Privacy Notice

Thank you for visiting Teachers' Retirement System of the State of Illinois (TRS) website. The information we receive from your visit depends on the services you use and the information you reveal during your visit. TRS is committed to protecting the confidentiality of the personal information contained inthe retirement records of TRS members consistent with applicable federal and state law.

Browsing

As you browse through this website and view, print, and download forms, publications, and general information, no personally identifying information will be revealed or recorded about you, although we do automatically collect and maintain the following information about your visit:

• The domain and name of the service provider from which you accessed our website. The domain indicates what type of service provider you are connecting from, e.g., a commercial carrier, a governmental entity, or university. The name of the service provider tells us which provider you are using without disclosing any of your personal information or your individual email address.
• The date and time you accessed our website.
• The internet address of the website from which you linked directly to us.

This information is used solely to help us improve our online services by determining how often our website is visited and which areas of the site are visited most to gauge overall interest. We do make limited use of cookies, but only to maintain your website visit. All information is used exclusively by TRS, except as may be shared with other state agencies to perform the duties and obligations imposed by the Illinois Pension Code. None of the information we collect is sold. Information is only disclosed to third parties as required by law.

Accessing Member Account Information

As a service, we provide online member account information to members, employers and to reciprocal retirement systems to verify service credit of members. We require usernames and passwords, and use data encryption and third-party verification to protect member account information. In order to access member account information through our website, you will need to provide your username and password and be authorized by TRS to use our site if you are not a member.

If you believe that personal information that you provided to TRS contains inaccuracies or needs to be updated, please contact TRS and provide updated information.

Sending Messages

When you send an email from our website to contact TRS, the information we receive depends on the information you reveal to us in your message. TRS is not responsible for unauthorized access by third parties to personal information you reveal in your email messages.

Using Web Links

If you leave our website by linking to a different web address, you will be subject to the privacy policy of that site.

Security

It is the policy of TRS to safeguard the integrity of its communications and computing infrastructure through reasonable and appropriate means. The TRS member account information accessible via online access is protected through security measures including authentication, monitoring, auditing, and encryption. Email communications to and from TRS are not protected by these security measures. TRS does not warrant the security of information on other websites that you may visit by linking to a different web address.

Unauthorized Use

This website is the official site of the Teachers' Retirement System of the State of Illinois. We are an agency of the State of Illinois subject to all the protections afforded agencies of the state. Unauthorized attempts to upload information or change information on this website, tampering with or modification of this system, including supporting hardware or software, are strictly prohibited and may be subject to criminal prosecution under federal and state law, including without limitation, the Computer Fraud and Abuse Act and the Illinois Computer Crime Prevention Law. If you are under the age of 13, you are not authorized to provide us with personally identifying information. Collection of information volunteered by children online or by email will be treated the same as information given by an adult.

Social Security Numbers

TRS requires Social Security numbers (SSNs) for tax reporting obligations associated with payment of benefits and refunds and for internal verification and administrative purposes. You may rest assured that TRS understands identity protection concerns, complies with all applicable identity protection laws, and has policies and procedures in place to protect your SSN. We will never require you to transmit your SSN over the internet unless the connection is secure or the SSN is encrypted. We will redact your SSN from information or documents before release as part of a public records request. We will only print your SSN on documents and forms that we mail to you as part of an application or enrollment process, to establish, amend, or terminate your TRS account, or to confirm the accuracy of your SSN.

We will not:

1. Sell, lease, loan, trade, or rent Social Security numbers to a third party for any purpose;
2. Publicly post or display Social Security numbers;
3. Print Social Security numbers on any card required to access our services;
4. Require you to transmit Social Security numbers over the internet, unless the connection is secure or the Social Security numbers are encrypted; or
5. Print Social Security numbers on any materials that are mailed to you, unless state or federal law requires that number to be on documents mailed, or unless we are confirming the accuracy of the Social Security number.