Society
  Information

  Mission
  Statement

  Society
  Resources

  Board
  Members

  Join Us!

  Giving

  Society
  Publications

  Affiliate
  Organizations

  Contact Us

  Awards

  Employment

PRIVACY NOTICE

Section A. Introduction

Thank you for visiting a Washington State Historical Society Website and reviewing our Privacy Notice. This statement addresses collection, use and security of and access to information that may be obtained through use of wshs.org . This notice covers the following topics:

• Information Collected and How it is Used
• Personal Information and Choice
• Public Access to Information
• Public Access to Your Personal Information
• Your right to review and correct personally identifiable information
• Security
• Disclaimer
• Contact Information

Section B. Information Collected and How it is Used

Information collected if you only browse this site:

If you do nothing during your visit but browse through the website, read pages, or download information, we will gather and store certain information about your visit. This information does not identify you personally. It is collected by our web housing provider and is used on as the basis of reports to the agency in which monthly use is numerically described in aggregate terms.

We automatically collect and store the following information about your visit:

1. The Internet domain and IP address used to access this site. The Internet domain is the portal through which you access the Internet, such as AOL if you are an AOL user, "xcompany.com" if you use a private Internet access account, or "yourschool.edu" if you connect through a school. An IP address is a number that is assigned to your computer whenever you are using the Internet;
2. The type of browser and operating system used;
3. The date and time;
4. The pages you visit; and
5. The last web site you visited before coming to a Washington State Historical Society web site.

The information we automatically collect is used by the Washington State Historical Society only to improve the content of our Web services and help us understand how people are using our services. The Washington State Historical Society analyzes this information to determine how our web site is being used, so that we may continually improve the site's usefulness to the public.

What we collect if you volunteer information

If during your visit to our website you send an email or perform some other transaction on-line, the following additional information will be collected:

1. The email address, and contents of email, for those who communicate with us via e-mail.
2. Information volunteered through an on-line form for purposes of receiving free materials, purchasing WSHS merchandise, making a donation to our collection, requesting research, or submitting comments.

The information collected is not limited to text characters and may include audio, video, and graphic information formats you send us. No credit card information is stored, either online or at our facilities.

Dissemination of Personal Information

The Society does not authorize the release of personal information held in its databases to the public by telephone or e-mail. Upon receipt of a request for information that involves the release of personal information such as names and addresses of members, donors or other individuals held in the society's databases, the request will be forwarded to the division director or to the society's public records officer for scrutiny. The division director or alternatively, the public records officer will contact the requestor. In order to protect against inadvertent release of personal information or if the nature of the request is unclear to the division director or the public records officer, the society will ask the requestor for a written public records request.

We use email you send to respond appropriately. This may be to respond to you, to address issues you may identify, to further improve our web site, or to forward the email to another agency for appropriate action. Information from on-line forms is used for making tour or conference reservations.

Section C. Personal Information and Choice

You may choose whether to provide personal information on-line.

"Personal information" is information about a natural person that is readily identifiable to that specific individual. Personal information includes such things as an individual's name, address, and phone number, and does not include the users domain name or IP address.

We collect no personal information about you unless you voluntarily provide it to us by sending us email, participating in a survey, or completing an on line form. You may choose not to contact us by email, participate in a survey or to provide any personal information using an on line form. Your choice to not participate in these activities will not impair your ability to browse wshs.organd historylab.org--> and read or download any information provided on the site. Information on the web sites may be requested for delivery by mail, fax or telephone.

If personal information is requested on the website or volunteered by the user, state law and the federal Privacy Act of 1974 may protect it. However, this information is a public record once you provide it and may be subject to public inspection and copying if not protected by federal or state law.

If you believe that your personal information is being used for a purpose other than what was intended when submitted, you may contact the agency contact person as shown in the Contact Information Section of this statement.

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

Section D. Public Access to Information

In the State Of Washington, laws exist to ensure that government is open and the public has a right to access appropriate records and information possessed by State Government. At the same time, there are exceptions to the public's right to access public records that serve various needs including the privacy of individuals. Exceptions are provided by both state and federal laws.

All of the information collected at this site is considered public information and may be subject to inspection and copying by members of the public. RCW 42.17. 260(1) states that

Each agency, in accordance with published rules, shall make available for public inspection and copying all public records, unless the record falls within the specific exemptions of subsection (6) of this section [RCW 42.17.260(6)], RCW 42.17.310, 42.17.315, or other statute which exempts or prohibits disclosure of specific information or records. To the extent required to prevent an unreasonable invasion of personal privacy interests protected by RCW 42.17.310 and 42.17.315, an agency shall delete identifying details in a manner consistent with RCW 42.17.310 and 42.17.315 when it makes available or publishes any public record; however, in each case, the justification for the deletion shall be explained fully in writing.

In the event of a conflict between this Privacy Notice and the Public Records Act, the Public Records Act provision will control.

Section E. Your Right to Review and Correct Personally Identifiable Information

State law requires agencies that collect personally identifiable information to provide "procedures for correcting inaccurate information, including establishing mechanisms for individuals to review information about them and recommend changes in information they believe to be inaccurate." (RCW 43.105.310)

You can access any personally identifiable information we collect about you by using the information in the Contact Information section at the end of this Notice. You may correct factual errors in your personally identifiable information by submitting an email or written request that credibly shows the error. We will take reasonable steps to verify your identity before granting access or making corrections.

Section F. Security

The Washington State Historical Society, as developer and manager of wshs.org and historylab.org,--> has taken several steps to safeguard the integrity of its data and prevent unauthorized access to information maintained by it. These measures are designed and intended to prevent corruption of data, block unknown or unauthorized access to our systems and information, and to provide reasonable protection of private information in our possession.

This information should not be construed in any way as giving business, legal, or other advice, or warranting as fail proof, the security of information provided via Washington State Historical Society websites.

Section G. Disclaimer

Neither the State of Washington, nor any agency, officer, or employee of the State of Washington warrants the accuracy, reliability or timeliness of any information published by this system, nor endorses any content, viewpoints, products, or services linked from this system, and shall not 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 not current. Any person or entity who relies on any information obtained from this system does so at their own risk.

Section H. Washington State Historical Society Contact Information

You may contact the Washington State Historical Society as follows:

To review your personal information, or request correction of your personal information:

Marie DeLong, Public Record Officer
Washington State Historical Society
1911 Pacific Avenue
Tacoma, WA 98402
253-798-5901
Fax 253-272-9518
mdelong@wshs.wa.gov

To offer comments about the Washington State Historical Society's websites or about the information presented in this Privacy Notice:

WSHS Web Master
Washington State Historical Society
1911 Pacific Avenue
Tacoma, WA 98402
253-798-5926
FAX 253-272-9518
web@wshs.wa.gov

Washington State Historical Society
1911 Pacific Avenue
Tacoma, WA 98402
Toll-free 1-888-BE-THERE (1-888-238-4373)