Data You Give Us Directly
Search Queries
A name or place entered in a search box is sent directly to the outside company that provides that tool. The provider processes the request and returns its response. We do not keep a separate log of those search terms.
Messages and Contact Submissions
An email sent to us may be retained so it can be answered and documented. It is not shared outside the organization unless disclosure is required by law.
Data We Gather Automatically
When a page loads, ordinary server and analytics logs can collect technical facts about the visit:
- Page-view dates and times
- The device's assigned IP address
- Operating system and device category
- Browser name and version
- Visited pages and time spent on them
- A referring website, when one is reported
Cookies and Analytics
Cookies are small files placed on a device. They help measure which pages are used, how visitors move through the site, and where a session ends. Analytics providers can combine that traffic into reports. A browser can block cookies, although doing so may change how some functions behave.
What We Do With This Data
- Operating, maintaining, and improving page performance
- Routing a search request to the selected outside provider
- Measuring which material visitors use
- Finding security, loading, or other technical faults
- Displaying advertising that may be based on interests
No Criminal-Record Data on File
Smyth County Criminal History does not keep, assemble, or sell a database of personal criminal records. It publishes general directions to the Smyth Sheriff, court clerks, Southwest Virginia Regional Jail Authority, Virginia State Police CARE and CCRE, VADOC, and the Virginia Sex Offender and Crimes Against Minors Registry. Visitor information is not built into a consumer report or a criminal-history file about another person. This operation is not a consumer reporting agency under the Fair Credit Reporting Act.
Third-Party Search Partners
Outside companies operate the search boxes. Information submitted through a box is governed by that provider's policy. Each provider chooses its own retention, processing, and disclosure practices, which we do not control. Read those terms before submitting data.
Links to Other Websites
Links may lead to courts, the Sheriff, town offices, state agencies, legal resources, or outside search providers. Once a visitor follows a link, the destination's privacy policy applies. Check it before sharing personal information.
An advertising company may use its own technology to measure activity across websites and select ads. That tracking is performed on the company's systems.
Who Might See Your Data
We do not sell personal data. Limited information may be available to:
- Outside search providers that receive a query
- Analytics vendors measuring traffic and performance
- Advertising networks serving page content
- A government or law-enforcement body acting under valid legal process
How We Protect Your Data
Reasonable security measures are used to guard collected information. No internet system can guarantee perfect protection, so we cannot promise that unauthorized access will never occur.
Users Under 18
The service is intended for adults, and we do not knowingly collect a minor's personal information. If information from someone under 18 is identified, a request may be made for its deletion.
Your Data Rights
Applicable privacy and consumer law may provide additional rights. Virginia's Freedom of Information Act governs requests to public bodies, while Virginia Code § 19.2-389 restricts dissemination of CCRE history. Those public-record laws do not make this private resource a government custodian. Subject to applicable law, a visitor may:
- Request deletion of eligible personal information
- Seek access to data held about you
- Ask that inaccurate personal information be corrected
- Decline certain processing where the governing law permits it
Updates to This Policy
This policy may be revised as practices or legal duties change. A replacement will be posted here and marked with its effective date.
Effective date: August 10, 2026