At DotGov, we are committed to protecting your privacy, and we have created this Privacy Policy as part of our Terms of Service to explain what information we collect, how your information is collected, and how we may use it on our website DotGov.com, CivicApp.us, SmartPub.us, and other websites and services that we operate.

As you will see in the Policy, we only use the information collected to improve our services for our users. If after reviewing the Policy you have any further questions, please contact us at privacy@dotgov.com.


1. Definitions

When we say, “we,” “our,” or “us,” we’re referring to DotGov Communications, LLC, a Virginia limited liability company, our employees, directors, officers, affiliates, and subsidiaries.

When we say “you” or “your,” we are referring to the person or entity that’s registered with us to use the DotGov Services.

When we say “Websites,” we mean our websites located at dotgov.com, civicapp.us, smartpub.us, including all subdomains and sites associated with those domains, and other websites that we operate now and in the future.

When we say “Services,” we mean our Websites, Application Programming Interfaces (APIs), applications, our content, and various third-party services that make up DotGov.

When we say “CivicApp” or “SmartPub,”  we mean our Websites and Services collectively.

When we say “information,” we mean all of the different forms of data that you provide us and that we collect from you from your use of the Services, your software, and your devices.


2. Information We Collect

  1. Information you provide to us: When you register for and use CivicApp or SmartPub, you are providing us with information, which we collect. This information may include your name, billing and mailing address, email address, phone number, and credit card information. We use a third-party intermediary to manage credit card processing. This intermediary is not permitted to store, retain, or use your billing information for any purpose except for credit card processing on our behalf.
  2. Information from your use of Services: This information may include IP Address, location information, date and time, browser type, and any other action you might have taken to use and while using the Services.
  3. Cookies: When you use CivicApp or SmartPub, we store “cookies,” which are strings of code, on your computer. We use those cookies to collect information about when you visit our Website, when you use the Services, your browser, your operating system, and other similar information. Most browsers allow you to block and delete cookies. However, if you block our cookies, our Services may not work properly.
  4. Third Party Cookies: The use of cookies by third parties is not covered by our Privacy Policy. We do not have access or control over these cookies. Third parties use session ID cookies to make it easier for you to navigate our Websites. We use third-party services to provide the necessary hardware, software, networking, storage, and related technology required to run and improve our Services.
  5. Web Beacons: Our third party partners may employ web beacons to track online user movement to help us better understand what content is effective. Web beacons are tiny graphics with a unique identifier that are embedded in websites and in newsletter emails. With web beacons, our third party partners may collect information about you, such as your IP address, your browser or email client type, and other similar details. We use the data from our third party partners to improve our services.

3. How We Use Your Information

  1. To create your account.
  2. To bill you for services.
  3. To provide customer support.
  4. To transfer your information in the case of a sale, merger, consolidation, or acquisition.
  5. To better understand your needs and interests.
  6. To send newsletters.
  7. To personalize your experience.
  8. To improve our Services and our products.
  9. To send you updates and alerts and to contact you about your account.
  10. To respond to subpoenas, court orders, or legal process, or to establish or exercise our legal rights or defend against legal claims.

If you no longer wish to receive our newsletters, you may unsubscribe by following the link located within our emails.


4. How We Share and Disclose Your Personal Information

While we never share your personal information with nonaffiliated companies, we may share your personal information in the following ways:

  1. We may share information with service providers who provide necessary services to DotGov and to strategic partners who help us market DotGov – for instance to send out newsletters or to process payments.
  2. To provide customer support.
  3. When we have your permission to share your information.
  4. When we have given you prior notice that the information will be shared.
  5. When we are required by law, or legal process to disclose that information – such as a valid court order or a valid subpoena. When we believe in good faith that disclosure is necessary to protect our rights, protect your safety or the safety of others, investigate fraud, or respond to a valid government request.
  6. To enforce our terms and conditions or to protect our operations or users.
  7. If a transfer of your information is required under the terms of a reorganization, merger, or sale of the company.
  8. When we determine that information is aggregate information or other information that does not identify you.

5. Public Information and Third Parties

  1. DotGov Blog: We have public blogs on our Website. Any information you provide in these areas may be read, collected, and used by anyone. If your personal information appears on our blogs and if you would like to remove it, you can send your request to support@dotgov.com. In some cases, we may not be able to remove your personal information, in which case we will let you know if we are unable to do so and why.
  2. Third Parties: We are not responsible and this Privacy Policy does not cover your use of any third-party widgets, features, or websites or links to third-party websites or services. We encourage you to read the privacy policy of any third-party site you visit or service you use carefully.
  3. We publish customer testimonials on our website, which may contain personal information. We obtain consent to post the customer’s name along with their testimonial. To request the removal of your personal information from a testimonial, please email us at support@dotgov.com.
  4. Social Media Widgets: Our Websites include social media features. These features may collect your IP address, which page(s) you are visiting, and may set cookies to make sure they function properly. Social media features and widgets are either hosted by a third party or hosted directly on our site. Your interactions with those features are governed by the privacy policy of the companies providing them.

6. Security

We take precautions — including administrative, technical, and physical measures — to safeguard your personal information against loss, theft, and misuse, as well as against unauthorized access, disclosure, alteration, and destruction.

We follow generally accepted industry standards to protect your information, both during transmission and once we receive it. No method of transmission over the Internet, or method of electronic storage, however, is 100% secure. Therefore, while we strive to use commercially acceptable means to protect your personal information, we cannot guarantee its absolute security.

When you enter sensitive information (such as credit card number) on our order form, we encrypt the transmission of that information using secure socket layer technology (SSL).


7. Correcting and Updating Information

If you are our customer and would like to access or delete information that you provided, you may do this by signing in to CivicApp or SmartPub and making the change or by emailing us at support@dotgov.com. We will respond to your request within 30 days. We may decline to process unreasonable requests or requests that are not otherwise required by local law.

We retain your information and data that we process on your behalf as long as your account is active, as needed to provide our Services, and as necessary to comply with our legal obligations and resolve disputes.

We have no direct relationship with third parties with whom our users may interact using the Services. Any such party who would like to amend or delete data which may be stored in the Services should direct his or her request to the applicable DotGov, CivicApp, or SmartPub user acting as the “data controller” for such information.

Any such party who no longer wishes to be contacted by a DotGov, CivicApp, or SmartPub user, should contact that user directly.


8. Updates to this Privacy Policy

We reserve the right to modify this privacy statement at any time, so please review it frequently. If we make material changes to this policy, we will notify you here and by email.


9. Effective Date

This Privacy Policy has the same Effective Date as our Terms.


10. Questions

If you have any questions or concerns about our Privacy Policy please contact us with the following information:

Address: DotGov.com, P.O. Box 26115, Alexandria, Virginia 22313
Email: privacy@dotgov.com

© 2024  DotGov Communications, LLC  |  Terms of Service  |  Privacy Policy

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