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Privacy Policy

Thank you for visiting PandemicOversight.gov and for reviewing our Privacy Policy. PandemicOversight.gov is the official government website created by the Pandemic Response Accountability Committee as required by the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act, Pub. L. No. 116-136 (CARES Act).

We are committed to protecting the privacy and security of our users. We collect no information about you, other than information automatically collected and stored when you visit our website, unless you choose to provide information to us through our Feedback form or the Hotline.

Information that is automatically collected and stored:

  • The name of the domain you used to access the Internet (for example, xcompany.com or xcompany.net, or yourschool.edu, if you are connecting from a college or university domain);
  • Date and time of your visit
  • Pages visited
  • Address of the website you came from

We use this information for statistical purposes and to help us make our site more useful to visitors. Unless specifically stated otherwise, no additional information will be collected about you.

Disclosure

The PRAC adheres to strict privacy standards, ensuring that personal information of individuals using its internet site or social media is disclosed only in accordance with the Privacy Act, the Freedom of Information Act, and other Federal privacy regulations.

In cases where electronic communications, such as tweets, emails, or similar messages, convey potential threats of violence against the PRAC, indicate possible instances of waste, fraud, or abuse in the PRAC’s programs, or suggest violations of the law, the PRAC reserves the right to collect, retain, or share the tweets or messages, along with name and profile information linked to the sender’s account. This process is undertaken to fulfill the PRAC’s obligations under the Inspector General Act of 1978 and its role as part of a statutory law enforcement agency.

Third-Party Applications

This website (Official Link: https://pandemicoversight.gov) may incorporate third-party applications and services to enhance its functionality. Please note that these third-party websites and/or applications are not owned or operated by the government. The integration of these products is intended to deliver a seamless user experience. However, it is essential to be aware that using third-party websites or applications to communicate with our office could potentially grant nongovernmental third parties’ access to personally identifiable information (PII). In such cases, specific privacy policies for these applications will be made available by the providers for your reference.

  • LinkedIn: The PRAC uses LinkedIn which is a social media platform where professionals congregate to network, share ideas, search jobs, develop careers, and discuss industry topics, to enhance its ability to engage the public by promoting reports, congressional hearings, events, videos, investigative results, job openings, and product updates. While you view postings, LinkedIn uses cookies and similar technologies to collect data about device IDs to recognize you and your device(s) across where the visitor or member has engaged with LinkedIn services. If members are logged into their LinkedIn accounts while viewing PRAC’s content, LinkedIn may associate information about their site usage with their account profile. To become a member of LinkedIn, individuals provide personally identifiable information (PII) such as name, email address, and/or mobile number, and a password. For premium service members, payment and billing information is provided. Additionally, profile pictures, educational background, employment history, are optional information that can be provided which are synced to an individual’s LinkedIn profile. It is essential to note that the PRAC’s staff members do not possess the personal information of the PRAC's LinkedIn followers, and they do not interact with direct messages or comments. Nevertheless, the PRAC does monitor the number of followers to gauge their audience reach.
  • Twitter: The PRAC uses Twitter to share brief messages, also known as tweets, containing up to 140 characters to share information with the public. While visitors can read the PRAC’s Twitter feed without subscribing, those interested in following the PRAC’s feeds must create a Twitter account on www.twitter.com. The account creation process involves providing certain personal details, such as name, username, password, and email address. Optional information, such as a short biography, location, or profile picture, may also be provided. Most of the information provided for a Twitter account is publicly visible, but users can manage their privacy settings at the Twitter.com website to control what information is displayed. It is essential to note that the PRAC’s staff members do not possess the personal information of the PRAC's Twitter followers, and they do not interact with direct messages or comments. Nevertheless, the PRAC does monitor the number of subscribers to gauge their audience reach.
  • YouTube: The PRAC shares videos on YouTube to make them accessible to the public. There is no requirement to register with either YouTube or its owner, Google, to view the PRAC’s videos. While viewing videos, YouTube may collect non-personally identifiable information about site usage, such as channels used, videos watched, and data transfer details, to enhance its services. If you are logged into your YouTube account while watching the PRAC’s videos, YouTube may associate information about your site usage with your account. Additionally, if you are logged in and leave a comment on a PRAC video, any personal information you provided during your account registration will be visible to other visitors who view the comment.

Intrusion Detection

  • This site is maintained by the U.S. Government. It is protected by various provisions of Title 18, U.S. Code. Violations of Title 18 are subject to criminal prosecution in federal court.
  • For site security purposes and to ensure that the website remains available to all users, we employ software programs to monitor traffic to identify unauthorized attempts to upload or change information, or otherwise cause damage. In the event of authorized law enforcement investigations, and pursuant to any required legal process, information from these sources may be used to help identify an individual.

Cookies

The Office of Management and Budget (OMB) Memo M-10-22: Guidance for Online Use of Web Measurement and Customization Technologies allows federal agencies to use “sessions and persistent cookies.”

When you visit any website, its server may generate a piece of text known as a "cookie" that is placed on your computer. This cookie text allows the website to "remember" visitors' preferences, surfing patterns, and behaviors while they are connected to the site. The cookie also makes it easier for you to use the dynamic features of web pages.

Cookies on PandemicOversight.gov pages only collect information about the browser you’re using when you visit the site. The cookies do not collect any personal information about you.

There are two types of cookies: single session (temporary) and multi-session (persistent). Single session cookies last only as long as your browser is open. Once you close your browser, the cookie disappears. Persistent cookies are stored on your computer for longer periods.

Session Cookies: We use session cookies for technical purposes, such as to enable better navigation through our site. These cookies let our server know that you are continuing a visit to our site. The OMB Memo 10-22 Guidance defines our use of session cookies as "Usage Tier 1-Single Session." The guidance states, "This tier encompasses any use of single session web measurement and customization technologies."

Persistent Cookies: We use persistent cookies to enable Google's Universal Analytics (a third-party analytics provider)  to differentiate between new and returning visitors to our site. A Google's Universal Analytics persistent cookie remains on your computer for six months. Knowing if a user has visited PandemicOversight.gov within the past six months tells us the difference between visitors and "unique visitors" or those who visit our website more than once during this time period. This is an industry standard and provides high-level information on the breadth of traffic to and content usage of our given digital services. It is a powerful, invaluable metric because it's the only measure that accurately calculates how many individual users visited PandemicOversight.gov in a given time. Combined with total visits, it tells a more comprehensive story about our users and their visit patterns.

Google Universal Analytics does not collect personally identifiable information through these cookies and does not combine, match, or cross-reference PandemicOversight.gov information with any other information. PandemicOversight.gov does not access or store the raw information collected through these cookies. We do view aggregate statistical analyses prepared by Google Universal Analytics, but these analyses do not include any personally identifiable information. We do not sell, rent, exchange, or otherwise disclose this information to persons or organizations.

The OMB Memo 10-22 Guidance defines our use of persistent cookies as "Usage Tier 2-Multi-session without Personally Identifiable Information (PII)." The guidance states, "This tier encompasses any use of multi-session Web measurement and customization technologies when no PII is collected." If you do not wish to have session or persistent cookies stored on your machine, you can opt out or disable cookies in your browser. You will still have access to all information and resources on PandemicOveright.gov. However, turning off cookies may affect the functioning of the website. Be aware that disabling cookies in your browser will affect cookie usage at all other websites you visit as well.

Linking

The site contains links to websites created and maintained by other public and/or private organizations. We provide these links as a service to our users. When users link to an outside website, they are leaving the PandemicOversight.gov and are subject to the privacy and security policies of the owners/sponsors of the outside website(s).

Page last modified: 11/06/2023