Maine Needsa community effort

Privacy Policy

Effective date: September 22, 2026

This policy explains what information Taurent IT Services LLC ("Taurent," "we," or "us") collects when you use the Maine Needs request application (the "Application"), how we use it, and who we share it with.

Taurent builds and operates the Application on behalf of Maine Needs. Maine Needs owns the information submitted through the Application and decides how it is used to fill requests. Taurent uses that information only to run the Application and support Maine Needs.

1. Information we collect

Account information you give us

When you create an account, you provide:

  • Name
  • Email address
  • Organization name
  • Organization type, role, and whether you hold a professional license
  • Job title

You sign in with a one-time code or link sent to your email address. The Application does not use passwords.

Request information

When you submit a request, the Application stores the details needed to fill it, along with the date, the status, and the account that submitted it. Those details are:

About the request

  • Whether it is a regular request or a bulk order
  • The county and town the request is for, up to two
  • Your organization, as it appears on your account when you submit
  • How many people the request supports
  • Whether other providers are also requesting from Maine Needs for the same people
  • Optional checkboxes that describe who the request supports: veterans, low-income or moderate-income households, LGBTQ+ individuals, first-time recipients, unhoused individuals or minors, people with a mental health diagnosis, domestic-violence survivors, immigrants, and people with a substance-use disorder

About the household

  • A label you pick from a list, such as "Family 1," to tell your requests apart
  • Whether the household is housed or unhoused

About each person

  • Age group and estimated age in years
  • Gender, if you choose to give it
  • Optional special notes about what the person needs

Items

  • The items requested for each person and for the household, with sizes, quantities, and types
  • For children's items, optional notes on interests or preferences
  • For bulk orders, the quantity of each item and an optional reference name for the order

Notes and handling

  • Optional notes you write to Maine Needs
  • Notes Maine Needs staff add for their own use
  • The quantity of each item Maine Needs provided
  • Whether Maine Needs staff marked the request as urgent

The Application is not designed to collect personal information about the people who receive goods. Our Terms of Use ask you not to enter names, contact details, ID numbers, or other identifying information about recipients. If that information is entered, Maine Needs or Taurent may remove it.

Technical information

When you use the Application, our systems automatically record:

  • IP address, browser type, and device type
  • Pages viewed and actions taken, with dates and times
  • Error reports, which may include the page you were on and your account ID

Messages

If you contact Maine Needs or Taurent through the Application or by email, we keep the message.

2. How we use information

We use it to:

  • Create and manage your account and sign you in
  • Deliver your requests to Maine Needs and show you their status
  • Send you emails about your account and requests, such as confirmations and status updates
  • Keep the Application secure, find and fix problems, and prevent misuse
  • Support Maine Needs administrators
  • Meet legal obligations

We do not sell your information, and we do not use it for advertising.

3. Who we share information with

Maine Needs. Maine Needs staff and administrators can see your account information and every request you submit. Maine Needs uses this to fill requests and manage partner accounts. Maine Needs' own privacy practices apply to what it does with the information.

Service providers. We use companies that host the Application and its database, handle sign-in, deliver email, and monitor errors. They process information only to provide those services to us.

Legal reasons. We may share information if the law requires it, to respond to a subpoena or court order, or to protect the rights or safety of Maine Needs, Taurent, or others.

Business transfer. If Taurent is sold or merges with another company, your information may transfer to the new owner under this policy.

We do not share your information with anyone else.

4. Cookies

The Application uses cookies and similar technology only to keep you signed in and to protect against misuse. It does not use advertising cookies or third-party tracking. You can clear cookies in your browser, but you will need to sign in again.

5. How long we keep information

  • Account information: while your account is active. After Maine Needs deactivates your account, we keep it for 12 months and then delete or anonymize it, unless the law requires us to keep it longer.
  • Request information: as long as Maine Needs needs it for its records. Maine Needs controls this.
  • Technical logs and error reports: 90 days.
  • Records of account and request activity, such as approvals and status changes: kept with Maine Needs' request records.
  • Record of your acceptance of the Terms of Use: six years after your account is deactivated.

If the agreement between Taurent and Maine Needs ends, Taurent returns the information to Maine Needs and deletes its own copies, except for backups that are overwritten in the normal course.

6. Security

We use reasonable administrative, technical, and physical safeguards to protect your information, including encrypted connections and access controls. No system is completely secure, and we cannot guarantee the security of your information. If we confirm a security incident affecting your information, we will notify Maine Needs, and Maine Needs or Taurent will notify you as the law requires.

7. Your choices

  • You can update your profile details, such as your name and organization, on the Settings page in the Application. To change your sign-in email address, contact your Maine Needs administrator.
  • To close your account, ask your Maine Needs administrator to deactivate it. We then handle your information as described in Section 5.
  • Emails about your account and requests are part of the service. We do not send marketing email.
  • To request a copy of the information we hold about you, contact us at the address below.

8. Children

The Application is for adults working with Maine Needs and its partners. It is not intended for anyone under 18, and we do not knowingly collect information from children.

9. Changes to this policy

We may update this policy. We will post the new version in the Application with a new effective date, and we will notify Maine Needs in advance of material changes.

10. Contact

Taurent IT Services LLC
91 Auburn St, Ste J1186
Portland, ME 04103
privacy@taurent.com

For questions about how Maine Needs uses your information, contact Maine Needs: support@maineneeds.org