Last Updated: August 5, 2026
This Privacy Notice describes how Guitar Center, Inc. (“we”, “us,” “our”) collects, uses and discloses information about individuals who use the websites, applications (including mobile applications), services, tools, or features associated with our brands (including Guitar Center, Musician’s Friend, Music & Arts, and Audio Visual Design Group (“AVDG”)), or otherwise interact with us (collectively, the “Services”). For the purposes of this Privacy Notice, “you” and “your” means you as the user of the Services, whether you are a customer, website visitor, or another individual whose information we have collected pursuant to this Privacy Notice.
Please read this Privacy Notice carefully. By using any of the Services, you agree to the collection, use, and disclosure of your information as described in this Privacy Notice. If you do not agree to this Privacy Notice, please do not use or access the Services.
Table of Contents:
We may modify this Privacy Notice from time to time, in which case we will update the “Last Updated” date at the top of this Privacy Notice. If we make material changes to how we use or disclose information we collect, we will use reasonable efforts to notify you (such as emailing you at the last email address you provided us or posting notice of such changes on the Services) and will take additional steps as required by applicable law. If you do not agree to any updates to this Privacy Notice, please do not continue using or accessing the Services.
When you use or access the Services, we collect certain categories of information about you from a variety of sources.
Information You Provide to Us
Some features of the Services may require you to directly provide us with certain information about yourself. You may elect not to provide this information, but doing so may prevent you from using or accessing these features. Information that you directly submit through our Services may include:
Information We Collect Automatically
We also automatically collect certain information about your interaction with the Services, when you open an email, or connect to our wireless internet access (“Usage Data”). To do this, we may use cookies, pixels, SDKs, web beacons/clear gif, and other geolocation tracking technologies (“Tracking Technologies”). Usage Data includes:
For more information on how we use Tracking Technologies and your choices, see the section below, Cookies and Other Tracking Technologies.
Information Collected From Other Sources
We may obtain information about you from outside sources, including information that we collect directly from third parties and information that you choose to have shared with us. Such third parties and information include:
Any information we receive from outside sources will be treated in accordance with this Privacy Notice. We are not responsible for the accuracy of the information provided to us by third parties and are not responsible for any third party’s policies or practices. For more information, see the section below, Third Party Websites and Links.
Sensitive Information
We may collect from you or from other sources personal information about you that is considered “sensitive” by some states. This may include government identifiers (e.g., driver’s license or state ID number, passport number, or Social Security number); account log-in information in combination with a security or access code, password, or other credentials that allow access to the account; information pertaining to children under 13 who take lessons with us; contents of communications with us; financial account information; precise geolocation data (geolocation within 1,850 feet); information about race, ethnicity, or national origin; sexual orientation; and status as transgender or non-binary.
With respect to the categories of information we collect, we use information about you as described below:
We may deidentify information about you such that it cannot reasonably be used to infer information about you or otherwise be linked to you (or we may collect information that has already been deidentified), and we may use such deidentified information for any purpose. To the extent we possess or process any deidentified information, we will maintain and use such information in deidentified form and not attempt to re-identify the information, except solely for the purpose of determining whether our deidentification process satisfies legal requirements.
The Services automatically use cookies and other Tracking Technologies to track your use of the Services in order to facilitate and enhance the user experience on the Services; to learn and track how you access and use the Services, including when and how users visit the Services and how popular particular Service pages are; to provide you with customized advertising; and for other purposes as described herein.
Most browsers accept cookies and other Tracking Technologies automatically, but you may be able to control the way in which your devices permit the use of Tracking Technologies. If you so choose, you may block or delete our cookies from your browser; however, blocking or deleting cookies may cause some of the Services, including certain features and general functionality, to work incorrectly. Changing your cookie preferences in one browser will not necessarily carry over to other browsers, so you may need to adjust your preferences each time you get a new device, install a new browser, upgrade an existing browser, or alter or delete a browser’s cookie file. If you have questions regarding the specific information about you that we process or retain, as well as your choices regarding our collection and use practices, please contact us using the information listed below.
What are cookies?
Cookies are small pieces of information that are stored on your device’s hard drive by your web browser.
