Privacy Policy

Thank you for visiting the CT Lottery and viewing this Privacy Policy. This policy describes how we collect, use and share personal information obtained through our websites or authorized features and apps that link to this policy, and when our services are used to browse, request information, subscribe to marketing communications, participate in a promotion, or conduct a transaction. More specifically, this policy tells you:

• the types of personal information we collect and how we collect it;
• the purposes for which we collect and use this information;
• the ways in which we share and protect this information; and
• the choices you have relating to your information.
  

Although our sites and authorized features and apps contain links and integrations to third-party sites and services, you should be aware that we are not responsible for, and do not control, the privacy or security practices of those or any other third-party sites and services. Our business partners may also have their own privacy and security policies. We encourage you to familiarize yourself with the policies provided by these other parties prior to providing them with information or taking advantage of a CT Lottery sponsored offer or promotion. If you have questions about how those sites and services collect, use, and share data, then you should carefully read their privacy policies.

This Privacy Policy was amended on April 25, 2024 and is effective as of that date.

Some Important Vocabulary

This Privacy Policy is a legal document, so clarity is important. At the same time, if we used the kinds of defined terms that appear in most contracts, then this policy would be much harder to read. So instead of doing that, we will use this section to let you know about some words that have special meanings whenever you see them in this policy. Let us start with the word “policy” itself: when we reference “this policy” and “our policy,” we mean the CT Lottery Privacy Policy you are reading now. Wherever we say “CT Lottery” or “we,” “us,” or “our,” we mean the Connecticut Lottery Corporation, as well as, in some cases, our vendor partners who provide services on our behalf. Not surprisingly, we use the words “you” and “your” to mean you, the reader, and other visitors to our sites and those accessing our sites and authorized features and apps, who must, in all cases, be over the age of 18. This age requirement is discussed in more detail later in this policy.

Whenever we reference “our sites” or “the sites,” we mean the CT Lottery websites found at ctlottery.org and ctilottery.org, and all related sites optimized for mobile devices. When we talk about “authorized features and apps,” we are referring to elements of our social media presence viewable from Facebook, X, Instagram, YouTube, LinkedIn, or any of the many other available external third-party controlled and operated social media platforms, as well as mobile or other apps we have created and distributed to let our players, patrons, and followers view our site or otherwise interact with our content. When we use the term “services,” we mean the sites and authorized features and apps collectively.

Last, but definitely not least, when we refer to “personal information,” we mean information that alone or in some combination can be used to identify you or that can be reasonably linked to you, for example, your name, email address, or social security number. We describe in more detail the personal information we collect in the section headed “Information We Collect About You” below.

We are a Bit Different: Records Retention and the Freedom of Information Act

Our services are not like others you may be used to accessing. We say this because we are what is known as a “quasi-public” agency. In other words, we are, in certain ways, more like a governmental agency than a private company. One of the ways we are more like the government is that we retain the information collected through our services in accordance with the records retention and disposition requirements of Connecticut law. Another way we are more like the government is that the Connecticut Freedom of Information Act, also known as “FOIA,” applies to us. What this means to you as a visitor or user is that no matter how committed we are to maintaining the privacy of the information we collect, we cannot ensure its absolute privacy. Under FOIA, any person can request information collected by a public agency (or, as in our case, a quasi-public agency), and that information must be disclosed unless an exemption applies. If you want to know more about FOIA in Connecticut, then this is a good place to start: portal.ct.gov/foi.

This policy is intended to provide you with the information you need to make an informed choice about your use of our services, as well as to make a decision about whether to share personal information with us through the services. You should consider the implications of FOIA and other Connecticut laws and regulations applicable to the CT Lottery as you make that decision. You should also be aware that, although we consider the information you provide to us to be trade secret information, we will use or disclose personal information when compelled to do so by legal obligations other than FOIA (e.g. a valid subpoena, court order, requests by government and relevant gaming authorities), or based on our good-faith belief that the use and disclosure of personal information is necessary to enforce and protect our rights and interests or the rights and interests of others or to ensure that the lottery continues to be operated with integrity and for the public good. You can read more in the section headed “How We Use Your Information” below.

Please be a Grown Up: User Age Requirements and Children’s Privacy

Connecticut law prohibits anyone under the age of 18 from participating in the games and programs we offer. So, purchasers of our products and users of our services, including registration for second-chance drawings and entry in our giveaways, must be at least 18 years of age. We take these age-related legal requirements very seriously and, consistent with them, do not direct or intend for the services to be used by individuals under the age of 18. Moreover, we do not knowingly collect personal information from individuals under the age of 18 or provide content to them. We encourage parents and legal guardians to talk with their children about the potential risks of providing personal information over the internet.

