Terms & Conditions

Copyrights and Trademark

Help Me Connect is a free site that anyone can use. This site is owned by the State of Minnesota. It is an interagency collaboration between Minnesota's Departments of Education, Health, and Human Services. Other websites may link you to this site but can't suggest that the state of Minnesota; the Departments of Education, Health, and Human Services; or Help Me Connect is endorsing a product or a service.

Everything on this site (including text, graphics, logos, images, digital downloads, data compilations and content) made available through Help Me Connect and its partnership with the MinnesotaHelp.info® database is the exclusive property of Minnesota's Departments of Education, Health, and Human Services. This property is protected by the United States and international copyright laws and may not be used in connection with a product or service not owned or operated by State of Minnesota or Minnesota's Departments of Education, Health, and Human Services.

Other copyrights or trademarks not owned by Minnesota's Departments of Education, Health, and Human Services may appear in Help Me Connect but are not connected to, or owned by, the Minnesota's Departments of Education, Health, and Human Services.

Disclaimer

By using this site, you are agreeing to the Terms of Use, and agree to abide by the conditions described in this policy.

Links included in Help Me Connect are provided as a convenience to users and are not an endorsement as to the accuracy, completeness, or usefulness of those sites. Consumers with questions about content, terms, or conditions of use about those links should contact those site owners directly.

Help Me Connect is only one resource. Help Me Connect is not intended to be a comprehensive collection of all related sites, services, or providers on the Internet. Consumers looking for a service, or a provider should be encouraged to explore multiple avenues of verifying and obtaining information.

Help Me Connect may prompt users to visit other web sites, such as other state government agencies, federal agencies, nonprofit organizations or private businesses. When choosing to link to those sites, you are leaving Help Me Connect, and are subject to the terms and conditions of those other sites.

Help Me Connect and Minnesota's Departments of Education, Health, and Human Services are not responsible for losses caused by reliance of information presented or published on this site. Any person or entity that relies on this information does so at their own risk.

Help Me Connect provides information but does not provide direct services or legal advice.

Using Help Me Connect

Help Me Connect is a resource for use by professionals. Its content is not directed or marketed towards children under 13 years old.

Help Me Connect will not knowingly collect personal information from children under 13 years old. Children who are under 13 years old will be prohibited from sending personal information through Help Me Connect or registering for any account on Help Me Connect which requires information such as a name or valid email address.

Notice of Privacy Rights

Help Me Connect takes data privacy and security very seriously and is committed to preserving user privacy while navigating this site. Therefore, Help Me Connect strives to collect the minimum amount of data necessary in order to help users find the help they need. Below are some Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ's) about your privacy rights when using this site.

  1. Why do I need to know about my privacy rights?

    You have rights under federal and state law to know what private information might be asked, and why it might be asked. Users also have the right to know how the information that Help Me Connect collects is being used and with whom it will be shared.

  2. What information could I be asked when using Help Me Connect?

    Because Help Me Connect is a resource for people looking for services and resources throughout the state, you might need to provide some information about yourself in order to receive help. For example, you may be asked to share where you live or what your zip code is, your exact location, or what services you are looking for.

    You never have to answer questions you don't feel comfortable answering.

    You will never be required to provide personal information in order to generally use Help Me Connect. However, in order to access, use or review certain features or use functions within the site, you may have to register an account with a name, username, password and valid email address.

    All registration information is private data and subject to these Terms and Conditions, and will not be disclosed unless specified.

    Registration will assist in developing user "favorite" lists and other personalized functions, and help the navigator stay user- friendly.

  3. Who can see my information on Help Me Connect?

    When you make an account on Help Me Connect, your information is secure. Secure means that the information you provide is viewable only by site administrators at the Minnesota Departments of Education, Health, and Human Services and the vendors who help update and maintain the site. Additionally, the Minnesota's Departments of Education, Health, and Human Services restricts employee access to any personal information except where necessary to perform required duties. Unless you grant specific permission, no other person or entity will see personal information about you.

