Member letter –December 6, 2013

Dear members,

I want to reassure all our members that protecting your privacy and personal information are a top priority for California Fitness. We recognize your concerns over the issue and would like to take this opportunity to clarify our policies to demonstrate how seriously we take personal data collection and privacy.

We collect HKID information for the sole purpose of verifying the identity of members who join our club. The HKID Card copies are destroyed after that verification is made. We also ask our members to provide their date of birth to help us customize individual fitness programs for them and send greetings and special offers on their birthdays.

The case raised in the media on December 5^th 2013 actually began two years ago when the matter of keeping copies of HKID Cards on file was raised by the Privacy Commissioner. When his concerns were drawn to our attention we began routinely destroying copies as soon as the information was verified. But the issue for us is now destroying the backlog of copies which have been securely kept on file. It takes time and manpower but we’re committed to it because it’s the right thing to do and what members expect.

Our business is based on the trust we have with our members, and we are working with the Privacy Commission to review our policies and ensure they meet our members’ expectations, as well as our own high standards.

We seek your understanding and patience and are grateful for your ongoing support.

Please do not hesitate to contact your club manager if you have any questions on this topic.

Yours in fitness,
California Fitness