Privacy & Cookies

Gov Transparency Project is built to be private by default. We don't sell data, run ad networks, or require an account. This notice explains the little we do collect, the choices you have, and your rights.

Last updated: September 8, 2026

1. Summary

Here's the short version:

• We don't ask you to create an account, and we don't run advertising.
• We don't collect your name, email, or payment information.
• We never sell or rent your personal information, and we don't share it for cross-context behavioral advertising.
• One analytics tool (Ahrefs) is cookieless and collects no personal data. A second tool (Microsoft Clarity) records session replays and heatmaps and may set its own cookies. A third, optional analytics tool (Google Analytics 4) stays switched off unless you click Accept on our cookie banner.
• You can change or withdraw your choice at any time by clearing this site's storage.

2. What we collect — and don't

We do not collect:

• Names, email addresses, phone numbers, or postal addresses.
• Payment or financial account information (the site is free and sells nothing).
• User accounts, logins, or passwords — there are none.
• Sensitive personal information of any kind.

What we do process is limited analytics about how pages are used. Ahrefs collects aggregate figures — for example, which pages are popular, the general type of device or browser, and the country a visit came from — without cookies or personal identifiers. Microsoft Clarity goes further than page counts: it records session replays and heatmaps (pointer movement, clicks, and scrolling) so we can see how visitors actually use the site. Google Analytics 4 runs only if you opt in. Like virtually every website, our hosting infrastructure may briefly process technical request data (such as IP addresses) to deliver and secure the site; we do not use this to build profiles of visitors.

3. Analytics & cookies

We use three analytics tools to understand which pages are useful and how people move through them. We do not use advertising cookies, tracking pixels, social-media trackers, or fingerprinting.

• Ahrefs Web Analytics — cookieless and privacy-first. It does not set cookies, does not use local storage, and does not collect personally identifiable information. Because it processes no personal data and stores nothing on your device, it runs without requiring consent and is not affected by the cookie banner.
• Microsoft Clarity — session replay and heatmaps. Clarity records how you interact with a page — pointer movement, clicks, and scrolling — and can play that back as a reconstruction of a visit, and aggregates those interactions into heatmaps. That is more than page counts. Clarity is not cookieless: it may set first-party cookies on this site (typically _clck and _clsk) and may also set cookies on Microsoft domains (for example CLID). It loads in the site <head> without the cookie banner. Microsoft describes Clarity as masking sensitive text by default; we do not use it to collect names, emails, or payment details (this site has none).
• Google Analytics 4 (GA4) — optional and disabled by default. It does not run, and sets no cookies, until you click Accept on the cookie banner. We implement Google Consent Mode v2 with analytics_storage defaulting to denied, so analytics storage is blocked unless and until you grant consent.

The only first-party storage this site itself sets is a single value that remembers your banner choice. The keys involved are:

If you reject or never accept, no _ga / _ga_* cookies are created. The gtp-consent value is functional, not a tracker — it exists solely to honor your GA4 choice. Rejecting the banner does not stop Ahrefs or Microsoft Clarity. You can still block or delete Clarity cookies through your browser settings.

4. Your choices

When you first visit, a banner lets you Accept or Reject optional Google Analytics cookies. Your choice is remembered in your browser's local storage. Ahrefs and Microsoft Clarity are not controlled by that banner.

• To change or withdraw GA4 consent: clear this site's storage and cookies in your browser settings (this removes gtp-consent and any _ga cookies), then reload — the banner will reappear and you can choose again.
• Browser controls: you can block or delete cookies for this site at any time through your browser's privacy settings without affecting your ability to read the content. Blocking cookies will also limit Microsoft Clarity's first-party cookies (_clck / _clsk).
• Do Not Track / Global Privacy Control: optional Google Analytics is off by default and requires an affirmative click. That default does not apply to Ahrefs or Microsoft Clarity. We do not sell or share personal information for cross-context behavioral advertising, so there is nothing for a DNT or GPC signal to opt you out of on that front.

5. Legal bases & your rights

We design the site so that, in normal use, we simply do not hold information that identifies you. That keeps your rights easy to exercise.

EEA / UK (GDPR & UK GDPR). Where optional Google Analytics runs, our legal basis is your consent, which you give via the banner and may withdraw at any time. For cookieless Ahrefs analytics, Microsoft Clarity session replay, and basic, secure delivery of the site, our basis is our legitimate interest in understanding how the site is used and keeping it available and secure. You have the right to access, rectify, erase, restrict, or object to processing, and to data portability, where applicable. You also have the right to lodge a complaint with your local data protection authority.

California (CCPA / CPRA). You have the right to know, access, and delete personal information, to correct it, and to opt out of its sale or sharing. We do not sell or share personal information and do not use it for cross-context behavioral advertising, so there is no sale or share to opt out of. We do not discriminate against you for exercising any right.

Because we do not maintain accounts or identifying records, most access or deletion requests are effectively satisfied by you clearing this site's local storage and cookies in your browser, which removes the only data tied to your device. If you have a question about your rights, contact us through the channel below.

6. Third-party services & links

A few independent services help run or are referenced by this site, and their own privacy policies govern their handling of data:

• Analytics providers — Ahrefs Web Analytics (cookieless page counts), Microsoft Clarity (session replay and heatmaps), and Google Analytics 4 (only when you opt in) process usage data under their own terms.
• Outbound links to primary sources — we link to public data sources such as the Federal Reserve (FRED), the Federal Election Commission (FEC), the U.S. Treasury, QuiverQuant, and GovSpending.org. When you follow a link, that site's privacy policy and terms apply, not ours.

We don't control third-party sites and aren't responsible for their content or privacy practices.

7. Data sources

The figures on this site come from public records and APIs — for example the Federal Reserve (FRED), the U.S. Treasury, Congress.gov, the Bureau of Labor Statistics, the Federal Election Commission, and QuiverQuant disclosures. We are an independent, non-governmental publication and are not a government website. These sources relate to public information and are unrelated to any personal data about you as a visitor.

8. Children's privacy

This site is intended for a general, adult audience and is not directed to children under 13 (or under 16 where a higher age applies). We do not knowingly collect personal information from children. Since we don't collect identifying information from anyone, we don't knowingly collect it from children either. If you believe a child has provided us personal information, contact us and we will address it.

9. Data retention & security

We retain essentially no personal data of our own. Ahrefs stores only aggregate, non-identifying statistics. Microsoft Clarity stores session recordings and heatmap data on Microsoft's systems for the retention period set by that service. If you opt into GA4, its cookies live on your device for the duration set by that service and are removed when you clear site storage. We take reasonable technical measures to serve the site securely (for example, encrypted HTTPS connections), but no method of transmission or storage is completely secure. Because we hold so little ourselves, the privacy impact of any incident on our side is minimal by design.

10. Changes & contact

We may update this notice as the site evolves or as laws change. When we do, we'll revise the "Last updated" date above. Material changes will be reflected on this page.

Questions about this notice or your privacy choices? We are an independent project and a public contact channel will be added as the project grows; please check this page for updates.

Gov Transparency Project is not a government website and is not affiliated with, endorsed by, or operated by any federal agency.