Information We Collect About You:

Information We Derive or Collect Automatically

When you visit or use our services or interact with us, information is passively collected through various means, including through your web browser via use of tracking technologies such as “cookies,” "web beacons," and the like, that utilize, among other means, simple text files sent from our servers to your device. The information we collect in these cases includes:

• Domain name and IP address from which you access our site.
• Type of browser and operating system you use.
• Location from which you visit or use our services.
• Date and time and length of your visit.
• The specific page(s) visited, graphics viewed, and any documents downloaded.
• The specific links to third-party content you accessed from our services.
• The specific links from other sites you used to access our site.
• Wagers placed by you or your other gaming activities through the services.
• Your device ID.

Information You Provide To Us

If you participate in certain activities through our services, then you may need, or be asked, to provide us with information about yourself. Depending on how you use our services, we may collect the following types of personal information about you:

• Identity information such as your name, title, date of birth, social security number (or other government-issued identification number such as passport number, driver’s license number, or taxpayer identification number), citizenship, nationality, gender, security question answers such as your mother’s maiden name and town of birth.
• Contact information such as your address, e-mail address, and phone number.
• Account information such as username and password and responsible gaming limits set.
• Details of your communications and interactions with us, for example, if you send us an e-mail, enter a second-chance drawing or promotion, fill out an on-line form (such as a request to have one of our employees speak to your group, or a request for more information about becoming a retailer), participate in a player survey, call our player support helpline, send us mail, or contact us online via webchat or on our social media channels.
• Transaction details including a record of payments made by you and to you (for example prizes), details of lottery games played and the outcomes of those games.
• Financial information including bank account details and payment card information.

Information We May Receive From Other Sources

We may receive information about you from third parties. For example, if you access our services from the internet, a mobile phone, or other device, then your computer, mobile phone, or device itself may transmit information to us. The information we may receive varies depending on the source and may include uniquely identifiable computer and mobile phone information. We may then collect IP addresses and mobile phone numbers and associate them with device identification information. Some mobile phones come equipped with GPS technology that provides location information when enabled, and we may receive this information as well. If you download our mobile app, then the mobile device on which you use it may use GPS or other similar technology to determine your location for a variety of purposes, including displaying that location on a map and showing you nearby CT Lottery retailers or game information we think you might find relevant.

We may also receive information from government authorities that we use to verify whether you can legally and safely use our services, such as information concerning your self-excluded status or other prohibitions on your ability to place wagers.

Geolocation & Other Tracking Technologies Used To Collect Information About You

As required by law, we will utilize geolocation technologies to automatically verify your physical location within the State of Connecticut whenever you use the ctilottery.org site or the mobile app. Your location will not be checked after you leave the services.

In addition to the various cookie, web beacon, and other information collection technologies mentioned previously, we use a third-party operated and controlled web analytics tool called Google Analytics to collect information about your use of and interaction with our services. This tool provides information such as how often users visit our site, what pages they visit when they do so, and what other sites they used prior to coming to our site. We use the information we get from Google Analytics to improve our site. Google Analytics collects only the IP address assigned to you on the date you visit our site, rather than your name or other identifying information. We do not combine the information collected through the use of Google Analytics with personally identifiable information. Although Google Analytics plants a permanent cookie on your web browser to identify you as a unique user the next time you visit our sites, the cookie cannot be used by anyone but Google. Google’s ability to use and share information collected by Google Analytics about your visits to our site is governed by the Google Analytics Terms of Service and the Google Privacy Policy. You can prevent Google Analytics from recognizing you on return visits to our sites by disabling cookies on your browser.

