privacy statement

The Focus on Ability website provides an electronic means for accessing information available through the Minnesota Department of Employment and Economic Development (DEED). Web pages are continually under development as we attempt to keep our content as current as possible.

DEED is committed to protecting the privacy of users in accordance with M.S. Chapter 13, GOVERNMENT DATA PRACTICES ACT; this privacy statement explains how. We reserve the right to alter our privacy policy as business needs require. Any changes to this policy will be posted on our website in a timely manner.

Information Collected and Used

If you visit our site to browse, read and/or download information:

• We collect and store the Internet Protocol (IP) address for the computer you used to access the site; the identification of your browser software and operating system; the date and time you accessed the site; and the Internet address of the website from which you linked directly to our site.
• We use this information to measure the number of visitors to the different sections of our site and to help us make our site more useful. We cannot and do not associate any of this information with individual persons, distribute this information to any third parties unless legally required to do so, or use it in any manner other than for statistical analysis in improving our site for visitors.
• We do use "cookies" on this site. Cookies sent from this site are used to remember your progress through the training, and are stored in memory on your computer until you close your browser. However, if you check the "save my log-in info" checkbox on the log-in page the cookies information will be retained on your computer hard drive for one year. Cookies created on your computer by using this website do contain the following personally identifiable information: your first and last name. The cookie information is used only to identity and authenticate you and your user record. Any private or nonpublic data collected about you will only be released with your consent or when authorized by state or federal law.

If you choose to identify yourself by sending us an e-mail, completing our on-line forms, or registering for training, we use the personally identifying information to process or respond to your request:

• If you register for training, the information you provide is up to you. However, if you do not provide certain information, such as your name, it may be impossible for us to respond to your request. We may retain this information in our files, either in electronic form or hardcopy. Some of this information is public data under the Minnesota Government Data Practices Act.
• Information e-mailed to us via the Internet is not secure and can be intercepted and read by others. We recommend that you not use e-mail to send us private or sensitive data about yourself or others unless the data is encoded or encrypted.
• DEED does not knowingly collect personal data from children under the age of 18. If you have reason to believe that a child under the age of 18 has provided personal data to DEED, contact us and we will endeavor to delete that personal data from our databases.

Disclaimer of Endorsement

Our website may contain links to other public or private organizations. DEED does not guarantee the accuracy of the information on other organizations' web pages that we are linked to, and DEED is not responsible for the privacy policies or content of such websites. Links to any product, process, or service by trade name, trademark, manufacturer or otherwise does not constitute or imply any endorsement, recommendation or association with those sites, the material contained therein or the sponsoring entities by the State of Minnesota, DEED, or any of their employees or contractors.

Disclaimer of Liability

While DEED strives to provide accurate, timely and comprehensive information, the State of Minnesota, DEED and their employees or contractors assume no legal liability for the accuracy, completeness or usefulness of any information, apparatus, product, data or process disclosed herein and do not represent that use of such information, apparatus, product, data or process would not infringe on privately owned rights.

Contact Information

If you have any questions about this privacy statement or the practices of this site, contact: