The purpose of this statement is to define the City of Los Angeles' policy with
regards to the collection and use of personally identifiable information (PII
- any information relating to an identified or identifiable individual who is
the subject of the information).
Information Collected
The City of Los Angeles collects two kinds of user information:
1. Anonymous information
Information that does not identify specific individuals and is automatically
transmitted by your browser. This information can consist of:
-
The URL (Uniform Resource Locator or address) of the web page you previously
visited.
- The domain names and/or IP addresses which are numbers that are automatically
assigned to your computer whenever you are connected to the Internet or World
Wide Web.
- The browser version you are using to access the site.
This information is used to help improve our web site. None of the information
can be linked to any individual.
2. Personally Identifiable Information (PII) Information that could include:
-
Name
-
Address
-
Email address
-
Telephone number
-
Credit/debit card information
The City will make every reasonable effort to protect your privacy. It restricts
access to your personal identifiable information to those employees that will
respond to your request. The City does not intentionally disclose any personal
information about our users to any third parties inside or outside the City
except as required by law.
The City only collects personally identifiable information that is required
to provide service. You can decline to provide us with any personal information
on any site on the Internet at any time. However, if you should choose to withhold
requested information, we may not be able to provide you with the online services
dependent upon the collection of that information.
Access to Personally Identifiable Information
Access to personally identifiable information in public records at state and local
levels of government in Los Angeles is controlled primarily by the California
Public Records Act (Government Code Section 6250, et seq.). Information that
is generally available under the Public Records Act may be posted for electronic
access through the City's web site. While the Public Records Act sets the general
policies for access to City records, other sections of California code as well
as federal laws also deal with confidentiality issues.
E-mail Addresses
E-mail addresses obtained through the web site will not be sold or given to
other private companies for marketing purposes. The information collected is
subject to the access and confidentiality provisions of the Public Records Act,
other applicable sections of the California code as well as federal laws. E-mail
or other information requests sent to the City web site may be maintained in
order to respond to the request, forward that request to the appropriate agency
within the City, communicate updates to the City page that may be of interest
to citizens, or to provide the City web designer with valuable customer feedback
to assist in improving the site. Individuals can cancel any communications regarding
new service updates at any time.
Cookies
Some City applications use "cookies." A cookie is a small data file that certain
web sites write to your hard drive when you visit them. A cookie file can contain
information such as a user id that the site uses to track the pages you have
visited. But the only personal information a cookie can contain is information
you supply yourself. A cookie is only a text file and cannot read data off your
hard disk or read cookie files created by other sites. Cookies can track user
traffic patterns, recognize your computer's browser when you return, and could
provide personalized content without requiring sign-in.
You can refuse cookies by turning them off in your browser. However, they may
be required to use some of the web applications on the City's site.
Security
The City of Los Angeles is committed to data security and the data quality of
personally identifiable information that is either available from or collected
by our web site and has taken reasonable precautions to protect such information
from loss, misuse or alteration.
The City operates "secure data networks" protected by industry standard firewalls
and password protection systems. Only authorized individuals have access to
the information provided by our users.
When a City application accepts credit cards or any other particularly sensitive
information for any of its services, it encrypts all ordering information, such
as your name and credit card number, in order to protect its confidentiality.
Access to Your Information
Unless otherwise prohibited by state or federal law, rule or regulation you
will be granted the ability to access and correct any personally identifiable
information. We will take reasonable steps to verify your identity before granting
access to review or make corrections to your information.
Each City
service that collects personally identifiable information will allow for review
and update of that information. See individual requests for information for
specifics.
Non-City Web Sites
Non-city web sites may be linked through the City's web site. Many non-city
sites may or may not be subject to the Public Records Act and may or may not
be subject to other sections of California Code or federal law. Visitors to
such sites are advised to check the privacy statements of such sites and to
be cautious about providing personally identifiable information without a clear
understanding of how the information will be used. Visitors may also wish to
consult privacy guidelines such as those recommended by the Online Privacy Alliance
(http://www.privacyalliance.org/resources/ppguidelines.shtml).
Date last modified: September 09, 2010