The Services may use both cookies that we implement (sometimes referred to as first-party cookies) and cookies implemented by our suppliers and other third parties (sometimes referred to as third-party cookies). The types of information collected by a cookie and the purposes for which that information is used will depend on the type of cookie. By way of illustration, the types of cookies used, the types of information collected by those cookies, and the purposes for which that information are used are described below.
For more information about cookies, including about advertising cookies and your choices regarding cookies, we suggest you visit the following websites: https://www.consumer.ftc.gov/articles/0042-online-tracking; http://www.allaboutcookies.org; and http://www.youronlinechoices.com.
Analytics Tools & Providers
As noted above, the Services use third-party analytics tools (e.g., Google Analytics) to collect and process data about your use of the Services. Our analytics providers may set and read cookies to collect this data, and your web browser will automatically send data collected by those cookies to our analytics providers. Our analytics providers use this data to provide us with reports that we will use to improve the Services’ structure and content.
For example, we utilize Google Analytics and other analytical tools offered by Google. For more information on how Google uses this data, visit Google’s page on How Google uses data when you use websites or apps that use Google Services . To prevent this data from being used by Google Analytics, follow the instructions to download and install the Google Analytics Opt-out Browser Add-on for each browser you use. Using the Google Analytics Opt-out Browser Add-on will not prevent us from using other analytics tools and will not prevent data from being sent to the Service itself or to Google.
Advertising networks, Personalized Advertising, Remarketing & Retargeting
We may use or participate in advertising networks and related advertising services that are managed and provided by third-party advertising servers, advertising agencies, technology vendors, and research firms, including Google Ads, and advertising services provided by Meta (including through use of the Meta “tracking pixel”).
Advertising networks often gather data about consumers who view advertisements to make inferences about a consumer’s interests and preferences, which enables their computers to deliver advertisements directly targeted to the consumer’s specific interests. This practice is often referred to as “online behavioral advertising.” For example, a third-party advertising network might collect the type of web browser you use, the type of computer operating system you use, the domain name of a website you visit, the specific pages of the Services and other websites that you visit, the location of your Internet service provider, the date and time of a visit to a website, and other interactions between you and a website.
Through Google Ads, Google uses your Internet searches, cookies, and similar identifiers (e.g., pixel tags) to collect information about your interactions with our products and services to generate targeted advertisements to you on other websites that you visit across the Internet. We may also enable and implement Google Analytics Advertising Features on the Services. To opt out of remarketing advertising provided through Google, to customize your ad preferences, or to limit Google’s collection or use this information, visit Google’s Safety Center and Google’s Ad Settings and follow Google’s personalized ad opt-out instructions .
Through TikTok Pixels, TikTok tracks your actions on our websites and uses that information to measure traffic on our sites, measure and optimize advertising campaign performance, and generate targeted advertisements for you on TikTok and other websites you may visit. TikTok may also use the information it gathers to show targeted ads to other users. For more information about TikTok Pixels, visit About TikTok Pixel | TikTok Ads Manager. To learn what personal information TikTok has collected about you and to exercise other rights and choices with respect to that information, visit Privacy Policy | TikTok.
Please remember that if you change your cookie settings on individual web browsers or ad networks, such settings will not necessarily carry over to other browsers or ad networks. As a result, depending on the opt-outs that you request, you may still see our ads from time to time. Your device may also include a feature (“Limit Ad Tracking” on iOS or “Opt Out of Interest-Based Ads” on Android) that allows you to opt out of having certain information collected through apps used for behavioral advertising purposes.
Do Not Track & Global Privacy Controls
Your browser settings may allow you to transmit a “do not track” signal, “opt-out preference” signal, or other mechanism for exercising your choices regarding the collection of information about you when you visit various websites. Our website recognizes the Global Privacy Control (GPC) signal which enables you to opt out of certain uses or disclosures of information about you. If you notify us of your preference through GPC, we will honor your request only for the browser or device that sends the GPC signal. If you do not have an account or are not logged into your account, your request to opt out through the GPC will not apply to any account information. To learn more about Global Privacy Control, you can visit https://globalprivacycontrol.org/.
We may disclose information about you to third parties for legitimate purposes subject to this Privacy Notice, including the following categories of third parties:
We may also disclose information about you as needed to comply with applicable law or any obligations thereunder or to cooperate with law enforcement, judicial orders, and regulatory inquiries, to enforce any applicable terms of service, and to ensure the safety and security of our business, employees, and users.