    Help Me Connect does not sell, rent, or lend user information, and does not allow businesses to advertise on the site.

  4. What information is stored about people who use Help Me Connect?

    If you've contacted Help Me Connect before, via email, or made an account or registered personal information about yourself using an account to save results to your "Favorites" or another feature, some information may already be stored about you. It's helpful to have information about users because if you do need help again, you can receive help more quickly and efficiently. All information is stored electronically in a secure system which is protected by encryptions and firewalls.

    Remember that you can use Help Me Connect anonymously. You can always delete your accounts and sign up again in the future.

  5. Is the Help Me Connect web site content monitored?

    The content on Help Me Connect is a partnership between Minnesota's Departments of Education, Health, and Human Services. It displays resources from the MinnesotaHelp.info® database, which is the property of the Minnesota Board on Aging. The Departments maintain the right to remove or edit content from the site that is inconsistent with privacy policies, agency policies, violates a federal or state law, or puts consumer privacy at risk.

  6. What are cookies and does Help Me Connect use them?

    A "cookie" is a small text file that a website places on a user's computer to collect information about a user's activities on a site and are considered private data. Cookies can be used to evaluate and analyze how people are using websites. Help Me Connect does not use cookies to record any personal information like names and email addresses.

    Google Analytics is used to analyze traffic to Help Me Connect. Google uses first-party cookies. These cookies are used to store information, such as what time the current visit occurred, whether the visitor has been to the site before, and what site referred the visitor to the web page. This site does not try to identify users based on cookies and does not share them with other sites.

    If you want to opt-out of Google Analytics collecting your information, you can. Blocking cookies does not affect access to Help Me Connect.

    You can turn off JavaScript in your browser settings or download the Google Analytics Opt-out Browser Add on. For information on how to do this, consult your appropriate technology support provider.

    Any information gathered as a result of a cookie will not be associated with an individual user, and will be subject to the privacy protections governed by these Terms of Use.

  7. Are other Google programs used in Help Me Connect?

    Help Me Connect uses Google Translate and Google Maps features and content. They are subject to Google's Terms of Service and Privacy Policy. Additional terms of service for Google Maps also apply.

  8. What are my rights when using this site?

    • You have the right to ask someone to explain any part of the Terms and Service to you.
    • You have a right to ask for a hard copy or electronic copy of our Terms of Service as well as our Notice of Privacy Practices.
    • You have a right to access and receive copies of your records in a manner that you want, although you may have to pay for postage and/or reasonable copying costs. Requests of this nature should be made in writing.
    • You have a right to let MinnesotaHelp.info® know if you think the information stored about you or your agency is incorrect or incomplete.
    • You can also send your own explanation of incorrect or incomplete information which can be attached any time, with your permission, when that information is shared with another agency.
    • You can decide to refuse to allow Help Me Connect or MinnesotaHelp.info® to share your information with a person or an entity. You can write to set up restrictions, and call us to remove them.
    • You have a right to complain. You cannot be denied service or treated badly because you have made a complaint. If you believe your privacy was violated, you may send a written complaint to the federal Office of Civil Rights:

      U.S. Department of Health and Human Services
      Office for Civil Rights - Region V
      233 N. Michigan Avenue, Suite 240
      Chicago, IL 60601

      (312) 886-2359 (Voice)
      (312) 353-5693 (TTY/TDD)
      (312) 886-1807 (Fax)

    • If you have questions about this site, contact .
Tips for Using Help Me Connect

Here are some tips you may want to consider when searching for services that meet your needs or asking for help, especially if you choose to send information about yourself to Help Me Connect using the Internet.

  • Use caution when using the Internet
    • Information transmitted over the Internet is not secure and can be intercepted and possibly read by other Internet users.
  • Use caution when using e-mail
    • The Minnesota Departments of Education, Health, and Human Services recommends that you do not use e-mail to send private or confidential data about yourself or others, such as prescription numbers, private health information, diagnoses, etc., unless it has been encoded or encrypted.