Mobile app privacy policy and terms of service

Purpose

The purpose of the statement is to inform users of the City of Ottawa (the “App”) with regard to the collection and use of personal information as well as user data and non-personally identifiable user-submitted content/aggregate information. This privacy policy covers the App that was developed for the City of Ottawa by nventive and incorporates privacy features of a web-based City of Ottawa My ServiceOttawa account. The MyService Ottawa Terms of Use are available on the registration page at https://myservice.ottawa.ca/profile/register. This policy is not intended and should not be interpreted as a contract of any nature, either stated or implied.

Definition of Personal Information

For the purposes of this statement "personal information" means any information relating to an identified or identifiable individual who is the subject of the information.

Definition of User Data

Information automatically collected by the App or service providers about your use of the App, or the device you use the App on, or the device’s location.

Description of how the App works

The App allows you to do any one or more of the following: (i) news, (ii) report a service request to the City, (iii) check on the status of the service request you have submitted, (iv) view a request that was submitted and shared by a third party user of the App (collectively, the “Submissions”), or (v) receive notifications from the City.

The App uses third party service providers to assist with providing notifications from the City to users as described below.

Collection of Personal Information

We endeavour to ensure that we collect only the minimum amount of information needed to meet the purpose for which the App was created. Users of the App do not create an App account. Instead, users have the option of linking to their My ServiceOttawa (MySO) account for submitting service requests. Use of MySO is subject to the MySO Terms of Service available at: https://myservice.ottawa.ca/profile/register.

If the user does not link to MySO, a unique service request ID is only stored on the device that enables the user to track their Service Request in the App.

Receiving push notifications from the Mobile App

Push notifications through the App are provided by a service provider, OneSignal, Inc. (“OneSignal”) based in the United States of America.

OneSignal requires information about the device you are using to access the App and your use of the App in order to send you notifications. OneSignal will collect and store on their servers User Data which is not personally identifiable. The data collected by OneSignal includes: Your device’s operating system, hardware version, settings, browser type, device language, time zone, country, location, app version, how often you access the app, the first and last time you accessed the app and the IP address you use to connect.

OneSignal is not provided with access to or information related to you from your App account or your MySo Account.

Users are able to disable notifications by disabling notifications from the App on their device or may opt-in/out of receiving various types of notifications in the App itself.

The City reserves the right to send urgent notifications through the App and add or remove features at any time.

Use of Personal Information

Use of personal information in service requests by the City of Ottawa shall be limited to that which is necessary for the purposes of responding to the service request or as permitted or required by law.

Disclosure of Personal Information or User Data

Our users are important to us. We do not sell or rent our users' personal information or user data to any outside company or organization. We do not reveal specific information about users, user data or other personal information to unaffiliated third parties for their independent use, except if required to do so by law.

Location Services

The App will use the device’s last known location if location services are enabled to allow the App to send you location specific notifications. Your location information will also be collected by OneSignal for the purposes of sending you location specific push notifications.

Location services are also used for service request features because service requests are associated with locations. Individuals can use the App with location services disabled.

User Submissions

Portions of User submissions including a description and location of the issue is made visible to all users of the App by default and may be copied and shared by the general public and users of the internet. Your personal information, including name and address, is not made visible to all users.

Retention of Personal Information, User Submissions and User Data

We only collect, retain and use personal information and user submissions submitted to the City through the App where we believe it is essential (and allowed by law) to administer our business and to provide products, services and other opportunities requested by you.

Security of Information

Although no one can guarantee the security of the information collected and received, the App employs a number of safeguards intended to mitigate the risk of unauthorized access or disclosure of this information. For example, personal information included in service requests is sent to City of Ottawa servers using Secure Sockets Layer (SSL) encryption. You need to prevent unauthorized access to your personal Information by selecting and protecting your My ServiceOttawa login credentials appropriately and limiting access to your device. Unauthorized entry or use, hardware or software failure, and other factors may compromise the security of user information at any time.

Applicable Law and Updates to Privacy Policy

Any collection, use, or disclosure of personal information through the App is subject to the Municipal Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy Act, R.S.O. 1990. Any changes to this privacy policy shall come into effect upon the City of Ottawa posting the updated version on the Portal.

Other Technologies

In order to improve our App, we are presently using Google Analytics to collect data for statistical reporting purposes. Google Analytics analyzes the use of the App to collect and generate information that is transmitted to their servers in an anonymous form for processing. In order to better protect your privacy we are currently masking user IP addresses as described in the section labeled “Use of IP address” in the Google Analytics Privacy Policy(link is external).

