Last updated: 10/18/2021
Welcome! Thank you for viewing Wendy’s (“Wendy’s,” “our,” “us,” “we”) privacy policy. This privacy policy applies to consumers visiting our restaurants using the Wendy’s website (www.wendys.com), other related websites, mobile applications (“mobile app(s)”), and other services, tools, and applications; and otherwise interacting with us (collectively, “services”). By using the Wendy’s services, you agree to our Terms and Conditions and consent to Wendy’s information collection, use, and disclosure practices, and other activities as described in this privacy policy. If you do not agree and consent, please discontinue use of the Wendy’s services.
This privacy policy explains our privacy practices – the information we collect and how it’s used, the choices you can make about the collection and use of information you submit through our services, and our commitment to protecting your privacy. We want you to have all the information you need to make informed decisions before you use the Wendy’s services.
Please note that many of our restaurants are owned and operated by independent franchisees. This privacy policy does not apply to the restaurants owned and operated by franchisees, nor does it apply to any websites or applications they operate. Please connect directly with a specific franchisee for information on their privacy practices.
California residents can find information about their California Consumer Privacy Act (“CCPA”) rights and how to exercise them here. You may submit CCPA-related requests to Wendy’s by filling out the webform here or by calling us toll-free at 1 (888) 624-8140.
We’ve put together a supplement to this policy to share our Information Practices At-A-Glance. It includes a chart of the types of information we collect, what sources we collect from, for what purposes the information is collected, and who we share it with. If you have any questions about this policy, how we collect or process your information, or anything else related to our privacy practices, we want to hear from you.
Information We Collect
When you use our services, we, or service providers acting on our behalf, may collect your information. This generally happens in one of three ways – you provide us with information, we collect information through automated methods, or we collect information from other sources.
There are some situations in which it is necessary for us to collect your information in order to provide a service to you or to meet legal requirements. Rest assured, when you share your information with us, we only use it to give you a great Wendy’s experience.
Information You Provide Us
You may share certain information when you interact with us. For instance, when you create a MyWendy’s account or call our Customer Care line, you may provide us with information about you and your experience with Wendy’s. For example, you may provide:
- Personal identifiers such as your name, address, phone number, email address, birthdate, and other personal characteristics
- Customer records such as personal identifiers and payment card information
- Purchase details such as purchase history or tendencies
- Other information you provide such as information about a restaurant visit or transaction when you call Customer Care, use your MyWendy’s account, or interact with us on social media or other third-party websites or mobile apps
- Sensory Data such as voice recordings from calls to Customer Care
Information Collected Through Automated Methods
When you use our services, our technology has the ability to collect certain types of information. For example, when you use the Wendy’s mobile app to place an order, depending on your device’s location settings, we may use your location to determine which restaurant is closest to you to ensure you place your order from the right restaurant or even provide you relevant offers or promotions.
We, as well as certain third parties (including those that provide content and other functionality on Wendy’s services) may use cookies, web beacons, and other similar tracking technologies, and the information collected from such technologies, as part of our services. You can visit our Cookies and Tracking Technologies policy for more information. We also collect:
- Internet usage data such as IP address, device identifiers, device advertising identifiers, mobile network, operating system details, language preferences, referring URLs, length of visits, anonymous traffic data, pages viewed, browsing history, search history, and information regarding interactions with our services or advertisements
- Geolocation data such as real-time information about the precise or approximate location of your device (GPS and network-based)
Information From Other Sources
Sometimes we may get information about you from other companies. For instance, when you tag or direct message us through social media, we may collect information about you. We also offer social networking sign-on services that allow you to use social networking credentials to access our services.
Compiling Information
We may combine certain information we collect, both from you or automatically, with other information we obtain about you from third parties. This information about your online activities over time and across different services gives us a better idea of the profile of a Wendy’s customer and helps us improve our services. For instance, we may combine information from various sources to reflect your preferences and predispositions.
How We Use Your Information
We use the information we collect for various purposes – including improving our operations and providing you with our services, generating analytics, and for fraud prevention and legal purposes – which help us provide you with a better Wendy’s experience and learn how consumers interact with our services. For instance, using cookies can enhance your experience with our services by remembering your log-in status and viewing preferences from a previous use of our services.