How We Use Your Information

We may use your personal information for the following purposes:

• Account management – to register you as a player; to set up, administer, and manage your account; to monitor and record gaming activity; and to pay you if you win a prize or promotion.
• Eligibility – to verify your identity and ensure you are over 18, to check whether you are subject to any exclusions from placing wagers, and to confirm your physical location within the State of Connecticut when using ctilottery.org or the mobile app, and as required by law.
• Transactions – to provide our games and other services to you, and to service your online transactions.
• Communication – to respond to your inquiries and fulfill your requests; to communicate with you about your account, transactions, or if you win a prize or promotion; and to inform you about promotions, offers, events, and new lottery products.
• Marketing & Advertising – to inform you about lottery products, promotions, offers, and events; to deliver direct advertising and remarketing content to you on our sites or third-party sites, which may include social media; and to measure the effectiveness of the advertising we serve to you.
• Product development – to maintain and improve our product and service offerings, and to develop new offerings.
• Research, analytics and improvement – to measure and understand how our services are used, and to evaluate and improve our services to make them more useful and accessible.
• Security – to prevent, detect, and investigate security incidents, and to address situations which threaten the integrity of our services and the lottery.
• Compliance with law and regulation – to respond to legal process or as part of legal proceedings; to comply with applicable law and lottery integrity requirements (including requests from government authorities to view your information); and to enforce our policies.
• Protection of rights – to protect the rights and safety of CT Lottery, our players, and others.
• Investigations – to conduct investigations and to address complaints.

We may also use personal information as otherwise described to you at the point of collection.

How We Share Your Information

While we do not sell, rent, or trade personal information, we may provide access to or share your personal information with the following third parties, and in the following circumstances:

• Service providers and vendor partners that perform functions on our behalf (e.g. those that provide us with services relating to hosting, identity verification, fraud and cybersecurity, processing card payments, advertising and marketing, analytics, product/service development, administration, sponsorship of contests and promotions, and professional advisors such as lawyers).
• The Connecticut Department of Consumer Protection and other regulatory or government authorities, including law enforcement, for them to fulfill their functions.

Choices You Can Make To Control Your Information

If you do not want us to collect your personal information, then do not provide it! This means you should not participate in the activities offered through our services that request or require it. Participation is strictly your choice. If you choose not to provide requested or required information, then you may limit your ability to take full advantage of our services, but it will not affect your ability to access publicly available lottery information.

Note that some authorized features and apps may allow users to post or upload messages, comments, screen names, computer files, and other materials. If you choose to make personal information public through these means, then we will consider that information to be in the public domain and will not limit its disclosure in the manner described by this policy.

If you want to update your personal information, or control marketing or other communications we share with you, you can do so yourself through the services. You always have a choice about whether we use your personal information for marketing purposes. If we are using your personal information to deliver tailored advertising or other communications to you such as newsletters, special promotions, and program announcements, and you decide you do not want to receive such communications, then you may opt out by adjusting your communication preferences in your account settings. We also encourage you to use the unsubscribe option when available in the communication. When we receive your request, we will take reasonable steps to remove your name from our distribution lists. This information remains part of our records and may be available under FOIA even after you opt out. Please be aware that communications may not stop immediately. If you have other questions about your account, then please email us at playersupport@ctilottery.org or call player support 866-752-9281.

You may also accept or decline cookies and control our collection of geolocation information through the browser or user settings on your device. If you disable geolocation on your device, however, your ability to place wagers and/or participate in game offerings will be affected. Likewise, if you turn cookies off, then you may not have access to many features (including wagering) that make our site experience more efficient.

Do Not Track

Do Not Track (DNT) is a preference you can set in your web browser requesting websites you visit to not place tracking cookies on your computer or mobile device. Our sites do not respond to the DNT setting on your browser because we do not save cookies on your computer or device (except specifically on our “Check My Numbers” page if you check the “Remember my numbers” box).

Things Happen: We do what we can to ensure Information Security

We will take reasonable security precautions to protect personal information provided through our services from misuse by third parties. Due to the inherently open and somewhat risky nature of the internet, however, we cannot guarantee that your information, whether during transmission or while stored on our systems or otherwise in our care, will be free from unauthorized access or that loss, misuse, destruction, or alteration will not occur. We disclaim any liability for any theft or loss of, unauthorized access or damage to, or interception of any data or communications. You should also note that third-party companies that help us operate and maintain both our services and our corporate technology environment (for example, a service provider that sends e-mails on our behalf) will have incidental access to your information, including your personal information, as part of the work they perform. We hold our service partners to the same high standards that we follow to protect personal information though we cannot guarantee or be responsible for their practices.

Changes to this Privacy Policy

We reserve the right to change or update this policy from time to time. Please check this policy periodically for such changes. Typically, we will indicate the effective/amendment date at the beginning of this policy.

Contacting Us

If you have questions about our privacy policy or privacy practices, then please contact the Connecticut Lottery Corporation at 15 Sterling Drive, Wallingford, CT 06492, by phone at 860-713-2700 or by e-mail at ctlottery@ctlottery.org.