I. Purpose

The purpose of the Union County Government website is to provide general information about Union County Government, its operation and services to residents, businesses, and visitors. This policy addresses collection, use and security of, and access to information that may be obtained through the use of the Union County Government website. It also includes information on external links, cookies, and overall site security.

II. Disclaimer

In the preparation of this site, every effort has been made to offer the most current, correct, and clearly expressed information possible. However, inadvertent errors can occur, and information placed on these web pages is not intended to replace any official source. This information is presented "as is" and without warranties, either express or implied. Users are advised that their use of any County data is at their own risk.

Union County assumes no responsibility for any decision made or any actions taken by the user based upon information obtained from these web pages. The user agrees that Union County shall be held harmless from all actions, claims, damages or judgments arising out of the use of County data obtained from these web pages. Questions about the accuracy of information contained on the website www.unioncountync.gov may be directed to the department where the information is housed.

III. Website Visitor Data Collection

For every visitor to our website, there are several common pieces of information we collect that are stored in logs. These include:

• Internet Protocol (IP) address;
• Browser type;
• Operating system;
• Date and time of the visit;
• Geographic location;
• Search terms, if any, entered in our website search tool; and
• Pages visited on our website.

We use a third-party service to collect data about where visitors click on some of our pages so we can improve content placement on the website. We do not associate any of this information with individual persons, distribute this information, or use it in any manner other than for statistical analysis in improving our site to better serve our visitors.

The Union County Government website uses an ads tracking pixel to help us understand website traffic that comes from paid advertising on Facebook. We use this data to help us understand which users viewed or interacted with these ads, and then clicked through to our website. We will not collect any Personally Identifiable Information (PII) about users who click on these ads other than the data in the bulleted list above.

IV. Cookies

Some of the online transactions hosted by and linked from this site use cookies. A cookie is a small text file that is stored on your computer and created to track specific information. Some services hosted on the Union County Government website use cookies to set a session ID so the service can keep track of your transactions. The Union County website is configured so that a cookie will be destroyed after a few minutes of inactivity, after successfully completing a transaction, or when the browser is closed. If your web browser does not accept cookies, you may not be able to use the online transactions on this site.

V. Privacy

Email is not a secure medium. Personal information sent via the Internet can be intercepted. Therefore, you may wish to reconsider the advisability of sending messages that contain sensitive, personal information to email addresses or digital forms on this website. Communications via email or digital forms may be subject to public records requests under North Carolina General Statutes Chapter 132.

VI. Links

Links to the Union County Government Website

Advance permission to link to the Union County Government website is not necessary. However, be aware that subpages such as County departments' and agencies' pages may change at any time without notice. Entities and individuals linking to Union County must continuously verify links to our subpages.

Displaying Union County Government web pages within iFrames on external websites without consent, presenting Union County Government website content as its own, or otherwise misrepresenting Union County Government is prohibited.

Any link to the Union County Government website should be a full forward link that refers the client’s browser back to the Union County Government website unencumbered. The Back button should return the visitor to its site if the visitor wishes to back out.

Links from the Union County Government Website to External Websites or Resources Maintained by Third Parties

Certain links on this website lead to resources located on servers maintained by third parties over whom Union County has no control. As such, Union County makes no representation as to the accuracy, appropriateness, or any other aspect of the information contained on such servers. Union County shall not be responsible for any damages which may result from viewing these web pages, or any of the links from or to these web pages.

Criteria

Union County accepts link requests made by local, state, and federal government and commercial entities that provide information and services that benefit Union County citizens and businesses. At its discretion, Union County may link to non-governmental websites that contain information and/or services that further the purposes of the Union County Government website.

Union County will not link to websites that:

• Exhibit hate, discrimination, pornography, libelous or otherwise defamatory content;
• Belong to or support a political affiliation; or
• Further the agenda of a political organization or candidate running for office.

Union County Government does not ensure the validity, integrity, or currency of any information on the websites to which the Union County Government website links. It is the linked website's responsibility to maintain its website and to ensure the validity and currency of the information presented. Union County is not responsible for the information or ideas expressed on linked sites.

Union County reserves the right to deny or remove links in its sole discretion.

VII. Website Security

For site security purposes and to ensure this service remains available to all users, this website uses commercial software programs to monitor network traffic to identify unauthorized attempts to upload or change information, or otherwise cause damage.

Except for authorized law enforcement investigations, no other attempts are made to identify individual users or their usage habits. Raw data logs are used for no other purposes and are scheduled for regular destruction in accordance with State guidelines for records management and retention.

Unauthorized attempts to upload information or change information on this service are strictly prohibited and may be punishable under the Computer Fraud and Abuse Act of 1986 and the National Information Infrastructure Protection Act.

VIII. Questions or Concerns

The Union County Government website is managed by the Public Communications team. Please contact us with any questions or concerns you may have.

IX. Updates

This policy may be updated by Public Communications staff with the approval of the County Manager.

Adopted August 18, 2020