Privacy Policy

Effective date: May 5, 2026  ·  Last updated: May 5, 2026

This Privacy Policy explains how American Trade Certification ("ATC," "we," "us," or "our") collects, uses, discloses, and protects information about candidates, employers, training providers, and visitors who interact with our website at americantradecertification.org and americantradecertification.com (the "Site"), our examinations, and our credential registry.

1. Information We Collect

1.1 Information you provide directly

• Candidate information: name, date of birth, mailing address, email address, phone number, training provider, and verification of eligibility prerequisites.
• Examination data: exam form taken, raw and percentage scores, pass/fail outcome, and date of administration.
• Payment information: processed by our payment processor (we do not store full card numbers).
• Communications: messages you send to ATC by email, contact form, or phone.

1.2 Information collected automatically

• Standard server logs (IP address, user agent, requested URLs, timestamps) for security and operational purposes.
• Anonymized analytics data sufficient to understand aggregate site traffic. We do not deploy advertising or cross-site tracking technology.

1.3 Information published in the public registry

By earning an ATC credential, you consent to the public publication of: your full name, the credential earned, the issue date, the expiration date, and the current status (active, expired, or revoked). Personal contact information, scores, exam form, and date of birth are never published in the public registry.

2. How We Use Information

• To verify candidate eligibility and administer examinations.
• To issue credentials and maintain the public registry.
• To process payments and provide receipts.
• To respond to candidate, employer, and provider inquiries.
• To detect and prevent examination fraud, identity fraud, and security abuse.
• To comply with legal obligations and respond to lawful requests.

3. Information Sharing

We do not sell personal information. We share information only as necessary:

• Approved testing providers who administer ATC examinations on our behalf, under written confidentiality obligations.
• Payment processors for the limited purpose of processing fees.
• Email and hosting service providers as required to operate our services.
• Law enforcement and regulators in response to lawful subpoena, court order, or other valid legal process.

4. Your Choices

• Access and correction: You may request a copy of the personal information we hold about you, and request correction of inaccurate information, by emailing the registrar.
• Deletion: You may request deletion of personal information that is not required for credential record retention. Public registry entries are retained for the full life of the credential plus seven years for audit purposes.
• Communications: Transactional communications (registration, scoring, renewal notices) are required for the credential relationship. We do not send marketing email.

5. Data Retention

Examination data and credential records are retained for the active life of the credential plus seven (7) years, after which records are de-identified. This retention period reflects the standard for industry credentialing bodies and supports audit, dispute resolution, and credential reinstatement.

6. Security

We use commercially reasonable administrative, technical, and physical safeguards to protect personal information. No method of transmission or storage is perfectly secure. If we experience a security incident affecting your information, we will notify you as required by applicable law.

7. Children

ATC examinations require candidates to be at least 18 years old. We do not knowingly collect information from children under 13. If you believe a child under 13 has provided information to us, please contact the registrar so we can delete it.

8. Changes to This Policy

We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time. We will post the updated policy on this page with a revised effective date. Material changes will be communicated to active candidates by email.

9. Contact