Privacy Policy

This privacy and security statement describes how we handle information we learn about you through your use of the Washington Traffic Safety Commission (WTSC) website. (See Cookies section for information regarding third party vendor sites.) This statement covers the following topics:

Information collected and stored automatically

No information that identifies you personally is automatically collected when you access non-secure areas of our site. As with any website, site management and system administrative information can be collected each time you visit, including:
• The date and time you visited.
• The name of the domain you used to access the Internet (such as companyxxx.com, aol.com, universityxxx.edu, etc.) and the Internet Protocol (IP) address from which you accessed our site.
• The pages you visited.
• The type of browser and operating system you used to access our site.
• The address of the website you came from (if you linked to our site from another site).This information is used for statistical purposes and to help us make our site more useful: to learn about the number of users to our site, which information is most useful to them, and the types of technology our users employ.

If you send us personal information through this website

Personal information is information about a person that is readily identifiable to that specific individual. Personal information includes such things as an individual’s name, address, and phone number. A domain name or Internet Protocol address is not considered personal information.

We do not collect personal information about you unless you voluntarily participate in an activity that asks for information, such as sending an email. If you choose not to participate in these activities, your choice will not affect your ability to use any other feature of this website.

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

User’s choice

Any entity or individual who accesses or uses the site may decline participation in any activity that asks for personal (or any) information, such as surveys, email, or interactive applications. Your choice to “opt out” (not participate) will not affect your ability to use any other areas of the site.

Information considered public information

Because the content on this site is considered public information (except secure services), it may be copied, downloaded, or distributed. However, we request that you give appropriate byline/photo/image credits.

Commercial use of lists of individuals or directory information (including address, phone, or email) provided on this site is prohibited under RCW 42.56.070 (9), as broadly defined by the Office of the Attorney General of the state of Washington.

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 under state and federal laws to the public’s right to access public records that serve various needs, including the privacy of individuals.

All of the information collected at this site is considered public information (except secure services) and may be subject to inspection and copying by members of the public. See RCW 42.56.070 (1) for more information about the inspection of public records. Exemptions are allowed under state Public Disclosure law for certain government records.

Links to other websites

This site contains links to other websites outside of our control. Please be aware that we are not responsible for the privacy practices of such other sites or the accuracy of the information on those other websites. When you go to another site through a link from our site, you no longer on the WTSC website and are subject to the privacy policy of that new site.

Security

The Washington Traffic Safety Commission takes every reasonable precaution to protect and secure this website and the privacy of our citizens. Technology is used to secure the site and monitor network traffic in order to identify unauthorized attempts to access or modify it, or otherwise cause damage. This information should not be construed in any way as giving business, legal, or other advice, or warranting the security of information provided to or by this website as fail proof.

Unauthorized modification is strictly prohibited

Unauthorized attempts to upload or change information, or otherwise modify or cause damage to this site, are strictly prohibited and may be punishable under both state and federal laws, including the federal Computer Fraud and Abuse Act of 1986 and the National Information Infrastructure Protection Act. Intrusion detection and other software security tools may collect data regarding unauthorized activity, and that data may be used or made available in order to conduct investigations.

Cookies

WTSC may sometimes use “cookies” to make our website easier to use, and to track site usage and statistics. Cookies are passive files that are delivered to you, stored on your computer hard drive, and returned in certain situations to the same server that provided the information.

Cookies cannot read information from your hard drive. They can only store data that is provided by the server or generated by your explicit actions while visiting a site. Personal information about you is not stored in cookies, and is not used by WTSC to access your computer. Furthermore, cookies created on your computer by using this site do not compromise your privacy or security.

The information generated by cookies (including your IP address) is used we can gather statistics about how visitors use this site. We will never (and won’t allow any third party to) use this tool to track or collect any of your personally identifiable information. If we use a third party vendor to analyze statistics, they won’t match your IP address with any other data they have, and neither we nor the vendor will link, or seek to link, an IP address with the identity of the computer user. We use web statistics only to get an idea of how visitors are using this website so we can make improvements, and to create reports about general website usage.

The use of cookies is optional; you may delete or reject them and the site will still be available. However, using the site could possible be less convenient. The use of cookies does not pose a security or privacy threat to you.

Disclaimer

The Washington Traffic Safety Commission does not warrant the accuracy, reliability, or timeliness of any information published on this site, nor endorse any content, viewpoint, product, or service linked to 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 that relies on any information obtained from the site does so at their own risk.

WTSC reserves the right to revise and update this privacy statement at any time by posting a revised Privacy Policy at the WTSC website.

Contact us

If you have any questions concerning this privacy and security statement, please contact us at 360.725.9860 or sysop@wtsc.wa.gov.