Privacy policy

Your rights under the Privacy Act: Information concerning the Privacy Act can be found on the following Web site: http://www.cftc.gov/webpolicy/index.htm#privacy

Information Collected and Stored Automatically: When you visit our web site to read pages or download information, we automatically collect and store the following non-identifying information:

The Internet protocol (IP) address from which you access our web site. An IP address is a unique number that is automatically assigned to the computer you are using whenever you are surfing the web.
The type of browser, such as Netscape or Internet Explorer, and operating system, such as Windows 98 or Linux, used to access our site.
The date and time our site is accessed, for the purpose of monitoring demand.
The pages visited, for the purpose of improving the usefulness of our web site by providing helpful links and removing pages that are not read.
The last site you visited, if that site contained a link to a Census Bureau web page, which indicates how you found this site.

This information does not identify you personally. We maintain the above information in system logs. We use this information to make our site more useful to visitors by learning the number of visitors to our site, the number of pages served, and the level of demand for specific pages. We do not track or record information about identifiable individuals and their visits.

We generally do not use cookies, which are files or file entries placed on your computer's hard drive by a web site, that allow monitoring of your use of the site. Some activities, such as using the American FactFinder or purchasing a product do require the use of transient cookies.

In American FactFinder, transient cookies are used to keep track of user selections so that new requests for specific data or maps can be created more efficiently. No personally-identifiable information is permanently retained on either the user's or the Census Bureau's computers. These transient cookies go away completely when you exit the browser. When ordering products, transient cookies are enabled to track your order through the process.

The Use of Persistent Cookies and Tracking Technology: The Census Bureau does not use "persistent cookies" or other "persistent tracking technology." Information Collected from E-mail: When you send us personally-identifying information in an e-mail, we use the information you provide only to help us gather the information you might request. In an effort to respond to your request, various people within the Census Bureau may view the information you submit. Public notices issued by the Census Bureau in which interested persons are invited to comment by e-mail will contain a notice of what we intend to do with the data gathered. Once received, the information in your e-mail is protected in accordance with law (e.g., the Privacy Act and the Freedom of Information Act). For the most part, all information submitted by visitors is voluntary. Submitting voluntary information constitutes your consent to the use of the information in the stated purpose. In some cases, such as when a user requests a product or fills out a survey or census, some identifiable information will need to be collected to fulfill your request or process your response. Security, Intrusion, and Detection: For site security purposes and to ensure that this service remains available to all users, this government computer system employs software programs to monitor network traffic to identify unauthorized attempts to upload or change information, or otherwise cause damage. E-mail is not necessarily secure against interception. Whether or not e-mail is encrypted in transmission depends on your software. Links to Other Web Sites: Our web site contains links to other federal agencies, international agencies, and private organizations. Once you link to another site you are subject to the policies of the new site.

Email: [email protected]