Privacy Policy
What information do we collect?
If you are a user with general public and anonymous access, the
Welsh Assembly Government website does not capture or store
personal information about you but simply logs your IP address
(this is the internet protocol address of your computer), which is
automatically recognised by our web server. This is known as a ‘log
file’ which we use to compile site usage statistics.
The site also uses “cookies” (explained below) to collect
user information
We may collect the following kinds of information from
visitors to this website: information that you provide to us for
specific purposes and website usage information.
Information that you provide to us
We collect and process information that you provide for specific
purposes, for example by filling in application forms or request
forms for support and assistance or feedback forms. This may
include general contact information about you or your company such
as name, email addresses, mailing address and telephone number. We
use the information to provide you with the specific information or
services that you request from us and to communicate with you. If
you contact us we keep a record of that correspondence.
You will be asked to provide information about yourself and/or
your company when you use certain site facilities, including the
following:
- support and Assistance - you will be asked for contact
information if you request to be contacted by our customer services
team for support and assistance. This information is passed on to
the Welsh Assembly Government customer contact centre but the data
controller will remain the Welsh Assembly Government;
- expressions of interest - you will be asked for contact
information and other basic information about your company if you
register an interest for Welsh Assembly Government investment. This
information is passed on to the relevant contact in the Welsh
Assembly Government and is not retained on the site; and
- email subscriptions - some areas of this website offer email
updates. To receive these email updates, you need to register,
giving your email address, a user name; and password. We do not
share the information you provide with any third parties and we
protect it in accordance with the Data Protection Act.
Website usage information
We receive and store certain information whenever you interact
with us. We collect website usage information from a number of
sources:
- our web server;
- URLs passed to us when you enter our site;
- some information entered by you on forms on the website. In web
usage information where information is entered by a user who has
not logged in, truncated postcodes (excluding the last two
characters) and telephone area codes may be used to measure
regional demographics, but are not traceable back to you;
- a selection of Internet service providers;
- a selection of search engine companies;
- IP addresses; and
- cookies.
We collect web usage information during your visits to our site
including information on the date, time, page viewed or searched
for, tools used and other information relating to your browsing
activity on our website. Where you are a registered user of our
website and have logged in, we may collect web usage information to
enable us to build a demographic profile. We may also use web usage
information to create statistical data regarding the use of our
website. [We may then use or disclose that statistical data to
others for marketing and strategic development purposes, but no
individuals will be identified in such statistical data.]
IP Addresses
We use IP addresses to analyse trends, track users' movement,
and gather broad demographic information for aggregate use. IP
addresses are not linked to personally identifiable
information.
Cookies
Cookies are small files that are often created when you visit a
website, and which are stored in the cookie directory of your
computer. A cookie often includes an anonymous unique identifier.
Cookies do not damage your computer. Each website can send its own
cookie to your browser if your browser's preferences allow it, but
to protect your privacy your browser only permits a website to
access the cookies it has already sent to you, not the cookies sent
to you by other sites. You do not have to accept cookies. You can
decide if you want to accept cookies by changing the settings on
your browser to either accept all cookies, reject all cookies, or
notify you when a cookie is set. Switching off cookies will still
allow you to view the majority of content on our site, although it
may restrict your use of our interactive tools.
There are two types of cookie:
- persistent cookies remain on your computer for a specified
time. We use persistent cookies to identify that a registered user
has returned and to collect information for use as described above;
and
- session-specific cookies are deleted when you leave the
website. We use session-specific cookies to hold the information
given while using an interactive tool on the website, hold your
details when you are logged into the site, hold your search
criteria while you are carrying out a search of the website and to
collect information for use as described above
The Data Protection Act
Under the Data Protection Act, we have a legal duty to protect
any information we collect from you. We use leading technologies
and encryption software to safeguard your data, and keep strict
security standards to prevent any unauthorised access to it.
We do not pass on your details to any third party or other
government department outside Welsh Assembly Government without
your consent.
Disclosure of information
We will only disclose information about you to others where the
law allows. For example, we may disclose information to government
bodies and law enforcement agencies for their enforcement purposes.
We may also disclose information provided by you to other parties
where this is necessary for the purposes set out in this privacy
policy, to operators and suppliers that we engage to process your
information on our behalf. We will not sell, rent or disclose your
information to anyone other than those set out in this privacy
policy without your consent. We do not transfer your personal
information outside of the European Economic Area
Access to your information and contacting
us
If you wish to see our records of any correspondence you have
sent to us, or if you have a query or complaint about this privacy
policy or about the site, you can contact us by clicking
here to open our Feedback Form. Any request
for access to information held about you may be subject to a fee of
£10 to meet our costs in providing the information to you.
Changes to this privacy policy
If this privacy policy changes in any way, we will place an
updated version on this page. Regularly reviewing this page ensures
you are always aware of what information we collect, how we use it
and under what circumstances, if any, we will share it with other
parties.