Date of last revision: 07/30/2006

I.Internet Privacy Policy
II. Terms and Conditions of Use
III. Web Accessibility Compliance

I. Cook County Internet Privacy Policy and Terms and Conditions of Use
This Policy guides how Cook County collects, stores and uses information about citizens who visit this website, and it will be periodically assessed. Cook County government strives to provide online resources in a safe, secure manner that respects your privacy when you visit our sites.

This Privacy Policy addresses the collection, use, disclosure, and security of information that may be obtained by the County of Cook through the use of the www.cookcountygov.com, www.cookcountygov.org, www.co.cook.il.us, www.cookcountyil.us, www.countyofcook.il.us (herinafter the “County websites”).

Other County Websites
This Policy applies only to the Cook County sites listed above and does not apply to the websites for Cook County offices not under the Office of the President, including:

o Cook County Assessor
o Cook County Chief Judge and Court System
o Cook County Clerk
o Cook County Clerk of Circuit Court
o Cook County Public Guardian
o Cook County Recorder of Deeds
o Cook County Sheriff
o Cook County State’s Attorney
o Cook County Treasurer
o Forest Preserve District of Cook County

Changes to This Policy
Cook County may, from time to time, modify this Privacy Policy to reflect legal, technological and other developments. In that event, the changes will appear at this location. We will also post the last date of revision at the top of this page.

This Privacy Policy is maintained by: Cook County Bureau of Information Technology & Automation/ 69 W. Washington, 27th Floor/ Chicago, IL 60602/ 312.603.1400.

Cook County also has established a standing Privacy Steering Committee consisting of Internet staff from all county agencies. This Committee oversees implementation of and compliance with our Policy and will adapt the Policy to reflect changes in technology and customer expectations.

Information Gathering/ Cookies
If you visit the Cook County websites, the County may collect some or all of the following information:

• The name of your domain; for example, "xyzcompany.com" if you use a private Internet access account;
• An IP address; a number automatically assigned to your computer when you are using the Internet;
• The type of browser and operating system used to access our site;
• The Internet address of the website from which you linked directly to our site;
• The pages you visit within the County websites; and
• The links made to other websites through the County websites.

This information is collected for statistical analysis using third-party or proprietary software programs to create summary statistics of web traffic. The statistics are used for the purpose of determining what information is of most and least interest to all visitors and identifying system performance or problem areas in order to better plan future site enhancements. This information is not collected for commercial marketing purposes.

We currently collect no other personal information.

We currently do not use or set “cookies” on our website. A cookie is a line of computer code inserted onto your computer by a web site which you visit. The cookie can then be read by the site's web browser if you return to the site. Cookies are used for many things, from making web sites more personal to speeding on-line transactions. Cookies can also be used to track your web browsing habits.

Voluntarily Provided Information
We do not collect personal information without your permission. Any information that you volunteer or that we send to you in response is transferred using industry standard encryption technologies.
If, during your visit to this website, you voluntarily provide personally identifiable information, we will collect such information. Examples of personally identifiable information may include:

• Your name, address, or phone number;
• An e-mail address if you are communicating to us through e-mail;
• Information you voluntarily submit to Cook County for the purposes of completing or submitting an application or form online;
• Other information volunteered, such as vendor profile/contact information, survey information or content of e-mail.

However, you should be aware that when you give us your personal information for purposes of communicating with or requesting information from Cook County, that communications becomes a part of the public record and may be subject to disclosure under applicable Illinois and Federal statute(s).
As a general rule, we will not disclose any personally identifiable information collected online to entities outside of Cook County departments and agencies except where you have given us permission.

Sale of Data
E-mail addresses or any personally identifying information about individuals are not sold or rented to any governmental or commercial entities.

External Linking
The County websites provide links to other websites. These include links to web sites operated by other County agencies and officials, other government agencies, nonprofit organizations and private businesses. When you link to another site, you are subject to the privacy policy of that new site.

II. TERMS AND CONDITIONS OF USE
Access to the County websites is provided subject to the following terms and conditions. Please read these terms carefully as use of these sites constitutes acceptance of all of the following terms and conditions:

Disclaimer of Liability
NEITHER COOK COUNTY, NOR ANY OF ITS AGENCIES NOR ANY OF ITS EMPLOYEES SHALL BE HELD LIABLE FOR ANY IMPROPER OR INCORRECT USE OF THE INFORMATION DESCRIBED AND/OR CONTAINED HEREIN AND ASSUMES NO RESPONSIBILITY FOR ANYONE'S USE OF THE INFORMATION. IN NO EVENT SHALL THE COUNTY OR ITS AGENCIES OR EMPLOYEES BE LIABLE FOR ANY DIRECT, INDIRECT, INCIDENTAL, SPECIAL, EXEMPLARY, OR CONSEQUENTIAL DAMAGES (INCLUDING, BUT NOT LIMITED TO, PROCUREMENT OR SUBSTITUTE GOODS OR SERVICES; LOSS OF USE, DATA, OR PROFITS; OR BUSINESS INTERRUPTION) HOWEVER CAUSED AND ON ANY THEORY OF LIABILITY, WHETHER IN CONTRACT, STRICT LIABILITY, OR TORT (INCLUDING NEGLIGENCE OR OTHERWISE) ARISING IN ANY WAY OUT OF THE USE OF THIS SYSTEM, EVEN IF ADVISED OF THE POSSIBILITY OF SUCH DAMAGE. THIS DISCLAIMER OF LIABILITY APPLIES TO ANY DAMAGES OR INJURY, INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED TO THOSE CAUSED BY ANY FAILURE OF PERFORMANCE, ERROR, OMISSION, INTERRUPTION, DELETION, DEFECT, DELAY IN OPERATION OR TRANSMISSION, COMPUTER VIRUS, COMMUNICATION LINE FAILURE, THEFT OR DESTRUCTION OR UNAUTHORIZED ACCESS TO, ALTERATION OF, OR USE OF RECORD, WHETHER FOR BREACH OF CONTRACT, TORTIOUS BEHAVIOR, NEGLIGENCE OR UNDER ANY OTHER CAUSE OF ACTION.

Disclaimer of Warranties and Accuracy of Data
ALTHOUGH THE DATA FOUND USING THE COUNTY WEBSITES HAVE BEEN PRODUCED AND PROCESSED FROM SOURCES BELIEVED TO BE RELIABLE, NO WARRANTY, EXPRESSED OR IMPLIED, IS MADE REGARDING ACCURACY, ADEQUACY, COMPLETENESS, LEGALITY, RELIABILITY OR USEFULNESS OF ANY INFORMATION. THIS DISCLAIMER APPLIES TO BOTH ISOLATED AND AGGREGATE USES OF THE INFORMATION. THE COUNTY PROVIDES THIS INFORMATION ON AN "AS IS" BASIS. ALL WARRANTIES OF ANY KIND, EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED TO THE IMPLIED WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY, FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE, FREEDOM FROM CONTAMINATION BY COMPUTER VIRUSES AND NON-INFRINGEMENT OF PROPRIETARY RIGHTS ARE DISCLAIMED. CHANGES MAY BE PERIODICALLY MADE TO THE INFORMATION HEREIN; THESE CHANGES MAY OR MAY NOT BE INCORPORATED IN ANY NEW VERSION OF THE PUBLICATION. IF YOU HAVE OBTAINED INFORMATION FROM ANY OF THE COUNTY’S WEB PAGES FROM A SOURCE OTHER THAN THE COUNTY’S WEBSITES LISTED ABOVE, BE AWARE THAT ELECTRONIC DATA CAN BE ALTERED SUBSEQUENT TO ORIGINAL DISTRIBUTION. DATA CAN ALSO QUICKLY BECOME OUT OF DATE. IT IS RECOMMENDED THAT CAREFUL ATTENTION BE PAID TO THE CONTENTS OF ANY DATA ASSOCIATED WITH A FILE, AND THAT THE ORIGINATOR OF THE DATA OR INFORMATION BE CONTACTED WITH ANY QUESTIONS REGARDING APPROPRIATE USE.
IF YOU FIND ANY ERRORS OR OMISSIONS, WE ENCOURAGE YOU TO REPORT THEM TO WEBMASTER@COOKCOUNTYGOV.COM VIA EMAIL.

Disclaimer of Endorsement
Cook County is a distributor of content sometimes supplied by third parties and users. Any opinions, advice, statements, services, offers, or other information or content expressed or made available by third parties, including information providers, users, or others, are those of the respective author(s) or distributor(s) and do not necessarily state or reflect those of Cook County and shall not be used for advertising or product endorsement purposes. Reference herein to any specific commercial products, process, or service by trade name, trademark, manufacturer, or otherwise, does not constitute or imply its endorsement, recommendation, or favoring by the County.

Disclaimer for External Links
Cook County is not responsible for the contents of any off-site pages referenced. You specifically acknowledge that the County is not liable for the defamatory, offensive, or illegal conduct of other users, links, or third parties and that the risk of injury from the foregoing rests entirely with the user. Links from the Cook County web pages on the World Wide Web to other sites do not constitute an endorsement from the County. These links are provided as an information service only. It is the responsibility of the web surfer to evaluate the content and usefulness of information obtained from other sites. The County websites contain links to other related World Wide Web Internet sites and resources. Since the County websites are not responsible for the availability of these outside resources or their contents, you should direct any concerns regarding any external link to its site administrator or webmaster.

Disclaimer of Duty to Continue Provision of Data
Due to the dynamic nature of the Internet, resources that are free and publicly available one day may require a fee or restricted access the next, and the location of items may change as menus, homepages, and files are reorganized. You expressly agree that use of the County websites is at your sole risk. The County does not warrant that the service will be uninterrupted or error free. The documents and related graphics published on this server could contain technical inaccuracies or typographical errors. Changes are periodically added to the information herein. The County and/or its respective agencies and programs may make improvements and/or changes in the information and/or programs described herein at any time.

Choice of Law
Construction of the disclaimers above and resolution of disputes thereof are governed by the laws of the State of Illinois. The laws of the State of Illinois, U.S.A., shall apply to all uses of this data and this system. By use of this system and any data contained therein, you agree that your use shall conform to all applicable laws and regulations and you shall not violate the rights of any third parties.

Security
Security measures have been integrated into the design, implementation and day-to-day operations of the entire operating environment as part of our continuing commitment to the security of electronic content as well as the electronic transmission of information.

The Cook County Bureau of Information Technology & Automation (BITA), as developer and manager of the County websites, has taken several steps to safeguard the integrity of its communications and computing infrastructure, including but not limited to authentication, monitoring, auditing, and encryption. Security measures have been integrated into the design, implementation and day-to-day practices of the entire operating environment as part of its continuing commitment to risk management.

This information should not be construed in any way as giving business, legal, or other advice, or warranting as fail proof, the security of information provided via the County websites.

III. Web Accessibility Compliance

Cook County is committed to providing equal access to all County government internet/web-based information and services.
This document describes the steps that Cook County will take to achieve the goal of developing County accessibility standard and providing equal access to these services.

Transition Plan for Web Accessibility Compliance
("cc_WAC_Transition_Plan_v1-0.pdf - 140K)