To operate and provide our services
We use much of the information we collect to operate and provide you our services. For instance, we use your information to:
- Respond to your requests
- Provide customer service
- Give you information about your account
- Manage web traffic
- Manage your purchases
- Provide you with a safe, secure, efficient, and customized experience
To analyze and better understand our consumers
We collect and use information in connection with interest-based advertising, and we may share this information with our technology service providers. Our technology service providers, such as our advertising partners, may use, store, or access cookies, web beacons, and other storage technologies to collect or receive information from our services and elsewhere on the Internet. This information is used to provide advertising services, including advertisements targeted to your interests. For instance, we may use your personal information to:
- Personalize your experience by providing content through our services, including targeted advertising that we believe may be of most interest to you
- Inform marketing practices
- Deliver content relevant to your interests on our services and third-party websites and mobile apps
- Improve our products and services
- Assess promotional effectiveness
- Administer surveys, rewards, and promotions
To prevent fraud and for other legal purposes
We may use the information we collect to prevent, detect, and investigate fraud, security breaches, and potentially prohibited or illegal activities; enforce our Terms and Conditions; or otherwise comply with applicable laws and regulations.
With Whom We Share and Disclose Your Information
We may share or disclose your information to other entities in our corporate family, our franchisees, service providers acting on our behalf, governmental agencies, and other entities.
Our corporate family
We may share or disclose your information to our corporate family, which includes our affiliates, to:
- Provide joint content and our services (e.g., registration, transactions, analytics, and customer support)
- Help detect and prevent potentially illegal acts, violations of our policies, fraud, and/or data security breaches
- Guide decisions about Wendy’s or third-party products, websites, applications, services, tools, and communications.
Franchisees
While this privacy policy does not apply to our independently owned and operated franchises, we do share information with our franchisees to ensure you have a seamless experience. For instance, we share information with our franchisees if you make an order through our services for pickup at a franchise restaurant.
Service providers acting on our behalf
We may share your information with service providers who help with our business operations, such as fraud investigations, bill collection, payment processing, gift card support, analytics, operations, and delivery of marketing communications.
Government and law enforcement
We may share your information as required or permitted by law, including sharing with governmental agencies, law enforcement, or authorized third parties, in response to a verified request relating to a criminal investigation or alleged illegal activity or any other activity that may expose us, you, or any other party to legal liability.
Business transactions
We may share your information in connection with, or during negotiations of, any proposed or actual merger, purchase, sale, or any other type of acquisition or business combination of all or any portion of our assets, or transfer of all or a portion of our business to another company.
Other Entities
We may disclose your information to other third parties at your request or if you otherwise provide your consent to such disclosure.
Your Options
When it comes to your information, you have options. Wendy’s wants to make sure you are informed about those options when it comes to trusting us with your information. You may have the ability to update your communication and marketing preferences and to review, and update or change the information you have provided to us. Certain consumers, such as California residents, may have additional legal rights as explained below.
Update Your Communication and Marketing Preferences
If you do not wish to receive marketing communications from us, you can opt out of future marketing communications by following the instructions provided in those communications, for instance, in the footer of your Wendy’s Mail. You may also change your communications preferences by logging in and accessing your account settings at my.wendys.com. Opting out of marketing communications will not affect our administrative communications to you (e.g., communications about your transactions or policy changes).
Review, Update, or Change Your Information
If you have a MyWendy’s account, you may review, update, and change the information you provide to us at any time by accessing your account settings.
Location Tracking
You may be able to enable or disable location tracking by adjusting the permissions on your device. Be aware that if precise location services are disabled, other means of establishing or estimating location (e.g., connecting to Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, beacons, or our networks) may persist.
Wendy’s Mobile App Permissions and Uninstallation
You may be able to enable or disable certain features related to our mobile app (e.g., location tracking and push notifications) by adjusting the permissions on your device. If you do not want to continue to provide us information through the mobile app, you may uninstall our mobile app from your device. If you want to delete your MyWendy’s account, you can call us toll-free at 1 (888) 624-8140.
Some folks like to order on our mobile app (and we like it when they do!). While this privacy policy is intended to explain the entirety of our privacy practices, we also have a Mobile Apps Policy which explains our privacy practices and information collection as it relates to the mobile app only. Check it out and then order yourself some nuggs!
