Privacy Policy

1. Overview

Federal Retirement ("we," "us," or "our") operates the website federalretirement.net (the "Site"). This Privacy Policy explains what information we collect from visitors to our Site, how we use that information, and the choices you have regarding your personal data.

We are committed to protecting your privacy. Federalretirement.net is an informational resource for federal employees and retirees. We do not sell, rent, or trade your personal information to third parties.

By using our Site, you agree to the collection and use of information as described in this policy.

2. Information We Collect

Information you provide directly

We collect personal information that you voluntarily provide when using interactive tools on our Site — specifically, our retirement planning calculators. When you use a calculator, you may enter:

• Your name
• Your email address

We do not require registration or account creation to access any portion of the Site. We do not operate a comments section. We do not collect Social Security numbers, financial account information, government identification numbers, or any other sensitive personal data.

Information collected automatically

When you visit our Site, certain information is collected automatically by our analytics and advertising partners (Google Analytics and Google AdSense). This may include:

• Your IP address (typically anonymized)
• Browser type and version
• Operating system
• Pages visited and time spent on each page
• Referring website or search query
• General geographic location (city/region level)
• Device type (desktop, mobile, tablet)

This information is collected through cookies and similar tracking technologies and is used for analytics and advertising purposes as described below.

3. How We Use Your Information

We use the information we collect for the following purposes:

• To operate and improve the Site — understanding how visitors use the Site helps us improve content, navigation, and performance.
• To respond to inquiries — if you contact us by email, we use your email address to respond to your message.
• To send our email newsletter — if you subscribe to our free newsletter, we use your email address to deliver retirement planning content and benefit updates. You may unsubscribe at any time.
• To display advertising — we use Google AdSense to display advertisements on the Site. Google uses cookies and browsing data to serve ads that may be relevant to your interests.
• To comply with legal obligations — we may use or disclose your information if required to do so by law or in response to a valid legal request.

We do not use your information for automated decision-making or profiling that produces legal or similarly significant effects on you.

4. Cookies and Tracking Technologies

Our Site uses cookies — small text files stored on your device — and similar tracking technologies. Cookies are used by our analytics provider (Google Analytics) and advertising partner (Google AdSense) to recognize your browser, track your usage of the Site, and serve relevant advertisements.

Types of cookies used on this Site

• Analytics cookies — placed by Google Analytics to collect information about how visitors use the Site (pages visited, time on site, traffic source). This data is aggregated and anonymized.
• Advertising cookies — placed by Google AdSense to serve ads based on your prior visits to this and other websites. Google may use these cookies to personalize the ads you see.
• Functional cookies — placed by WordPress to maintain basic site functionality.

Managing cookies

You can control cookies through your browser settings. Most browsers allow you to refuse cookies, delete existing cookies, or be notified when a cookie is set. Note that disabling cookies may affect the functionality of certain features on the Site.

To opt out of Google's use of cookies for advertising, visit google.com/settings/ads or the Network Advertising Initiative opt-out page.

5. Google Analytics and Google AdSense

Google Analytics

We use Google Analytics, a web analytics service provided by Google LLC ("Google"), to understand how visitors interact with our Site. Google Analytics collects information such as how often users visit the Site, what pages they visit, and what other sites they used prior to arriving. We use this data solely to improve our Site and its content.

Google Analytics collects only the IP address assigned to your device at the time of your visit, not your name or other identifying information. We do not combine the information collected through Google Analytics with personally identifiable information. Google's ability to use and share information collected by Google Analytics is restricted by the Google Analytics Terms of Service and Google Privacy Policy.

You may opt out of Google Analytics by installing the Google Analytics Opt-out Browser Add-on.

Google AdSense

We use Google AdSense to display advertisements on our Site. Google AdSense uses cookies to serve ads based on your prior visits to our Site and other sites on the internet. Google's use of advertising cookies enables it and its partners to serve ads based on your visit to our Site and/or other sites on the internet.

You may opt out of personalized advertising by visiting Google Ads Settings. For more information about how Google uses data when you use our Site, see How Google uses data when you use our partners' sites or apps.