Certain features of the Services allow you to initiate interactions between the Services and third-party services or platforms, such as social networks (“Social Features”). Social Features include features that allow you to access our pages on third party platforms, and from there “like” or “share” our content. Use of Social Features may allow a third party to collect and/or use information about you. If you use Social Features, information you post or make accessible may be publicly displayed by the third-party service. Both we and the third party may have access to information about you and your use of both the Services and the third-party service. For more information, see the section below, Third Party Websites and Links.
We may provide links to third party websites or platforms. If you follow links to sites or platforms that we do not control and are not affiliated with us, you should review the applicable privacy notice, policies and other terms. We are not responsible for the privacy or security of, or information found on, these sites or platforms. Information you provide on public or semi-public venues, such as third-party social networking platforms, may also be viewable by other users of the Services and/or users of those third-party platforms without limitation as to its use. Our inclusion of such links does not, in itself, imply any endorsement of the content on such platforms or of their owner or operators.
Our websites and mobile applications are not directed to children under the age of 13 and we do not seek or knowingly collect any personal information from children under 13 years of age through our websites or mobile applications. Should we discover that we have collected personal information online from a child who is under 13, we will promptly delete that personal information. If you have concerns over the collection of children’s personal information on the websites or mobile applications, please contact us at the information provided in the How to Contact Us section below.
Although our websites and mobile applications are not directed to children under the age of 13, if you enroll your child in lessons with us, we may ask you to indicate the child’s grade level so that we can assign the appropriate instructor. In addition, we may record lessons for the safety and protection of students and teachers, for quality monitoring purposes, to train instructors, and to defend any legal rights. We obtain parental consent for all such recordings. Recordings will not be used for marketing purposes or any other use. If you wish to review or have your child’s personal information included in the recordings of those lessons deleted, you may so request by contacting us at the location or email address set forth below in the How to Contact Us section.
CARU Safe Harbor. This privacy policy and the CARU icon shown on our websites confirm that Guitar Center is a valid licensee and participating member in the CARU COPPA Safe Habor Program ("CARU Safe Harbor"). To protect your privacy, we have voluntarily undertaken this privacy initiative. CARU has reviewed and certified that we meet established online information collection and use practices on all Guitar Center properties where this privacy policy is posted. As part of the CARU COPPA Safe Harbor, we are subject to audits and frequent monitoring of our websites and other enforcement and accountability mechanisms administered independently by CARU.
If you have any questions or concerns, please contact us here:
Guitar Center
5795 Lindero
Canyon Road
Westlake Village, CA 91362
Attention: Legal Department
Phone:
866-498-7882
https://www.guitarcenter.com/pages/data-request
If you believe that we have not responded to your inquiry of your inquiry has not been satisfactorily addressed,
please contact CARU at:
CARU Safe Harbor, Attn: Director
1676 International Dr. Suite
550, McLean VA 22101
infocaru@bbbnp.org.
Despite our reasonable efforts to protect information about you, no security measures are impenetrable, and we cannot guarantee “perfect security.” Any information you send to us electronically, while using the Services or otherwise interacting with us, may not be secure while in transit. We recommend that you do not use unsecure channels to send us sensitive or confidential information.
Information you provide to us should be relevant to the purposes for which it is to be used, and, to the extent necessary for those purposes, should be accurate, complete, and up to date. We retain information about you for as long as it is reasonably necessary for the purposes specified in this Privacy Notice. When determining the length of time to retain information about you, we consider various criteria, including whether we need the information to continue to provide you the Services, resolve a dispute, enforce our contractual agreements, prevent harm, promote safety, security and integrity, or protect ourselves, including our rights, property or product.
This section applies to you only if you are a California resident (“resident” or “residents”). For purposes of this section, references to “personal information” shall include “sensitive personal information,” as these terms are defined under the California Consumer Privacy Act (“CCPA”).