Your Cookie and Other Tracking Technology Choices
We and third-party vendors may use first-party cookies or other first-party identifiers, as well as third-party cookies or other third-party identifiers, to deliver advertisements, create a profile of you, measure your interests, detect your demographics, detect your location, and personalize content.
Your web browser may have settings that allow you to transmit a “Do Not Track” signal when you visit various websites or use online services. Like many websites and online services, Wendy’s services are not designed to respond to “Do Not Track” signals received from browsers. To learn more about “Do Not Track” signals, you may wish to visit http://www.allaboutdnt.com/.
To find out more about how these third-party tracking technologies manage the privacy of information in conjunction with delivering ads online, and how to opt-out of information collection by these networks, please visit: youradchoices.com ,aboutads.info/appchoices, optout.networkadvertising.org, or networkadvertising.org/mobile-choice. We also include additional information in our Cookies and Tracking Technologies policy.
We may also use certain third-party web analytics services, such Google Analytics, to help us understand and analyze how visitors use our services. We use this information to implement Google advertising features such as remarketing with analytics, interest-based advertising, demographics and interests reporting, user segment analysis, and impression reporting. For more information on how Google Analytics uses data collected through the Wendy’s services, visit: www.google.com/policies/privacy/partners/. To opt out of Google Analytics cookies, visit: http://www.google.com/settings/ads and https://tools.google.com/dlpage/gaoptout/.
Children’s Privacy
Our online services are not intended for children under the age of 16 and we do not knowingly collect information online from children under the age of 16. If we become aware that we have obtained information from a child under the age of 16 we will delete such information in accordance with applicable law.
California Consumer Privacy
The California Consumer Privacy Act (CCPA) is a state law intended to enhance privacy rights and consumer protection for residents of California.
Under the CCPA, California residents have certain rights that they may exercise independently or through an authorized agent. CCPA rights requests are subject to an identification and verification process. We will not fulfill a CCPA request unless we have been provided sufficient information for us to reasonably verify the identity of the requestor and the validity of the request. We will not discriminate against you if you exercise any of the rights provided by the CCPA. We encourage you to take an active role in the management of your privacy.
California Consumer Privacy Act
In accordance with CCPA’s requirements, this notice and our Information Practices At-A-Glance describe our collection, use, and disclosure, and the sources and purposes thereof, of California consumers' personal information during the preceding twelve months, as well as the rights California consumers have under the CCPA.
Consistent with the CCPA, job applicants, current and former employees and contractors, and subjects of certain business-to-business communications acting solely in their capacity as representatives of another business, are not considered consumers for purposes of this section or the rights described herein.
The CCPA gives California consumers certain rights:
Right to know about personal information collected, disclosed, or sold
You have the right to know about your personal information that we are currently maintaining and have collected and shared in the 12-month period prior to the date you submit your request. You also have the right to obtain a transportable copy of such personal information. Requests of this nature may be made no more than twice in a 12-month period. Please note that we retain personal information for various time periods in accordance with applicable law and our internal recordkeeping policies and procedures.
Right to request deletion of personal information
You may request that we delete your personal information that we have collected directly from you and are currently maintaining. Please note, however, that we may have a legal basis for retaining such personal information under the CCPA, despite your request. Our rights include the right to retain personal information (1) to complete transactions and services you have requested or that are reasonably anticipated, (2) for security purposes, (3) for legitimate internal business purposes, including maintaining business records, (4) to comply with law, (5) to exercise or defend legal claims, and (6) to cooperate with law enforcement. Requests of this nature may be made no more than twice in a 12-month period.
Right to opt-out of the "sale" of personal information
You have the right to opt-out of the “sale” of your personal information. To the extent cookies or other technologies that facilitate interest-based advertising or other business purposes could be considered a “sale,” you can learn how to exercise choices regarding these technologies by following the instructions in the Do Not Sell section below.
Do Not Sell
We do not “sell” your personal information based on the CCPA definition of a “sale.” To the extent we change our processing practices or new laws come into effect, we may update this privacy policy. You can, however, exercise control over browser-based cookies by adjusting the settings on your browser, and mobile devices may offer ad limitation choices. In addition, third-party tools may enable you to search for and opt-out of some of these tracking technologies.