6. Email Newsletter (Constant Contact)

We offer a free email newsletter covering federal retirement news, benefit updates, and planning guidance. Newsletter subscriptions are managed through Constant Contact, a third-party email marketing service.

If you subscribe to our newsletter, your name and email address are transmitted to and stored by Constant Contact in accordance with their Privacy Policy. We use this information solely to send you the newsletter you requested.

You may unsubscribe from our newsletter at any time by clicking the "unsubscribe" link included in every newsletter email, or by contacting us at support@federalretirement.com. We will promptly remove you from our mailing list upon request.

We do not share your email address with any other third parties for marketing purposes.

7. Third-Party Links

Our Site contains links to external websites, including OPM, the TSP, the IRS, and other government and private resources. These links are provided for your convenience and informational purposes only.

We have no control over the content or privacy practices of these external sites and are not responsible for their privacy policies. We encourage you to review the privacy policy of any website you visit through a link on our Site.

8. Data Security

We take reasonable precautions to protect the information collected through our Site. Our Site is served over HTTPS, which encrypts data transmitted between your browser and our server.

However, no method of transmission over the internet or electronic storage is 100% secure. While we strive to use commercially acceptable means to protect your personal information, we cannot guarantee absolute security. We encourage you not to submit sensitive personal information — such as Social Security numbers or financial account details — through any form or email on this Site.

9. Children's Privacy

Our Site is intended for adults — specifically federal employees and retirees — and is not directed at children under the age of 13. We do not knowingly collect personal information from children under 13. If you believe we have inadvertently collected information from a child under 13, please contact us at support@federalretirement.com and we will promptly delete it.

10. California Residents — CCPA Rights

If you are a resident of California, you have specific rights under the California Consumer Privacy Act (CCPA) regarding your personal information.

Your rights under the CCPA

• Right to know — You have the right to request that we disclose what personal information we collect, use, disclose, and sell about you.
• Right to delete — You have the right to request that we delete personal information we have collected from you, subject to certain exceptions.
• Right to opt out of sale — We do not sell your personal information. You do not need to opt out.
• Right to non-discrimination — We will not discriminate against you for exercising any of your CCPA rights.

How to submit a request

To exercise your rights under the CCPA, submit a request by email to support@federalretirement.com with the subject line "CCPA Privacy Request." We will respond to verifiable consumer requests within 45 days of receipt.

11. European Users — GDPR

If you are located in the European Economic Area (EEA), United Kingdom, or Switzerland, you have certain rights under the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) and applicable local data protection laws.

Legal basis for processing

We process personal data on the following legal bases:

• Consent — when you voluntarily subscribe to our newsletter or submit information through a calculator form.
• Legitimate interests — for analytics and site improvement purposes, where our interest in operating and improving the Site does not override your fundamental rights.

Your rights under GDPR

• Right of access — the right to request a copy of the personal data we hold about you.
• Right to rectification — the right to request correction of inaccurate personal data.
• Right to erasure — the right to request deletion of your personal data in certain circumstances.
• Right to restrict processing — the right to request that we limit how we use your data.
• Right to data portability — the right to receive your personal data in a structured, commonly used format.
• Right to withdraw consent — where processing is based on consent, you may withdraw that consent at any time without affecting the lawfulness of processing before withdrawal.

Data transfers

Our Site is operated from the United States. If you are located in the EEA or UK, please be aware that your information may be transferred to and processed in the United States, where data protection laws may differ from those in your country. By using our Site, you acknowledge this transfer.

How to exercise your rights

To exercise any of your GDPR rights, contact us at support@federalretirement.com. We will respond within 30 days. You also have the right to lodge a complaint with your local data protection authority.

12. Changes to This Policy

We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time to reflect changes in our practices, technology, legal requirements, or other factors. When we make changes, we will update the "Last updated" date at the top of this page.

We encourage you to review this Privacy Policy periodically. Your continued use of the Site after any changes constitutes your acceptance of the updated policy.

13. Contact Us

If you have questions, concerns, or requests regarding this Privacy Policy or our data practices, please contact us:

This website and its owner are not affiliated with the U.S. Office of Personnel Management (OPM) or any federal or military entity. Do not send official government forms or documents to this address.