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Privacy and Security
The National Cancer Institute (NCI) respects the privacy of users of its Web
site, www.cancer.gov. NCI does not disclose, give, sell, or transfer any
personal information about visitors to www.cancer.gov unless required to do so
by law.
NCI is especially concerned about protecting the privacy of children. NCI
encourages parents and teachers to stay involved with and in control of children's
Internet explorations. It is particularly important for parents to offer
guidance to their children about providing personal information online.
NCI automatically collects a limited amount of information about the use of its
Web site, primarily for statistical purposes (that is, to measure the numbers
of visitors to various sections of the site). This information may also be
helpful when considering changes to www.cancer.gov, to make the site more
useful to visitors.
The following information about users of the NCI Web site is collected and
stored automatically:
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The Internet domain from which a user has accessed the Internet. For example,
if a user connects to the Internet through America Online, the domain is
aol.com.
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The Internet protocol (IP) address of the computer that was used to access the
Internet. An IP address is a number that is assigned to a user's computer when
he/she logs onto the Internet. When a Web page is requested, the user's IP
address is included in the message, and the recipient of the request can
respond to it by sending another message using that IP address.
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The name and version of the user's computer operating system and Internet
browser. For example, Windows 2000 (operating system) and Internet Explorer 6.0
or Netscape Navigator 7.1 (Internet browsers).
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If a user comes to www.cancer.gov from another Web site, the Internet address
of the "referring" Web site.
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The date, time, and duration of the user's visit to www.cancer.gov, and the
pages visited.
When a user visits a Web site, the Web site's server generates a piece of
information known as a "cookie" and places it on the user's computer. Some
cookies remain on a user's computer after the user has ended his/her Web site
visit. These types of cookies are called "persistent" cookies. They collect
personal information about a user and allow the user's computer to be
recognized in the future. Nonpersistent cookies, or "session cookies," are
erased by a user's computer after a period of inactivity or when the user
closes his/her Internet browser. Session cookies do not collect any personal
information about a user. They serve technical purposes, such as allowing
seamless navigation through a Web site. Session cookies are stored in
memory and are only available during an active browser session.
Federal government Web sites are generally prohibited from using persistent
cookies. The only exception to this policy is in the case of customer
satisfaction surveys conducted to improve Web site quality. The NCI Web site is
currently running the American Customer Satisfaction Index survey, which
employs persistent cookies. These cookies will reside on a user's computer for
30 days to block the appearance of the survey to individuals who responded to
it previously. Participation in the American Customer Satisfaction Index survey
is completely voluntary, and failure to respond will not affect a visitor's
ability to access information on www.cancer.gov.
More Information About Persistent Cookies and the American Customer Satisfaction Index Survey.
When inquiries are sent to the NCI Web site by e-mail, the question(s) and the
e-mail address of the sender are stored electronically to allow time for a
response to be researched, written, and sent. Unless otherwise required by law,
NCI will not identify anyone who sends questions or comments to its Web site.
NCI does not collect information that will allow users to be identified
personally, unless they choose to provide such information.
If children send questions or comments to the NCI Web site and include their
name and/or home mailing address as part of their message, the information will
be used only to respond to them personally. Providing this type of information
is optional, and NCI suggests that children obtain their parents' permission
before providing any information online--to the NCI Web site or any other Web
site.
The NCI Web site has links to many other Web sites. NCI cannot guarantee the
privacy or security of information users provide to linked, external Web sites.
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