Privacy Policy & Terms of Use

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Privacy Policy

Purpose

This Policy is a disclosure statement to users of Forest Preserves of Cook County (“Forest Preserves”) websites: fpdcc.com and map.fpdcc.com. The policy addresses the collection, use, disclosure, and security of information that may be obtained by the Forest Preserves and third parties through the use of Forest Preserves websites. A copy of this policy shall be accessible via a persistent hyperlink labeled “Privacy Policy & Terms of Use” on the bottom of every fpdcc.com web page and within the navigation menu of map.fpdcc.com.

Areas Affected

This policy applies to the use of fpdcc.com and map.fpdcc.com websites operated by the Forest Preserves.

Changes to This Policy

The Forest Preserves may, from time to time, modify this Privacy Policy to reflect legal, technological and other developments. In that event, the changes will appear on this page along with the date of the latest update.

Policy

1. Information Collected by the Forest Preserves

To improve the overall experience of its websites, the Forest Preserves automatically collects basic browsing information from visitors. This information helps identify site performance needs, ensure compatibility with visitor technology and improve the services offered.

The Forest Preserves does not collect data for commercial purposes and does not sell, exchange or otherwise distribute the data collected by the Forest Preserves websites for commercial purposes.

2. Information Submitted to the Forest Preserves Websites

During a session on the Forest Preserves websites, a user may affirmatively submit information to the Forest Preserves by, among other means, electronic mail (“email”) or by filling in and submitting an online form or by allowing map.fpdcc.com to track your location. Such affirmatively submitted information is stored in a secure environment and will be used by the Forest Preserves in furtherance of its governmental purposes.

The Forest Preserves does not rent or sell personally identifiable information (i.e., information such as name, address, phone number, email, etc., that identifies a user as a particular person), nor would the Forest Preserves exchange or trade such information with third parties without a user’s explicit permission. 

3. Cookies

Cookies are text files, or entries in larger files, utilized to distinguish between visitors to a website. Cookie storage can be either temporary (“Session”) or permanent (“Persistent”). A Session cookie is deleted when you exit your web browser and a Persistent cookie remains on your hard drive until you manually delete it or the cookie expires. The Forest Preserves may use cookies to improve the content and usability of Forest Preserves websites.

The use of cookies is a standard practice among Internet websites. Most Internet web browsers may be customized to reject cookies, to only accept or reject cookies by user intervention, or to delete cookies. Rejecting and/or removing cookies, however, may lead to loss of functionality on those Forest Preserves website pages requiring cookies to function fully.

4. Third Party Services

The Forest Preserves enlists the services of third parties to deliver a user-friendly and secure experience on its websites. These services include Google Analytics, a web analytics platform that tracks anonymized website usage data. This data helps the Forest Preserves understand visitor interactions, enabling improvements to navigation and user experience. Additionally, Google reCAPTCHA is used to analyze interactions to prevent spam and enhance security. In such cases, the third party’s use of Forest Preserves website user data is restricted by and subject to the third party’s own Terms of Service and Privacy Policy.

5. Children

None of the Forest Preserves websites specifically solicit information from minors or seeks to determine whether the visitor is a minor. Consequently, because such information will not be specifically identified as being from minors, users of the Forest Preserves websites should be aware that personally identifiable information submitted to the Forest Preserves websites by minors will be subject to being treated in the same manner as information given by an adult and may become subject to public access.


Terms & Conditions of Use

Access to the Forest Preserves websites is provided subject to the following terms and conditions. Please read these terms carefully as use of these sites constitutes acceptance of all of the following terms and conditions:

1. Disclaimer of Liability

NEITHER THE FOREST PRESERVES, ITS PRESIDENT, BOARD OF COMMISSIONERS NOR ANY OF ITS EMPLOYEES OR AGENTS SHALL BE HELD LIABLE FOR ANY IMPROPER OR INCORRECT USE OF THE INFORMATION DESCRIBED AND/OR CONTAINED HEREIN AND ASSUMES NO RESPONSIBILITY FOR ANYONE’S USE OF SUCH INFORMATION. IN NO EVENT SHALL THE FOREST PRESERVES ITS PRESIDENT, BOARD OFCOMMISSIONERS, ITS EMPLOYEES, OR AGENTS BE LIABLE FOR ANY DIRECT, INDIRECT, INCIDENTAL, SPECIAL, EXEMPLARY, OR CONSEQUENTIAL DAMAGES (INCLUDING, BUT NOT LIMITED TO, PROCUREMENT OR SUBSTITUTE GOODS OR SERVICES; LOSS OF USE, DATA, OR PROFITS; OR BUSINESS INTERRUPTION) HOWEVER CAUSED AND ON ANY THEORY OF LIABILITY, WHETHER IN CONTRACT, STRICT LIABILITY, OR TORT (INCLUDING NEGLIGENCE OR OTHERWISE) ARISING IN ANY WAY OUT OF THE USE OF THIS SYSTEM, WEBSITE, OR LINKED WEBSITES, EVEN IF ADVISED OF THE POSSIBILITY OF SUCH DAMAGES. THIS DISCLAIMER OF LIABILITY APPLIES TO ANY DAMAGES OR INJURY, INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED TO THOSE CAUSED BY ANY FAILURE OF PERFORMANCE, ERROR, OMISSION, INTERRUPTION, DELETION, DEFECT, DELAY IN OPERATION OR TRANSMISSION, COMPUTER VIRUS, COMMUNICATION LINE FAILURE, THEFT OR DESTRUCTION OR UNAUTHORIZED ACCESS TO, ALTERATION OF, OR USE OF RECORD, WHETHER FOR BREACH OF CONTRACT, TORTIOUS BEHAVIOR, NEGLIGENCE, OR UNDER ANY OTHER CAUSE OF ACTION.

