Privacy Policy

Personally identifiable
information you
give the OAG

1. If you send the OAG a message and want a reply, the OAG needs at least your name and your e-mail address or telephone number.
2. If you request a publication, the OAG needs your name and street address to send it to you.
3. Regarding requests for information, please note: If you request a particular brochure or report, we will send you the document you requested and updated related information as it becomes available. If you want other publications or additional unrelated information, please request it, i.e. opt-in on the OAG's Information Request Form.

Sharing information you
give the OAG

The OAG may need to share your information to perform government functions, just as if you had sent the OAG the information by mail. For example -

1. If you request that the OAG mediate a consumer complaint against a merchant, the OAG must tell the merchant the details of the transaction, which may include your identity. The OAG does not control and cannot vouch for the information practices of these businesses.

2. If you apply for employment, the OAG may need to contact your references and perform other appropriate verification.

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Access to personally identifiable information you give the OAG

Access to PII is limited to OAG personnel who have authorization to the data.

Except as otherwise provided by law, the OAG will provide you with access to your PII which has been collected through this Website. Access to the data and the opportunity to request correction or amendment of such information is provided under the procedures set forth in section 95 of the Public Officers Law. Reasonable proof of identity will be required.

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Information your computer
automatically provides
to all Websites

While you are browsing, your computer automatically provides certain "navigation" information to every Website you visit, including the OAG Website. The navigation information includes:

1. The address (also known as URL, short for "uniform resource locator") of any Web page you visited before you linked to an OAG Web page.
2. Your Internet Protocol address (or "IP address"). This is the Internet's address for your particular computer. A Website's computer must know your IP address so the site can send the Web page you ask to view.

   Click here for more details on domain names and IP addresses.

3. The Web-browsing software you are using.
4. Whether your computer is configured to display English or some other language.
5. Your online service provider.
6. The date and time you visited this site.
7. Note: Your computer does not automatically provide your e-mail address.

For example, if you have an AOL account, were visiting a page on the Yahoo site, and clicked on a link to the OAG home page, your computer would transmit to the OAG Website that:

1. You are an AOL subscriber;
2. You use a particular browser software version such as Internet Explorer 5.0.
3. You were just visiting a particular page on www.yahoo.com.
4. You linked to www.ag.ny.gov on a particular date at a particular time.

Use of information
your computer automatically
provides to all Websites

The OAG Website uses automatic navigation information for internal, site-monitoring purposes.

1. This data allows OAG staff to measure visitors' interest in different sections of the Website, so the OAG can make the site more useful to visitors.
2. The OAG generates internal reports that identify the number of web users on a given day who requested pages through particular online service providers. This information may report the volume of requests originating from a service provider associated with a particular school or company or from foreign countries.

   The OAG does not:

3. analyze our visitors' automatic navigation information to attempt to identify unique or repeat visitors
4. routinely retain permanent records of automatic navigation information
5. attempt to identify individual visitors by analyzing their IP (Internet Protocol) addresses

Click here for details on identifiability of domain names and IP addresses.

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Identifiability of domain
names and IP addresses

1. Identifiability of your domain name: If you access the Internet through facilities provided by an organization such as your school or business, your automatic navigation information may reveal the name of your organization. For example, a student's navigation information might let a Website know that the student accesses the Internet through www.myuniversity.edu.
2. Geographic area: Similarly, if you access the Internet through an Internet Service Provider (ISP) located in a particular geographic area, a Website may be able to use the ISP's identity to infer that to be your geographic location.
3. Identifiability of your IP address: Whether your IP address is identifiable depends on whether it is dynamic or static. If it is dynamic, your ISP (Internet Service Provider) assigns a different IP address for each online visit that does not identify any person or machine.

In contrast, if you access the Internet through an ISP that assigns you a static or fixed IP address (for example, DSL or cable modem service), your IP address will always be the same, and will identify your computer.

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The OAG provides notice and disclosure of its information practices by posting its privacy policy.

