Thank you for visiting the Metropolitan Water District of Southern California Web site. This notice explains our online privacy practices and how we collect and use your information at this site.
The type of information we collect and this policy is subject to change. Please revisit this policy statement regularly.
Metropolitan will not share or exchange online information that you provide us, including e-mail addresses, with third parties for their use.
We will disclose personally identifiable information as required by law, for example, in response to a court order or a subpoena. We also may disclose such information in response to a law enforcement or regulatory agency’s request.
Although we take appropriate measures to safeguard against unauthorized disclosures of information, we cannot assure you that personally identifiable information that we collect will never be disclosed in a manner that is inconsistent with this Privacy Policy.
Some of our sites contain links to other sites whose information practices may be different than ours. Please read the other sites’ privacy notices, and note that we have no control over information that is submitted to, or collected by, these third parties.
Cookies
In order to provide optimal service and convenience we may use “cookies.” A cookie is a temporary code placed in your computer by our server that facilitates communication and saves you time when you visit our site. Cookies may be used to understand site usage and to improve the content and offerings on our sites.
Security
If you have any questions or concerns about the Metropolitan online policy for this site or its implementation you may contact us at webmanager@mwdh2o.com.
Unauthorized attempts to upload or change information on Metropolitan’s Web servers are strictly prohibited and may be punishable by law, including under the Computer Fraud and Abuse Act of 1986 and the National Information Infrastructure Protection Act of 1996.
Information Collected and Stored Automatically
If you do nothing during your visit but browse through the Web site, read pages, or download information, we will gather and store certain information about your visit automatically. This information does not identify you personally. We use this information to help us make our site more useful to visitors to learn about the number of visitors to our site and the types of technology our visitors use. We do not give, sell, or transfer any of this information to a third party.
Only the following information about your visit is automatically collected and stored:
- The Internet domain (for example, “youragency.gov” if you connect from a government domain, “yourschool.edu” if you connect from a university's domain, or “xcompany.com” if you use a private Internet access account) and IP address (an IP address is a number that is automatically assigned to your computer whenever you are surfing the Web) from which you access our Web site;
- The type of browser and operating system used to access our site;
- The date and time you access our site;
- The pages you visit; and
- If you linked to our Web site from another website, the address of that Web site.
The logs may be preserved indefinitely, and they may be used to prevent security breaches and to ensure the integrity of the data on our servers.
Surveys
In the course of using Metropolitan’s Web sites, a user may choose to provide information to help the Metropolitan serve that user’s needs or conduct research. At any time there are numerous online surveys being conducted on Metropolitan’s Web sites. Person(s) responsible for conducting online surveys that collect personally-identifiable information should clearly state at the survey site the extent to which any information provided will be shared. Aggregate data from surveys may be shared with external third parties in ways that do not compromise privacy.
Chat Rooms, Forums, Message Boards and News Groups
Some of Metropolitan’s Web sites may provide chat rooms, forums, message boards or news groups for their users. Any information that is disclosed in these areas may become public information and a user should therefore exercise caution when deciding to disclose one’s personal information in such places. Chat sessions and discussion forums may be logged
Disclaimer of Liability
Neither Metropolitan, nor any of its units, programs, employees, agents or individual board members, shall be held liable for any improper or incorrect use of the information described and/or contained in Metropolitan’s Web sites and Metropolitan assumes no responsibility for anyone’s use of the information. In no event shall the Metropolitan Web sites, or its units, programs, employees, agents or individual board members 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, even if advised of the possibility of such damage. 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.
Disclaimer of Warranties and Accuracy of Data
Although the data found using Metropolitan’s access systems have been produced and processed from sources believed to be reliable, no warranty, express or implied, is made regarding accuracy, adequacy, completeness, legality, reliability or usefulness of any information. This disclaimer applies to both isolated and aggregate uses of the information. Metropolitan 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 a user has obtained information from any of the Metropolitan Web pages via a source other than Metropolitan pages, 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. If a user finds any errors or omissions, please report them to:
Disclaimer of Endorsement
Metropolitan 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 Metropolitan 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 Metropolitan.
Disclaimer for External Links
Metropolitan has links to other Web sites. These include links to Web sites
operated by other agencies and officials, other government agencies, nonprofit
organizations and private businesses. When a user leaves a Metropolitan Web
site and visits another site, the user is subject to the privacy policy of that new
site. Metropolitan is not responsible for the contents of any off-site pages
referenced. The user specifically acknowledges that Metropolitan is not liable for
the defamatory, negligent, inaccurate, offensive, or illegal conduct of other users,
links, or third parties and that the risk of injury from the foregoing rests entirely
with the user. Links from Metropolitan Web pages on the World Wide Web to
other sites do not constitute an endorsement from Metropolitan. These links are
provided as an information service only. It is the responsibility of the user to
evaluate the content and usefulness of information obtained from other sites.
Metropolitan’s Web sites contain links to other related World Wide Web sites and
resources. Since Metropolitan and its Web sites are not responsible for the
availability of these outside resources or their contents, the user should direct
any concerns regarding any external link to its site administrator or webmaster.
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, pages, and files are reorganized. The
user expressly agrees that the use of Metropolitan’s Web sites are at the user’s
sole risk. Metropolitan does not warrant that the service will be uninterrupted or
error free. The documents and related graphics published on this Web or server
could contain technical inaccuracies or typographical errors. Changes are
periodically added to the information herein. Metropolitan and/or its respective
units and programs may make improvements and/or changes in the information
and/or programs described herein at any time.
E-mail Addresses
E-mail addresses obtained through the Web site will not be sold or given to other
private companies for marketing purposes. The information collected is subject to
the access and confidentiality provisions of the Public Records Act, other
applicable sections of the California code as well as federal laws. E-mail or other
information requests sent to Metropolitan’s Web sites may be maintained in order
to respond to the request, forward that request to the appropriate staff within
Metropolitan, communicate updates to the Metropolitan page that may be of
interest to citizens, or to provide the Metropolitan Web designer with valuable
customer feedback to assist in improving the site. Individuals can cancel any
communications regarding new service updates at any time.