CARSTAIRS — The municipal council has approved an update to the Town of Carstairs' internet privacy policy, which outlines how the municipality must deal with information gathered from people using the town’s computer system.
The update came during the recent regularly scheduled council meeting, held in person and on Zoom. The change was made to get rid of old terminology and to ensure the municipality is following current provincial legislation, said Rick Blair, the town's chief administrative officer.
The updated policy deals with the collection of information, personal information, security, and computer cookies, which are small pieces of data collected by a web service when a user is browsing a website.
The policy now states that all information will be collected in compliance with Section 33 of the provincial Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy Act.
“The Town of Carstairs web server automatically collects a limited amount of standard information essential to the operation and evaluation of the site,” the policy states. “This information is not used to identify individuals who come to the site, nor is it disclosed to other public bodies of individuals.
“The information that is collected identified the page which you arrived, the date and time of your page request, the IP address your computer is using to receive information, the type and version of your browser, and the name and size of the file you request.”
Regarding personal information, the policy states: “The only information that the Town of Carstairs may use to identify you is the information you give voluntarily. Any personal information given will only be disclosed to the authorized personnel who use it to process and respond to your requests.”
Regarding cookies, the updated policy states that the town “uses cookies to collect anonymous statistical information such as browser type, screen size, traffic patterns and pages visited. We do not store personal information in cookies, or do we collect personal information from you without your knowledge, as you browse the site.
Regarding security, the updated policy states that the Town of Carstairs computer system “employs software programs to monitor network traffic, to identify attempts to tamper with information or to otherwise cause damage.”
Council passed a motion adopting the updated policy, which is available for public viewing on the town’s website.