Processing of Personal Information
In the preceding 12 months, we (i) collected the following categories of personal information about residents for the following purposes, and (ii) disclosed such information to third parties for a business or commercial purpose (as identified below):
| Category | Categories of Purposes (defined in the Use of Information section above) | Categories of Recipients (defined in the Disclosure of Information section above) |
|---|---|---|
| Identifiers such as 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 |
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| Personal information categories listed in the California Customer Records statute (Cal. Civ. Code § 1798(e)) such as name and contact information. | ||
| Characteristics of protected classifications under California or federal law for age and veteran status | ||
| Commercial information, including records of personal property, products or services purchased, obtained, or considered, or other purchasing or consuming histories or tendencies | ||
| Internet or other similar network activity, including, but not limited to, browsing history, search history, and information regarding your interaction with an internet website application, or advertisement | ||
| Geolocation data | ||
| Audio, electronic, visual, thermal, olfactory, or similar information (such as photographs, video recordings, and voice recordings) | ||
| Professional or employment-related information (such as title of profession, employer, and business contact information) | ||
| Education information, defined as information that is not publicly available personally identifiable information as defined in the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (20 U.S.C. Sec. 1232g; 34 C.F.R. Part 99) | ||
| Inferences drawn from any of the other information identified in this table other than sensitive personal information to create a profile about you reflecting your preferences, characteristics, psychological trends, predispositions, behavior, attitudes, intelligence, abilities, or aptitudes | ||
Personal information that reveals
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The criteria we use to determine how long to retain personal information about you is described in the section above, Data Security and Retention.
Selling and/or Sharing Personal Information
We do not have actual knowledge that we “sell” or “share” (as those terms are defined under the CCPA and used throughout this section) personal information of residents under 16 years of age. However, we do share certain categories of personal information for purposes of cross-contextual behavioral advertising, and, in the preceding 12 months, we have shared the categories of personal information about California residents as noted in the table set forth in the Your Privacy Rights section below. The CCPA considers such disclosures and sharing to be “selling” or “sharing” within the meaning of that statute. You may have the right to opt out of such disclosures via the methods described in the Your California Privacy Rights section below.
Right to Know
In addition to those rights set forth in the Your Privacy Rights section below (as applicable), California law provides residents the right to request that a business that collects personal information about them to disclose (1) the categories of personal information collected, disclosed, sold and/or shared; (2) the categories of sources from which the personal information was collected; (3) the business or commercial purpose for collecting, selling, and/or sharing personal information; (4) the categories of third parties with whom we disclosed, sold, and/or shared personal information; and (5) the specific pieces of personal information we have collected about you. To exercise this right, use the methods set forth in the Exercise Your Rights section below.
Your California Privacy Rights
California’s Shine the Light law permits residents to request certain details about how their “personal information” (as defined in California Civil Code Section 1798.83) is shared with third parties for their direct marketing purposes. We do not consider our data processing activities to fall into the category of sharing personal information with third parties for their own direct marketing purposes. However, to the extent Shine the Light applies to our data processing activities, you can opt out of any such disclosures by (i) utilizing the Global Privacy Control as mentioned in the Do Not Track & Global Privacy Controls section above, or (ii) by clicking the “Do Not Sell or Share My Personal Information” option in the footer of the website and changing your Cookie Settings as described on that webpage.
Some U.S. states (for example, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Texas, and Virginia) provide certain rights and options to their residents.
Additional Rights
Depending on the laws applicable to our processing of personal information about you based on your state of residence, you may have the ability to exercise the rights listed below. Subject to the foregoing and all applicable limitations, exemptions, or exceptions, these rights may include:
We do not use personal information about you in furtherance of automated profiling decisions that produce a legal or similarly significant effect.
We do not discriminate against users for exercising the rights granted to them under applicable law and that are applicable to our processing of personal information.
To exercise these rights, please see the Exercise Your Rights section below.
Selling and Sharing
We do not sell your personal information as the concept of “selling” is traditionally understood as being the exchange of something for money. However, we share your personal information with third parties for the purpose of cross-contextual behavioral advertising purposes (e.g., targeted advertising). Some U.S. state data protection laws hold such disclosures and sharing to be considered “selling” or “sharing.” In the preceding 12 months, we have sold or shared the following categories of personal information with the following categories of third parties and for the following purposes:
| Category of Personal Information | Categories of Purposes | Categories of Recipients |
|---|---|---|
| Identifiers such as 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 | Analytical and targeted advertising purposes (including, without limitation, cross-contextual behavioral advertising). | Analytics, marketing, advertising, and remarketing partners and service providers |
| Internet or other electronic network activity information |
You may have the right to opt out of the “selling” and/or use of your personal information for targeted advertising. You may exercise this right to opt out by utilizing the Global Privacy Control as mentioned in the Do Not Track & Global Privacy Controls section above, or by clicking the “Do Not Sell or Share My Personal Information” link here or in the footer of the website and changing your Cookie Settings as described on the linked-to webpage. If you have any questions or concerns, or would like more information on your ability to opt out, you can contact us by emailing: service@guitarcenter.com.