2. Disclaimer of Warranties and Accuracy of Data

NO WARRANTY, EXPRESSED OR IMPLIED, IS MADE REGARDING ACCURACY, ADEQUACY, COMPLETENESS, LEGALITY, RELIABILITY OR USEFULNESS OF ANY INFORMATION POSTED ON THE FOREST PRESERVES WEBSITES. THIS DISCLAIMER APPLIES TO BOTH ISOLATED AND AGGREGATE USES OF THE INFORMATION. THE FOREST PRESERVES PROVIDES THIS INFORMATION ON AN “AS IS” BASIS. ALL WARRANTIES OF ANY KIND, EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED TO THE IMPLIED WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY, FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE, FREEDOM FROM CONTAMINATION BY COMPUTER VIRUSES AND NON-INFRINGEMENT OF PROPRIETARY RIGHTS ARE DISCLAIMED. CHANGES MAY BE PERIODICALLY MADE TO THE INFORMATION HEREIN; THESE CHANGES MAY OR MAY NOT BE INCORPORATED IN ANY NEW VERSION OF THE PUBLICATION. IF YOU HAVE OBTAINED INFORMATION FROM ANY OF THE FOREST PRESERVES WEB PAGES FROM A SOURCE OTHER THAN THE FOREST PRESERVES WEBSITE, BE AWARE THAT ELECTRONIC DATA CAN BE ALTERED SUBSEQUENT TO ORIGINAL DISTRIBUTION. DATA CAN ALSO QUICKLY BECOME OUT OF DATE. IT IS RECOMMENDED THAT CAREFUL ATTENTION BE PAID TO THE CONTENTS OF ANY DATA ASSOCIATED WITH A FILE, AND THAT THE ORIGINATOR OF THE DATA OR INFORMATION BE CONTACTED WITH ANY QUESTIONS REGARDING APPROPRIATE USE.

3. Disclaimer of Endorsement

The Forest Preserves is a distributor of content sometimes supplied by third parties and users. Any opinions, advice, statements, services, offers, or other information or content expressed or made available by third parties, including information providers, users, or others, are those of the respective author(s) or distributor(s) and do not necessarily state or reflect those of the Forest Preserves and shall not be used for advertising or product endorsement purposes. Reference herein to any specific commercial products, process, or service by trade name, trademark, manufacturer, or otherwise, does not constitute or imply its endorsement, recommendation, or favoring by the Forest Preserves, its President, Board of Commissioners, its employees, or agents.

4. Disclaimer for External Links

The Forest Preserves may provide links to content supplied by third parties and users. The existence and/or provision of those links neither constitutes nor implies endorsement of the destination or departure website(s) or of the content, viewpoint, accuracy, opinions, policy(ies), product(s), accessibility or privacy policy of said destination or departure website(s). Nor does any link between the Forest Preserves websites and a third-party website imply sponsorship of such website, or the creator of such website. When you link to a third-party website, you are subject to the privacy policy and terms of service of the third party’s website.

5. Disclaimer of Duty to Continue Provision of Data

Due to the dynamic nature of the Internet, resources that are free and publicly available one day may require a fee or restricted access the next, and the location of items may change as menus, homepages, and files are reorganized. You expressly agree that use of the Forest Preserves websites is at your sole risk. The Forest Preserves does not warrant that the service will be uninterrupted or error free. The documents and related graphics published on this server could contain technical inaccuracies or typographical errors. Changes are periodically added to the information herein. The Forest Preserves may make improvements and/or changes in the information and/or programs described herein at any time.

6. Content

To promote open and productive dialogue, and in the spirit of fair and transparent access to the Forest Preserves websites, users are hereby advised that all postings, including any links to 3rd-party sites, shall be subject to limited monitoring for appropriateness. For purposes herein, appropriateness is defined as postings that are relevant to Forest Preserves official governmental business, responsive to the issue(s) being discussed, and phrased in respectful and appropriate language for the general public.  Content that is commercial, self-promotional, campaign-related, prurient, abusive, or that contains discriminatory speech, including but not limited to, hate speech based on race, gender, sex, national origin, age, sexual orientation, religion, or disability is considered inappropriate for posting on the Forest Preserves websites.  If content is determined to be inappropriate, such content either will not be posted or will be removed from the website.

7. Choice of Law

Construction of the disclaimers above and resolution of disputes thereof are governed by the laws of the State of Illinois. The laws of the State of Illinois, U.S.A., shall apply to all uses of this data and this system. By use of this system and any data contained therein, you agree that your use shall conform to all applicable laws and regulations and you shall not violate the rights of any third parties.

8. Security

The Forest Preserves has taken several security measures to safeguard the integrity of the Forest Preserves websites, including but not limited to authentication, monitoring, and encryption.

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 the Forest Preserves websites.

9. Web Accessibility Compliance

The Forest Preserves is committed to providing equal, multi-platform access to fpdcc.com.  The Forest Preserves has adopted W3C Standards for Accessibility for fpdcc.com. Learn more on our Accessibility Page.

10. Intellectual Property

The content of Forest Preserves websites is copyrighted and may contain some third-party content that is used with permission of the third party. Users are notified, therefore, that one should presume the need to obtain permission from the copyright holder before reproducing or otherwise using images/graphics from this website. Contact fpdcc.info@cookcountyil.gov for questions about reproducing or using content from Forest Preserves websites.