We also use session-based cookies on the App to process requested services. A session-based cookie is a small file that stores information, but is discarded when the user exits the App. The App uses this method in order to collect user data that is not personally identifiable, ensuring it is used for statistical reporting purposes only.

Your feedback is important in helping us decide whether to continue to use this technology. Should you have any questions or feedback, please contact us.

Last revised: March 12, 2019

PLEASE REVIEW THESE TERMS OF USE CAREFULLY. USE OF THIS APPLICATION CONSTITUTES YOUR AGREEMENT WITH THE FOLLOWING:

Acceptance of Terms

The City of Ottawa (the “City”) provides the City of Ottawa App (“App”) to you subject to the following Terms of Use Agreement (“Agreement”), which may be updated by the City from time to time. By accessing and using the App, you accept and agree to be bound by this Agreement. If you do not agree with any part of this Agreement, immediately discontinue use of the App.

Ability to Accept Terms of Use

You are either at least 18 years of age, or possess legal or guardian consent, and are fully able and competent to accept and be bound by the terms of this Agreement.

If you have agreed to allow your minor child, or a child for whom you are a legal guardian (“Minor”), to use the App, you are solely responsible for (i) the online conduct of the Minor, (ii) monitoring the Minor’s access to and use of the App, and (iii) the consequences of any use of the App by the Minor.

Description of App

The App provides you with an application to do any one or more of the following: (i) report a service request to the City, (ii) check on the status of the service request you have submitted, (iii) view a request that was submitted and shared by a third party user of the App (collectively, the “Submissions”), or (iv) receive notifications from the City.

The App will use the devices last known location if location services are enabled and only used for the reasons described above. The City does not track or associate a device with an individual. Users have the option of linking the App to their My ServiceOttawa (“MySO”) account for accessing including for submitting a service request. Use of MySO is subject to the MySO Terms of Service available at: https://myservice.ottawa.ca/profile/register. If the user does link to MySO, a unique service request ID is stored on the device that enables the user to track their service request in the App. Users are able to disable notifications by disabling notifications from the App on their device or may opt-in/out of receiving various types of notifications in the App itself. The City reserves the right to send urgent notifications through the App and add or remove features at any time.

Accuracy of Information and Third-Party Fees

The City has attempted to be as accurate as possible; however, it does not represent or warrant that the App, Contents or Submissions are uninterrupted, accurate, complete, reliable, current or error-free or that the City will correct any defect.

You are responsible for obtaining access to the App, and that access may involve third-party fees (such as Internet service provider or airtime charges) for which you are solely responsible.

Limitation of Liability and Disclaimer of Warranties and Conditions

YOUR USE OF THE APP IS AT YOUR SOLE RISK. THE APP, CONTENTS AND SUBMISSIONS, OR OTHER PRODUCTS AND SERVICES ON THE APP ARE PROVIDED ON AN “AS IS” BASIS AND ON AN “AS AVAILABLE” BASIS.

THE CITY DISCLAIMS ALL REPRESENTATIONS, WARRANTIES OR CONDITIONS, EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, RELATING TO THE APP, CONTENTS, SUBMISSIONS, OR OTHER PRODUCTS AND SERVICES CONTEMPLATED UNDER THIS AGREEMENT, INCLUDING WITHOUT LIMITATION, IMPLIED WARRANTIES AND CONDITIONS OF MERCHANTABILITY, FITNESS FOR ANY PARTICULAR PURPOSE OR NON-INFRINGEMENT.

YOU EXPRESSLY UNDERSTAND AND AGREE THAT THE CITY IS NOT LIABLE TO YOU OR ANY THIRD PARTY FOR ANY DIRECT, INDIRECT, INCIDENTAL, CONSEQUENTIAL, SPECIAL OR OTHER DAMAGES, INCLUDING, BUT NOT LIMITED TO, DAMAGES FOR LOSS OF PROFITS, GOODWILL, USE, DATA, OR OTHER INTANGIBLE LOSSES RESULTING FROM:

(i) YOUR USE OF, OR ACCESS TO, OR INABILITY TO USE OR ACCESS THE APP;

(ii) ANY CONDUCT OR SUBMISSIONS OF ANY THIRD PARTY USING THE APP; INCLUDING, WITHOUT LIMITATION, ANY DEFAMATORY, OFFENSIVE OR ILLEGAL CONDUCT OF OTHER USERS OR THIRD PARTIES;

(iii) ANY SUBMISSIONS OR OTHER INFORMATION, INCLUDING PERSONAL INFORMATION, OBTAINED BY A THIRD PARTY FROM YOUR USE OF THE APP;

(iv) YOUR FAILURE TO DISABLE THE NOTIFICATION AND/OR LOCATION COLLECTION DATA FEATURE IN YOUR ELECTRONIC DEVICE OR SMARTPHONE; AND

(v) UNAUTHORIZED ACCESS, USE OR ALTERATION OF YOUR SUBMISSIONS, WHETHER BASED ON WARRANTY, CONTRACT, TORT (INCLUDING NEGLIGENCE) OR ANY OTHER LEGAL PRINCIPLE.

