U.S. State Privacy Laws Notice


Effective: January 1, 2024.

This notice addresses the specific disclosure requirements under the California Consumer Privacy Act of 2018 (“CCPA”) as amended by the California Privacy Rights Act (“CPRA”), the Virginia Consumer Data Protection Act (“VCDPA”), Colorado Privacy Act (“CPA”), the Connecticut Data Privacy Act (“CTDPA”), and the Utah Consumer Privacy Act (“UCPA”), collectively the “U.S. State Privacy Laws”. It is incorporated into the Coursera Privacy Notice and applies to personal information relating to residents of the U.S. States listed above, as applicable, using our Site and Services (“Consumers,” “You,” or “Your”) that we collected over the previous 12 months.

For the purposes of the CCPA, “personal information” means information that identifies, relates to, describes, is capable of being associated with, or could reasonably be linked, directly or indirectly, with a particular individual or household. For the purposes of the VCDPA, CPA,CTDPA, and UCPA, “personal information” (which may also be referred to as ‘personal data’) means information that is linked or reasonably linkable to an identified or identifiable individual.

In the event of a conflict between this U.S. State Privacy Laws Notice and any of our other privacy notices, this U.S. State Privacy Laws Notice shall control only with respect to the personal information of residents of the U.S. States identified above.

For further information about the personal information we collect and how we use it, please review the Coursera Privacy Notice.

Collection and Use of Personal Information

The table below outlines the categories of personal information we may collect, the sources and recipients of personal information, and the purposes for which we may use personal information (depending on how and why you interact with the Site and Services). Please see the Coursera Privacy Notice, the Coursera Cookies Policy and the “Disclosure of Personal Information” section in this U.S. State Privacy Laws Notice for more detailed information.

Personal Information Categories
Personal Information CategorySourcesPurposesRecipients
Customer Records (e.g., as name, address, telephone number, education, employment history, credit card or debit card number)Information you provide directly or through your interactions with our Site or Services; Information from our partners or customers(a) Providing our Site and Services; (b) Improving our Site and Services; (c) Ensuring the security of our Site and Services; (d) Providing technical support; (e) Enabling participation in content offerings and Forums; (f) Performing identity verification; (g) Communicating with you; (h) Enabling research; (i) Marketing and business development; (j) Exercising/protecting legal rights and complying with legal obligationsService Providers
Identifiers (e.g., real name, alias, postal address, unique personal identifier, online identifier, Internet Protocol address, email address, account name, or other similar identifiers) and biometric informationInformation you provide to us directly or through your interactions with our Site and Services; Information from our partners or customers(a) Providing our Site and Services; (b) Improving our Site and Services; (c) Ensuring the security of our Site and Services; (d) Providing technical support; (e) Enabling participation in content offerings and Forums; (f) Performing identity verification; (g) Communicating with you; (h) Enabling research; (i) Marketing and business development; (j) Exercising/protecting legal rights and complying with legal obligationsService Providers; Advertising Partners
Characteristics of protected classifications under applicable laws (e.g., your gender or age)Information you provide to us directly(a) Performing identity verification;(b) Enabling research; (c) Exercising/protecting legal rights and complying with legal obligationsService Providers; Coursera Partners; Research Partners.
Commercial information (e.g., information regarding products or services purchased, obtained, or considered)Information you provide to us directly, such as purchasing a standalone course or subscription; Your interactions with our Site and Services Information from our partners and customers(a) Providing our Site and Services; (b) Improving our Site and Services; (c) Ensuring the security of our Site and Services; (d) Providing technical support; (e) Enabling participation in content offerings and Forums; (f) Communicating with you; (g) Enabling research; (h) Marketing and business development; (i) Exercising/protecting legal rights and complying with legal obligationsService Providers; Coursera Partners; Coursera Customers; Research Partners
Internet or Other Electronic Network Activity Information (e.g., browsing history, search history, and information regarding your interactions with our Services)Your interactions with our Site and Services(a) Providing our Site and Services; (b) Improving our Site and Services; (c) Ensuring the security of our Site and Services; (d) Providing technical support; (e) Enabling participation in content offerings and Forums; (f) Communicating with you; (g) Enabling research; (h) Marketing and business development; (i) Exercising/protecting legal rights and complying with legal obligationsService Providers; Coursera Partners; Coursera Customers; Advertising Partners; Research Partners
Geolocation DataInformation you provide to us directly or through your interactions with our Site and Services(a) Providing our Site and Services; (b) Improving our Site and Services; (c) Ensuring the security of our Site and Services; (d) Providing technical support; (e) Enabling participation in content offerings and Forums; (f) Performing identity verification; (g) Communicating with you; (h) Enabling research; (i) Marketing and business development; (j) Exercising/protecting legal rights and complying with legal obligationsService Providers; Coursera Partners; Coursera Customers; Advertising Partners; Research Partners
Professional or Employment-Related Information / Education informationInformation you provide to us directly; Information from our customers or partners(a) Providing our Site and Services; (b) Improving our Site and Services; (c) Ensuring the security of our Site and Services; (d) Providing technical support; (e) Enabling participation in content offerings and Forums; (f) Communicating with you; (g) Enabling research; (h) Marketing and business development; (i) Exercising/protecting legal rights and complying with legal obligationsService Providers; Coursera Partners; Coursera Customers; Research Partners
InferencesInformation you provide to us directly or through your interactions with our Site and Services; Information from our partners and customers(a) Providing our Site and Services; (b) Improving our Site and Services; (c) Ensuring the security of our Site and Services; (d) Providing technical support; (e) Enabling participation in content offerings and Forums; (f) Performing identity verification; (g) Communicating with you; (h) Enabling research; (i) Marketing and business development; (j) Exercising/protecting legal rights and complying with legal obligationsService Providers; Coursera Partners; Coursera Customers; Research Partners
Audio, electronic, visual or similar informationInformation you provide directly or through your interactions with our Services, customers or partners(a) Providing our Site and Services; (b) Improving our Site and Services; (c) Ensuring the security of our Site and Services; (d) Providing technical support; (e) Enabling participation in content offerings and Forums; (f) Performing identity verification; (g) Communicating with you; (h) Enabling research; (i) Exercising/protecting legal rights and complying with legal obligationsService Providers; Coursera Partners; Coursera Customers; Research Partners

