Terms and Conditions for Using Our Web Site

Privacy Statement

Thank you for visiting our web site. We protect your privacy while you visit us online.

Personal Information

You do not have to provide any personal information to visit this web site. Please do not send us sensitive information, such as your credit card or social security numbers, via e-mail.

The Foundation for the National Archives (FNA), is a non-profit 501(c)(3) organization that supports the programs and activities of the National Archives. It is not a government agency. This site is a partnership between the Foundation and the National Archives.

Cookies

"Cookies" are small bits of text that are either used for the duration of a session ("session cookies"), or saved on a user's hard drive in order to identify that user, or information about that user, the next time the user logs on to a web site ("persistent cookies").

This site does not directly use cookies. However, it does use the third-party addons Google Analytics and the AddThis share button, both of which do use cookies in order to provide their functionality.

Information Collected and Stored Automatically

We collect and store the following information about visitors to this site:

• The name of the Internet domain (for example, "xcompany.com" if you use a private Internet access account, or "yourschool.edu" if you are connecting from a university's domain) and the IP address (a number that is automatically assigned to your computer when you are using the Internet) from which you access our site;
• The type of browser and operating system used to access our site;
• The date and time you access our site;
• The Internet address of the web site from which you linked directly to our site; and
• The pages you visit.

This information is collected for statistical analysis and technical improvements to the site. Software programs create summary statistics, which may be used for such purposes as assessing what information is of most and least interest, determining technical design specifications, and identifying system performance or problem areas.

Use of Plugins

The first time that you use an area of our site that requires animation software, such as "Flash", you may see an invitation to go to the software manufacturer's web site so you may download software needed to view the animation on our web site. This prompt occurs because we can tell whether your browser has the needed capabilities provided by these plug-ins. We do not use "cookies" to do this, nor do we read anything on your computer other than your browser's capabilities. We do not endorse or guaranty anything about the product that you may download from a manufacturer's web site. At the time that we create and post the web pages that require these software plug-ins for viewing, they are provided by their manufacturer for download and use free of charge. We cannot guaranty, however, that the plug-in will remain free, or that the manufacturer will not collect personally identifying information about you when you elect to download the software from their site. If you choose to visit the manufacturer's web site to obtain the plug-in, please carefully review their policies for details about personal privacy and use of their software.

Disclaimer of Endorsement

Reference to specific commercial businesses, products, processes, or services by trade name, trademark, manufacturer, or otherwise, on any web site administered by the FNA or NARA does not constitute or imply its endorsement, recommendation, or favoring by the FNA or by NARA.

External Links

We provide links from our web pages to external web sites because they provide information that may interest our customers. This is provided as a convenience only. External links do not constitute an endorsement by the FNA or NARA of the opinions, products, or services presented on the external site, or of any sites linked to it. The FNA and NARA are not responsible for the legality or accuracy of information on externally linked sites, or for any costs incurred while using externally linked sites.

External links are intended to support FNA and NARA's missions. They are not intended to support private or commercial organizations or businesses. Links to .org, .gov, .edu, .mil or other non-profit site that share historical and documentary interests inherent to the Foundation and Archives' missions are encouraged because of their general non-commercial, public-interest nature. The site cannot support a volume or constant update of changing links that exceed the resources for this maintenance. The FNA and NARA reserve the right to review links and add or remove links at any time for any reason consistent with FNA policy or NARA guidance.

Copyright, Restrictions, and Permissions Notice

• Records used on this site are from the holdings of the National Archives. Generally, materials produced by federal agencies are in the public domain and may be reproduced without permission.
• However, not all materials (including images, sound, cartographic, textual, or electronic materials) appearing on this web site are in the public domain. Some materials have been donated or obtained from individuals or organizations and may be subject to restrictions on use. Please note that it is your responsibility to identify the copyright owner and to obtain permission before making use of this material in any way. Because we cannot guaranty the status of specific items, you use materials on this site at your own risk.
• The copyright law of the United States (Title 17, United States Code) governs the making of photocopies or other reproductions of copyrighted material. This law provides that under certain conditions libraries and archives are authorized to furnish a photocopy or other reproduction of materials. One of these specific conditions is that the photocopy or reproduction is not to be "used for any purpose other than private study, scholarship, or research." If you use a photocopy or reproduction for purposes in excess of "fair use," you may be liable for copyright infringement.
• You may consult the National Archives reference staff for details on specific items. The National Archives is aware of donor restrictions applicable to their collections, but they can not confirm copyright status for any item. Images on this site which are in the public domain may be used without permission. If you use images from the web site, we ask that you credit the National Archives as the source.
• Links may be made to our web site from other personal and organizational web pages. We request that you link to our site rather than downloading portions of it to another web server, so that our viewers will see our most up-to-date information.
• Certain individuals depicted may claim rights in their likenesses and images. Use of photographs or other materials found on the this web site may be subject to these claims. Anyone who intends to use these materials commercially should contact the individuals depicted or their representatives.

Information Surety

We recommend that you acquire information describing the services and products of NARA directly from the official web sites, because other, non-NARA sources may not be able to maintain accurate information pertaining to our programs.

We work hard to ensure the information provided to you is accurate and complete. However, it is possible that information may change prior to updating.

Please use the information on this web site based on your evaluation and analysis of any risks. It is your responsibility to ensure that the information you use (including software, images, audio files, artwork, and documents) are free of any violations of intellectual property rights. For further discussion on this topic, please see the discussion on copyright above.

Some of the documents on the server may contain live references (or "pointers") to information created and maintained by other organizations. FNA and NARA do not control and cannot guaranty the relevance, timeliness, or accuracy of the outside materials.

Because we do not know how you are using information found on our web site, we do not make any express or implied warranties about the information contained in this web site for your particular use. All indirect, consequential, implied, punitive and special damages are deemed waived if you use the information on this web site in any manner.

The materials presented on this web site are not the documents of record. Please note that authenticity of information can be confirmed only by examining the "record" version.

Virus Protection

We use virus protection software on our computer systems and regularly update the software. This is a computer security measure that, in addition to maintaining our computer systems, also ensures that all files that we develop and/or post on our web servers are virus-free. When you request a file for download from our site, it is possible, though unlikely, that the data may contract a virus and become corrupted before it reaches your computer. Neither NARA nor the FNA is responsible for files that may become corrupted as the data travels the Internet.