Securing Local Authority Data

The IT department in Kildare County Council has a range of procedural and technological solutions in place to maintain (in so far as it is possible) a safe and secure location for your personal data. The following is a shortlist of the range of measures undertaken in this regard:

• Organisational Firewall solution in place to prevent external access to the Kildare County Council (KCC) network.
• Secure communications via the Government Virtual Private Network (VPN)
• Latest windows patches installed.
• Intrusion Prevention System and Intrusion Detection System (IPS/IDS)
• Anti-Virus software
• Comprehensive data backup solution in place in case of accidental loss of data.
• Two and three factor authentication on all relevant systems authorised by relevant data owner in each section.
• Automatic PC lockout
• Internet access for staff authorised by Director of Service in writing and monitored using Web Marshal monitoring software
• Secure server room.
• Secure off site storage of backup media.
• Encryption of mobile devices, e.g. laptops.

The National Drivers and Vehicle File (NVDF)

The NVDF is a national database primarily used by the Motor Tax department. Kildare Local Authorities permits the use of the NVDF for certain functions, outside of the normal processes and services of the motor tax department, namely in the pursuance of offences. These are: 

• Identification of litter offenders where car registration details are captured.
• Identification of non-paying offenders at the recycling facilities in the council where car registration details are captured.
• Identification of owners of Unauthorised Developments via car registration details. 

The Internet

Privacy Statement

We do not collect personal information about you when you visit the web site unless you choose to provide it to us to take advantage of a specific service, for example completing an online form. Any information which you provide in this way is not made available to any third parties and is used by Kildare County Council only in line with the purpose for which you provided it. 

Information collected Automatically

Some information is collected and stored automatically when you visit the site. This information does not personally identify you, but is used by Kildare County Council to maintain and constantly improve the website. The information collected includes:

• The Internet Domain and IP address from which you access the site
• The type of browser and operating system used to access the site
• The date and time of your visit
• The pages you visit
• If you linked to the Kildare County Council website from another web site, the address of that web site and any web site you visit directly from the Kildare County Council website. 
• We also collect information on the number of times particular search terms are used and the number of failed searches. We use this information to improve access to the site and to identify gaps in the information content so we can plan expansion of the system appropriately.

Personal information

If you choose to send us personal information, for example via the "Contact Us" email form, we will use that information to respond to your enquiry and will only pass your details to another agency if it is required by law or that agency is relevant to your enquiry. We do not collect personal information for commercial purposes. 

Online Payments

We do not store any record of your credit card or Laser number.  Any credit or debit card data is transferred directly from your computer to our card services partners' server over a secure, encrypted connection.  Our card services partners are the Local Government Computer Services Board (LGCSB) and RealEx. 

Security

We follow generally accepted industry standards to protect the personal information submitted to us, both during transmission and once we receive it. No method of transmission over the Internet, or method of electronic storage, is 100% secure, however. Therefore while we strive to use commercially acceptable means to protect your personal information, we cannot guarantee its absolute security. 

Cookies

A "cookie" is a small amount of data that is sent to a user's browser from a web server and stored on a user's computer, used to store and track information about the user. We collect information using Google Analytics cookies. The information is anonymous and does not contain your name, address, telephone number, or email address. We cannot personally identify you.  

Google Analytics

The Kildare County Council website uses Google Analytics, a web analytics service provided by Google, Inc. ("Google"). Google Analytics uses "cookies", which are text files placed on your computer, to help the website analyse how users use the site. The information generated by the cookie about your use of the website (including your IP address) will be transmitted to and stored by Google on servers in the United States . Google will use this information for the purpose of evaluating your use of the website, compiling reports on website activity for website operators and providing other services relating to website activity and internet usage. Google may also transfer this information to third parties where required to do so by law, or where such third parties process the information on Google's behalf. Google will not associate your IP address with any other data held by Google. You may refuse the use of cookies by selecting the appropriate settings on your browser, however please note that if you do this you may not be able to use the full functionality of this website. By using the website, you consent to the processing of data about you by Google in the manner and for the purposes set out above.