Disclosures & Ethics

Disclosures, bylaws & ethics

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Privacy Policy

(Approved by Board 9/25/12)

At AgSouth Farm Credit, we recognize your expectation of privacy and confidentiality of personal financial information when seeking the assistance of outside professionals to obtain credit. We have taken great care in establishing and implementing policies and procedures and have committed to an ongoing review of those policies and procedures to protect your personal and financial information.

Your privacy is a top priority in all aspects of our business. Our employees are informed of their responsibility to protect your confidential information and are governed by strict standards of conduct, which prohibit unauthorized use of your information. Security procedures and internal controls are also in place to protect your privacy.

On this site, we collect personally identifiable information (such as name, address, SSN) only if specifically and knowingly provided by you. We do not give, sell or transfer any personal information to third parties, unless required by law or under such other permissible purposes as set forth by regulation.

Information Collected and Stored Automatically

On our website, we collect and store information about your visit for security reasons, as well as for site research and enhancement. We do not track or record information about individuals and their visits. Through the use of cookies (a file placed on your hard drive by a website that allows it to monitor your use of the site), we automatically collect and store only the following information about your visit:

• Your internet domain (for example, "xcompany.com") if you use a private Internet access account and IP address (an IP address is a number that is automatically assigned to your computer whenever you are surfing the web) from which you access our site;
• The type of browser and operating system used to access our site;
• The date and time you access our site;
• The pages you visit; and
• If you linked to our site from another website, the address of that website.

Information Collected from Emails and Web Forms

If you complete one of our interactive forms or submit an email through our website, your information will be used as described at the point of collection. It may be seen and used by Farm Credit employees, but will not be provided to a non-affiliated third parties. If you are not comfortable providing the requested information via email or web forms, please contact us by calling 912.764.9091 or by writing to us at 40 South Main Street, Statesboro, GA 30458.
We will not obtain personally-identifying information about you when you visit our site, unless you choose to provide such information to us. Farm Credit limits the use and collection of all information to that which is necessary to maintain and administer financial services, provide excellent service and offer new products and services that may be of benefit to you. If, for any reason, you would like to be removed from our distribution list, please contact us at the number or address indicated above, or by contacting us via our Information Request form.

We may use third party suppliers and/or service providers to facilitate our services. For example, we may outsource one or more aspects of our site to a supplier or service provider who performs services according to our requirements. In all cases we restrict how these suppliers or service providers may access, use or disclose your information. In general, we do not permit these suppliers or service providers to retain, disclose or sell your information to third parties.

Security, Intrusion and Detection

Data encryption - If you are using a security-enabled browser (such as Microsoft Internet Explorer version 2.1 or greater, or Netscape Navigator version 2.0 or greater), the information you provide us is encrypted, making it extremely difficult to read, even if it is wrongly intercepted. Our website uses industry-standard Secure Sockets Layer (SSL) technology to allow for the encryption of potentially sensitive information such as your name and address and critically sensitive information such as your social security number or account number.

For website security purposes and to ensure that this site remains available to all users, traffic on the site is monitored to identify unauthorized attempts to upload or change information, or cause damage. Unauthorized attempts to upload or change information on to this website are strictly prohibited, and may be punishable under the law.

Weblinking & Children's Online Privacy Protection

Our privacy policy only addresses our activities from our website. This website is not directed at children nor do we collect any personally identifiable information from children. We may provide links to independent websites maintained by various federal agencies or other organizations, solely as a benefit to our customers. These other sites may have their own policies, which we do not control, and thus are not addressed by our policy. We do not endorse, approve or guarantee information, products, services or recommendations provided at any of the sites to which we have provided links.

We are not responsible for the content or accuracy of any of these links sites, nor are we responsible for any loss or damage of any sort resulting from the use of a link on any linked websites. We are not liable for any failure of products or services advertised or provided on these linked sites. We offer these links on an "as is" basis.