If this Privacy Notice expressly stated above that you have certain rights, or applicable law grants you certain rights as it relates to the Services and information we collect about you, you may exercise any of these rights by contacting us using the information provided below. You may submit a request to us by following the opt-out methods and processes identified above or by:
For clarity, to exercise your rights to opt-out of targeted advertising, or the “selling” or “sharing” of your personal information, you must follow the instructions provided under the Your Privacy Rights section noted above.
Additionally, you may have the right to appeal our decision regarding a request related to these rights by contacting us using the information provided below. If the appeal is denied, you may submit a complaint to the applicable government regulator or authority in the jurisdiction in which you are located (for example, the state Attorney General in the state in which you reside). We will provide you with information about how to contact the applicable regulator or authority.
When you submit a request or an appeal, we will limit our collection of information about you to only what is necessary to securely fulfill your request or process your appeal. Making a request or appeal does not require you to create an account with us.
To verify certain requests—for example, requests to know, delete, or correct—we may need to collect additional information to verify your identity and the request before providing a substantive response to the request.
Some jurisdictions, depending on your location, permit you to authorize an agent to make requests on your behalf to exercise your rights. If you have a registered agent to act on your behalf, we have the right to authenticate such agent’s authority to act.
We offer certain loyalty and rewards programs that may be considered financial incentives or bona fide loyalty programs under applicable U.S. state privacy laws like the CCPA. First, we offer discount coupons of varying amounts in exchange for certain categories of personal information or the completion of customer surveys. Discount coupons are offered via email and on our websites. If you choose to take advantage of a discount coupon, we may ask you to provide us with contact information and identifiers such as your name, phone number, and/or email address, lifestyle and background information (including, for example, musical skill level and musical instrument preferences), and commercial information such as your purchase history. Taking advantage of a discount coupon is voluntary and is not necessary in order for you to make a purchase from us. The information you provide may be used to send you marketing communications or to deliver targeted advertisements. Discount coupons apply to single transactions, so there is no need to “opt out” after a coupon is used. If you no longer wish to receive marketing emails, you may click “Unsubscribe” in a marketing email you receive from us or contact us using one of the means described in the How to Contact Us section below.
We also offer rewards via the Guitar Center Gear Card issued by our partner Synchrony Bank. The Gear Card allows you to accrue Guitar Center reward “points” with each purchase made from us with the card (currently 5 points for each $1 spent on in-store or online purchases), and those points can be used to make purchases from us (you receive $10 in rewards for every 1,000 points earned). In addition, Synchrony provides special financing options when you use the card to purchase items from us. To obtain a card, you may be asked to provide Synchrony with certain personal information including your name, address, email address, phone number, Social Security number, and financial information that Synchrony will use to determine your creditworthiness and administer the reward points that you accrue and use to make purchases and to process transactions. The Terms of the Gear Card may be found here Guitar Center Credit Card Special Offers | Guitar Center . Synchrony’s use of the information you provide to it is governed by Synchrony’s own policies. You may cancel your Gear Card at any time by contacting Synchrony at 866-396-8254. You also have the right to withdraw from the Gear Card reward program (which will also result in deletion and forfeiting of any reward points in your account balance) by contacting Synchrony at 866-396-8254.
While we cannot calculate the precise value of the information you provide as part of these programs, the discounts and rewards we offer generally reflect the value of the relationships that we have with the individuals who participate in them and are based in part on our estimate of the discount amounts and rewards that will generate brand loyalty and additional sales.
Should you have any questions about our privacy practices or this Privacy Notice, please email us at allleagl@guitarcenter.com or contact us at Guitar Center 5795 Lindero Canyon Road, Westlake Village, CA 91362, or at 866-498-7882.
Our product catalog varies by country due to manufacturer restrictions. If you change the Ship-To country, some or all of the items in your cart may not ship to the new destination.
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