If your website or mobile app collects users’ personal information, you must have a Privacy Policy. There are many countries where not having a privacy policy is illegal.
In what ways are privacy policies governed by law, and what do they entail? In what way should a Privacy Statement be written? Let’s check it out.
Explain Confidentiality Clause
According to BusinessDictionary.com, a Privacy Policy is as follows:
A policy statement is required when personal information from visitors is collected or shared. It typically outlines the types of data collected and whether or not that data is sold, shared, or kept private.
Online businesses that operate a mobile app or website are required by law to have a Privacy Policy in place.
What personally identifiable information you collect from your users, where you get it, what you do with it, and who you share it with should all be detailed in your Privacy Policy.
Almost every website will have a link to one of these obligatory agreements at the very bottom.
Legal Requirements Regarding Privacy
A privacy policy is required by law in many countries for any website or app that gathers or uses personally identifiable information. These regulations safeguard both consumers’ privacy and their financial data.
You should be aware of the requirements for your Privacy Policy under these laws if you make your website or mobile app available to users outside of your home country.
The GDPR in the EU, PIPEDA in Canada, and CalOPPA in the United States are examples of this legislation.
Getting Ready to Draft a Privacy Statement
The first thing you should do when writing a Privacy Policy is to gather all the information you’ll need to fill it out.
If you put in the time and effort to plan out each detail of your privacy policy, you can rest assured that nothing will be overlooked, and you’ll have an easier time writing the policy itself.
The following considerations should be made during the planning phase:
- Your privacy policy will be much easier to write if you collect, store, and process as little individual user data as possible.
- Think about whether or not collecting the data from your users is absolutely necessary before doing so. Does it make sense to ask for the user’s birthday and state of residence, for instance, if your website provides an email newsletter? In this case, all you need to do to have your newsletter sent to a user is collect their email address.
- Learn how you typically process data and how you collect it. Remember that your Privacy Policy’s goal is to provide users with access to certain details. This means you should know what you’re doing so you can adequately describe it in your Policy.
- Don’t forget that your Privacy Policy should avoid using complicated legalese. You should use words and phrases that anyone can pick up and understand.
In addition to being easily navigable, the policy shouldn’t be too detailed, and jargon should be avoided wherever possible.
Provisions of a Privacy Statement
Some of the most crucial provisions of a Privacy Policy are outlined below.
Data Collecting
Your website or app must be transparent about the types of personal information collected and how that information is obtained. While some companies choose to combine these two pieces of information into a single clause, others prefer to keep them separate.
Most businesses employ a list format for this section because it makes the information readily accessible and understandable.
Additionally, a list format can be used as a checklist, making it less likely that anything will be forgotten.
LinkedIn includes a detailed “Data We Collect” section in its Privacy Policy. The company collects information such as users’ full names, employment histories, credentials, and locations. Due to the magnitude of the data collected, it is essential that the company provide clear and complete explanations to its customers.
Making Use of the Data
Here is where you can tell your users exactly what you plan to do with the data you collect from them and why.
Customers need to know how the information you collect will be used and how it might benefit them. The same holds true for the information gleaned from your website’s analytics and used to gauge customer happiness and sales patterns.
Disclosing Information About Outside Parties
The vast majority of users are concerned that their personal information may be shared without their knowledge or consent. Customers should be made aware of whether or not their personal information will be shared and under what circumstances that information will be shared.
Confidentiality of Personal Data
Give your clients the assurance that their data will be secure in your system. Even if you’re not required to provide information in this section about precisely how you safeguard the data, make it abundantly clear that you do take measures and have systems in place to ensure the safety of the data.
User autonomy
In addition, your privacy policy must contain a section outlining the rights of users. If you want your Privacy Policy to meet the requirements of the General Data Protection Regulation, this is especially crucial to remember.
This section should make it clear that users have the right to update or delete their information, as well as the right to view any data you have stored about them. This is crucial because consumers need to be aware that they can take immediate action to protect their privacy by rescinding any and all consent they may have previously given.
