Global Privacy Notice - FamilySearch

FamilySearch International, a Utah nonprofit corporation with its principal offices in Salt Lake City, U.S.A. (“FamilySearch”), is dedicated to family history and genealogical research. When referring to “us,” “we,” or “our,” we mean FamilySearch. In this Privacy Notice, we provide you with information about how we process your personal data.

Creating an online account on our website and applications (“Website”) or otherwise submitting data to FamilySearch allows you to access the services and Website that we offer, including building a family tree; connecting with family members; and accessing and sharing family photos, digital records, recorded oral histories, and other memorabilia submitted by you or your relatives, or which have been obtained from public and historical sources worldwide.

FamilySearch respects the privacy of individuals who use our Website. In this Privacy Notice, we identify the personal data we collect, our basis for processing personal data, and our data processing terms in accordance with your rights and applicable law. We encourage you to carefully read this Privacy Notice before submitting personal data to us. As the delivery of our Website depends on the processing of your personal data in accordance with the FamilySearch Terms of Use and the Content Submission Agreement, please also carefully read these documents. To create an account, you must agree to these terms and this Privacy Notice. If you choose not to agree, you will not be able to create an account or access all Website features.

1. Who controls your personal data?

When you share your personal data on our Website or engage in interactions or communications with us, we process your personal data as the data controller.

FamilySearch is affiliated with and supported by The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (the “Church”) as a public service. Creating an online account with our Website does not mean you endorse or are otherwise affiliated with the Church.

2. What personal data do we collect?

We collect personal data that (a) you submit; (b) other users submit; (c) we record; and (d) we obtain from third parties.

a. Data You Submit. You submit personal data to us, and we may collect personal data submitted by you, when you create an account on our Website, request FamilySearch materials, request access to FamilySearch services or the Website, submit or upload your personal data to FamilySearch tools or the Website (e.g., building your family tree), or engage in other interactions or communications with FamilySearch. When you interact with FamilySearch and create an account, we generally process your name, birth date, mobile number, email address, location (e.g., country), and sex. You also may submit account and registration data for processing, such as your username, display name, password, email address, and settings and preferences.

When you use our services, you also may choose to submit additional personal information to participate at your own initiative in other FamilySearch genealogical activities, including submitting personal genealogical data (e.g., life sketch, life events, alternate names, family relationships, life facts, memories, biographical information), photos, memorabilia, records, and historical information about you and your relatives. You choose what personal data to submit, and, in some cases, you may choose to submit information that could be considered sensitive, such as ethnic background, race, national origin, religious background, citizenship, medical information, or immigration status. However, you should not submit or share any sensitive data about individuals other than yourself if such individuals are still living.

b. Data Other Users Submit. As we explain in more detail under “With whom do we share personal data,” the FamilySearch platform permits other users of the Website, such as your relatives, to submit your non-sensitive personal data as part of a family tree or in other limited tools and features. The ability to share basic information about family members is essential to perform genealogical research and to connecting researchers with their family trees. When a user submits the personal data of a person who is still living (“Living Data”) to a family tree, that Living Data is initially only visible to that user. In some limited cases, the user also may be able to share such data in restricted areas of the Website with a limited number of users in a closed group setting, which is accessible by invitation only. Each user is responsible for their own processing of any Living Data that they submit or share on the Website, and will only do so for personal purposes to document and research their family history, as required by the Content Submission Agreement and Terms of Use.

c. Data We Record and Cookies. When you visit our resources, our servers (using log files or filtering systems) may collect information that your web browser sends any time you visit our Website. This information may include, but is not limited to, your Internet Protocol address (IP address), browser type, operating system, language preference, a referring web page you visited before entering our site, the date and time of each visitor request, information you search for on our resources, and other information collected by cookies or similar technologies. Please refer to the Cookie Preferences tool (“Cookie Preferences”) posted on each of our mobile applications and the footer of our Website to learn more. Cookie Preferences allows you to choose the types of cookies we use. If you do not accept cookies, you may not be able to use some sections or functions of our sites or applications, as outlined in Cookie Preferences. Please also be aware that you cannot disable certain cookies that are necessary for the Website’s core functionality. By using our Website, you consent to the use of cookies as described in the Cookie Preferences. You may opt out of certain cookies used on our Website by clicking the Cookie Preferences link at the bottom of this page.

d. Third Party Data. If you are a Church member, and you request that your FamilySearch account be linked with your Church online account, we may receive your personal data (e.g., Church membership data and Church account data) from a relevant Church entity.