Sensitive Personal Information Categories

Depending on how and why you interact with the Site and Services, some of the personal information that Coursera may collect and use about you, identified in “Collection and Use of Personal Information” above, may be considered “sensitive” under applicable U.S. State Privacy Laws in certain circumstances:

Government ID (e.g. driver’s license, state identification card, or passport number);

  • Account log-in, debit or credit card number, and the means to access the account (security or access code, password, credentials, etc.);
  • Demographic information (e.g. racial or ethnic origin);
  • Biometrics information processed for identification purposes;
  • Precise geolocation information;
  • Information concerning health.

We only use or disclose sensitive personal information for the following purposes:

  • Perform the services or provide the goods you reasonably expect;
  • To prevent, detect, and investigate security incidents;
  • To resist malicious, deceptive, fraudulent, or illegal actions directed at Coursera and to prosecute those responsible for those actions;
  • To ensure the physical safety of natural persons;
  • For short-term, transient use, including, but not limited to, non-personalized advertising;
  • To perform services on behalf of Coursera;
  • To verify or maintain the quality or safety of a product, service, or device that is owned, manufactured, manufactured for, or controlled by Coursera, and to improve, upgrade, or enhance the service or device that is owned, manufactured by, manufactured for, or controlled by Coursera;
  • To collect or process sensitive personal information where such collection or processing is not used for the purpose of inferring characteristics about you;
  • Other activities in accordance with new or additional regulations that may be issued pursuant to applicable U.S. State Privacy laws.

Where required under applicable U.S. State Privacy laws or other applicable legislation, we will provide you with the opportunity to opt-out, or request your consent to collect and use sensitive personal information for the purposes listed above, or other purposes that are communicated to you at the time that consent is requested.

Disclosure of Personal Information

We may disclose the personal information identified in the “Collection and Use of Personal Information” section of this U.S. State Privacy Laws Notice to third parties as follows (depending on how and why you interact with the Site and Services):

Service Providers

We may disclose personal information to our service providers in order to have them perform services that assist us in fulfilling the purposes listed above. Our service providers provide us with a range of services including: hosting our Site, processing payments, legal, auditing and accounting professional services, postal and email delivery, conducting analysis to improve our products and Site, fulfilling requests you make, managing payments, performing identity verification, and answering your questions. We may disclose personal information to our service providers in order to improve our Site and Services, such as to identify bugs, repair errors, or ensure that services function as intended, or conduct internal research and analysis to improve our technology.

Coursera Partners

We may disclose personal information to Coursera partners (e.g. Universities, educational institutions, or industry partners) who (a) offer degree Programs hosted on the Site, in which you enroll or express an interest; or (ii) create content, programs, projects or other courses which Coursera provides on the Site and in which you enroll.

Coursera Customers

Where your access to our Services is provided to you as part of your relationship with your employer, academic institution, or corporate sponsor we may disclose to them (or an authorized entity acting on their behalf) information about your participation and learning progress on Coursera.

Advertising Partners

We may disclose limited personal information to advertising partners in order to show you advertising that is more likely to be of interest to you. You can learn more about this in the “Privacy Rights” section of this U.S. State Privacy Laws Notice and the Coursera Cookies Policy. You can opt-out of this disclosure by visiting Coursera’s Do Not Sell / Share My Personal Information link and opting out of ‘Targeting Cookies’.