When you visit a linked website by using the link on our site, you will no longer be protected by our privacy policy or security practices. You should always familiarize yourself with the privacy policy and security practices of any website you visit.

Guidance for Our Customers Against E-Mail and Internet-Related Fraudulent Schemes

E-mail and Internet-related fraudulent schemes, such as "phishing" (pronounced "fishing"), are being perpetrated with increasing frequency, creativity and intensity. Phishing involves the use of seemingly legitimate email messages and websites to deceive consumers into disclosing sensitive information, such as bank or loan account information, social security numbers, credit card numbers, passwords and personal identification numbers (PINs). The perpetrator of the fraudulent e-mail message may use various means to convince the recipient that the message is legitimate and from a trusted source with which the recipient has an established business relationship. Techniques such as a false "from" address or the use of seemingly legitimate company logos, weblinks and graphics may be used to mislead e-mail recipients.

In most phishing schemes, the fraudulent email message will request that recipients "update" or "validate" their financial or personal information in order to maintain their accounts, and direct them to a fraudulent website that may look very similar to the website of the legitimate business. These websites may include copied or "spoofed" pages from legitimate websites to further trick consumers into thinking they are responding to a bona fide request. Some consumers will mistakenly submit financial and personal information to the perpetrator who will use it to gain access to financial records or accounts, commit identity theft or engage in other illegal acts.

Ways We Are Working to Protect Your Information from Fraud and Identity Theft

• We will never send e-mail messages that request confidential information, such as account numbers, passwords or PINs;
• We will work to notify internet service providers, domain name-issuing companies, and law enforcement to shut down fraudulent websites and other internet resources that may be used to facilitate phishing or other email and internet-related fraudulent schemes directed towards our customers;
• We maintain suspicious activity monitoring and employ additional identity verification controls;
• We will offer our customers assistance when fraud is detected in connection with customer accounts; and
• As appropriate, we will notify the proper authorities when email and internet-related fraudulent schemes are detected.

Additional Tips on Protecting Yourself from Fraud and Identity Theft

• The safest approach is to immediately delete e-mail from unknown sources, before opening the email.
• Avoid clicking on any links in unsolicited email, particularly emails that ask (either directly or by pointing to a website) for personal, financial or identity information. Instead, directly type the website destination into your browser or use a trusted bookmark to verify the site or to log into your account directly.
• Always access our website by using a trusted bookmark of our site or by directly typing our website address into your browser. Check to ensure you have typed the address correctly before providing personal information on the site.
• When using Digital Banking, check to ensure that the padlock icon appears in your browser's status bar. It indicates that your information is secure during transmission.
• When you click on the VeriSign logo on our Digital Banking log-in page, it should take you to a site indicating that "www.farmcredit.net" is a VeriSign Secure Site and should display the following information:

Name

WWW.FARMCREDIT.NET

Status

Valid

Validity Period

(Example: 01-AUG-03 - 31-JUL-04) 
Check to ensure validity period is current.

Server ID Information 

Country = US
State = South Carolina
Locality = Columbia
Organization = AgFirst Farm Credit Bank
Organizational Unit = Network Systems Services
Organizational Unit = Terms of use at www.verisign.com/rpa (c)00
Common Name = www.farmcredit.net

• If you receive an email that warns you, with little or no notice, that an account of yours will be shut down unless you reconfirm your billing information, do not reply or click on the link in the email. Instead, contact the company cited in the email using a telephone number or website address you know to be genuine.
• You may also wish to contact your internet service provider for support in blocking emails or subscribing to a spam or junk email filter they may offer.
• Ensure your home computer has adequate anti-virus software and remember to update it frequently.

Reporting Suspicious or Fraudulent Communications and Transactions
You should promptly report suspicious activity or email communications to the Federal Trade Commission (FTC). Send the actual email you received to uce@ftc.gov. If you believe you've been scammed, file your complaint at ftc.gov, then visit the FTC's Identity Theft website ftc.gov/idtheft to learn how to minimize your risk of damage from identity theft.

