Guidelines
for Web Site Use . .
This document has been prepared to describe the standards
and guidelines by which the Municipality manages the information
on this site. This web site has been established for the primary
purpose of providing information to the public regarding available
municipal programs and services.
This document will be reviews and revised annually to ensure
that all improvements and/or changes
in direction are accommodated.
A. Right to Privacy
B. Links to Others– Municipal
links to external web sites
C. Links to the Municipality–
External links to the Municipality’s web site
D. Events Calendar Information
E. Be Advised
For more information, please contact: Jennifer Cooke, Manager
of Communications, at jcooke@clarington.net or 905-623-3379.
A. Right to Privacy
 The Municipality
of Clarington recognizes and respects the public’s right
to privacy. However, due to the public nature of the Internet,
all information should be considered “publicly accessible”
and important or private information should be treated carefully.
Any personal information collected is for the Municipality’s
sole use and is not available to external groups or organizations.
Personal information means any information that may be used
to identify an individual, including, but not limited to,
a first and last name, a home or other physical address and
an email address or other contact information, whether at
work or at home. In general, you can visit any of the websites
maintained by the Municipality of Clarington without telling
us who you are or revealing any personal information about
yourself.
The Municipality
receives identity information from the public via a number
of online forms and transactional applications. The primary
reason for collecting and maintaining this information is
to allow us serve you effectively and to manage the flow of
information between the Municipality and the community.
As the
Municipality values the opinions and comments from citizens,
it may, from time to time, conduct online surveys. Participation
in these surveys is entirely voluntary. The information collected
is used to gain a general sense of the community’s opinions
on important local and regional issues. Survey participants
are anonymous unless otherwise stated in the survey.
The Municipality
tracks web server log files in order to create generic usage
reports, detect errors, and maintain security. These reports
do not contain any personal identity information of users.
If you
have any questions about the Municipality of Clarington's
online privacy practices, please contact the Jennifer Cooke,
Manager of Communications, at 905-623-3379 or jcooke@clarington.net.
B. Links to External Web Sites
The purpose
of this section is to identify the conditions by which the
Municipality provides links to external web sites. The primary
purpose for linking to other sites is to provide information
to site users to non-municipal resources which provide services
and/or services to the general public which are complementary
to and in support of the policies and services provided by
the Municipality.
This guideline
governs the creation of direct or indirect links to external
web sites from images, notices, and other communications on
the Municipality of Clarington web site. Such links can include:
• Hyperlinks activated by clicking on an image or
text, leading to a web page that does not reside on the
Municipality of Clarington web site (direct);
• Mention of a URL address providing users with the
address of a web page that does not reside on the Municipality
of Clarington web site (indirect), or;
• Any other direct or indirect facilitation of movement
from the Municipality’s web site to another web page
that does not reside on the municipal site.
The Municipality may establish links on its official web
site to external sites, provided that each external site meets
the following criteria:
• Other government agencies, including federal,
provincial, regional, and education;
• Organizations that receive sponsorship from the
Municipality of Clarington in the form of a financial grant,
or a written contract by which the Municipality provides
services in collaboration with the organization to achieve
a mutual goal related to the Municipality's governmental
purpose;
• Organizations that rent or lease office space from
the Municipality of Clarington;
• Commercial real estate and commercial developers
that assist the Municipality in promoting businesses throughout
Clarington by providing listings of available commercial
property in Clarington;
• Local and regional economic development organizations
that assist the Municipality in promoting local businesses;
• Local non-profit organizations that provide programs
and services within the boundaries of the Municipality of
Clarington; and,
• Sites providing directional and climatic information.
Linked
sites are not under the control of the Municipality of Clarington
and the Municipality of Clarington is not responsible for
the contents of any linked site or any link contained in a
linked site, or any changes or updates to such sites. The
Municipality of Clarington provides these links only as a
convenience, and the inclusion of any link does not imply
endorsement by the Municipality of Clarington or any association
with their operators. The Municipality of Clarington reserves
the right to limit, add and/or delete links to external sites
as it deems necessary.
Other than
links to other governmental agencies, all links to external
sites are approved by the Municipality’s Communications
& Marketing Division.
C. Links to the Municipality’s
Web site from External Organizations
A site
that links to the Municipality of Clarington web site:
• Must not misrepresent its relationship with Municipality
of Clarington. This includes:
o Do not create a browser or border environment around
Municipality of Clarington content.
o Do not use the Municipality of Clarington logo without
the Municipality’s written permission.
Further,
links from external sites to any of the Municipality’s
site does not imply that the Municipality of Clarington is
endorsing it or its products, services or programs.
The Municipality
of Clarington is not obligated to link to an external site
that provides a link to any Municipality of Clarington web
site.
D. Event Calendar Policy
The Municipality provides a listing of events in Clarington
as a service to its residents and visitors. This list is not
a comprehensive list of all Clarington based events. The Municipality
may list events that meet one of the following criteria:
1. Municipal events;
2. Events sponsored by the Municipality;
3. Events open to the general public for which the Municipality
approves a special events permit and/or approves the use
of public rights-of-way or municipal property.
E. Be advised
No Warranty
While
the Municipality attempts to keep its web site accurate
and timely, the Municipality neither warrants nor makes
representations or endorsements as to the accuracy, quality,
content, or completeness of the content on the site. Content
is subject to change without notice from the Municipality
as a result of updates and corrections.
The Municipality
of Clarington is transmitted "as is" without warranties
of any kind, either express or implied, including without
limitation, warranties of title or implied warranties of
fitness for a particular purpose. The Municipality is neither
responsible nor liable for any viruses or contaminations
of a web visitor's hardware, software, peripherals, or properties
nor for any delays, inaccuracies, errors, or omissions resulting
from use of or with respect to the material contained on
its web site, including but not limited to, any material
posted on (or linked to from) the Municipality of Clarington
web site. The Municipality is not responsible for any special,
indirect, incidental, or consequential damages that may
arise from the use of, or the inability to use, the site
and/or the materials contained on the site whether the materials
contained on the site are provided by the Municipality of
Clarington, or a third party.
Municipality's Exclusive Use of the Web site
The Municipality
of Clarington's web site is maintained for the exclusive
use and control of the Municipality of Clarington in communicating
matters of general public interest over the Internet. The
Municipality is not establishing a forum for others to provide
information through the web site.
Public Comment
It is important for users of the Municipality's web site
to understand that messages transmitted via the Internet
are not always reliable. Therefore, although the Municipality
will make every effort to maintain the reliability of communications
via The Municipality's web site, the Municipality is unable
to guarantee that any such communications will be received
by the Municipality. If you want or need to provide the
Municipality with an official legal notice or public comment,
the Municipality strongly recommends that you confirm the
Municipality's actual receipt of your communication via
telephone. It you have any question as to the appropriate
Municipal official to whom a communication should be addressed,
please contact the Municipal Clerk at 905-623-3379.
Accessibility
The Municipality of Clarington is committed to maintaining
access for persons with disabilities. The web site meets
the World Wide Web Consortium's "Web Content Accessibility
Guidelines.”
Copyright Information
All images, text and design elements contained in this site
are the property of the Municipality of Clarington. All
municipal logos are registered trademarks of the Municipality
of Clarington.
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