YOU EXPRESSLY AGREE THAT THE CITY IS NOT RESPONSIBLE FOR ANY CONTACT OR INTERACTION BETWEEN YOU AND ANY OTHER USER OF THE APP AND THAT YOU BEAR THE SOLE RISK OF ACCESSING OR USING THE APP AND SUBMITTING OR POSTING SUBMISSIONS TO THE APP, INCLUDING FOR THE POSTING OF SUBMISSIONS THAT CONTAIN PERSONAL INFORMATION WHICH MAY INDENTIFY YOU OR YOUR LOCATION.

The App may not be used as a substitute for any advice and/or information, including medical, legal, financial investment or professional.

Copyright and Intellectual Property Rights

Except with respect to your Submissions, but subject to the provisions below under the heading “Submissions and Conduct”, the City owns the intellectual property rights, including copyright, or has acquired the necessary licenses in the information on this App, including all text, graphics, images, HTML code, multimedia clips, icons, the selection and compilation of the contents of the App (collectively the “Contents”).

The Contents and its compilation are protected by Canadian and international intellectual property, copyright and trademark laws. Unauthorized use of the Contents may violate copyright, trademark and other laws. Copying, repackaging, redistributing or modifying the Contents, in whole or in part, in printed or electronic format, is strictly prohibited.

License

Subject to the terms and conditions of this Agreement and your compliance with this Agreement, the City grants you a limited, non-exclusive, non-sublicensable, revocable, non-transferable license to access and make personal use of the App for non-commercial purposes. You are prohibited from modifying the App or its Contents in any manner whatsoever.

Any unauthorized use of the App automatically terminates the license and all limited rights or permission granted by the City.

You are fully responsible for any consequences resulting from use of the App.

Unless expressly stated otherwise, any new features that augment or enhance the App are covered by this Agreement.

Your Responsibilities

You agree to comply with the following as a condition of using the App:

• comply with all applicable laws and this Agreement when using the App;
• be responsible for obtaining the data network access necessary to use the App and for any data and messaging rates and fees that may apply; and
• be responsible for acquiring and updating compatible hardware or devices necessary to use the App.

You agree not to engage in any of the following prohibited activities as a condition of using of the App:

• remove any copyright, trademark or other proprietary notices from any portion of the App;
• reproduce, modify, prepare derivative works based upon, distribute, license, lease, sell, resell, transfer, publicly display, publicly perform, transmit, stream, broadcast or otherwise exploit the App except as expressly permitted by the City;
• disassemble, decompile, reverse engineer or reduce to human-readable form the App except as may be permitted by applicable law;
• copy, modify, link to, mirror, frame, or download any portion of the App in any form or media except as permitted by the City;
• transmit spam, chain letters or other unsolicited email through the App;
• use the App in any unlawful, illegal, fraudulent or harmful way, including posting abusive, vulgar, obscene, hateful, threatening or any other materials that may violate an applicable law;
• cause or launch any programs or scripts for the purpose of scraping, indexing, surveying, or otherwise data mining any portion of the App or unduly burdening or hindering the operation and functionality of any aspect of the App;
• attempt to gain unauthorized access to or impair any aspect of the App or its related systems, security or networks;
• use the App for any commercial solicitation purposes;
• impersonate another person or otherwise misrepresent your affiliation with a person or entity, conduct fraud, hide or attempt to hide your identity;
• damage, disable, overburden or impair the App or interfere with any other party's use and enjoyment of the App; and
• remove, circumvent, disable, damage or otherwise interfere with security-related features of the App including by uploading invalid data, viruses, worms or other software through the App.

Submissions and Conduct

You may make Submissions through the App. If you make Submissions through the App you hereby grant the City an irrevocable, non-exclusive, royalty-free right to use, reproduce, modify, adapt, publish, translate, create derivative works from, distribute, and display such Submissions worldwide. You irrevocably waive all moral rights to such Submissions. You represent and warrant that you own or otherwise control all rights to any Submissions made and that your Submissions do not violate this Agreement, are not defamatory and do not infringe upon any applicable laws. You understand that if your Submissions are used or published, the City does not guarantee any confidentiality with respect to the Submissions. The City does not assume responsibility for the content or quality of any Submissions made to the App.