If you receive a suspicious message that appears to be coming from us, or discover a potentially phony AgSouth Farm Credit, ACA website, please let us know by calling 800-633-9091, ext 2627 or by contacting us via our Information Request form so that we may take appropriate action.

(Approved by Board 9/25/12)

California Consumer Privacy Act Disclosure

This PRIVACY NOTICE FOR CALIFORNIA RESIDENTS supplements the information contained in the AgSouth Farm Credit, ACA (“AgSouth ” or “we”) Privacy Policy and applies solely to visitors, users, and others who are residents of the State of California pursuant to Section 17014 of Title 18 of the California Code of Regulations (“consumers” or “you”). We adopt this notice to comply with the California Consumer Privacy Act of 2018 (“CCPA”) and other applicable California privacy laws.  Any terms defined in the CCPA have the same meaning when used in this notice.

Information We Collect

We collect information that identifies, relates to, describes, references, is capable of being associated with, or could reasonably be linked, directly or indirectly, with a particular consumer or device (e.g. desktop or laptop computer, smart phone, or similar device) (“personal information”). In particular, we have collected the following categories of personal information from consumers within the last twelve (12) months:

Category	Examples	Collected
A. Identifiers.	A real name, alias, postal address, unique personal identifier, online identifier, Internet Protocol address, email address, account name, Social Security number, driver's license number, passport number, or other similar identifiers.	YES
B. Personal information categories listed in the California Customer Records statute (Cal. Civ. Code § 1798.80(e)).	A name, signature, Social Security number, physical characteristics or description, address, telephone number, passport number, driver's license or state identification card number, insurance policy number, education, employment, employment history, bank account number, credit card number, debit card number, or any other financial information, medical information, or health insurance information. Some personal information included in this category may overlap with other categories.	YES
C. Protected classification characteristics under California or federal law.	Age (40 years or older), race, color, ancestry, national origin, citizenship, religion or creed, marital status, medical condition, physical or mental disability, sex (including gender, gender identity, gender expression, pregnancy or childbirth and related medical conditions), sexual orientation, veteran or military status, genetic information (including familial genetic information).	YES
D. Commercial information.	Records of personal property, products or services purchased, obtained, or considered, or other purchasing or consuming histories or tendencies.	YES
E. Biometric information.	Genetic, physiological, behavioral, and biological characteristics, or activity patterns used to extract a template or other identifier or identifying information, such as, fingerprints, faceprints, and voiceprints, iris or retina scans, keystroke, gait, or other physical patterns, and sleep, health, or exercise data.	NO
F. Internet or other similar network activity.	Browsing history, search history, information on a consumer's interaction with a website, application, or advertisement.	YES
G. Geolocation data.	Physical location or movements.	YES
H. Sensory data.	Audio, electronic, visual, thermal, olfactory, or similar information.	YES
I. Professional or employment-related information.	Current or past job history or performance evaluations.	YES
J. Non-public education information (per the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (20 U.S.C. Section 1232g, 34 C.F.R. Part 99)).	Education records directly related to a student maintained by an educational institution or party acting on its behalf, such as grades, transcripts, class lists, student schedules, student identification codes, student financial information, or student disciplinary records.	YES
K. Inferences drawn from other personal information.	Profile reflecting a person's preferences, characteristics, psychological trends, predispositions, behavior, attitudes, intelligence, abilities, and aptitudes.	YES

Personal information does not include:

• Publicly available information from government records.
• De-identified or aggregated consumer information.
• Information excluded from the CCPA's scope, like:
  • Health or medical information covered by the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996 (HIPAA) and the California Confidentiality of Medical Information Act (CMIA) or clinical trial data;
  • Personal information covered by certain sector-specific privacy laws, including the Fair Credit Reporting Act (FRCA), the Gramm-Leach-Bliley Act (GLBA) or California Financial Information Privacy Act (FIPA), and the Driver's Privacy Protection Act of 1994.

