Thank you for visiting the Colorado Secretary of State's Web site and for reviewing our Privacy Policy. This policy addresses the Secretary of State's standardized process for access to and for the collection, storage, use, transfer, and security of personally identifiable information that may be obtained through use of the Secretary of State's Web site.

Personally identifiable information is information about an individual that could reasonably be used to identify that individual. Examples of personal information include an individual's first and last name, residential address, telephone number, and email address.

The Colorado Secretary of State fully supports the protection of individual privacy and minimizes the collection of personally identifiable information to the least amount of information required to complete a particular transaction. This policy extends to the collection of all personally identifiable information, regardless of the source or the medium.

This Privacy Policy covers the following topics:

• Collection and Use of Personally Identifiable Information
• Public Records
• Cookies
• Security
• Disclaimer
• Contact Information

Collection and Use of Personally Identifiable Information

The Colorado Secretary of State automatically collects some information about your visit to our Web site. This information may include:

• Internet Protocol (IP) address and domain name used (an IP address is a numerical identifier assigned to your Internet Service Provider or directly to your computer)
• Type of browser used
• Date and time that you visited this site
• Web pages or services that you accessed at this site.

This data is used to improve the content of our web services and to help us understand how the public is using these services. In addition, we use your IP address to direct Internet traffic to you. This is not considered personally identifiable information.

If you send an email message to us during your visit to our site, the following personally identifiable information will be collected:

• Email address used to send the email message
• Contents of the email.

We collect this information to ensure we respond appropriately. For example, we may need to address issues you identify, make improvements to our Web site, or forward your email message to another agency for appropriate action.

It is our policy to collect no personally identifiable information about you unless that information is required to complete a particular transaction. In addition, we collect no personally identifiable information about you unless you voluntarily participate in activities that ask for information. Choosing not to participate in these activities will not affect your ability to use any other features of our Web site.

Finally, personally identifiable information shall not include information collected in furtherance of any regulatory, investigative, or criminal justice purpose; information collected in furtherance of litigation in which the state is a party; or information that is required to be collected pursuant to any state or federal statute or regulation.

Public Records

The State Open Records Act is applicable to this Privacy Policy pursuant to the Colorado Revised Statutes, Title 24, Article 72, Part 2, which states the following: "It is declared to be the public policy of this state that all public records shall be open for inspection by any person at reasonable times, except as provided in this part 2 or as otherwise specifically provided by law." A public record is defined here as “all writings made, maintained, or kept by the state, any agency, institution, a nonprofit corporation incorporated pursuant to section 23-5-121 (2), C.R.S., or political subdivision of the state, or that are described in section 29-1-902, C.R.S., and held by any local-government-financed entity for use in the exercise of functions required or authorized by law or administrative rule or involving the receipt or expenditure of public funds.”

If personal information is requested on the Web site or is volunteered by the user, state and federal law may protect that information. However, all information becomes a public record once it is provided and may be subject to public inspection and copying if not protected by federal or state law.

Furthermore, the information contained in many kinds of documents filed with the Secretary of State is electronically stored and may be made accessible to the public through the Secretary of State's Web site. Such documents include but are not limited to the following: Lien filings under the Uniform Commercial Code, campaign reports under the Fair Campaign Practices Act, and various business entity filings such as articles of incorporation. Except where disclosure is protected by law, the information that is electronically stored may be purchased by private individuals and entities.

Users are cautioned that the collection of personal information requested from or volunteered by children online or by email will be treated the same as information provided by an adult and may be subject to public access.

Cookies

To better serve our users, we may use "cookies" to customize your browsing experience with us. Cookies are simple text files stored on your computer by your web browser. Cookies provide a method of distinguishing among visitors to our Web site.

Cookies created on your computer by using this Web site do not contain personally identifying information and do not compromise your privacy or security. We use the cookie feature only to store a randomly-generated identifying tag on your computer. You can refuse a cookie or delete a cookie file from your computer by using any of the widely-available methods. Our services are provided in such a way that the use of cookies is not mandatory.

Security

The Information Services division, as developer and manager of the Colorado Secretary of State's Web site, has taken several steps to safeguard the integrity of its telecommunications and computing infrastructure, including but not limited to authentication, monitoring, and auditing. Security measures have been integrated into the design, implementation, and day-to-day practices of the entire operating environment as part of a continuing commitment to risk management.

Disclaimer

The Colorado Secretary of State's Web site contains links to other Web sites, including Web sites operated by other government agencies, nonprofit organizations, and private businesses. When you link to another Web site, you leave our site, which means that this Privacy Policy will no longer apply. When you link to another Web site, you are subject to the privacy policy of that Web site.

Neither the Colorado Secretary of State nor any employee of the State of Colorado (1) warrants the accuracy, reliability, or timeliness of any information published by this system or (2) endorses any content, viewpoints, products, or services linked from this system. Neither the Colorado Secretary of State nor any employee of the State of Colorado shall be held liable for any losses caused by reliance on the accuracy, reliability, or timeliness of such information. Portions of such information may be incorrect or obsolete. Any person or entity that relies on any information obtained from this system does so at his or her own risk.

Revised June 28, 2007 at 8:20am