Overview
Alabama Lightwave, Inc. (“Alabama Lightwave,” “Lightwave,” “we,” “us,” or “our”) runs a wireless internet network. To do that, we collect some information from and about you. This policy explains what we collect, how we use it, what we won’t do with it, and what rights you have over it.
The plain-language version is that we collect the information we need to provide service, bill you accurately, run the network, and handle legal obligations. We do not sell your browsing history, your physical location, your usage records, or any other information we collect from you to advertisers, data brokers, or anyone else.
This policy applies to alabamalightwave.com, the Lightwave LINK app, and the services we sell to residential, business, essential-worker, and Dedicated Internet Access (DIA) customers.
Information We Collect
Information you give us when you sign up
When you become a customer, we ask for:
- Your name, service address, mailing address (if different), email, and phone number
- A government-issued ID for fraud prevention on certain plan changes
- A payment method (credit card, ACH details, or check information)
- Optional: proof of essential-worker status if you are claiming the discount on our Essential Workers page
Information generated by your service
To run the network and bill you accurately, our systems automatically record:
- Account-level totals such as monthly bandwidth used, signal strength at your radio, uptime, and equipment status
- Connection records (IP address assignments, MAC address of your Lightwave-installed radio, session start and end times)
- Technical diagnostics from your radio that our technicians use for troubleshooting
- Support records (notes from any conversation you have with our team)
We do not collect the contents of your traffic, the websites you visit, the search terms you type, the apps you use, the names of files you upload or download, or anything similar. The only time we look at the substance of network traffic is when we are responding to a specific lawful request from law enforcement, where required by law.
Information from the Lightwave LINK app
The Lightwave LINK app provides severe-weather camera feeds, account information, and outage notifications. To make that work, the app collects:
- Account credentials and the device the app is installed on
- App usage data (which screens you open, when, and how often)
- If you opt in: your approximate location, used to surface the camera feeds and outage notices most relevant to you
Location and usage data inside the app are not shared with advertisers or third-party data brokers.
Information from our website
When you browse alabamalightwave.com, our servers record standard web logs (IP address, user agent, referring page, pages visited). We use Google Analytics to count visits in aggregate and to understand which pages get the most traffic. Google Analytics sets first-party cookies on your browser and reports anonymized usage data to Google, who processes that data under their own privacy policy. You can opt out site-wide by installing the Google Analytics Opt-out Browser Add-on. We do not use third-party advertising trackers, behavioral retargeting pixels, fingerprinting libraries, or session-replay tools. We do not sell or share your browsing data with advertisers or data brokers.
How We Use Information
We use the information we collect to:
- Set up, install, and provide your service
- Bill you and process payments
- Operate, monitor, and maintain the network
- Respond when you contact customer support
- Investigate fraud, suspected unauthorized use, or violations of our Network Management Policy
- Comply with applicable law, valid legal process, and lawful government requests
- Communicate with you about your account, planned maintenance, outages, and material changes to service
We do not use any of the information we collect for behavioral advertising or targeted advertising of any kind.
What We Do Not Do
We do not:
- Sell your information to advertisers, data brokers, or anyone else
- Share your browsing or usage records with third parties for marketing
- Inject advertisements or tracking into your traffic
- Use deep packet inspection for advertising or profiling
- Sell, rent, or trade your contact information
- Allow our service vendors to use your information for their own marketing
When We Share Information
We share information only in the following circumstances:
Service providers. We use a small number of vendors to run the business: a payment processor for credit-card and ACH transactions, an email delivery service for billing notices, an accounting platform for our books, and a customer-support platform that holds support records. Each vendor receives only the information they need to perform their function, and each is bound by a contract requiring them to protect that information and not use it for their own purposes.
Network operations. Our network equipment vendors and the operators of the upstream networks we connect to may, in the course of carrying traffic, see traffic metadata (source/destination IP addresses, packet sizes, timestamps) just like any other network on the internet. This is inherent to how the internet works.
Lawful requests. We will respond to valid subpoenas, court orders, search warrants, and other legal process from law enforcement and courts. We require process that is appropriate to the request (a court order for a wiretap, for example) and we will narrow our response to what is required.
Emergencies. We will share information when we have a good-faith belief that doing so is necessary to prevent imminent harm to a person, including in response to 911 calls placed over Lightwave TALK.
Business transfers. If Alabama Lightwave is sold or merges with another company, customer information will transfer with the business. We will notify customers and the new owner will be bound by this policy or a substantially similar one until customers are given the opportunity to consent to any change.
Information Security
We secure customer information with reasonable administrative, technical, and physical controls, including:
- Encryption in transit on alabamalightwave.com, the customer portal, and the Lightwave LINK app
- Encryption at rest for billing, payment, and customer-record data
- Access controls inside our company: only the people who need a record to do their job can see it
- Annual review of access privileges
No system is perfect. If we ever discover a breach affecting your information, we will notify you and the relevant authorities as required by law.
How Long We Keep Information
We keep information only as long as we have a reason to:
- Account records and billing history: for as long as you are a customer, and for seven years after service ends, to comply with tax and accounting requirements
- Network connection records and diagnostic logs: typically thirty to ninety days, longer where we are required to retain them
- Support tickets and conversations: for two years, to be able to reference prior issues
- Backups: rolling, with deletions following the schedules above
Your Rights
You have the right to ask us:
- What information we have about you
- To correct anything that is wrong
- To delete your information, subject to records we are required by law to retain
- To stop using your information for purposes other than running your service
- To receive a copy of your information in a portable format
To exercise any of these rights, contact us using the details at the bottom of this page. We will respond within a reasonable time and at no charge. If you are a California resident, you have specific rights under the CCPA/CPRA and we will honor them.
You can also unsubscribe from non-account email at any time using the link in any non-account email we send.
Children’s Privacy
Lightwave service is sold to adults. We do not knowingly collect information from children under thirteen, and the Lightwave LINK app and our website are not directed at children. If a parent or guardian believes a child has provided us information, contact us and we will delete it.
Changes to This Policy
We reserve the right to update this policy from time to time. When we make material changes, we will post the updated policy on this page, update the “Last updated” date at the top, and notify active customers by email or in the customer portal. Continued use of our service after a material change is posted constitutes acceptance of the revised policy.
Contact
Privacy questions, access requests, or concerns can be sent to:
Alabama Lightwave, Inc.
Attn: Privacy
38 Court Square West
Centreville, AL 35042
Phone: (205) 809-9051
Email: info@alabamalightwave.com