Use of Personal Information

AgSouth may use or disclose the personal information we collect, for either itself or its business partners or associations, for one or more of the following business purposes:

• To fulfill or meet the reason for which the information is provided. For example, if you share your name and contact information while inquiring about our services, requesting information or materials, or ask a question about our products or services, we will use that personal information to respond to your inquiry.
• To provide you with information, products or services that you request from us.
• To process your requests, transactions, and payments and prevent transactional fraud.
• To carry out our obligations and enforce our rights arising from any contracts entered into between you and us, including for billing and collections.
• To improve our website and present its contents to you.
• For testing, research, analysis and product development.
• As necessary or appropriate to protect the rights, property or safety of us, our clients or others.
• To respond to law enforcement requests and as required by applicable law, court order, or governmental regulations.
• As described to you when collecting your personal information or as otherwise set forth in the CCPA.

AgSouth will not collect additional categories of personal information or use the personal information we collected for materially different, unrelated, or incompatible purposes without providing you any required notice.

Sharing Personal Information

AgSouth may disclose your personal information to a third party for a business purpose.  When we disclose personal information for a business purpose, we may enter a contract that describes the purpose and requires the recipient to both keep that personal information confidential and not use it for any purpose except performing the contract.

In the preceding twelve (12) months, we may have disclosed the following categories of personal information for a business purpose:  Categories A, B, C, D, F, G, H, I, J, and K.

We disclose your personal information for a business purpose to the following categories of third parties:

• Legal entities established pursuant to the Farm Credit Act of 1971.
• Contracts and service providers.
• Third parties to whom we partner to offer products and services to you.

In the preceding twelve (12) months, we have not sold any personal information. For purposes of this Disclosure, “sold” means the disclosure of Personal Information to a third-party for monetary or other valuable consideration.

Your Rights and Choices

The CCPA provides consumers (California residents) with specific rights regarding their personal information. This section describes your CCPA rights and explains how to exercise those rights.

Access to Specific Information and Data Portability Rights

You have the right to request that we disclose certain information to you about our collection and use of your personal information over the past 12 months. Once we receive and confirm your verifiable consumer request, we will disclose to you:

• The categories of personal information we collected about you.
• The categories of sources for the personal information we collected about you.
• Our business or commercial purpose for collecting or selling that personal information.
• The categories of third parties with whom we share that personal information.
• The specific pieces of personal information we collected about you (also called a data portability request).
• If we sold or disclosed your personal information for a business purpose, two separate lists disclosing:
  • Sales, identifying the personal information categories that each category of recipient purchased; and
  • Disclosures for a business purpose, identifying the personal information categories that each category of recipient obtained.

Deletion Request Rights

You have the right to request that we delete any of your personal information that we collected from you and retained, subject to certain exceptions. Once we receive and confirm your verifiable consumer request, we will delete (and direct our service providers to delete) your personal information from our records, unless an exception or good faith, commercially reasonable business justification applies.

We may deny your deletion request if retaining the information is necessary for us or our service providers to:

1. Complete the transaction for which we collected the personal information, provide a good or service that you requested, take actions reasonably anticipated within the context of our ongoing business relationship with you, or otherwise perform our contract with you.
2. Detect security incidents, protect against malicious, deceptive, fraudulent, or illegal activity, or prosecute those responsible for such activities.
3. Debug products to identify and repair errors that impair existing intended functionality.
4. Exercise free speech, ensure the right of another consumer to exercise their free speech rights, or exercise another right provided for by law.
5. Comply with the California Electronic Communications Privacy Act (Cal. Penal Code § 1546 ).
6. Engage in public or peer-reviewed scientific, historical, or statistical research in the public interest that adheres to all other applicable ethics and privacy laws, when the information's deletion may likely render impossible or seriously impair the research's achievement, if you previously provided informed consent.
7. Enable solely internal uses that are reasonably aligned with consumer expectations based on your relationship with us.
8. Comply with a present or potential legal obligation.
9. Make other internal and lawful uses of that information that are compatible with the context in which you provided it.

