Did you get an email about a privacy update for the “online directory” from St. Luke’s? Keep reading!!
We use a membership database called Realm, by ACS Technologies. It allows church members and staff to log in online and see a digital directory of other members. Realm recently released updates to their system, permitting people to make changes to their privacy settings.
Good news? They are diligent about your privacy and constantly improving the system.
Bad news? After the update, by default, the system blocks all of your contact information from view to other members as it sets all of your details to “private.”
This means that, to include you in a paper directory to pick up in church, or to include you in the exact same digital version online in our secure online portal, the church office changed your privacy settings BACK to what they were before the updates, which generated the privacy email(s) you received. Why more than one email? For every line of your profile, the privacy setting had to be reset. Address 1, Address 2, Email 1, Email 2, and Phone are the standard five fields that had to be reset, hence five emails.
What does this mean to me?
The system took your previously public information and set it to “private” and the church office set it back to “public” at which point the system sent you an email. In essence, nothing has changed.
What is shared?
Contact information for you is included in the St. Luke’s printed and digital directories. Email, phone number, and address are included so that people can call you, email you, or send you a card. You can manually log in and override this if you wish not to be included in a print directory. This information is NOT SHARED with the general public/local community. The “Public” setting only means the “public” of St. Luke’s can see your contact information, meaning other church members.
Is information for my kids online?! Is this safe?!
You and your children, family, and relatives are ABSOLUTELY secure. Children’s details do not appear in the digital directory, even if you received an email that says they do, because anyone under 18 is protected and will not be listed online. The email was automatically generated as part of a mass privacy setting change, but protections for minors always override this change. The ONLY thing the directory shows for anyone under 18 is their name.
Is MY information secure?
Yes – our membership portal cannot be accessed by just anyone. You are invited to create a login when you first join St. Luke’s, or periodically throughout the year by church staff. Only people who attend the church as members are sent invitations to join the directory. The information that is visible is exactly the same as what would go into a printed directory. Our portal is encrypted and secure through ACS Technologies, who has been the leader in church membership software for decades.
For other questions, concerns, or help, please contact Tara in the church office at 973-744-6220 x 301 or communications@slechurch.org. We value and respect your privacy and are always here to answer any questions you may have.