To the extent permitted by applicable laws, we also may obtain genealogical and historical personal data about you from archives or other publicly available sources.

3. How do we process your personal data?

In most cases we process your personal data with the use of automatic means (automated processing), though in some cases we may process your personal data without the use of automatic means (manual processing), or with a combination of automatic and manual means of processing (mixed processing).

Processing operations that we perform on your personal data may include, but are not limited to, the following: collecting, recording, organizing, structuring, storing, adapting or altering, analyzing, retrieving, consulting, using, transferring (transmission, access, disclosure), including cross-border transfers as explained in this Privacy Notice, aligning or combining, generating derivative data, restricting, erasing, or destroying your personal data.

We do not make decisions about you that are based solely on automated processing, including profiling, that would have significant effects on you. If our use of automated technologies changes in the future, we will update this Privacy Notice and provide appropriate transparency.

4. For what purposes do we process personal data?

We process your personal data in connection with the Website and services offered by FamilySearch for the following purposes:

• Genealogy/Family History Research: To provide training, resources, and tools to help you and your relatives trace your ancestry and lineage, build your family tree, conduct family history research, and connect with family members.
• Preservation of Historical Records: To digitize and archive historical documents, photos, artifacts, and public records for future generations.
• Record Family History: To record important family history, historical, and cultural information that otherwise may be lost (e.g., oral histories).
• Communication and Collaboration: To allow you to communicate and collaborate with other users when doing family history research, such as in our discussion feature.
• Website Administration:
  • ​To authenticate your access to your FamilySearch account and other FamilySearch applications and services.
  • To communicate with you, answer your questions, and provide you with information with respect to technical, security, or other operational issues.
  • To build and improve our Website, tools, and services, including by tracking analytics on your activity in the FamilySearch Website.
  • To notify you of new FamilySearch applications and services, invite your participation, and alert you to new potential relatives in your family tree.
  • To prevent error, fraud, or criminal activity and enforce our Terms of Use.

5. What is our legal basis for processing your personal data?

We strive to ensure we have a fair and lawful basis for processing all personal data that we collect. Our legal basis for processing may differ depending on the area of the Website; the purposes for which we process your personal data, including the purposes described above in “For what purposes do we process personal data;” and local legal requirements in your jurisdiction.

Our primary legal basis for processing the personal data of users is consent, which we obtain from you when you create an account on our Website, periodically when you upload personal data to our Website, or when you fill out other forms where you submit your personal data to FamilySearch.

We also may process personal data to preserve our legitimate interests as a nonprofit genealogical research organization, including where necessary to provide a platform for you to conduct and document genealogical research and for auditing, data analysis, system troubleshooting, legal claims, and regulatory obligations. In each case, we will balance our legitimate interests against your rights and freedoms and will only process data that is necessary to accomplish the purposes described above.

In some restricted areas of our Website, we provide a closed platform in which users are permitted to share Living Data with a small group of other invited users, as necessary to conduct genealogical research. In these areas, FamilySearch processes user-generated content containing Living Data on behalf of the users, in accordance with the user’s instructions. We do not process or use Living Data for our own purposes or determine the legal basis for processing. Each user is responsible for their own processing of any Living Data that they submit or share on the Website. You will be notified when you are submitting data in one of these areas (e.g., user-owned or group trees) and reminded that you are responsible for any Living Data that you submit.  

Depending on the local requirements in your jurisdiction, if you process Living Data in connection with a purely personal or household activity, you may not be subject to privacy law requirements. In any case, however, you must have the right or permission to share any Living Data with other users in accordance with the FamilySearch Content Submission Agreement and Terms of Use.  