Exercising Access, Data Portability, and Deletion Rights

To exercise the access, data portability, and deletion rights described above, please submit a verifiable consumer request to us by either:

• Calling us at (800) 633-9091
• Emailing agslegal@agsouthfc.com

Only you or a person registered with the California Secretary of State that you authorize to act on your behalf, may make a verifiable consumer request related to your personal information. You may also make a verifiable consumer request on behalf of your minor child.

You may only make a verifiable consumer request for access or data portability twice within a 12-month period. The verifiable consumer request must:

• Provide sufficient information that allows us to reasonably verify you are the person about whom we collected personal information or an authorized representative.
• Describe your request with sufficient detail that allows us to properly understand, evaluate, and respond to it.

We cannot provide you with personal information if we cannot verify your identity or authority to make the request and confirm the personal information relates to you. 

Making a verifiable consumer request does not require you to create an account with us. 

We will only use personal information provided in a verifiable consumer request to verify the requestor's identity or authority to make the request.

Response Timing and Format

Pursuant to the CCPA we will attempt to respond to a verifiable consumer request within forty five (45) days of its receipt.  If we require more time (up to 90 days), we will inform you of the reason and extension period in writing. 

We will deliver our written response by mail or electronically, at your option. 

Pursuant to the CCPA any disclosures we provide will only cover the twelve (12) month period preceding the verifiable consumer request's receipt.  The response we provide will also explain the reasons we cannot comply with a request, if applicable.

We typically do not charge a fee to process or respond to your verifiable consumer request unless it is excessive, repetitive, or manifestly unfounded.  If we determine that the request warrants a fee, we will tell you why we made that decision and provide you with a cost estimate before completing your request.

Non-Discrimination

AgSouth will not discriminate against you for exercising any of your CCPA rights. Unless permitted by the CCPA, we will not:

• Deny you goods or services.
• Charge you different prices or rates for goods or services, including through granting discounts or other benefits, or imposing penalties.
• Provide you a different level or quality of goods or services.
• Suggest that you may receive a different price or rate for goods or services or a different level or quality of goods or services.

Changes to Our Privacy Notice

We reserve the right to amend this privacy notice at our discretion and at any time. When we make changes to this privacy notice, we will notify you through a notice on our website homepage. Your continued use of our Website following the posting of changes constitutes your acceptance of such changes.

Contact Information

If you have any questions or comments about this notice, our Privacy Statement, the ways in which we collect and use your personal information, your choices and rights regarding such use, or wish to exercise your rights under California law, please do not hesitate to contact us at:

Phone: (800) 633-9091
Website: www.agsouthfc.com
Email: agslegal@agsouthfc.com
Postal Address: 26 S. Main Street, Statesboro, GA 30458
Attn: Legal

 

Equal Housing Lender

We are an Equal Housing Lender/Equal Opportunity Lender. As an Equal Housing Lender/Equal Opportunity Lender, we do not discriminate on the basis of race, color, national origin, religion, sex, handicap or familial status (having children under the age of 18).

Fair Housing Act

UNDER THE FEDERAL FAIR HOUSING ACT, IT IS ILLEGAL, ON THE BASIS OF RACE, COLOR, NATIONAL ORIGIN, RELIGION, SEX, HANDICAP, OR FAMILIAL STATUS (HAVING CHILDREN UNDER THE AGE OF 18), TO:

Deny a loan for the purpose of purchasing, constructing, improving, repairing, or maintaining a dwelling, or to deny any loan secured by a dwelling; or Discriminate in fixing the amount, interest rate, duration, application procedures, or other terms or conditions of such a loan, or in appraising property.

