Data You Give Us Directly
Search Queries
A name or place entered in a search tool passes to the outside provider that operates that tool. The provider processes the query and supplies its results. Norfolk City Criminal History does not keep a separate log or stored copy of those search terms.
Messages and Contact Submissions
An email may be retained long enough to read it, respond, and preserve the related correspondence. Messages remain within the organization unless disclosure is required by a valid legal duty.
Data We Gather Automatically
Our servers receive routine technical details each time a visitor loads a page:
- The IP address assigned to your device
- Which browser you are using and its version
- Your device type and operating system
- The pages you visited and how long you stayed on each
- The site that sent you here, if any
- Timestamps for each page view
Cookies and Analytics
Cookies are small files saved on a device. They help measure traffic, popular pages, and where visits end. Analytics providers combine that activity into usage reports. A browser can reject or remove cookies, although blocking them may change how some site features work.
What We Do With This Data
- Diagnosing errors and other technical faults
- Routing a query to the appropriate search partner
- Operating, securing, and improving page performance
- Understanding which Norfolk City resource pages visitors use
- Displaying advertising that may reflect visitor interests
No Criminal-Record Data on File
Norfolk City Criminal History does not compile, store, or sell a database of personal criminal records. Its reference material identifies routes to the Norfolk Sheriff, Norfolk trial-court clerks, the Virginia Department of State Police and its Central Criminal Records Exchange, and the Virginia Sex Offender and Crimes Against Minors Registry. Visitor data is not assembled into a consumer report or a file about another person, and this site is not a consumer reporting agency under the Fair Credit Reporting Act.
Third-Party Search Partners
Outside companies power the search boxes. A submitted query is handled under that provider's privacy policy, not this policy. Each provider controls its own retention and disclosure practices. Read those terms before sending a search.
Links to Other Websites
Links may lead to Norfolk government offices, Virginia court and agency portals, legal resources, or outside search services. Once a visitor follows such a link, the destination's privacy policy applies. Review it before providing personal information.
Some advertising providers may measure activity across more than one website to select ads. That processing occurs on the provider's systems.
Who Might See Your Data
Personal data is not sold. Limited information may be available to:
- Analytics vendors that measure traffic and performance
- Search partners that receive a query submitted through their tool
- Advertising networks that serve ads on the pages
- Government or law-enforcement bodies acting under a valid legal order
How We Protect Your Data
Reasonable security practices are used to protect collected information. No internet system is completely secure, however, and Norfolk City Criminal History cannot promise that unauthorized access will never occur.
Users Under 18
The site is intended for adults and does not knowingly collect personal information from anyone under 18. A verified report that a minor supplied data will be reviewed so the information can be removed.
Your Data Rights
Applicable law may provide rights over personal data. Virginia's separate public-record and criminal-history rules include the Virginia Freedom of Information Act and Virginia Code § 19.2-389, though those statutes do not turn this private site into a government record custodian. Subject to the law that applies, a visitor may:
- Request access to personal information held about the visitor
- Ask that inaccurate personal information be corrected
- Seek deletion where a legal exception does not require retention
- Object to or opt out of processing where the law provides that choice
Updates to This Policy
This policy may be revised as site practices or legal duties change. The current text and its new effective date will appear here when an update is made.
Effective date: August 10, 2026