America.
Where IBM Corp. or a subsidiary it controls is required to appoint a legal representative, the following representatives have been appointed.
IBM International Group B.V.,
Johan Huizingalaan 765,
1066 VH Amsterdam,
The Netherlands
IBM United Kingdom Limited,
PO Box 41, North Harbour,
Portsmouth,
Hampshire, PO6 3AU,
United Kingdom
To protect your personal information from unauthorized access, use, and disclosure, we implement reasonable physical, administrative, and technical safeguards. These safeguards include role-based access controls and encryption to keep personal information private while in transit. We also require our Business Partners, suppliers, and third parties to implement appropriate safeguards, such as contract terms and access restrictions, to protect information from unauthorized access, use, and disclosure.
IBM makes artificial intelligence models and systems available, including large language models (often called LLMs). IBM may use such AI models and systems on or embedded in IBM.com properties, including through chatbots. IBM may also make such AI models and systems available under separate terms.
IBM’s AI models and systems are designed, trained, validated, and tested on data from publicly available sources that may incidentally contain Personal Information. We have implemented safeguards, processes, and tools to mitigate associated impacts and help address responsible development and deployment of trustworthy AI.
We only retain personal information as long as necessary to fulfill the purposes for which it is processed, or to comply with legal and regulatory retention requirements. Legal and regulatory retention requirements may include retaining information for:
We retain any contractual relationship information for administrative purposes, legal and regulatory retention requirements, defending IBM rights, and to manage IBM's relationship with you. The information that is provided in a supplementary privacy notice may provide more detailed information on applicable retention terms.
When personal information is no longer needed, we have processes in place to securely delete it, for example by erasing electronic files and shredding physical records.
You have certain rights when it comes to the handling of your personal information. The Contact Us form in the header of this page can be used to:
When you submit a Data Rights (DR) request, you provide us with personal information, including your name and contact details, which we use to respond to your request. In some circumstances, to verify your identity and to ensure we disclose the personal information to the correct individual, we may also request a copy of your photo ID, which is deleted immediately after verification of your identity.
Upon your DR request, your personal information is processed for handling and fulfilling your DR request, in line with IBM's legal obligations and commitments related to DRs.
You can verify the status of requests that you have submitted by using the DR webform in the IBM Privacy Portal for 90 days after completion of the request. The data relevant to your DR request is retained for a minimum of three years from the date of your last DR-related communication with IBM, to address any request you may have in relation to it, and for IBM's compliance and recording purposes.
For more information about how we process your data, see Personal Information We Collect and Use.
Your rights may be subject to limitations and exceptions resulting from applicable laws. For example, there may be situations where we cannot share certain information that you seek if disclosing this means disclosing information about others.
You may also have the right to complain to the competent supervisory authority. Information about additional rights, when they apply, and the right to complain to the competent supervisory authority can be found here.
If you have an unresolved privacy or data use concern that we have not addressed satisfactorily, please contact our U.S.-based third-party dispute resolution provider (free of charge) here.
To set or update your marketing communications preferences, visit the IBM Privacy Preference Center. You can also submit an opt-out request, or select Unsubscribe at the end of each marketing email.
In some jurisdictions, the lawful handling of personal information is subject to a justification, sometimes referred to as legal basis. The legal bases that we rely on for the lawful handling of your personal information vary depending on the purpose and applicable law.
The different legal bases that we may use are:
We rely on this legal basis when we need to process certain personal information, such as your contact details, payment details, and shipment details, to perform our obligations or to manage our contractual relationship with you.
Examples:
Legitimate interests relate to being able to conduct and organize business, which includes the marketing of our offerings, protecting our legal interests, securing our IT environment, or meeting client requirements.
Examples:
We may also process personal information where it is necessary to defend our rights in judicial, administrative, or arbitral proceedings. This also falls under the legal basis of legitimate interest in countries where they are not a separate legal basis.
We process personal information for credit protection, which is a specific legal basis under Brazilian law (LGPD) but is also covered under the legal basis of legitimate interest in other countries.
The processing is based on your consent where we request this.
Example:
Where we need to process certain personal information based on our legal obligation. Example:
If a material change is made to this Privacy Statement, the effective date is revised, and a notice is posted on the updated Privacy Statement for 30 days. By continuing to use our websites and services after a revision takes effect, it is considered that users have read and understand the changes.
Previous versions of the Privacy Statement are available here.
Sections updated in this release: