Privacy and Security

Official information and services from the U.S. government

E-mail

USA.gov does not collect any personal information when you visit our web site unless you choose to provide that information. The USA.gov privacy policy is as follows:

Information Collected and Stored Automatically

When you visit the USA.gov web site, we may store some or all of the following: the Internet address from which you access the web site, date and time, the Internet address of the web site from which you linked to our site, the name of the file or words you searched, items clicked on a page, and the browser and operating system used. This information is used to measure the number of visitors to the various sections of our site and identify system performance or problem areas. We also use this information to help us expand the coverage of the site, to analyze patterns of usage, and to make the site more useful. However, this information is not used for associating search terms or patterns of site navigation with individual users. USA.gov periodically deletes its Web logs. On occasion, USA.gov may provide this information to third party entities it contracts with for the purposes of research analysis.

Cookies

When you visit some websites, their web servers generate pieces of information known as cookies. Some cookies collect personal information to recognize your computer in the future.

USA.gov uses per-session cookies to serve technical purposes, like providing seamless navigation through USA.gov. These cookies do not permanently record data and they are not stored on your computer's hard drive. USA.gov's per-session cookies are stored in memory and are only available during an active browser session. When you close your browser, the per-session cookie disappears.

If You Send Us Personal Information

We do not collect personal information for any purpose other than to respond to you (for example, to respond to your questions or provide subscriptions you have chosen). If you choose to provide us with personal information—like filling out a Contact Us form, with an e-mail address and zip code, and submitting it to us through the website—we use that information to respond to your message, and to help get you the information you've requested. We only share the information you give us with another government agency if your question relates to that agency, or as otherwise required by law. USA.gov never collects information or creates individual profiles for commercial marketing.

While you must provide an e-mail address and zip code for a localized response to any incoming questions or comments to USA.gov, we recommend that you NOT include any other personal information, especially Social Security numbers. The Social Security Administration offers additional guidance on sharing your Social Security number.

Site Security

USA.gov Linking Policy

USA.gov links to many websites created and maintained by other public and/or private organizations. USA.gov provides these links as a service to our users. When users link to an outside website, they are leaving the USA.gov site and are subject to the privacy and security policies of the owners/sponsors of the outside website(s). Be sure to review the USA.gov Linking Policy.

Prohibitions

USA.gov will not link to any website that exhibits hate, bias, or discrimination. Furthermore, USA.gov reserves the right to deny or remove any link that contains misleading information or unsubstantiated claims, or is determined to be in conflict with USA.gov's mission or policies.

Disclaimer of Endorsement

The information posted on the USA.gov website includes hypertext links or pointers to information created and maintained by other public and/or private organizations. USA.gov provides these links and pointers solely for our users' information and convenience. When users select a link to an outside website, they are leaving the USA.gov site and are subject to the privacy and security policies of the owners/sponsors of the outside website.