You are not entitled to any compensation or reimbursement of any kind from the City for your Submissions under any circumstances.

If you make Submissions that are untrue, inaccurate, offensive, defamatory, threatening, obscene, not current, incomplete, or generally of a nature that does not pertain to the designated topic or theme, or the City has grounds to suspect that such information is untrue, inaccurate, offensive, defamatory, threatening, obscene, not current, incomplete or generally of a nature that does not pertain to the designated topic or theme, the City has the right to suspend or terminate your account and refuse you current or future use of the App (or any portion thereof).

You acknowledge that the City may or may not pre-screen Submissions that are shared, but that the City has the right (but not the obligation) in its sole discretion to pre-screen, refuse or remove any Submissions that are available through the App. In addition, he City has the right to remove any Submissions that violate this Agreement or are otherwise deemed objectionable in the City’s sole discretion. You agree that you must evaluate and bear all risks associated with the use of the Contents or Submissions, including any reliance on the accuracy, completeness, or usefulness of the Contents.

Third Party Links

Links to third-party websites are provided solely as a convenience to you. These other websites are independently developed by parties other than the City and the City assumes no responsibility for the accuracy or appropriateness of the information contained in such websites. The inclusion of any link to another website does not imply an endorsement by the City and should not be construed as an endorsement of that party or its product or services. If you decide to access linked third-party websites, you do so entirely at your own risk.

Modification, Severability and Waiver

The City reserves the right at any time and from time to time to modify or discontinue, temporarily or permanently, the App (or any part of it), with or without notice. You agree that the City will not be liable to you or to any third party for any modification, suspension or discontinuation of the App (or any part of it).

Your use of the App is subject to this Agreement as posted on the App at the time of use. In the event any of the terms or conditions in this Agreement should be determined to be invalid, void or for any reason unenforceable, that condition will be deemed to be severable and not affect the validity and enforceability of any remaining condition.

The City’s failure to assert any right or provision under this Agreement shall not constitute a waiver of such right or provision.

Revised Agreement and Notice

The City may provide you with notices regarding the App, including changes to this Agreement, by email, SMS, postings on the App or any other reasonable means now known or hereafter developed. Notices are effective immediately. The City reserves the right to revise the Agreement or to suspend, terminate or modify any features of the App, including your access to the App. Once the City has provided you with notice regarding the revised Agreement or have made changes to the App, your continued usage of the App will mean that you have accepted those changes, and so, please check the date of the last revision of the Agreement, as noted above, before using the App. You may not change the Agreement in any manner.

Such notices may not be received if you violate this Agreement by accessing the App in an unauthorized manner. You agree that you will be deemed to have received any and all notices that would have been delivered if you accessed the App in an authorized manner.

Request for Permission and/or Further Information

Any use beyond the scope permitted by this Agreement requires express written permission from the City. The requirements for obtaining written permission may include but is not limited to an additional formal license agreement to which a license fee may apply. Contact the City for a link or a telephone number to request further information.

Indemnity

You agree to indemnify, defend and hold harmless the City and its officials, officers, employees and authorized representatives from and against any liability or any form of loss injury, demand, action, cost, expense or claim of any kind, (including lawyer’s fees), relating in any way to your use of the App, including, but not limited to, your connection to the App, your use of the Contents of the App, your Submissions to the App, or your use of a third party’s Submissions to the App.

Termination

If you violate this Agreement or other policies and guidelines posted on this App, your permission to use the Contents automatically and immediately terminates and you must immediately destroy any copies you have made of the Contents or of Submissions. The City reserves all of its rights at law and in equity.

Governing Law and Jurisdiction

The use of the App is governed by the laws in force in the Province of Ontario and Canada including by-laws of the City. You agree to submit to the exclusive personal jurisdiction and venue of the courts located in Ontario, Canada. The United Nations Convention on Contracts for the International Sale of Goods does not apply.

Contact

If you have any questions or comments regarding this Agreement, please contact Robert Giggey by email at robert.giggey@ottawa.ca.

General Provisions

You may not assign this Agreement without the City’s prior written approval. The City may assign this Agreement without your consent. Any purported assignment in violation of this section shall be void.

No joint venture, partnership, employment, or agency relationship exists between you and the City as a result of this Agreement.

This Agreement, with the Privacy Policy, contains the entire agreement between you and the City regarding the use of the App.