Privacy & Security Policy

The Los Angeles County Department of Public Works ("DPW") recognizes the public's concern about privacy on the Internet. This privacy statement establishes how information gathered about you from your visit to our website will be used. However, you should be aware that much of the information submitted to Los Angeles County is public information under the laws of the State of California. Under some circumstances, we may be required to disclose such information in accordance with the California Public Records Act or other legal requirements.

The following describes how information may be collected depending on your activities at this website:

Information Collected and Stored Automatically
We may collect and store information for statistical purposes. For example, we may count the number of visitors to the different sections of our site to help us make them more useful. The information collected may include such items as the name and domain of the host from which you access the Internet, the Internet Protocol (IP) address of the computer you are using or your browser software and operating system. This information does not identify you personally.

If You Send Us Personal Information
All electronic requests submitted to the Los Angeles County Department of Public Works (by email or otherwise, as described below) will be treated the same as any other written communication. Collected information will not be sold or given to private companies for marketing purposes. Collected information is subject to the disclosure, access and confidentiality provisions of State of California, County of Los Angeles laws and Federal laws, including the Public Records Act.

E-mail:
By sending us an electronic mail message, you may be sending us personal information (i.e., your name, address, e-mail address, etc.). We may store the name and address of the requester in order to respond to the request or otherwise resolve the subject matter of your e-mail.
If you register with DPW or request other specific information:
We may ask visitors who request specific information to fill out a registration form. For example, vendors requesting access to Requests for Bids, Requests for Proposals or homeowners or businesses requesting Permits, may be asked to provide their names, addresses, e-mail addresses and other pertinent information to ensure processing and delivery of the information requested. Other information may be collected at these sites through questionnaires, feedback forms, or other means, to enable us to determine a visitor's interests, with the goal of providing better service.
Surveys:
From time to time, we may ask you to participate in a survey. We will only retain the information that you provide in response to the survey.
Changes to Personal Information:
If the website where you entered the information does not provide a mechanism for making changes, please feel free to contact us with your updated information.

Security

Personally Identifiable Information:
The Los Angeles County Department of Public Works is committed to data security and the data quality of personally identifiable information that is either available from or collected by our web-site and has taken reasonable precautions to protect such information from loss, misuse or alteration. The DPW operates "secure data networks" protected by industry standard firewalls and password protection systems. Only authorized individuals have access to the information provided by our users. Sensitive information submitted by users is transmitted by Secure Socket Layer ("SSL") technology. SSL is a security technology designed to enable your browser to send to and receive information from another server in an encrypted format. Your browser's security icon, usually located in the bottom status bar of your browser window, reflects the security condition of browser. The lock icon indicates that your browser is communicating over a secured link. All information you provide to us in this manner is stored securely, subject to legal disclosure requirements.
Credit Cards:
We are required to provide select personal information (such as your credit card number and account expiration date) to our money transmission vendors to the extent necessary to process your payment for services on our website or to protect against fraud. When a County application accepts credit cards or any other personal information for any of its services, it encrypts all ordering information, such as your name and credit card number, in order to protect its confidentiality. In some circumstances, we may be required by law to disclose certain personal information in accordance with the California Public Records Act or other legal requirements.
Passwords:
In certain instances, you will have the opportunity to receive or create a password to access or submit personal information. You should not divulge your password to anyone and the County will never ask you for your password in an unsolicited phone call or e-mail. When you are finished with those applications that are password protected, you should exit the page.
Cookies:
This site may use "cookies". A cookie is an identifier placed on your computer to ensure that we are not asking you the same questions every time you visit our site. If you want to browse this website without any interruptions please make sure that your browser is set to accept "cookies".

Privacy Statements for Other Websites
This privacy statement describes the information gathering practices and procedures of the Los Angeles County Department of Public Works. We may provide links from our website to external sites maintained by other County Departments, public agencies or private organizations. We provide these links as a convenience to our visitors. We make no representations about the accuracy or content of any material available thereon. Links to the third party sites are not intended to and do not imply affiliation with, sponsorship or endorsement of these third parties. Once you link to another website, you are subject to the privacy policy of that site and assume sole responsibility for the use of that site.

Disclaimer of Liability
With respect to information available from this web site, neither the County of Los Angeles nor any of its employees, make any warranty, express or implied, including the warranty of merchantability and fitness for a particular purpose, or assume any liability or responsibility for the accuracy, completeness, or usefulness of such information.

Changes of current policy
We may change this privacy policy from time to time. This document will be updated to reflect new changes.

If you have concerns about privacy and security on the Internet, you also have the option to receive our services in person at one of our offices.

For questions regarding this policy, please E-mail us

Last update: Rev.1.02, 9/02/03.