Privacy Policy
Last updated: July 2026
This page explains what information GovernmentPhoneGuide.com collects, how it’s used, and the choices you have. We’ve tried to write it in plain language rather than dense legal text.
The Eligibility Checker Runs in Your Browser
The household size, income, state, and program answers you enter into our eligibility checker are processed entirely on your own device. We do not send that information to our servers, store it, or share it with any Lifeline provider. Closing or refreshing the page clears it completely. If you click through to apply with a provider, whatever you enter on their site is covered by their privacy policy, not ours.
Information You Choose to Give Us
If you contact us through our contact page, you’ll share whatever you include — typically your name, email address, and message. We use that only to respond to you, not for marketing unless you separately opt in to something like an email list in the future.
Information Collected Automatically
Like most websites, we automatically receive some technical information when you visit: your approximate location (from your IP address), browser and device type, which pages you view, and how long you spend on them. We use this in aggregate — to see which guides are helpful and which need work — not to identify you individually.
Cookies and Advertising
We show ads through third-party ad networks to keep this site free. Those networks may use cookies to show ads based on your visits here and on other sites. You can limit this through your browser’s cookie settings, or opt out of interest-based advertising broadly through the Digital Advertising Alliance’s tool at optout.aboutads.info.
Third-Party Links
We link throughout this site to official sources like the FCC and USAC, and to individual Lifeline providers. Once you leave GovernmentPhoneGuide.com, the destination site’s own privacy practices apply. Our disclaimer covers this in more detail.
Your Privacy Choices
If you’re a California resident, state law gives you the right to know what personal information we collect, request its deletion, and opt out of its sale — which can include the kind of ad-network cookie sharing described above. You can exercise these rights the same way as any other visitor: adjusting your cookie settings or reaching us through our contact page. We don’t sell information in the traditional sense — we have none of your personal data to sell, since the checker never leaves your browser — but we’re disclosing this in the interest of being thorough.
Children’s Privacy
This site is intended for adults researching benefits for their household. It isn’t directed at children under 13, and we don’t knowingly collect information from them.
Changes to This Policy
We may update this policy as the site changes — for example, if we add a feature that does collect information the checker currently doesn’t. The “last updated” date at the top of this page always reflects the current version.
Questions About This Policy
Reach us through our contact page, or see our About page to learn who runs this site.