TLRL: Privacy laws are changing and I am not a lawyer. We use Termageddon to dynamically comply with the changing Privacy laws.
Privacy Policies
Did you know that European countries and now states in the United States are passing privacy protection laws? Some of these US laws allow citizens to sue businesses anywhere in the United States if they don’t have a compliant Privacy Policy.
Nevada plans to enact privacy laws on October 1st
Maine on July 1st
California on January 1st
and there are about a dozen other states with laws in the works.
Fines start at $5,000 per infraction and go even higher.
This requires us all to have a Privacy Policy and to continually keep it up-to-date as the laws are passed and revised.
Who Enforces?
The FTC is the government body designed to make sure that consumer privacy is taken seriously and that consumers are not harmed by claims that are deceptive.
Who Needs a Privacy Policy?
Just about every website has some kind of form to obtain at least your name, email, or phone number. This is personally identifiable information that is protected by law. This is what requires us all to have a Privacy Policy.
Many websites use cookies to track activity.
Why Do I need a Privacy Policy?
First, because the law requires it if you collect personally identifiable information.
Second, do you use Google Analytics or Google Ads? Are you an Amazon Affiliate? These services and many others have Terms of Service that require that you have Privacy Policy on your website. If you don’t comply they can prevent you from using their services.
Third, prevent getting sued by the US Government or getting sued by clients. Being clear and straightforward about what happens to a visitor’s personal data can help you avoid all kinds of problems down the road.
Fourth, being clear always builds trust which can lead to more happy customers.
Why can’t I just copy another Privacy Policy?
Do you really want to take that chance? The one you copy may come from a competitor who does business quite differently from you.
The one you copy may be poorly written or well out of date.
Finally, you are committing a crime called copyright infringement. You can be sued and fined.
What should I do now?
Consider contacting me to learn more about Termageddon, a service that we are partnering with, that combins the legal and technical talent to watch the laws across the land and update your Privacy Policy or Terms of Service dynamically.
They do the heavy lifting and we will get your pages setup, put the code in place and created the links on your website.
Our Privacy Policy and Terms of Service links are right in the footer.