Cookies
Websites that are based in the European Union (EU) or that are aimed at residents of the EU are subject to the EU Cookies Directive if they use tracking technologies like cookies. A separate Cookies Policy will be required if this describes you.
If your company is exempt from the Cookies Directive, you can still disclose your cookies practices by including a “Cookies Clause” in your Privacy Statement.
Notification of Changes
Typically, a Privacy Policy will have a section devoted to Notification of Changes.
Your company’s reputation for openness and transparency will improve if you inform users of any changes to your Privacy Policy. In addition, you have the freedom to make any necessary adjustments to your Privacy Policy under this provision.
This could come in handy if you ever need to switch up the specifics of the client information you collect and store.
How to Get in Touch with Us
At the end of your Privacy Policy, you should provide a way for customers to get in touch with you if they have any questions or concerns about the way you’ve handled their personal information. This shows that your company is transparent about its data practices and is willing to have conversations with its customers.
Make it easy for people to get in touch with you by including as many avenues of contact as possible, such as phone numbers, email addresses, physical mailing addresses, and links to online contact forms.
Detailed Instructions on Crafting a Confidentiality Statement
Since businesses are always in different stages of development and require various types of customer information, there is no “one-way” to write a privacy policy. If you’d like to create a privacy policy for your website or app, however, you can do so by following the detailed instructions below.
Find out what information about your users you need.
When reviewing your privacy policies, one of the most sought-after pieces of information by customers is the specifics of the data you collect. When crafting your privacy policies, keep this in mind. Create a document with all the details you’ll need to launch your website or app.
The aforementioned categories represent the various user data that may be collected.
Explain why you need this information.
Make sure your users understand why you need to collect their information. The reason should be made clear to your clientele.
Is it something they do while using your app or website? If it isn’t useful, then why are we collecting it? Do you want to help them have a more unique and satisfying time while using your site? Users/visitors should be informed as to the purpose of data collection.
Which method of data collection do you prefer?
When learning how to create a privacy policy, it’s also important to think about what kind of user data collection methods you’d like to implement. Cookies, surveys, order forms, account registrations, and other similar methods are just a few examples of data collection tools. A privacy policy is technically lacking if it does not detail the means by which information will be collected.
Clearly state whether or not third parties will have access to the data you collect from your users.
Help your customers see how you plan to put their data to use and who will have access to it. You need the consent of the person whose data you are collecting and give them the option to agree or disagree with how you intend to use it if you want to provide other parties access to the data (i.e. sell it, use a platform to analyze it, etc.).
You should also specify in your privacy policy how long you intend to keep their information stored, who will have access to it, and so on.
Describe potential changes to your privacy policies.
Clearly define your plan for informing users and visitors of any changes to your privacy policy. The changes could affect how you currently collect, store, and utilize information. If you intend to use people’s data in ways not disclosed in the privacy policy, you must also explain how you will inform them.
- Consent is crucial; you should always ask for it from your site visitors and users.
- Give some thought to how you keep users’ private information safe.
- Consumers need to know not only that you will protect their information, but also how you will do so, especially in light of the rapidly increasing rates of cyber-attacks.
Inform them of the level of security afforded their data and the measures you’ll take to further protect it. The use of SSL, passwords, physical access controls, and other forms of encryption should also be disclosed.
Remember!
Be sure to include the following in your company’s Privacy Policy when you are writing it:
- Think about and assess the current state of your information gathering processes and criteria.
- Make a complete list of all the places, both overt and covert, on your site where you collect and store personally identifiable information about visitors.
- Identify any unnamed parties that may be collecting data about your users.
- Be sure to follow the regulations in effect in the area where your business operates.
- Verify the legality of your website or app in all of the regions where it will be accessed.
- Verify that you’re upholding the privacy standards established by other parties.
- Allow users the option to update, delete, or transfer any personal data you store about them.
- Make sure that your Privacy Policy is easy to understand and implement, and that it promotes a welcoming and secure environment for all employees.