IF YOU BELIEVE YOU HAVE BEEN DISCRIMINATED AGAINST, YOU SHOULD SEND A COMPLAINT TO:

Assistant Secretary for Fair Housing and Equal Opportunity
Department of Housing and Urban Development
Washington, DC 20410

AND TO:

Farm Credit Administration
Office of Congressional and Public Affairs
1501 Farm Credit Drive
McLean, Virginia 22102-5090

Equal Credit Opportunity

UNDER THE EQUAL CREDIT OPPORTUNITY ACT, IT IS ILLEGAL TO DISCRIMINATE IN ANY CREDIT TRANSACTION:

On the basis of race, color, national origin, religion, sex, marital status, or age; Because income is from public assistance; or Because a right has been exercised under the Consumer Credit Protection Act.

IF YOU BELIEVE YOU HAVE BEEN DISCRIMINATED AGAINST, YOU SHOULD SEND A COMPLAINT TO:

Farm Credit Administration
Office of Congressional and Public Affairs
1501 Farm Credit Drive
McLean, Virginia 22102-5090

Home Mortgage Disclosure Act

UNDER THE HOME MORTGAGE DISCLOSURE ACT, IT IS THE DUTY OF DEPOSITORY INSTITUTIONS LIKE AGSOUTH TO REPORT:

The number and total dollar amount of mortgage loans which were (A) originated (or for which the institution received completed applications), or (B) purchased by that institution during each fiscal year.

Equal Opportunity Employer

AgSouth Farm Credit, ACA is an equal employment opportunity employer and we do not discriminate in our employment practices due to race, color, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, pregnancy (including childbirth or related medical condition), age, religion, national origin, protected veteran, service member, citizen or disability status, or any other class protected by federal, state or local law.

Equal Opportunity Public Notification Policy

USDA is an equal opportunity provider and employer. To file a complaint of discrimination, write:

USDA, Office of the Assistance Secretary for Civil Rights, Office of Acfjudication, 1400 Independence Ave., Sw, Washington, DC 20250-9410 or call (866) 632-9992 (Tollfree Customer Service,) 877-8339 (Local or Federal relay), (866) 377-8642 (Relay voice users).

Association Bylaws

Our bylaws govern the way our Association operates and serves members like you.

Download and read (PDF 553 kb)

Code of Ethics

Our code of ethics explains our promise to act transparently and in good trust for our members and agricultural community.

Download and read (PDF 16 kb)

Internal Control Policy

Download and read (PDF 177 kb)

Pay Transparency Policy

AgSouth Farm Credit will not discharge or in any other manner discriminate against employees or applicants because they have inquired about, discussed, or disclosed their own pay or the pay of another employee or applicant. However, employees who have access to the compensation information of other employees or applicants as a part of their essential job functions cannot disclose the pay of other employees or applicants to individuals who do not otherwise have access to compensation information, unless the disclosure is (a) in response to a formal complaint or charge, (b) in furtherance of an investigation, proceeding, hearing, or action, including an investigation conducted by the employer, or (c) consistent with the AgSouth’s legal duty to furnish information.

Whistleblower Hotline

AgSouth is committed to conducting its affairs to the highest standards of ethics, integrity, and honesty.  To help us deliver on this commitment, we have established the Whistleblower Hotline as a communication channel to report concerns related to the integrity of our accounting processes, internal controls,  ethical conduct, or allegations of retaliation for having reported matters in good faith.

The Whistleblower Hotline is an independent, confidential and anonymous reporting mechanism for your financial and ethical concerns.  If you become aware of or suspect any breach of our Code of Ethics or have complaints concerning accounting issues, fraud, ethical, legal or regulatory matters – we encourage you to submit a complaint by either of the following methods:

• Via the Web - agsouth.ethicspoint.com; or
• By toll-free telephone call to 1-833-220-9744