Privacy Policy and Terms of Service

Version 1.0, March 4, 1016

The VoteGPS™ website was created for informational purposes only. VoteGPS™ tries to identify the polling place for any address. VoteGPS™ does not comment or report on any individual’s eligibility to vote in any particular election or at any particular polling place. Neither Harvard University nor any person associated with this project guarantees the accuracy of the information provided. In case of any uncertainty or to confirm information provided on the website, please contact the government officials responsible for administering elections in your area.

Openness. This document describes how VoteGPS™ operates, what data it collects, and how it uses that data. As an information service for voters in the United States, VoteGPS™ does not expect to be of interest to those outside the United States. However, some US voters may use VoteGPS™ from another country. Any user of this website from another country should be aware that any personal data provided to VoteGPS™ will be processed in the United States and will be subject to privacy laws that differ from the laws in other countries.

VoteGPS™ reserves the right to change this policy as needed. If possible, VoteGPS™ will post a notice of any material changes on the website, but VoteGPS™ cannot guarantee that it will always post advance notice of changes.

The VoteGPS™ website will remain through the November 2016 election, and any change in website management or structure will be announced later.

Collection Limitation. A user of VoteGPS™ enters a residence address on the website, and VoteGPS™ seeks to report the address for the polling place for an individual living at that address. VoteGPS™ previously collected and compiled information on polling places from government and other sources. VoteGPS™ does not ask users to enter any personal information other than a residence address. VoteGPS™ may record addresses selected or entered by a user in order to identify the need to adjust and update the information provided by VoteGPS™. Also, VoteGPS™ offers links and direct access to government voting websites so that users can verify information provided or search for information that VoteGPS™ did not have.

A user who accesses a government website directly from VoteGPS™ may be asked by the government website for personal information. However, VoteGPS™ does not have access to or a copy of any information that a user communicates to a government website even if the government website appears within a page served by VoteGPS™. Government websites are completely independent of VoteGPS™, and government websites have their own privacy policies and practices. Regular web interaction data, such as the date and time of the visit, browser used, and the IP address of the device visiting, are kept in weblogs for visits to VoteGPS™.

If a visitor sends email to VoteGPS™ or to any of the individuals responsible for VoteGPS™, whether that email is sent through the website or otherwise, VoteGPS™ will have whatever information the visitor puts in the email, including email address. Email and associated information may be retained indefinitely by VoteGPS™ or by individuals responsible for VoteGPS™.

Use Limitation and Purpose Specification. VoteGPS™ may use information collected in weblogs to report statistics on use. VoteGPS™ may use or share those logs with police or security professionals in the event of a security breach or hack of the VoteGPS™ website. In the event of a transfer of ownership or management of VoteGPS™ to another entity, all information held by VoteGPS™ may be disclosed to the new owner or manager.

Security. VoteGPS™ maintains security measures that it deems appropriate for its activities. Information provided to VoteGPS™ or its operators via email may be maintained in computer systems that have different levels of security and that have limited security measures. VoteGPS™ cautions against providing any personal information via email except when necessary. In the event of a security breach or hack of the VoteGPS™ website, VoteGPS™ may use or share any information with security consultants or law enforcement.

Data Quality. A user of VoteGPS™ determines the quality of the data received on the VoteGPS™ website. Neither Harvard University nor any person associated with VoteGPS™ guarantees the accuracy of the information provided. In case of uncertainty or to confirm the correct voting location, contact the government officials responsible for administering elections in your area.

Access and Correction. Because VoteGPS™ does not retain or maintain any personal information as part of routine operations, VoteGPS™ has no personal information that a user can see or correct. The only information that VoteGPS™ may retain comes from email sent by a VoteGPS™ user. VoteGPS™ will provide a copy of that email to an authenticated user upon request.

Accountability. The Data Privacy Lab at Harvard College is principally responsible for the VoteGPS™ website. Send questions or suggestions to VoteGPS™ at help@votegps.org.

Privacy Policy History

Version 0.1 was the first draft of the policy (March 1, 2016).

Version 1.0 was the first complete privacy policy posted on the website (March 4, 2016).