What we collect, how we use and share it, and the rights you have over your information, in plain terms.
Desert Stream Ministries (“Desert Stream,” “we,” “us,” or “our”) respects your privacy and is committed to handling your personal information responsibly. This Privacy Policy explains what information we collect, how we use and share it, and the rights you have over your information when you visit our websites, including queeredout.com, www.desertstream.org, and any other websites, services, or applications we operate that link to this Privacy Policy (collectively, the “Services”).
By using the Services, you acknowledge that you have read and understood this Privacy Policy. If you do not agree with it, please do not use the Services.
Desert Stream Ministries is a religious nonprofit organization that provides resources, programs, and content related to sexual integration, healing, and discipleship from a Christian perspective. We are the controller of personal information collected through the Services unless otherwise stated.
If you have questions about this Privacy Policy or our handling of your information, you may contact us.
We collect information you provide to us when you interact with the Services, including when you:
The specific information we collect depends on what you provide and the context of the interaction. It may include your name, email address, postal address, phone number, demographic information, and any other information you choose to share.
Because of the subject matter of our ministry, you may voluntarily share information that some privacy laws classify as sensitive, including information related to religious beliefs, spiritual practices, sexuality, mental or emotional health, or family relationships. We collect such information only when you choose to share it with us, and we use it only for the purposes for which you shared it (for example, to respond to a prayer request, provide pastoral support, or evaluate fit for a program).
We do not require you to share sensitive information to access most of our Services. We do not sell sensitive information.
When you access the Services, we and our service providers may automatically collect certain technical information, including:
We may receive information about you from third parties, including social media platforms (if you interact with us through them), advertising partners, analytics providers, and payment processors. We use this information consistent with this Privacy Policy and the practices of the third party.
We use the information we collect for the following purposes:
Where required by applicable law, we will obtain your consent before using your information for purposes that go beyond what is described in this Privacy Policy.
We and our service providers use cookies, web beacons, pixels, software development kits, and similar technologies (collectively, “Cookies”) to operate the Services, remember your preferences, measure performance, and deliver relevant content and advertising.
The categories of Cookies we use include:
Most browsers allow you to refuse or delete Cookies through your browser settings. Doing so may limit your ability to use certain features of the Services. We do not respond to browser “Do Not Track” signals at this time, as there is no industry standard for how to interpret them.
We do not sell your personal information for monetary consideration. We share information only as described in this Privacy Policy.
We share information with vendors and service providers that perform services on our behalf, including:
These service providers are authorized to use your information only as necessary to provide services to us and are bound by contractual obligations to keep it confidential.
Where you specifically request services that involve a partner or affiliated organization (such as a local Living Waters group, CrossCurrent community, or training host), we may share the information necessary to connect you with that partner. We make reasonable efforts to ensure that such partners handle your information responsibly.
We may disclose information when we believe in good faith that disclosure is necessary to:
In the unlikely event of a merger, acquisition, restructuring, dissolution, or transfer of all or part of our operations, your information may be transferred as part of that transaction, subject to appropriate confidentiality protections.
We may share aggregated or de-identified information (information that cannot reasonably be used to identify you) for any purpose. We will not attempt to re-identify de-identified information.
We use third-party advertising and analytics services, including but not limited to Meta (Facebook and Instagram), Google, Reddit, YouTube, and other platforms, to deliver content about our ministry to potentially interested audiences and to measure the effectiveness of our outreach.
These services may use Cookies and pixels to collect information about your interactions with our Services and other websites, and may use that information to show you our content on their platforms (and, in some cases, the platforms of their advertising partners). They may also use information from their own platforms to determine whether you are a suitable audience for our content.
You may opt out of interest-based advertising from many advertising networks. Resources include:
Opting out of interest-based advertising does not stop ads from being shown to you; it stops them from being targeted based on your interests as inferred from your online behavior.
The Services may contain links to third-party websites, products, or services that we do not operate. We are not responsible for the privacy practices of those third parties. We encourage you to read their privacy policies before providing them with personal information.
The Services are not directed to children under the age of 13, and we do not knowingly collect personal information from children under 13. If you are under 13, please do not use the Services or provide any personal information to us.
If you are between 13 and 18 (or the age of legal majority in your jurisdiction), please use the Services only with the involvement of a parent or guardian. If we learn that we have collected personal information from a child under 13 without verifiable parental consent, we will take reasonable steps to delete that information promptly.
If you believe we may have collected information from a child under 13, please contact us.
Depending on where you live, you may have certain rights with respect to your personal information. Where applicable law gives you a right, we will honor that right as required by that law.
You may have the right to:
If you are a California resident, the California Consumer Privacy Act and the California Privacy Rights Act provide you with specific rights regarding your personal information, including the right to know what categories and specific pieces of personal information we have collected, the categories of sources, the purposes for collection, and the categories of third parties with whom we share it; the right to delete personal information (subject to exceptions); the right to correct inaccurate personal information; the right to opt out of the “sale” or “sharing” of personal information (we do not sell personal information for money, and you may opt out of any sharing that constitutes “sharing” under California law by contacting us); the right to limit the use and disclosure of sensitive personal information; and the right not to receive discriminatory treatment for exercising these rights.
To exercise these rights, contact us. We will verify your request before responding. You may also designate an authorized agent to make a request on your behalf, subject to verification.
Residents of Virginia, Colorado, Connecticut, Utah, Texas, Oregon, and other states with comprehensive privacy laws may have similar rights to those described above. To exercise these rights, please contact us.
If you are located in the European Economic Area, the United Kingdom, or Switzerland, the General Data Protection Regulation and similar laws give you the rights described above and additional rights, including the right to lodge a complaint with a supervisory authority.
Our legal bases for processing your personal information include: your consent; the performance of a contract with you; compliance with our legal obligations; and our legitimate interests in operating, promoting, and improving our ministry, where those interests are not overridden by your rights.
Where we transfer personal information outside of the EEA, the UK, or Switzerland, we rely on appropriate safeguards, including the European Commission’s Standard Contractual Clauses or equivalent mechanisms.
To exercise any of the rights described above, please contact us. We may need to verify your identity before fulfilling your request. We will respond within the timeframes required by applicable law.
We retain personal information for as long as needed to fulfill the purposes described in this Privacy Policy, comply with our legal and regulatory obligations, resolve disputes, and enforce our agreements. Retention periods depend on the type of information and the purpose for which it was collected. When personal information is no longer needed, we will delete, anonymize, or otherwise dispose of it in a secure manner.
We use reasonable administrative, technical, and physical safeguards to protect the personal information we hold against unauthorized access, use, alteration, or disclosure. No method of transmission over the internet or method of electronic storage is 100% secure, however, and we cannot guarantee absolute security.
If you believe your interaction with us is no longer secure, please notify us immediately through the contact page.
Desert Stream Ministries is based in the United States. If you access the Services from outside the United States, you understand that your information will be transferred to, stored, and processed in the United States and other jurisdictions where data protection laws may differ from those in your country. By using the Services, you consent to such transfer, storage, and processing.
We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time. When we make material changes, we will revise the “Last Updated” date at the top of this policy and, where required by law, provide additional notice (such as by email or a prominent notice on the Services). Your continued use of the Services after we post a revised Privacy Policy means you accept the changes.