Census Bureau officials are extremely aware of the importance of confidentiality in taking the census and in reporting the results.  Under Title 13, United States Code, the Census Bureau cannot share the individual answers it receives with others, including welfare agencies, the Immigration and Naturalization Service, the Internal Revenue Service, courts, or police.  The military personnel who help with the census on-base are sworn to protect the confidentiality of your answers. Anyone who breaks this law can receive up to 5 years in prison and $5,000 in fines. 

The computer systems and programs used to store and process information collected are configured to ensure that an individual’s information is protected from any unauthorized access; access to the Census Bureau’s computer systems is controlled through secure technology including passwords, firewalls, encryption, and auditing to prevent unauthorized access.  To protect respondent confidentiality, names and addresses are separated from the electronic files that contain an individual’s answers when no longer needed. The Census Bureau withholds data if they represent a population (within a geographic area) so small that the numbers might identify someone. 

The Census Bureau works hard to ensure that confidentiality is not breached.  Edits are performed on all data products to make sure confidential information is not released for any individual or household.  Confidentiality means that only sworn employees of the Census Bureau may have access to individual census information for a period of 72 years, with the exception that individuals or their legal representatives can obtain official transcripts of information about themselves from a census for use as evidence of age, relationship, citizenship, etc.

After 72 years the records become public.  Copies of census schedules (forms on which the enumerators recorded information) from 1790-1930 are available on microfilm for research at the National Archives and at libraries in various parts in the country.  The questionnaires used for Census 2000 will be available for researchers on April 1, 2072.

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