The OAG receives your online information only when you choose to disclose it, for example, by submitting an online complaint form or request for information. The OAG only uses this information for the purpose for which you disclosed it, except when the law or emergencies require the OAG to do otherwise.

Because the Attorney General's Office is a law enforcement agency, it must carefully safeguard information. The office monitors access to its information on a case-by-case basis. If you need information you previously gave the OAG, please contact this office, and, if known, the bureau working on your initial request. Access to the data and the opportunity to request correction or amendment of such information is provided under the procedures set forth in the Public Officers Law.

The OAG takes reasonable measures to protect the security and integrity of information received. Such measures have been integrated into the design, implementation and daily operations of the Website. The OAG periodically purges its computer files that log activity on the OAG Website. The OAG implements procedures to safeguard the integrity of its information technology.

• A cookie is a small data file placed on your hard drive by a Website so it can "remember" information about you or your computer.
  
  
  • A Website may assign you an ID and create a cookie with that ID number on your computer.
  • The Website then can create a profile with your ID number on the Website's server.
  • In your profile, the Website can store information about your interests and other characteristics. For example, a site that carries news and weather might record your zip code so it can display local weather and news each time you visit the site. A credit card or bank site might use your profile to store your password, so that it has a way to recognize you and display your account information.
     
• A cookie can be read and updated only by the Website that created it. One Website cannot "peek" at another Website's cookies.

• A cookie is not a program. It is a data file.
• A cookie is not a spy device that can read files on your computer.
• A cookie is not a way for a Website to secretly discover your personal information.

• To learn more about cookies on your computer and what you can do about them, consult your browser's help or tutorial feature.

• Another common way that web sites collect information about you is by using technology called clear GIF or "Web beacons" (also referred to as a "1-by-1 GIF," "pixel tag," or "Web bugs").
• A clear GIF is an invisible image that can be imbedded in a Web page or certain kinds of e-mail. ("GIF" stands for "graphical interface format," which is one of the technologies used to show pictures in a Web page.)
• As with cookies, a Website can use clear GIFs to collect data about you.
• Unlike cookies, clear GIFs are not stored on your computer.
• Unlike cookies, most browsers do not have built-in features to explain or help you detect clear GIFs.

• Anytime you are online, the site you are visiting may collect information about you. In a world where users regularly access information online or make online purchases, it is important to know how to safeguard your privacy.
• All internet users should understand a Website's information practices, especially if you disclose your name, address, or e-mail address.
• Some Websites keep profiles on their visitors, and even purchase information about you from other marketers.
• Websites may maintain information profiles about you so that they have a list of subscribers to the site. Or a site may profile you to send you a targeted advertisement matched to your interests. Your profile can be sold to other marketers (including businesses that market by sending unwanted, "spam" e-mails).

• An online business may monitor visitors' activities to determine which of its Web pages are the most interesting, or to make sure that its computers can handle the volume of visitor traffic.
• An online business may design its Web pages to display different information - such as local weather reports or sports articles - to match the interests of its visitors.
• The online advertisements you see may be targeted to items more likely to appeal to you. An online merchant may store your credit card and mailing address to make online purchasing more convenient for you.

• Increasingly, businesses are collecting, and even buying, selling, and combining information about consumers. With more computerized information about consumers, consumers are exposed to greater risk that someone may misuse that information.
• For example, there have been cases of hackers stealing and selling credit card numbers. Identity theft crimes are on the rise, such as where someone falsely obtains credit and makes unauthorized financial transactions in the consumer's name. Some businesses acquire e-mail addresses in order to send unwanted marketing solicitations or even "spam" e-mail messages. There have even been cases of malicious individuals obtaining other people's personal information to embarrass, blackmail or stalk them.
• These acts can have serious consequences for the victim who unexpectedly suffers from a negative credit rating and must spend hours or even months dealing with merchants and financial institutions to repair the damage. Also, many consumers are simply concerned that the businesses gathering and sharing information simply know too much personal information.