1. Who We Are
Chappell Investigations is a licensed private investigation firm operating under California PI License #25789, located at 12400 Ventura Blvd. #673, Studio City, CA 91604. This Privacy Policy explains how we collect, use, store, and protect information obtained through our website at www.chappellinvestigations.com (the "Site") and through our professional services.
This Policy does not govern information collected in the course of a client engagement or investigation, which is handled pursuant to our engagement agreement and applicable California law.
2. Information We Collect
Information you provide directly. When you use our contact form, send an email, or call us, you may provide your name, email address, phone number, and a description of your inquiry. We collect only what you voluntarily submit.
Automatically collected information. When you visit the Site, we and our third-party analytics providers automatically collect certain technical information, including:
- IP address (anonymized by Google Analytics 4 by default)
- Browser type and version
- Device type and operating system
- Pages visited, time spent on pages, and referring URL
- General geographic location (city/region level only — not precise location)
- Cookie identifiers and similar tracking technologies
This information is collected through Google Analytics 4, a web analytics service provided by Google LLC. Google Analytics uses cookies — small text files placed on your device — to help us understand how visitors use the Site. GA4 does not store or log full IP addresses.
3. How We Use Your Information
Information collected through the Site is used solely for the following purposes:
- Responding to your inquiry or consultation request
- Communicating with you about our services
- Analyzing website traffic and improving the Site's usability
- Detecting and preventing fraudulent or abusive use of the Site
- Complying with applicable legal obligations
We do not sell, rent, trade, or otherwise transfer your personal information to third parties for their own marketing purposes. We do not use your information for targeted advertising.
4. Google Analytics and Cookies
We use Google Analytics 4 to collect anonymized data about how visitors use the Site. This helps us understand which pages are visited most frequently, where visitors come from, and how they navigate the Site.
Google Analytics may set the following cookies on your device:
- _ga — distinguishes users; expires after 2 years
- _ga_[ID] — maintains session state; expires after 2 years
Google acts as a data processor on our behalf. The data collected by Google Analytics is subject to Google's Privacy Policy. We have configured Google Analytics to minimize data collection and have not enabled advertising features, remarketing, or cross-site tracking.
We do not use cookies for any purpose other than analytics. We do not use advertising cookies, tracking pixels, or behavioral profiling tools.
Opting out of Google Analytics. You can prevent Google Analytics from collecting data about your visit by installing the Google Analytics Opt-Out Browser Add-On. You can also disable cookies in your browser settings or use a browser with built-in tracking protection.
California residents: see Section 8 for your rights under the CCPA/CPRA.
5. Confidentiality of Client Communications
All communications with Chappell Investigations — by phone, email, or contact form — are treated as strictly confidential. We do not disclose the identity of any person who contacts us, the nature of any inquiry, or any information discussed during a consultation to any third party, except as required by law or court order.
Submitting an inquiry through this Site does not create an investigator-client relationship. An investigator-client relationship is established only upon execution of a written engagement agreement as required by California Business and Professions Code and SB 1454.
6. Data Sharing and Disclosure
We do not sell, share, or disclose your personal information except in the following limited circumstances:
- Service providers. We use Google LLC (Google Analytics) and Netlify, Inc. (website hosting) as third-party service providers. These providers process data on our behalf subject to their own privacy policies and data processing agreements with us.
- Legal obligation. We may disclose information if required to do so by a valid subpoena, court order, or applicable law.
- Protection of rights. We may disclose information to prevent fraud, address security threats, or protect the rights, property, or safety of Chappell Investigations, its clients, or others.
We do not share personal information with any advertising networks, data brokers, or third-party marketers.
7. Data Retention
Contact form submissions and email inquiries are retained only as long as necessary to respond to your inquiry and for a reasonable period thereafter for record-keeping purposes. Google Analytics data is retained for 14 months by default, after which it is automatically deleted from Google's servers. We do not retain any personally identifiable information from website visits.
8. Your Rights Under California Law (CCPA / CPRA)
If you are a California resident, you have the following rights under the California Consumer Privacy Act (CCPA), as amended by the California Privacy Rights Act (CPRA):
- Right to Know. You may request that we disclose what personal information we have collected about you, the sources of that information, the purposes for which it was collected, and any third parties with whom it was shared.
- Right to Delete. You may request that we delete personal information we have collected from you, subject to certain exceptions.
- Right to Correct. You may request that we correct inaccurate personal information we hold about you.
- Right to Opt Out. You have the right to opt out of the sale or sharing of your personal information. We do not sell personal information. For analytics opt-out, see Section 4.
- Right to Non-Discrimination. We will not discriminate against you for exercising any of your CCPA/CPRA rights.
To submit a request, contact us at chappellpi@gmail.com or call (877) 210-2292. We will respond within 45 days as required by law. We may need to verify your identity before processing a request.
Note: Chappell Investigations is a small business that does not meet the revenue or data volume thresholds that trigger mandatory CCPA compliance obligations. We provide these rights voluntarily as a matter of good practice and transparency.
9. Do Not Sell or Share My Personal Information
Chappell Investigations does not sell, rent, or share your personal information with third parties for commercial purposes. We have no advertising relationships and do not participate in any data broker arrangements. There is nothing to opt out of with respect to the sale or commercial sharing of your data — we do not engage in those practices.
10. Children's Privacy
This Site is not directed at children under the age of 13. We do not knowingly collect personal information from children. If you believe we have inadvertently collected information from a child, please contact us immediately and we will delete it.
11. Links to Third-Party Sites
The Site may contain links to third-party websites, including LinkedIn and Yelp. These sites are governed by their own privacy policies. We are not responsible for the privacy practices or content of any third-party site, and a link to a third-party site does not constitute an endorsement.
12. Security
We take reasonable technical and organizational measures to protect the information submitted through this Site. The Site is hosted on Netlify, which provides HTTPS encryption for all traffic. However, no method of transmission over the internet is completely secure, and we cannot guarantee absolute security.
13. Changes to This Policy
We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time. When we do, we will update the "Last Updated" date at the top of this page. Continued use of the Site following any update constitutes acceptance of the revised Policy. We encourage you to review this Policy periodically.
14. Contact Us
If you have questions or concerns about this Privacy Policy or our data practices, please contact us:
Chappell Investigations
12400 Ventura Blvd. #673, Studio City, CA 91604
(877) 210-2292
chappellpi@gmail.com