We also provide more information about your choices regarding certain kinds of online interest-based advertising here. We do not represent that these third-party tools, programs, or statements are complete or accurate; clearing cookies or changing settings may affect your choices, and you may have to opt-out separately via each browser and device you use.
We may disclose your personal information for the following purposes, which are not a sale: (i) if you direct us to share your personal information; (ii) to comply with your requests under the CCPA; (iii) disclosures among the entities that constitute Wendy’s, or as part of a merger or asset sale; and (iv) as otherwise required or permitted by applicable law.
As noted above, some browsers have signals that may be characterized as “do not track” signals, but we do not understand them to operate in that manner or to represent a Do Not Sell request by you. We understand that various parties are developing Do Not Sell signals, and we may recognize some or all of these signals in the future if we conclude such a program is appropriate.
Financial Incentive Disclosure for Wendy’s Rewards Program
This financial incentive disclosure applies to the Wendy’s Rewards program (the “Program”). You opt into the Program by signing up for a MyWendy’s account, which you can terminate at any time by emailing us at customercare@wendys.com. To learn more about the Program, please visit the Wendy's Rewards Terms and Conditions here.
Wendy’s collects personal information to facilitate the Program’s operation and provide you with Program benefits. This personal information includes your first and last name, email address, and password. You may also provide Wendy’s with your physical address, telephone number, credit or gift card number and security code, birthday, communications preferences (via our website), transaction information, and access to your camera and photos.
Wendy’s values the benefits of the Program as the value of rewards given to members, as outlined in the Wendy's Rewards Terms and Conditions, which varies from year to year. Wendy’s provides the Program benefits to foster a positive relationship with our members that is invaluable.
Please note that if you are a California consumer and submit a CCPA-related deletion request, we will ask you to confirm that you want to terminate your Program membership (and MyWendy’s account). If you choose to retain your Program membership, Wendy’s will continue to use your personal information to provide the Program and related services or as otherwise permitted by applicable law.
Please note, however that if you exercise your right to delete under the CCPA, Wendy’s will not have enough information about you to provide you with Program benefits. This is because we use your personal information to facilitate the operation of the Program and provide you offers and benefits. You can, however, opt-out of non-Program marketing emails and retain your Program account and benefits.
Exercise those rights
You may submit CCPA-related requests to Wendy’s by filling out the webform here or by calling us toll-free at 1 (888) 624-8140.
Please note: Before we can fulfill your request, we must be able to verify your identity. We will ask you to provide your email and will use a verification link pushed out through email or will otherwise attempt to verify that we have a record of you in our systems. If we cannot verify your identity, we may not be able to fulfill your request.
You may authorize an agent to make CCPA-related requests on your behalf. To fulfill requests made by authorized agents, you must provide Wendy’s with enough information such that we can verify the authority of the agent.
Shine the Light
California law permits customers in California to request certain details about how their personal information is shared with third parties, and in some cases affiliates, if personal information is shared for those third parties’ or affiliates’ own direct marketing purposes. We do not share personal information with third parties or affiliates for those third parties’ or affiliates’ own direct marketing purposes. Californians may request information about our compliance with this law by contacting us at privacy@wendys.com or by sending a letter to:
Wendy’s International, LLC
One Dave Thomas Boulevard, Dublin, OH 43017, USA
Attn: Legal Department – Privacy/Shine the Light
Any such request must include your name and “California Shine the Light Privacy Rights Request” in the first line of the description and, if sent by mail, must include your street address, city, state, and zip code.
Please note that “Shine the Light” rights and CCPA rights are granted by different laws and must be exercised separately.
Minors
California residents under the age of 18 who have registered to use the services, and who have posted content or information on or through the services, can request that such information be removed by contacting us at privacy@wendys.com or by sending a letter stating that they personally posted such content or information and detailing where the content or information is posted, to:
Wendy’s International, LLC
One Dave Thomas Boulevard, Dublin, OH 43017, USA
Attn: Legal Department – Privacy
We will make a reasonable good faith effort to remove the content from prospective public view or anonymize it so the minor cannot be individually identified. However, this removal process cannot ensure complete or comprehensive deletion from the Internet. For instance, third parties may have republished the content or archived copies of it may be stored by search engines or other parties that we do not control.