6. With whom do we share personal data?

You may stop us from sharing your personal data or limit the information we share by modifying your profile preferences or by contacting us using the information provided below. We share your personal data with other parties in the following circumstances:

a. Third-party Service Providers. We may provide personal data, including some or all of the categories identified in this Privacy Notice, to third parties to perform functions on our behalf as data processors or sub-processors (for example, payment processing, maintenance, security, data analysis, hosting, measurement services, data-driven social media messaging, surveys, and so on). In such instances, in accordance with this Privacy Notice and as required by applicable laws, we contractually require service providers to protect personal data from additional processing (including for marketing purposes) and from transfer. For a list of third parties which may collect some of your personal data using cookies, please see the Cookie Preferences.  

b. Church Affiliates. In some limited circumstances, we may share limited personal data, such as analytics and data on your activity in the FamilySearch Website, with sponsoring Church entities to develop and improve our services. In such cases, personal data will be anonymized wherever possible. FamilySearch may also use some shared Church resources (e.g., software) to manage personal data, but FamilySearch personal data will only be accessed by FamilySearch personnel with a legitimate need to know to further FamilySearch purposes in accordance with this Privacy Notice. If you are a Church member and voluntarily link your Church membership information to your FamilySearch account, you agree that FamilySearch may share personal data that you submit to the relevant Church entities for the purpose of documenting ordinances and temple work.

c. Website Users. To better protect your privacy, we have designed the Website so that users are only permitted to share Living Data with other Website users in certain restricted areas of the Website, which are accessible by invitation only. In these restricted areas, you may choose to make some of the optional genealogical information that you provide on the Website accessible to other FamilySearch users (for example, information you upload to your family tree). Without your request or action, FamilySearch will not make Living Data that you provide accessible to anyone other than you, the submitter. You must choose to make it available (e.g., when you join a group and share personal data within that group). You should not, however, attach memories that have Living Data to a deceased person in a public tree. FamilySearch strives to limit the situations in which you can share Living Data to comply with applicable laws and to protect the privacy of your relatives.

As indicated above, each user is responsible for their own processing of any Living Data that they submit or share on the Website. When you choose to share Living Data with other users, you affirm that you are responsible for such data; that you have the right or permission to share such data with other users in accordance with the FamilySearch Content Submission Agreement and Terms of Use; that you share such data only for personal and genealogical research purposes; and that such sharing complies with applicable laws.   

You may adjust the visibility of personal data to other FamilySearch users or to the public at any time by changing your privacy settings or by contacting us using the information provided below. All memories containing Living Data should be set to “private.”  

FamilySearch may, however, make certain personal data obtained from public and historical sources publicly available when permitted by applicable local laws.

d. Legal Requirements. We may access and disclose your personal data, posts, online chats, personal notes, content, or other submissions to a third party if we have a good-faith belief that doing so is required by a subpoena, by a judicial or administrative order, or is otherwise required by law. Additionally, we may disclose your personal data and other information as required by law or to exercise or defend legal rights; to take precautions against liability; to protect the rights, property, or safety of the resource of any individual or of the general public; to maintain and protect the security and integrity of our services or infrastructure; to protect ourselves and our services from fraudulent, abusive, or unlawful uses; to investigate and defend ourselves against third-party claims or allegations; or to assist government law enforcement agencies.

7. Where do we store personal data?

We may store your personal data outside of your country of residence, including in the United States, on servers, in cloud storage solutions, or on the premises of FamilySearch and its affiliated sponsoring entities. To ensure adequate protection of personal data transferred to other jurisdictions, we conclude data transfer and processing agreements between FamilySearch and our service providers, affiliated entities, and archives where legally required. These transfer agreements include Standard Contractual Clauses approved by the European Commission in compliance with EU law or other clauses as required by applicable law (which you may be entitled to review if you contact us using the information at the end of this Privacy Notice).

8. How do we secure personal data?

We use technical and organizational measures to protect the personal data we receive against loss, misuse, and unauthorized alteration and to protect its confidentiality. We regularly review our security procedures and consider state-of-the-art security technology and methods. We also use current encryption technology to encrypt the transmission of data on our log-in pages. However, because we cannot guarantee the complete security of these encryption technologies, please use caution when you submit personal data online.