Research Partners

We may share course data (including quiz or assignment submissions, grades, and forum discussions), information about your activity on our Site, and demographic data from surveys operated by us with our partners and research institutes for research related to online education.

Other Disclosures

On an ad hoc basis as necessary, we may also disclose personal information to third parties (such as our partners, service providers, and law enforcement and government agencies) to secure our Site and Services and rights and interests of Coursera and its partners, including to detect, prevent, and investigate security incidents or violations of our Terms of Use or applicable laws, or in the context of legal proceedings. We may also disclose personal information to an acquirer, assignee or other successor entity in connection with a sale, merger, or reorganization of all or substantially all of the equity, business, or assets of Coursera. Additionally, we disclose personal information to third parties at your direction (for example, if you choose to make your Coursera profile public, or post in a publicly-available Coursera forum, Coursera will make the relevant Personal Information available to other users of the Site).

Retention of Personal Information

We keep your personal information for no longer than necessary for the purposes for which the personal information is collected and processed. For further information, please see the "Retention of Personally Identifiable Information" section of the Coursera Privacy Notice.

Privacy Rights

You may have certain rights in respect of your personal information under applicable U.S. State Privacy Laws. You may not be discriminated against because you exercise your rights under applicable U.S. State Privacy Laws.

A summary of the rights that may be applicable to you is as follows:

Rights of access, deletion and portability

Residents of California, Virginia, Colorado, Connecticut and Utah have rights to request access, deletion and portability in respect of their personal information.

Right of correction

Residents of California, Virginia, Colorado and Connecticut have the right to request that inaccuracies in their personal information are corrected.

Rights to opt-out of sale/sharing of Personal Information and/or personalized/targeted advertising

Residents of California, Virginia, Colorado, Connecticut and Utah have the right to opt-out of sales of their personal information. Residents of California have the right to opt-out of sharing of their personal information, and residents of Virginia, Colorado, Connecticut and Utah have the right to opt-out of personalized/targeted advertising.

As some U.S. State Privacy Laws define “sale” or “sharing” of personal information very broadly, we may “sell” or “share” personal information with third parties if we disclose personal information to advertising partners in order to show you advertising that is more likely to be of interest to you. The personal information disclosed for these purposes comprises identifiers (e.g. online identifiers, Internet Protocol address, device identifiers), internet or other electronic network activity information (e.g. information about your interactions with our Site/Services) and geolocation information. Further information is available in the Coursera Cookies Policy.

You can opt-out of disclosure of personal information with third parties/use of Personal Information for personalized/targeted advertising by visiting Coursera’s Do Not Sell / Share My Personal Information link and changing your preferences. Please note that you will still see non-personalized/targeted advertising (e.g. contextual advertising).

We do not sell or share personal information for any other purposes and we do not have actual knowledge that we sell, share or use for personalized/targeted advertising purposes personal information of minors under 16 years of age.

Right to Limit Use of Sensitive Personal Information

As described in the “Sensitive Personal Information Categories” section, above, we may collect, process, or disclose certain personal information that qualifies as “sensitive” personal information under applicable U.S. State Privacy Laws.

Residents of California have the right to limit the use or disclosure of their sensitive personal information. We do not use or disclose your sensitive personal information of California residents for purposes other than those listed in the “Sensitive Personal Information Categories” section above, without your consent or as permitted or required under applicable laws, so we do not offer California residents an ability to limit their use of sensitive personal information.

Right to opt-out of solely automated decisions / profiling producing legal or similarly significant effects

Residents of California, Virginia, Colorado and Connecticut have the right to opt out of solely automated decisions or profiling which produces legal or similarly significant effects for individuals.

We do not undertake solely automated decisions or profiling which produces legal or similarly significant effects for individuals, so no opt-out is currently offered.

Exercising your rights

You can make privacy requests as follows (depending on the right you are seeking to exercise):

  • Log-in to Coursera account to view or edit your profile details, use our self-serve access tool, or use our self-serve deletion tool;
  • Use Coursera’s Do Not Sell / Share My Personal Information link and opt out of ‘Targeting Cookies’, to opt-out of disclosures/use of personal information for targeted/personalized advertising purposes; or
  • Send an email to privacy@coursera.org with details of your specific request.

We may ask that you provide certain information to verify your identity, and the information we request from you will depend on your prior interactions with us and the sensitivity of the personal information at issue. Once confirmed, we will respond to your request in accordance with the applicable U.S. State Privacy Law. If we deny your request, we will explain why. Under some U.S. State Privacy Laws, you may designate an authorized agent to make certain requests on your behalf.

Right to appeal

Residents of Virginia, Colorado and Connecticut have the right to appeal a Coursera decision in respect of your privacy rights. To appeal a decision, send an email to privacy@coursera.org with details of your original request and appeal.