Canadian Consumer Privacy
Residents of Canada may request access to the personal information in our custody and control. If you are a Canadian resident and would like to request access, please contact us at:
Wendy’s International, LLC
One Dave Thomas Boulevard, Dublin, OH 43017, USA
Attn: Legal Department – Privacy
For all requests, you must include the statement “Your Canadian Privacy Rights” in the body of your request, as well as your name and sufficient information for us to identify you based on your interactions with Wendy’s. We may request additional personal information for the purposes of verifying your identity before we can respond to the request.
International Consumer Privacy
While our franchisees operate in countries around the world, Wendy’s only owns and operates restaurants in the United States and the United Kingdom. To support these operations, the majority of our computer systems, networks, and devices are currently based in the United States. Accordingly, personal information we obtain through our services may be processed in the United States. By accessing our services, you consent to the collection and processing of your personal information in the United States. For more information on our personal data processing in connection with our operations in the United Kingdom visit here.
Other Important Information
Careers Website for Applicants
A supplemental privacy policy also applies when a prospective employee visits our Careers website to browse open positions, set up a general account to receive job alerts, or establish an account to submit a job application. For more information, visit our Careers website and review the Supplemental Privacy Policy for Wendy’s Careers Site.
Sweepstakes, Contests, and Promotions
We may offer sweepstakes, contests, and other promotions, including those jointly sponsored or offered by third parties, which may require submitting information. If you voluntarily choose to enter a promotion, your information, including personal information, may be disclosed to us, co-sponsors, and other third parties, including for administrative purposes and as required by law. By entering, you are agreeing to the official rules that govern that promotion, which may include consent to additional or differing privacy practices from those contained in this privacy policy. Please review those rules carefully.
Prospective Franchisees
If you are interested in becoming a Wendy’s franchisee, you can complete our Prospective Franchise Questionnaire here. The questionnaire asks for your contact information, financial information, prior experience, and information about the franchise development opportunities you are interested in, including geographic area. We use this information to assist in our assessment of your interest in a Wendy’s franchise opportunity. We may also use your contact information to communicate with you and request additional information from you, which you may choose to provide. We may share this information with our technology service providers who help us collect, store, and process your information.
External Links
For your convenience, Wendy’s services may from time to time include links to websites or other services that are owned or operated by third parties. This privacy policy does not apply to those websites or services, which may have their own privacy policies or notices that you should review to understand how they may collect, use, or disclose your information. Wendy’s is not responsible for the content or privacy practices of any linked websites or services that are operated by third parties.
Certain platforms, such as third-party social media networks, may permit interactions that you initiate between the Wendy’s services and third-party services. Examples include: “liking” or “sharing” Wendy’s content; logging in to the Wendy’s services using your third-party service account (e.g., using Facebook Login to sign-in to your Wendy’s account); and to otherwise connect Wendy’s services to a third-party service.
Information Security
We protect your information using technical and administrative security measures to reduce the risks of loss, misuse, unauthorized access, disclosure, and alteration. Although we implement reasonable security measures on our services, you should be aware that we cannot guarantee the security of your information submitted via the Internet. It is your responsibility to make sure that your passwords and account registration information are secure and not shared with third parties.
Degree of Engagement
You can engage as little or as much as you want with our services, which means we may get different amounts of information about you depending on your interaction with us.
Changes to this policy
From time to time, we may update this privacy policy and indicate changes by updating the “Last Updated” date at the top of the policy.
Your use of Wendy’s services after any update to this privacy policy will constitute your acceptance of the changes.
To the extent any provision of this privacy policy is found by a court of competent jurisdiction to be invalid or unenforceable, such provision shall be severed to the extent necessary for the remainder to be valid and enforceable.
Contact Us
If you have any questions regarding this privacy policy you may email us at privacy@wendys.com, call our toll-free Customer Care line at 1 (888) 624-8140, or send us a letter at the following address. We want to hear from you!
Wendy’s International, LLC
One Dave Thomas Boulevard, Dublin, OH 43017, USA
Attn: Legal Department – Privacy