DATA PRIVACY AND PROTECTION POLICY

The Bacolod City Government, whose registered address is in Bacolod City, Negros Occidental, operates this website. We are dedicated to safeguarding and maintaining the privacy of those who access our website or correspond with us online.

This policy outlines how we handle any personal information you give us or that we obtain through our website. We certify that we will maintain the security of your information and that we will completely abide by Republic Act 10173, also known as the Data Privacy Act of 2012. For further information on what happens to the personal information you choose to provide us or that we learn about you when you visit this site, please read the following carefully. You agree to and accept the practices stated in this policy by using our website.

WHAT INFORMATION WE COLLECT

We may gather, keep, and use the following kinds of personal information about those who visit and use our website:

Information you provide to us. There are forms on our website wherein you can provide us with information about yourself. Some of the forms you may fill out and submit are evaluation, application, complaint, feedback, inquiry, survey, and registration form. Your name, birthdate, address, phone number, email address, company name, address of a property and/or the name of a family member may all be included in the information you provide.

HOW WE USE THE COLLECTED INFORMATION

We use the information in the following ways:

Information you give us. We will use your information to:

• to provide you with information and/or services that you request from us;

• to evaluate and handle the processing of your application and payments;

• to investigate and validate feedback and complaints

HOW YOUR INFORMATION IS DISTRIBUTED, STORED AND SECURED

The information you give is sent to us directly and it will be kept on a secure server on premise with dedicated firewall at the Bacolod City Government Center. Also, to make maintaining and managing this website easier, we use Hostinger, a reliable hosting provider, and Google Drive, a cloud-based storage service, to store the information you sent through feedback and complaint forms posted on our website. Hostinger and Google Drive comply with strict security and data protection requirements, and by contract, they are required to maintain the confidentiality of any information they handle on our behalf. Any data that Hostinger and Google Drive may acquire through this website is kept secure and is only treated as per our instructions. Without our consent, Hostinger and Google Drive are not permitted to access, provide, amend, or delete any of the data they store on our behalf.

We never give out, sell, or rent any of your personal information to third parties or unrelated businesses. Unless otherwise compelled by law or other restrictions, we will make every effort to prevent the disclosure of your personal information to local, national, or private organizations and authorities.

Moreover, to avoid the misuse, manipulation, or loss of your data, application of the right security measures is done to cover and protect the equipment used and the organization as a whole. The third-party providers of our data centers which are the Google Drive and Hostinger, do not provide any authorized entity or personnel any access to the account or database storing any individuals’ data. They adhere to recognized international security and privacy standards which are validated by independent authors.

We assure that your information is secure through security controls such as encryption and firewall.

THIRD PARTY LINKS

Please be advised that links to and from third party websites may be found on our website. Please be aware that these websites have their own privacy policies. Before providing any personal information to these websites, kindly review these policies.

CHANGES TO OUR POLICY

We may update or modify this Privacy and Protection Policy from time to time to reflect changes in our practices or for other operational, legal, or regulatory reasons. We will notify you of any material changes to this policy by posting the updated version on our website or by sending you an email or other notification, and we will indicate the date of the last update at the top of this policy. Your continued use of our website after the posting of any changes to this policy constitutes your acceptance of such changes.

CONSENT

By accessing our website or providing us with your personal information, you acknowledge and agree to the terms of this Privacy and Protection Policy and consent to the collection, use, disclosure, and processing of your personal information as described herein. You also acknowledge that you have read and understood this policy, and that it constitutes a binding agreement between you and the Bacolod City Government. If you do not agree with the terms of this policy, please do not use our website or provide us with any personal information. Thank you for your trust and confidence in our commitment to protecting your privacy.

You have the right to withdraw your consent to the collection, use, disclosure, and processing of your personal information at any time, subject to applicable legal requirements and reasonable notice. To withdraw your consent, please contact our Data Privacy Officer at dataprotectionofficer@bacolodcity.gov.ph. Please note that withdrawing your consent may affect your ability to access certain features or services on our website.

I/We Read & Agree