Internet Privacy and Links Policy
Office of the State Comptroller
Introduction
The Office of the State Comptroller is committed to protecting your privacy when you access our website and the online services we offer. Consistent with New York State’s Internet Security and Privacy Act, Freedom of Information Law and Personal Privacy Protection Law, this policy explains the use of information which you provide to us and information which may be available to us when you access this website.
For purposes of this policy, “personal information” means any information concerning a natural person which, because of name, number, symbol, mark, or other identifier, can be used to identify that natural person. The Office of the State Comptroller does not collect any personal information about you unless you provide that information voluntarily by sending an e-mail or by initiating an online transaction, such as a survey, registration or application form. The voluntary disclosure of personal information to the Office of the State Comptroller by the user, whether solicited or unsolicited, constitutes consent to the collection and disclosure of the information by the Office for the purposes for which the user disclosed the information to the Office, as was reasonably ascertainable from the nature and terms of the disclosure, including collection and disclosure for the purpose of validating the identity of the user. Further, the Office of the State Comptroller may disclose information to federal or State law enforcement authorities to enforce the Office’s rights against unauthorized access or attempted unauthorized access to the Office’s information technology assets.
The information that is available to us from your visit to this website depends upon what sections of the website you visit and what actions you take during your visit.
DISCLOSURE OF INFORMATION COLLECTED: Employees of the Office of the State Comptroller are prohibited from disclosing any information you provide, except as provided or required by court order or other law (for example, the Freedom of Information Law, which requires State agencies to make certain information available to the public upon request). We use information you provide, such as your email address, only to send you information that you have requested. We will use information you provide us in connection with an online application to process your request. The Office of the State Comptroller does not sell, rent, loan, trade, or lease email addresses or other personal information collected at our site.
Pursuant to the Internet Security and Privacy Act, New York State agencies, such as the Office of the State Comptroller, may collect or disclose personal information without user consent if the collection or disclosure is: (1) necessary to perform the statutory duties of the agency, necessary for the agency to operate a program authorized by law, or authorized by State or federal statute or regulation; (2) made pursuant to court order or by law; (3) for the purpose of validating the identity of the user; or (4) if the information is used solely for statistical purposes and is in a form that cannot be used to
identify any particular person.
INFORMATION COLLECTION AND USE: This website collects and stores information each time it is accessed to enable us to measure the total number of visitors, and certain non-personal statistical information on types of users, to the different sections of our site. This helps us make our website more accessible and useful to visitors.
BROWSING: If you browse through our site reading, printing, or downloading information, no personal identifying information will be revealed about you. During a browsing visit, the following information will be collected:
(i) The Internet Protocol Address and domain name used, but not the email address (The Internet Protocol Address is a numerical identifier assigned to you, your Internet service provider or directly to your computer);
(ii) The type of browser and operating system you used;
(iii) The date and time you visited the site;
(iv) The web pages or services you accessed at this site;
(v) The website you visited prior to coming to this website;
(vi) The website you visit as you leave this website; and
(vii) If you download a form, the form that was downloaded.
None of the foregoing information is deemed to constitute personal information. This information is retained for one year and is then destroyed.
If you visit our site just to read or download information such as press releases, no further information is collected.
INTERACTIVE APPLICATIONS: If you use one of our online interactive applications that requires you to enter personal information, such as a search for Unclaimed Funds, information you enter is collected and stored as part of processing your request. This information is used only in connection with processing your request, and will be made available to others only as necessary to complete the processing. Information that you provide online in connection with any interactive application may be stored by us pursuant to the retention period applicable to the unit for which the interactive application was submitted. This occurs when the information you provide is a necessary part of the record of the transaction. We do not resell this information. We do not disclose this personal information to any other parties except as necessary to process your specific request, or as provided or required by law. Information concerning applicable retention periods may be obtained through the Internet privacy policy contact listed in this policy.
EMAIL: If you identify yourself by sending an email, your email address may be retained for further communication with you in connection with processing your request or as provided by law. Unless we request that you do so, we do not encourage you to send any personal information in an electronic mail message. However, if you initiate a transaction by email, any relevant information will be stored pursuant to the retention period applicable to the unit from which the transaction was requested as described above.
