Three separate or combined important documents must exist on your business website to gain legal protection against any liabilities that may arise from running your website. They are “Privacy Policy”, “Terms and Conditions” and “Disclaimer”.
In addition, the privacy policy document has other practical effect. A link inside your business e-mail to the privacy policy webpage will tell intelligent spam filters that your e-mail has come from a reliable source and thus your e-mail letter will become more qualified to reach inbox of a user rather than junk mail. (Note that having a privacy policy link inside an e-mail is one of many other factors that are used to determine reliability of the e-mail by spam filters)
In the following paragraphs, I summarize the main points that should be included in your legal documents to protect your business:
Privacy Policy Document
This document governs the manner in which the website collects, uses, maintains and discloses information collected from its users. It should state explicitly:
- Explicit scenarios for collecting personal ID info using forms and implicit scenarios for collecting anonymous analytical info and whether the website uses cookies or not.
- All the purposes that your website will achieve after collecting users’ info and how your website will protect them.
- Disclaimer of any third party contents or links and whether the website uses ads or not and whether ads use cookies or not.
- Compliance with the Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA).
- Communications after registration and frequency of communication.
- How users can delete their profiles and/or unsubscribe from periodic communications.
- Your right of updating the privacy policy and the responsibility of users to review it.
- Customer support details.
- Using the website is deemed acceptance by the user on the Privacy Policy.
Terms and Conditions Document
This document is the business agreement between the registered users “members” and the website. Mainly it covers:
- Disclaiming from any liabilities resulted from inaccurate data or any misuse committed by any member and how the website will react on such cases and how it will control or review accounts to prevent this.
- The stand of the website with regard to transactions done between the members and other users. (this point depends on the business model)
- Whether the business may require personal ID papers for members or not and how it will protect these official documents.
- Membership fees and related financial issues.
- Responsibility of the user to protect his/her credentials.
- The official manners of communication between the website and members.
- Any minimum age restrictions.
- How the website will deal legally and/or technically with any action of hacking or damaging to the website.
- Your right to amend the agreement and the responsibility of the user to review it.
- Clicking on “Register” is deemed acceptance by the user on the agreement.
Disclaimer
- Disclaiming any lack of accuracy, reliability, suitability and/or availability of the website and its info.
- Disclaiming any liability for loss or damage in relation to using the website.
- Disclaiming third party links, ads and contents.
- Disclaiming any denial of service and/or technical issues that may prevent availability and/or accessibility.
Conclusion
Having an online business website may have legal impacts on your business however using the above legal documents can protect your business.
In addition, having a link to the privacy policy document inside your e-mails is one of the key factors that will ensure, with other factors, delivery of your e-mails to the inbox of users rather than junk mail.
The above summaries may help you, your legal advisor or lawyer in writing suitable legal documents for your website and you can also find many free and paid template packages on the web that may best fit to your specific business website.
Lack of these documents may not only expose you to liabilities, but also may result in blocking or blacklisting your website in many countries. For example, your website may be blocked in the USA if you do not include in your privacy policy your compliance status with regard to the Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA).
Note that your website may require additional types of legal documents and declarations however the above mentioned types are the least recommended legal documents for almost any website type.