Privacy Policy
Roots of Truth Initiative
Roots of Truth Initiative
Roots of Truth Initiative (“Roots of Truth,” “we,” “us,” or “our”) is a registered 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization (EIN: 41-4785602) dedicated to identifying unidentified persons and supporting law enforcement through investigative genetic genealogy (IGG). This Privacy Policy explains how we collect, use, and protect information when you visit rootsoftruth.org or interact with us through our website.
When an agency or office submits a case inquiry, we collect: agency/office name, contact name, official email address, phone number, case type, and a brief case summary. This information is used solely to evaluate case eligibility and establish a formal case agreement. We do not publicly disclose any information submitted through this form. Submitting agencies are instructed not to include identifying victim information in the initial inquiry.
When you reach out through our general contact form, we collect your name, email address, subject, and message content. We use this information only to respond to your inquiry.
Donations made through the “Give” links on our site are processed by Stripe, a third-party payment processor. Roots of Truth does not directly collect or store your payment card information. Stripe's handling of your data is governed by Stripe's own privacy policy. We may receive your name, email address, and donation amount from Stripe for the purposes of donor acknowledgment, tax receipting, and internal record-keeping.
Like most websites, we may use standard analytics tools to understand general traffic patterns (such as page views and referral sources) so we can improve the site. This data is aggregated and is not used to identify individual visitors.
We use the information we collect to:
We do not sell, rent, or trade personal information to third parties for marketing purposes.
Case-related information is treated as confidential and is shared only with the submitting agency and personnel directly involved in case evaluation. We follow protocols aligned with U.S. Department of Justice guidance on forensic genetic genealogy. All website traffic is encrypted via HTTPS.
Our website contains links to third-party platforms, including Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn, TikTok, and Stripe. We are not responsible for the privacy practices of these third parties, and we encourage you to review their respective privacy policies.
If you would like to request that we delete personal information you've submitted through our general contact form (this does not apply to active law enforcement case records, which are retained per case agreement and legal requirements), please reach out through the contact form on this site.
Our website is not directed at children, and we do not knowingly collect personal information from children under 13.
We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time. The “Last updated” date at the top of this page reflects the most recent revision.
If you have questions about this Privacy Policy, please reach out through the contact form on our website.
Roots of Truth Initiative
501(c)(3) Nonprofit Organization | EIN: 41-4785602