NBII Disclaimer, Attribution & Privacy Statement

The following statements and disclaimers apply to all Web pages managed by the National Biological Information Infrastructure (NBII) unless otherwise noted.


Privacy

The NBII Web site which referred you to this document conforms to the general policy on privacy as outlined below.

How we handle the information we gather when you visit our Web site-

Web server activity logs

Like most Web servers on the Internet, our servers collect and store all of the information that your Web browser sends when it requests a Web page, including:

  • the name, domain, and numerical internet address of the "host" computer (typically a computer belonging to your Internet Service Provider and not your personal computer) from which you access the Internet.
  • the date and time you accessed our site;
  • the Internet address of the Web page that you came from
  • the page you requested from our site and the number of characters sent to your computer; and
  • the information your Web browser software sends as its so-called "User Agent," which typically identifies the browser software and may also indicate the operating system and type of CPU used in your personal computer.

It is impossible to determine the actual identity of an individual user from this information.

The logs are periodically summarized and analyzed in order to study site usage over time and to perform other studies to help us improve the site's organization, performance, and usefulness.

Electronic mail

When you send us personal identifying information via e-mail (that is, in a message containing a question or comment, or by filling out a form that e-mails us this information), we use it to respond to your requests. We may forward your e-mail to other Government employees, partner agencies, or contract personnel who are better able to answer your questions. We do not retain or distribute lists of e-mail addresses to any parties outside of the NBII except as necessary to conduct official U.S. Government business. In no event do we distribute lists of e-mail addresses to non-Government entities.

File transfer protocol (FTP)

Many NBII sites using the file transfer protocol may also store your e-mail address if your Web browser is configured to provide it. By default most Web browser software does not send your e-mail address; this option is configured through your browser preferences. In Netscape Navigator, for example, this option must be set by you through the Advanced preferences category by the item labeled, "Send email address as anonymous FTP password."

Online surveys

When you voluntarily provide us with personal information as part of an online survey, we use it to perform various quantitative and qualitative analyses to improve customer service and satisfaction. We may forward the information collected to other Government employees or contract personnel to perform the actual analysis. You are under no obligation to participate in such surveys. Non-participation will not inhibit your use of our Web site in any way. If you provided the information to us in error, you may request its removal at any time.

Marketing information

We may collect information from you, with your permission, that will allow us to provide customer services, such as promotional materials and product availability notices. We may forward the information collected to other Government employees, partner agencies, or contract personnel to provide specific marketing services. We will remove such information at your request.

Collection and release of gathered information

We want to make it clear that we will not obtain personal identifying information about you when you visit our Web site, unless you choose to provide such information to us. Except in the course of officially authorized law enforcement investigations, or in the event of a suspected attempt to deliberately circumvent our system's security with the intent to gain unauthorized access or to do physical damage (for example, an attack by hackers), we do not attempt to identify individual users or share any information we receive with any parties outside of the NBII. In the latter case, collected information associated with a suspected intruder might be shared with an incident response service.

Retention of collected information

Cookies - Some applications may save a "cookie" on your browser to provide a temporary history of actions taken. We do not retain any record of "cookies" beyond what is necessary for running the application.

Web server activity logs - Monthly extracts of the log files are archived and stored off-line at our discretion for an indefinite period of time. Some statistical summaries derived from these data may be retained online or off-line at our discretion for an indefinite period of time.

E-mail - Information collected via e-mail will be retained at our discretion in a directly readable form for as long as necessary to complete our response. The e-mail may be retained in an archival form as required by Federal laws and regulations governing the retention of historical records of government agencies. For more information, please refer to the National Archives and Records Administration's Records Management Program.

Online surveys - Information collected via online surveys may be maintained at our discretion for an indefinite period of time.

Marketing information - Such information may be maintained at our discretion for an indefinite period of time.


Links to Non-NBII Sites

The NBII site contains numerous links to data and information on the Web.  Links and pointers to non-NBII sites are provided for information only and do not constitute endorsement, express or implied, by the NBII, its partner agencies, or the U.S. Government, of the referenced organizations, their suitability, content, products, or services, whether they are governmental, educational, or commercial.


Non-Endorsement of Commercial and Other Non-NBII Products and Services

Hypertext links and other references to non-NBII products and services are provided for information only and do not constitute endorsement or warranty, express or implied, by the NBII, its partner agencies, or the U.S. Government, as to their suitability, content, usefulness, functioning, completeness, or accuracy.


NBII Public-Domain Software

Links are provided to public-domain software developed by or for the NBII. Although these programs have been used by the NBII, no warranty, expressed or implied, is made by the NBII as to the accuracy and functioning of the programs and related program material, nor shall the fact of distribution constitute any such warranty, and no responsibility is assumed by the NBII in connection therewith.


Content Accuracy, Completeness, and Usability of NBII Data and Information

We make every effort to provide and maintain accurate, complete, usable, and timely information on our Web pages. However, some NBII data and information accessed through these pages may, of necessity, be preliminary in nature and presented prior to final review. These data and information are provided with the understanding that they are not guaranteed to be correct or complete. Users are cautioned to consider carefully the provisional nature of these data and information before using them for decisions that concern personal or public safety or the conduct of business that involves substantial monetary or operational consequences. Conclusions drawn from, or actions undertaken on the basis of, such data and information are the sole responsibility of the user.


Copyright

NBII-authored or produced data and information are in the public domain. While the content of many NBII Web pages is in the public domain, some NBII pages contain material that is copyrighted by others and used by the NBII with permission. You may need to obtain permission from the copyright owner for other uses. Furthermore, some non-NBII data, products, and information linked, or referred to, from this site may be protected under U.S. and foreign copyright laws. You may need to obtain permission from the copyright owner to acquire, use, reproduce, or distribute these materials. It is the sole responsibility of you, the user of this site, to carefully examine the content of the NBII and all linked pages for copyright restrictions and to secure all necessary permissions.


Liability

Neither the U.S. Government nor any agency thereof, nor any of their employees, contractors, subcontractors, make any warranty, express or implied, nor assume any legal liability or responsibility for the accuracy, completeness, or usefulness of any information, apparatus, product, or process disclosed, nor represent that its use would not infringe on privately owned rights.


Attribution and Citing of NBII Data and Information

As a condition of use, those who refer to data and information found through the NBII portal in their publications and presentations must formally cite both the original author(s) and data authority for any cited item(s) as well as the NBII itself, as the source through which the data or information was found. Such citation may be in any format appropriate to the publication or presentation, or in any format required by the original creator or provider of the data/information. Identifying the source for citation is the responsibility of the user, and users should be prepared to provide a copy of the citing publication or presentation to the cited authors or data providers, upon their request. The NBII itself should be referred to in full as " National Biological Information Infrastructure (NBII) at http://www.nbii.gov. "


To Contact Us

If you have any questions about this "NBII Privacy Policy and Disclaimers," please contact:

    NBII National Program Manager
    U.S. Geological Survey
    12201 Sunrise Valley Dr., MS 302
    Reston, VA 20192

The NBII Program is administered by the Biological Informatics Program of the U.S. Geological Survey
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