The City of Providence World Wide Web Home Page (providenceri.com, providenceri.gov) and its related pages, including their content, format, and imagery are protected by the copyright laws of the United States.
PRIVACY and SECURITY POLICY
The City of Providence recognizes the fact that privacy is important to Internet users. Our objective is to protect the privacy of ProvidenceRI.gov web site users. This policy has been prepared to address the various issues that arise in conjunction with web site use. The City encourages user participation; our goal is to provide meaningful electronic content and to make government services more accessible so you can make an informed decision about using the Site and the features and service offered through the Site (the “Services”). We reserve the right to change the provisions of this Policy at any time. We encourage you to review this Policy from time to time to make sure that you understand how any personal information you provide will be used.
Consistent with this Privacy and Security Policy, City employees who have access to personal information are required to protect this information. Further purposes of said policy are to (i) ensure the security and confidentiality of such information in manner consistent with industry standards, (ii) protect against anticipated threats or hazards to the security or integrity of such information and (iii) protect against unauthorized access to or use of such information in a manner that creates a substantial risk of identity theft or fraud against such city employees.
The City collects personally identifiable information only to communicate with you, to process your request for information, or to process your online transaction.
Personal Identifiable Information can mean any identifiable information from or about a City employee including, but not limited to:
(a) First and last name;
(b) home or other physical address, including street name, the name of a city or town, and zip code;
(c) email address or other online contact information, such as an instant messaging user identifier or a screen name that reveals an individual’s email address;
(d) telephone number;
(e) Social Security Number, tax identification number, passport number, a driver’s license, or any other government-issued identification number;
(f) financial account number, or credit or debit card number, with or without any required security code, access code, personal identification number or password, that would permit access to a resident’s financial account; provided, however, that “Personal information” shall not include information that is lawfully obtained from publicly available information, or from federal, state or local government records lawfully made available to the general public;
(g) Internet Protocol (“IP”) address or host name that identifies an individual;
(h) Persistent Identifier, such as a processor serial number, that is combined with other available data that identifies an individual.
Incoming emails / Feedback Form / First Source Registration Form – Incoming emails or submissions by our “feedback form” are handled like other written correspondence. The information contained in the email is directed to the correct Department or agency to provide you with the fastest and most accurate response. All personal information and email addresses are used only to communicate with you regarding services requested by you. “First Source” names will only be communicated to employment agencies listed on the respective web page(s) for the purpose of helping match a job seeker with a job. No names will be transmitted to an agency that does not have a privacy policy prohibiting the sale of names to third parties or private organizations. We will not sell or give this information to third parties or private organizations. In doing so, we are identifying, assessing and limiting reasonably foreseeable internal and external risks to the security, confidentiality, and/or integrity of any electronic, paper or other records containing personal information.
The City may retain for our records any communication you submit along with our response.
On-line Transactions (Parking Tickets and Minor Moving Violations) – Every effort is made to protect any sensitive personal information you give online. The ticket payment processing site uses a secure server for conducting online financial transactions. If your browser is properly configured and your computer is operating properly, all credit cards and other payment information that you transmit will be protected by encryption technology. The encrypted information is shared only with our bank and a credit card clearinghouse, both of which also operate secure servers. Access to these records is limited to a very small number of employees who need it in order to perform a specific job.
Web-based Statistics – For website management, we monitor our usage logs and collect statistical information to help us improve our online services. We wish to monitor the website and technical performance and to see what areas are of most and least interest so that we can strengthen our service and meet the overall needs of our users. No attempts are made to identify individual users or their usage habits unless there are unauthorized attempts to upload or change information, or otherwise cause damage.
Cookies – The City of Providence website does use cookies at the present time for our own pages on ProvidenceRI.com. We use cookies to store visitors preferences, record session information, record user-specific information on what pages users access or visit, alert visitors to new areas that we think might be of interest to them when they return to our site, record past activity at a site in order to provide better service when visitors return to our site, customize Web page content based on visitors’ browser type or other information that the visitor sends. If you wish to block, erase, or be warned of cookies, please refer to your browser instructions or help screen to learn about these functions. However, if a browser is set not to accept cookies or if a user rejects a cookie, some portions of the Site and the Service may not function properly. For example, you may not be able to sign in and may not be able to access certain Site features or services. Cookies are used in the following ways:
Online Code of Ordinances – This service requires cookies and it is hosted by Municode Online Codes (Municipal Code Corporation). Cookies are used solely to process requests for information.
Database queries – We do use cookies or track users of our online database searches. Information on the “type of search” may be reviewed to improve our online services. The Code of Ordinances and Home-Rule Charter database to not collect any information on the user and the data is hosted at a remote site at Municipal Code Corporation.
Links to Other Sites – At our discretion, we link to other sites and servers that provide access to information and business that we view to be of interest to the local community, our regional users, and our international visitors. External links do not constitute an endorsement.
When you leave our site, please check the Privacy and Security policy of the site you are visiting. The City is not responsible for content on external sites. If you encounter an obscene site or dead link, please email the Webmaster so that we may take appropriate action.
Unauthorized attempts to access our system – Unauthorized attempts to upload or change information at ProvidenceRI.gov are strictly prohibited and may be prosecuted by applicable Computer Crime Laws and Statutes.
City of Providence
25 Dorrance Street
Providence, Rhode Island 02903
Phone: (401) 680-5000