Privacy Policy

Collection of Information by CityOfMobile.org

In order to improve the content and usability of this web site, the City of Mobile (the "City") automatically collects several categories of information from users. This information includes the following:

1. The apparent Internet Protocol ("IP") address of your Internet Service Provider ("ISP") and/or your computer, if your computer has an IP address assigned directly to it.
2. The apparent Fully Qualified Domain Name ("Domain Name") of your Internet Service Provider ("ISP") and/or your computer, if your computer has a domain name assigned directly to it.
3. The type of browser (such as, for example Netscape, Internet Explorer, Firefox, Safari, Opera, Konqueror, etc.) used and the operating system resident on a user's computer.
4. The date and time a user visited the site.
5. The web pages accessed at the site, as well as any applications used and forms data.
6. The Uniform Resource Locator ("URL") of the site which a user visited prior to CityOfMobile.org (if detectable), if such user did not connect directly to CityOfMobile.org, or use it as a homepage or "Portal.

The City uses this information to identify site performance needs; to ensure compatibility with the technology used by CityOfMobile.org's visitors, and to generally add and improve services offered on CityOfMobile.org. In order to accomplish those goals, from time to time, the City may conduct statistical analysis of the data it collects.

The City does not collect data for commercial or marketing purposes, and the City does not sell, exchange or otherwise distribute the data collected by CityOfMobile.org for commercial or marketing purposes.

Information Submitted to CityOfMobile.org

During a session on CityOfMobile.org, a user may affirmatively submit information to the City by, among other means, electronic mail ("e-mail"), by filling in and submitting an on-line form, or by electing to personalize CityOfMobile.org and use it as a customized portal. Such affirmatively submitted information is stored in a secure environment, and will be used by the City in furtherance of its duties and/or obligations to its citizenry (i.e., "governmental purposes").

The governmental purposes to which affirmatively submitted information may be put include, but are not limited to, the following:

1. Helping the City respond to a request for information not readily available from CityOfMobile.org.
2. Investigating a problem reported to the City via CityOfMobile.org.
3. Keeping lists of parties interested in some particular issue or facet of Mobile City life about which the City anticipates issuing further information in the future.
4. Disclosure of such information pursuant to a request made under Alabama Open Records Law or court order, if such information is not protected by federal or state law.

The City does not rent or sell personally identifiable information (i.e., information such as name, address, phone number, e-mail, etc., that identifies a user as a particular person), nor would the City exchange or trade such information with third-parties without a user's explicit permission. The City does not disclose credit card or other personally identifiable financial information other than as necessary to complete a credit card or other financial transaction, or upon explicit permission from the applicable user. All such use by the City of financial information shall be subject to the section of this policy on financial issues, set forth below.

If a CityOfMobile.org user has elected not to receive further information from the City, CityOfMobile.org will not send such information. If a CityOfMobile.org user has elected to receive further communication from the City, CityOfMobile.org will only send information in categories that have been authorized. If CityOfMobile.org sends electronic mail ("e-mail") to a user, such e-mail is NOT confidential, and is identical in nature to that information generally available to the public and news media.

Security

In certain instances, a user may have the opportunity to receive or create a password to access or submit personally identifiable information. One should not divulge a password to anyone, and the City will never ask a user for a password in a telephone call, fax, e-mail or other form of unsolicited communication. When a user is finished with an application or applications that are password protected, such user should exit the relevant page(s). If the browser used to access said password protected pages is a publicly-accessible browser, users should close down the entire session and, if applicable or possible, flush any temporary caches or other areas where such a password might be stored subsequent to use.

The City has integrated industry standard or better security measures and systems into the design, implementation and day to day operation of CityOfMobile.org and its underlying servers and networks. Furthermore, the City maintains ongoing efforts to identify and/or block unauthorized intrusions into or onto CityOfMobile.org, and to upload to or change information on or otherwise cause damage to CityOfMobile.org or the information resident hereon or submitted hereto.

Cookies

CityOfMobile.org generally, does not use "persistent cookies." Cookies are text files, or entries in larger files, utilized to distinguish between visitors to a web site, and to track information during multiple visits to a web site. The City uses "temporary cookies" on some parts of CityOfMobile.org, and such temporary cookies expire upon the end of the browsing session. If a user registers to use CityOfMobile.org as a customized portal, the City uses a persistent cookie to facilitate such customization.

The use of cookies is a standard practice among Internet web sites. Most Internet web browsers may be customized to reject cookies, to only accept or reject cookies by user intervention, or to delete cookies. Rejecting and/or removing cookies, however, may lead to loss of functionality on those CityOfMobile.org pages requiring cookies to function fully. Additionally, if a user has created a customized version of CityOfMobile.org, the City will create a cookie that contains the user's unique identifier and indicator for any custom content modules requested and, if a user elected the "remember me" option for signing in to CityOfMobile.org, the cookie will contain a user's password. Deletion of such a cookie could result in the loss of one's customized CityOfMobile.org portal settings.
 

Web Bugs (a/k/a Web Beacons)

CityOfMobile.org does not use web bugs on its web pages or in any html e-mail generated by use of the portal, or otherwise sent from CityOfMobile.org, for any purpose other than to identify site performance needs; to ensure compatibility with the technology used by CityOfMobile.org's visitors, and to generally add and improve services offered on CityOfMobile.org.

Children

No applications on CityOfMobile.org specifically solicit information from minors or seek to determine whether the visitor is a minor. Consequently, because such information will not be specifically identified as being from minors, users of CityOfMobile.org should be aware that personally identifiable information submitted to CityOfMobile.org by minors will be subject to being treated in the same manner as information given by an adult and may become subject to Alabama Open Records Law.

The City strongly believes that parental supervision is an important factor in Internet use by minors. Therefore, CityOfMobile.org asks parents to guide their minor children when children are asked to provide any personal information online. CityOfMobile.org further asks that children ask for and receive their parent's permission before providing any information online.

Health Care Information

Any agency providing personally identifiable health care information via CityOfMobile.org will be required to certify that its health care data handling and security procedures are compliant with the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996 ("HIPAA"). If such data and security services are provided to such agency(ies) by a third-party provider, the agency(ies) shall be responsible for such third party's compliance with HIPAA.

Third Party Links

CityOfMobile.org provides links to, and may be linked from, local, State and federal government agencies, and from, or to, other web sites. The existence and/or provision of those links neither constitutes nor implies endorsement of the destination or departure web site(s) or of the content, viewpoint, accuracy, opinions, policy(ies), product(s), accessibility or privacy policy of said destination or departure web site(s). Nor does any link between CityOfMobile.org and a third-party web site imply sponsorship of such web site, or the creator of such web site.

Some content on portions of CityOfMobile.org resides on servers run by third parties. Each agency providing content for CityOfMobile.org is bound by CityOfMobile.org's privacy policy. Any agency using a third-party host, ISP, ASP or other combination of third-party transport, storage, content or application provision services shall be responsible for such third party's compliance with CityOfMobile.org's privacy policy.

Intellectual Property

The content of CityOfMobile.org's web pages is copyrighted, and contain some third party images/graphics that are used with permission. Users are notified, therefore, that one should presume the need to obtain permission from the copyright holder before reproducing or otherwise using images/graphics from this web site.

CityOfMobile.org may change this policy from time to time, and reserves the right to do so without notice.