Data You Give Us Directly
Search Queries
A name or place entered in a search tool is sent directly to the third-party company operating that tool. The provider processes the query and supplies its results. We do not retain or log those search terms on our systems.
Messages and Contact Submissions
When a visitor sends an email, we may keep the message long enough to respond and maintain the related correspondence. It remains within our organization unless disclosure is required by law.
Data We Gather Automatically
Our servers receive routine technical information when a page loads. That information may include:
- Page-view dates and times
- The device's assigned IP address
- Operating system and device category
- Browser type and version
- Pages viewed and time spent on them
- The referring website, when one is supplied
Cookies and Analytics
Small files called cookies may be stored on a visitor's device. Analytics services use them to provide grouped traffic information, such as popular pages and common exit points. Browser controls can block cookies, although doing so may change how parts of the site behave.
What We Do With This Data
Collected information may support the site's operation and evaluation.
- Finding and correcting technical faults
- Keeping pages available and responsive
- Sending a search request to the selected outside provider
- Understanding which content visitors use
- Displaying advertising that may reflect visitor interests
No Criminal-Record Data on File
Mercer County Criminal History does not maintain, compile, or sell a database of personal criminal records. It publishes general routing information for records held by the Mercer County sheriff, the Missouri Circuit Court, Missouri State Highway Patrol Criminal Justice Information Services, the Missouri Department of Corrections, and the Missouri State Highway Patrol Sex Offender Registry. We are not a consumer reporting agency under the Fair Credit Reporting Act. Visitor information is not assembled into a consumer report or a record about another person.
Third-Party Search Partners
Outside companies power search boxes appearing on the site. A query submitted through one of those tools falls under that company's privacy policy, retention rules, and sharing practices. We do not control those practices. Visitors should read the provider's terms before entering a search.
Links to Other Websites
Links may lead to Missouri courts, state agencies, the Mercer County record custodians, legal resources, or outside search services. Once a visitor follows an outbound link, the destination's privacy terms apply. Review those terms before providing personal information.
Some advertising providers may use their own technology to observe activity across websites and select ads. That processing occurs on provider systems.
Who Might See Your Data
We do not sell personal data. Limited information may be shared with:
- Advertising networks that place ads
- Analytics providers that measure use and performance
- Search partners that process a visitor's submitted query
- Government or law-enforcement bodies responding to a valid legal order
How We Protect Your Data
We use customary safeguards for the information handled by the site. No internet-connected system can be guaranteed completely secure, however. We take reasonable protective steps but cannot promise that a breach or unauthorized access will never occur.
Users Under 18
The site is intended for adults. We do not knowingly collect personal information from a person under 18. If we learn that a minor supplied such information, we will delete it.
Your Data Rights
Rights may vary with a visitor's location and the law that applies. Missouri's Sunshine Law, Chapter 610, governs records held by public bodies, while ยง43.530 governs criminal-history dissemination by the state repository. Those provisions do not turn this private site into a government records custodian. Subject to applicable law, a visitor may:
- Request access to personal information we retain about that visitor
- Ask that inaccurate retained information be corrected
- Request deletion where the law permits it
- Opt out of forms of processing when an applicable law provides that choice
Updates to This Policy
This privacy policy may be revised. A changed version will appear here with a new effective date, and continued use will be governed by the policy then posted.
Effective date: July 30, 2026