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Privacy Policy

This policy describes the information collected during a visit to Lafayette County Criminal History, the purposes for which it is used, and the limited situations in which another party may receive it. Accessing or using the website signifies acceptance of these privacy practices.

Data You Give Us Directly

Search Queries

A name or place entered in a search box is transmitted directly to the outside provider that operates that tool. The provider processes the query and supplies its results. Lafayette County Criminal History does not keep or record those search terms on its own systems.

Messages and Contact Submissions

An email or contact submission may be retained long enough to answer and manage the correspondence. It remains within the organization unless disclosure is required by a valid legal obligation.

Data We Gather Automatically

When a page loads, the servers may automatically receive basic technical and usage details, including:

  • Your device's Internet Protocol address
  • Browser name and version
  • Operating system and device category
  • Pages viewed and approximate time spent on them
  • A referring website, when one is supplied
  • The date and time associated with a page request

Cookies and Analytics

Cookies are small files placed on a device to help measure how visitors move through the website, such as which pages receive traffic and where a visit ends. Analytics providers may combine this activity into broader performance reports. A browser can reject or remove cookies, although some website functions may then work differently.

What We Do With This Data

  • Operating the website and maintaining reasonable load times
  • Routing a submitted query to the selected search provider
  • Measuring which resources visitors use
  • Diagnosing errors and other technical problems
  • Displaying advertising that may reflect inferred interests

No Criminal-Record Data on File

Lafayette County Criminal History does not operate, assemble, or sell a database of personal criminal records. Its reference material identifies official record custodians, including the Lafayette County Sheriff's Office, Wisconsin Circuit Court, the Wisconsin Department of Justice Division of Law Enforcement Services Crime Information Bureau, and the Wisconsin Sex Offender Registry. The website is not a consumer reporting agency under the Fair Credit Reporting Act, and visitor information is not compiled into consumer reports or third-party criminal files.

Third-Party Search Partners

Outside companies supply the search-box services. Information submitted through a box is handled under that provider's privacy terms rather than this policy. Each provider controls its retention and disclosure practices, so its policy should be reviewed before a query is sent.

Links to Other Websites

Links may lead to Lafayette County offices, Wisconsin courts, the Crime Information Bureau, the Wisconsin Sex Offender Registry, legal resources, or third-party search services. Once a visitor leaves this website, the destination's privacy policy applies. Review it before providing personal details.

Advertising providers may use their own systems to observe activity across websites and select interest-based ads. Lafayette County Criminal History does not control that outside tracking.

Who Might See Your Data

Personal data is not sold. Limited information may be available to:

  • A search provider processing a query submitted to its tool
  • Analytics providers measuring visits and site performance
  • Advertising networks serving ads on the pages
  • A government or law-enforcement body acting under valid legal process

How We Protect Your Data

Reasonable, commonly used safeguards protect information under the website's control. No Internet system can be guaranteed secure, however, and this policy does not promise that unauthorized access or a breach can never occur.

Users Under 18

The website is intended for adults and does not knowingly collect personal information from anyone younger than 18. If information from a minor is identified, a deletion request may be submitted.

Your Data Rights

Rights may vary with the law that applies to a visitor. Wisconsin Public Records Law, Wis. Stat. §§ 19.31-19.39, governs access to records held by Wisconsin public authorities, including Lafayette County offices; it does not convert this private website's visitor data into a county public record. Wis. Stat. §§ 165.83-.84 govern the state criminal-history repository and qualifying fingerprint submissions to the Crime Information Bureau, not private website analytics. Regardless of those distinctions, a visitor may:

  • Request a copy of personal information held about that visitor
  • Ask that inaccurate personal information be corrected
  • Seek deletion of personal information, subject to lawful retention duties
  • Request to opt out of processing where an applicable rule provides that choice

Updates to This Policy

This policy may be revised as practices or legal duties change. A revised version will be posted here and identified by a new effective date.

Effective date: August 11, 2026