Privacy powered by transparency
DeepCivic is an open-source project built to aggregate and simplify access to civic data. We do not collect, display, or utilise personally identifiable information (PII) in our operations. Beyond the contact details you voluntarily provide when filling out a form, we do not track users, build profiles, or sell data.
We are transparent about our practices and practical about our limits. This policy outlines exactly how we handle information. If a practice isn't listed here, we do not do it.
Principles
- No PII in operations: Our processes only focus on public data. We do not deliberately ingest, store, or analyse private or leaked information.
- Data collection: We only gather necessary data for monitoring and security.
- Open accountability: Community scrutiny is welcome, if you see that we've done something wrong then tell us.
What we handle
We distinguish between enquiry data (what you send us) and research data (what we analyse).
Enquiry data
- Contact forms: If you submit a message, we store your name and email solely to reply.
- Server logs: Standard web server logs capture IP addresses, browser type, and timestamps.
- Cookies: We use essential cookies only to maintain basic site functionality.
Research data
- Open sources only: We aggregate metadata and datasets from public sources.
- Provenance tracking: Any transformations we apply are documented in our technical write-ups.
- No sensitive data: We actively filter out datasets containing PII.
How we use data
Data usage is restricted to the purposes stated above.
| Data Type | Purpose | Retention | Access |
|---|---|---|---|
| Contact details | Replying to voluntary enquiries | Until resolved or deleted on request | Core team only |
| Server logs | Debugging and basic security | 30 days | Core team only |
| Public datasets | Civic research and aggregation | Indefinite (as part of project archive) | Public |
| Derived metrics | Explaining trends in Stories/Write-ups | Indefinite | Public |
Mistake handling & corrections
We operate as a community-driven project, not a corporate service. If we make an error—such as incorrectly attributing a dataset, publishing a flawed derivation, or accidentally caching data that should be removed—we will fix it.
- Report issues: Flag problems via our contact form or GitHub repository.
- Response: We review reports as capacity allows and apply corrections directly to the relevant content or dataset cache.
- Transparency: Significant corrections are noted in the page's update history or in our project changelog.
We do not guarantee enterprise incident response times, but we commit to addressing genuine issues promptly and openly.
Responsible data stewardship
Our handling of civic data follows the same principles outlined in our project overview.
- Licence compliance: Every dataset is managed according to its original terms (e.g., Creative Commons, Open Data Commons).
- Attribution: Government sources are credited in all published content.
- Responsive updates: If a data custodian requests a correction or removal for privacy, legal, or accuracy reasons, we update our mirrors and references accordingly.
- No private data: We strictly avoid seeking, storing, or publishing non-public information.
Limitations & scope
We believe in stating gaps explicitly rather than masking them with legal jargon.
- Third-party links: DeepCivic links to external government portals and open data repositories.
- Open data reality: The data we analyse is public by definition. If a government agency publishes sensitive information by mistake, our control is limited to removing it from our cache and flagging the source.
- Jurisdiction: We operate under Australian law.
Get in touch
Have a question about how we handle data, or need to report an issue? Send us a message and we will get back to you.
Last updated: March 2026