If you request that we place you on a mailing list, we will do so, but you will always have the opportunity to request that we remove your e-mail address
from any such list.
CONSEQUENCES OF REFUSAL TO PROVIDE REQUIRED INFORMATION: As noted above, the Office of the State Comptroller does not collect any personal information about you during your visit to this website unless you provide that information voluntarily by sending an email or initiating an online transaction. While your choice not to participate in these activities may limit your ability to receive specific services or products through this website, it will not prevent you from requesting services or products from the Office of the State Comptroller by other means, and will not normally have an impact on your ability to take advantage of other features of the website, including browsing or downloading publicly available information.
ACCESS TO INFORMATION BY USERS: Any user may submit a request to the Office of the State Comptroller to determine whether personal information pertaining to that user has been collected through this website. Any such request shall be made in writing to the address below and must be accompanied by reasonable proof of the identity of the user. Reasonable proof of identity may include verification of a signature, inclusion of an identifier generally known only to the user, or similar appropriate identification. The address of the privacy compliance officer is:
Jane Hall
Office of the State Comptroller
110 State Street, 15th Floor
Albany, NY 12236
The privacy compliance officer shall, within five (5) business days of the date of the receipt of a proper request: (i) provide access to the personal information; (ii) deny access in writing, explaining the reasons therefor; or (iii) acknowledge the receipt of the request in writing, stating the approximate date when the request will be granted or denied, which date shall not be more than thirty (30) days from the date of the acknowledgment.
In the event that the Office of the State Comptroller has collected personal information pertaining to a user through its website and that information is to be provided to the user pursuant to the user’s request, the privacy compliance officer shall inform the user of his or her right to request that the personal information be amended or corrected under the procedures set forth in section 95 of the Public Officers Law.
COOKIES: To better serve you, we may use cookies to enhance or customize your visit to this website. A cookie is a small data file that can be stored on your computer’s hard disk or can reside in the memory of your computer. Cookies can be created automatically on the device you use to access this website. These cookies do not contain personal information and do not compromise your privacy or security. We may use the cookie feature to store a randomly generated identifying tag on the device you use to access this website. Cookies can speed processing on return visits. Cookies may also contain information about you that helps the website guide you through our interactive applications. The cookie is not accessible by anyone else on the Internet.
The software and hardware you use to access the website allows you to refuse new cookies or delete existing cookies. Refusing or deleting these cookies may limit your ability to take advantage of some features of this website.
LINKS: The Office of the State Comptroller's website contains links to other websites for your information and convenience. The Office of the State Comptroller has no control over the privacy practices or the content of such other websites. Please review the privacy information provided by these sites.
The responsibility for the content and accuracy of information on sites accessed by linking from our website rests with the entities providing the information. This includes any responsibility for updating information upon which visitors may rely.
The inclusion of links from this site to others does not imply any endorsement by the Office of the State Comptroller of any product, service or vendor. Any mention of products, services or vendors is for informational purposes only.
If another website provides a link from that website to our site, it must link to our home page. Such links may not capture our pages within "frames" from other sites or otherwise present our content as content of another website.
SECURITY INFORMATION: Websites operated by the Office of the State Comptroller have reasonable security measures in place to protect against the loss, misuse, and alteration of data and information under our control. Interactive applications may use encoding, secure certificates or other measures to protect this information. For further information concerning security of any application on our website, please contact us at webmaster@osc.state.ny.us.
USE BY CHILDREN: The Office of the State Comptroller does not knowingly collect personal information from children or create profiles of children through this website. Users are cautioned, however, that the collection of personal information submitted in an interactive application or email will be treated as though it was submitted by an adult, and may, unless exempted from access by federal or State law, be subject to public access. The Office of the State Comptroller strongly encourages parents and teachers to be involved in children’s Internet activities and to provide guidance whenever children are asked to provide ersonal information online.
DISCLAIMER: The information provided in this privacy policy should not be construed as giving business, legal, or other advice, or warranting as fail proof the security of information provided through this website.
CONTACT US: If you have any questions about this privacy policy, security, or use of information you provide on line, please contact ebmaster@osc.state.ny.us. This privacy policy will be updated from time to time. Please review this page frequently.
Revised: 05/27/08