Privacy Policy
This policy was drafted to describe accurately what this website actually does, but it has not been reviewed by a lawyer. Have counsel check it, confirm which laws apply to your business, and fill in the business address and entity name before you rely on it.
Cali Well Search operates caliwellsearch.com, a free search of California's public oil and gas well records, and sells optional research services. This policy explains what we collect, why, who else sees it, and how to have it removed.
1. What we collect
When you run a free search
You type a street address, city and ZIP code. That address is sent to our server so we can locate it and search the well database. We do not store the addresses you search in our customer records. They do appear in our server's technical logs, along with your IP address, for a short period.
We also record your IP address and today's date in order to count how many free searches you have used, because the free search is limited per visitor per day.
When you ask us to email you a report
The form asks for, and we store:
| What | Required | Why |
|---|---|---|
| First and last name | Yes | To address the report to you |
| Email address | Yes | To send the report |
| Phone number | No | Only if you choose to give it, so we can reach you about your request |
| Whether you are a homeowner, buyer, seller, agent, builder or attorney, or prefer not to say | Yes | So we can make the report useful to you |
| The address you searched and the result | Automatic | So we know which report you asked for |
| The exact consent wording shown to you, the date and time, and your IP address | Automatic | To keep a record of what you agreed to |
| Your browser's user agent string | Automatic | To diagnose problems and detect automated abuse |
When you buy a research service
We collect what is needed to do the work and to contact you about it, including the property address concerned. Payment is handled by a third-party payment processor; we do not receive or store your full card number.
Automatically
- Server logs — IP address, the pages and files requested, times, and browser user agent.
- Analytics — see section 4.
2. What we do with it
- Run the search you asked for and send you the report you requested.
- Reply to you, and follow up about a research service you asked about.
- Send occasional email about California well records, if you agreed to that. You can stop this at any time.
- Keep the free search free by limiting how many searches one visitor can run per day, and by detecting automated abuse.
- Understand which pages people find useful, so we can improve them.
- Keep records we may need for legal or accounting reasons.
We do not sell your personal information, and we do not share it with anyone for cross-context behavioural advertising.
3. Who else receives it
We use a small number of service providers. Each receives only what it needs to do its job.
| Provider | What it does | What it sees |
|---|---|---|
| DigitalOcean | Hosts the website and our database | Everything stored, as our hosting provider |
| Resend | Sends the report and our notification emails | Your name, email address and the report contents |
| Google Analytics | Website analytics | Usage data and identifiers — see section 4 |
| Google Workspace | Our own email | Anything you email us |
| Cloudflare | Domain name service | DNS queries |
| United States Census Bureau | Converts an address to a location when our own county data does not cover it | The address you searched |
| Esri and OpenStreetMap | Supply the map imagery | Your IP address and which map areas you view, when you open the map |
| Google Fonts and unpkg | Supply fonts and mapping code | Your IP address when the page loads |
| A payment processor | Takes payment for paid services | Your payment and billing details |
We may also disclose information if we are legally required to, or to protect our rights or someone's safety. If the business is ever sold or merged, records may transfer as part of it.
4. Cookies and analytics
We use Google Analytics 4 to understand how the site is used — which pages are read, where visitors arrive from, and whether the search is working. It sets cookies on your device and collects an identifier along with usage data. We may also use this data to measure the performance of advertising.
You can opt out of Google Analytics entirely using Google's browser add-on, or by blocking cookies in your browser. The free search works normally either way.
We honour Global Privacy Control signals sent by your browser where we are required to.
5. Email and text messages
We email you the report you asked for. If you ticked the box agreeing to occasional updates, we may also email you about California well records and our services. Every email includes an unsubscribe link, and unsubscribing takes effect immediately.
The phone number field is optional. If you give us a number, you are agreeing that we may contact you about the request you made. We do not sell phone numbers, and we do not send marketing text messages without separate, express written consent.
6. How long we keep it
- Report requests and customer records — for as long as needed to serve you and to meet legal and accounting obligations, then deleted.
- Search rate-limit records — the IP address and date, kept briefly and cleared regularly.
- Unsubscribe records — kept indefinitely, because we need them to know not to email you again.
- Server logs — kept for a short period for security and troubleshooting.
- Analytics — per Google's retention settings.
7. Your rights
Depending on where you live, you may have the right to:
- Know what personal information we hold about you and where it came from.
- Get a copy of it.
- Correct anything inaccurate.
- Delete it, subject to records we are required to keep.
- Opt out of sale or sharing. We do not sell or share personal information for cross-context behavioural advertising, so there is nothing to opt out of, but you are entitled to ask.
- Not be discriminated against for exercising any of these rights. The free search stays free either way.
To exercise any of them, email admin@caliwellsearch.com and say what you want. We will respond within the time the law allows and may need to verify your identity first, usually by confirming details you already gave us.
If you are in the EU or UK and believe we have handled your data improperly, you may complain to your local supervisory authority.
8. Security, children, changes and contact
Security
The site runs over encrypted connections and our database sits on a private server that is not publicly reachable. No system is perfectly secure, and we cannot guarantee absolute security.
Children
This site is not directed at children under 16 and we do not knowingly collect their personal information. If you believe we have, email us and we will delete it.
Where your data is held
Our servers and service providers are in the United States. If you use the site from elsewhere, your information is transferred to and processed in the United States.
Changes
If we change this policy we will update the date at the top. Material changes will be signposted on the site.
Contact
Cali Well Search
admin@caliwellsearch.com
[Business mailing address to be added]
Cali Well Search is not affiliated with the California Geologic Energy Management Division or any government agency. Nothing on this site is legal advice or an engineering opinion.