9. How long do we retain personal data?

We retain collected personal data, including information collected via the Website and other submissions, for as long as necessary to support genealogical, historical, and statistical research and archival purposes. In general, unless you exercise a right of erasure or removal is otherwise required by applicable law, personal data is retained for the longer of: (a) 110 years from the date of creation or collection; or (b) any longer period required or permitted by applicable law.

10. How can you exercise your personal data rights?

We endeavor to maintain the accuracy of personal data and rely on you to ensure your personal data and any Living Data that you submit are complete and accurate. You may request access to your personal data and verify, correct, or update it, and limit visibility of your personal data through your Website-specific registration, through your profile, or through your FamilySearch account, as applicable. To review these options, please visit your FamilySearch account settings here.

Depending on the jurisdiction in which you reside, consumer protection or privacy laws may provide you with additional rights regarding the use of your personal data. You may contact us to exercise additional statutory rights using the information provided below. Such rights may include:

• Right to Access or Right to Know – You have the right to obtain access to the personal data we hold about you and to request certain information about our processing. You have the right to receive an explanation of (i) why we process your personal data, (ii) the categories of personal data we have about you, (iii) who we share your personal data with, (iv) how long we store your personal data, and (v) who we received your personal data from if it was not collected from you directly. We will also inform you about your privacy rights when required by applicable law.
• Right to Rectification or Correction – You have the right to correct, update or complete any personal data we hold about you that is inaccurate or incomplete. Please note that we may rectify or remove incomplete or inaccurate information, at any time as required or permitted by applicable law.
• Right to Erasure or Deletion – You may request to have your personal data erased or deleted, as appropriate. In this case, if there is no legal basis or overriding legitimate interest to continue processing your personal data, we will erase your personal data. Where appropriate and permitted by law, you have the right to request that we de-identify or anonymize certain information so that it no longer identifies you.
• Right to Object to Processing – You have the right to object to our processing of your personal data where we are relying on a legitimate interest or if we are processing your personal data for direct marketing purposes.
• Right to Restrict Processing – You have a right in certain circumstances to stop us processing your personal data other than for storage purposes.
• Right to Portability – You have the right to receive, in a structured, commonly used, and machine-readable format, personal data that we hold about you, if we process it based on our contract with you, or with your consent, or to request that we transfer such personal data to a third party where technically feasible.
• Right to Withdraw Consent – You may withdraw any consent you previously provided to us regarding the processing of your personal data at any time and free of charge. We will apply your preferences going forward. This will not affect the lawfulness of the processing before you withdrew your consent.
• Right to Lodge a Complaint – You may lodge a complaint with a data protection supervisory authority, including in your country of residence, place of work, or where you believe an incident took place.
• Right Against Discrimination – We will not discriminate against you for exercising your rights.
• Right to Opt Out of Targeted Advertising or Sale – Where required by applicable law, you may request that we stop using your personal data for targeted advertising or sharing.

The exact scope of these rights may vary by jurisdiction. Please contact us with any questions or to exercise these rights.

If another user is processing or sharing your personal data, please contact that user to ask them to delete or correct any personal data that they have submitted or shared about you. Each user is responsible for their own processing of any Living Data that they submit or share on the Website about other individuals. You may also reach out to us directly using the contact information provided below and we can assist with correcting or deleting your personal data upon request.

If you experience problems with modifying, deleting, or updating your personal data, you can contact us using the information provided at the end of this Privacy Notice.

11. Amendments.

This may be amended from time to time. You will receive of any amendments via this Website.

12. Contact us.

Inquiries concerning this Privacy Notice or any other questions you may have about our data processing can be sent via e-mail, fax, or mail to:

E-mail: privacy@familysearch.org
Fax:       +1-801-240-1187
Mail:    FamilySearch Data Privacy Office
                50 E. North Temple Street
                Salt Lake City, UT 84150-0005
                USA

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Supplemental Privacy Notice

(EEA, Turkey, Switzerland, and the United Kingdom (EEA+))

Effective: 24 March 2026

This Supplemental Privacy Notice applies only if you are a natural person located in the European Union, European Economic Area, Turkey, Switzerland, or the United Kingdom. It is incorporated into and forms part of the FamilySearch Global Privacy Notice.

This Supplemental Privacy Notice provides additional information unique to the EEA+ region.

1. Legal Bases for the Processing of Personal Data

If you are located in the EEA, Turkey, UK, or Switzerland, our legal basis for processing your personal data is described in this section:

• Consent – This is the case where you have consented to the use of your personal data.
• Contract – We need your personal data to provide you with our services to perform our obligations associated with our contract with you, such as to create and secure your account, or to respond to your inquiries.
• Legitimate Interest – We have a legitimate business interest in processing your personal data to provide the services to you. We only rely on legitimate interest as a legal basis when our legitimate interests do not override your fundamental rights and freedoms associated with privacy and data protection on balance. We ensure we comply with any requests you make to exercise your associated rights.
• Legal Obligation – We may have a legal obligation to process your personal data, for example to comply with tax and accounting obligations, and we may process your personal data when necessary to establish, exercise, or defend legal claims. We may also process your personal data when necessary to protect your or another individual’s vital interests.

2. Contacting the Controller

Please contact us as the controller of your personal data via privacy@familysearch.org.

3. Data Protection Officer

Our Data Protection Officer can be reached at:

E-mail: privacy@familysearch.org
Fax:       +1-801-240-1187
Mail:    FamilySearch Data Privacy Office
                50 E. North Temple Street
                Salt Lake City, UT 84150-0005
                USA

4. Data Protection Representative

Our Data Protection Representative can be reached at:

E-mail: privacy@familysearch.org
Fax:       +49 (0)69 5480 2310

Mail:    Kirche Jesu Christi der Heiligen der Letzten Tage in Deutschland

Körperschaft des öffentlichen Rechts, 

Berner Str 119,

60437 Frankfurt am Main 

Deutschland 

International Data Transfers

If you provide us with your personal data when using the Website from the EEA, Turkey, the UK, Switzerland, or other regions of the world with laws governing data collection and use that may differ from U.S. law, then please note that you are transferring your personal data outside of those regions to the United States for storage and processing.

If we transfer your personal data internationally, we will ensure that relevant safeguards are in place to afford adequate protection for your personal data and we will comply with applicable data protection laws, by relying on an EU, Turkey, UK or Swiss adequacy decision, or the current standard contractual protections for the transfer of your personal data or a derogation if it is available.

The specific legal basis for the international or cross-border transfer of your personal data is described in your Data Processing and Transfer Terms located here.

5. Complaints

You have the right to contact the appropriate supervisory authority at any time to lodge a complaint regarding the processing of your data. The list of EU supervisory authorities is located here. All other supervisory authorities can be located via a search for their website homepage.

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Supplemental Privacy Notice for Peru

Effective: 24 March 2026

This Supplemental Privacy Notice applies only if you are a natural person located in Peru. It is incorporated into and forms part of the FamilySearch Global Privacy Notice.

This Supplemental Privacy Notice provides disclosures required under Peruvian law.

1. Legal Bases for the Processing of Personal Data

If you are located in Peru, we process your personal data on the following legal basis:

Informed Consent: When personal data is obtained directly from you, we obtain your informed consent when you create an account on our Website, when you upload personal data to our Website, or when you otherwise submit your personal data to FamilySearch.

2. Existence and Identification of the Data Bank

Your personal data will be stored in secure databases hosted on the Website, which are used to operate, maintain, and support this service.

3. Registration

In Peru, the personal data bank in which your personal data is stored has been declared to the National Authority for the Protection of Personal Data, through its registration in the National Registry of Personal Data Protection under the name: “WEBSITE USERS” and the code: EE-2025-4. Any processing of personal data is carried out in compliance with applicable Peruvian law, including Law No. 29733 (Law on the Protection of Personal Data) and its regulations.

4. Your Rights and How to Exercise Them

In addition to the rights listed in Section 10 of the FamilySearch Global Privacy Notice, if you are located in Peru you have the right to: (i) prevent disclosure of your personal data, (ii) seek redress as provided in the Law on Protection of Personal Data, (iii) not be subject to automated decision-making, and (iv) receive compensation, in accordance with Articles 19-21 and 24-25 of the LPDP. You may exercise these rights regarding your personal data using the procedures described in Section 10 of the FamilySearch Global Privacy Notice.