Last Updated June 2021 by Crystallace

Hey! Welcome back to my blog. As a lawyer, I can’t help but notice how many bloggers out there don’t have an up-to-date Privacy Policy on their blog.

In fact, I often see bloggers ask in Facebook Groups, “do I need a Privacy Policy on my blog?” The answer is Yes. In this blog post I will explain in plain English and not confusing legal jargon,

8 Reasons Why You Need a Privacy Policy On Your Blog

As users become more aware of the importance of protecting their personal information online, a privacy policy becomes an absolute necessity. I often see bloggers put off getting a Privacy Policy because they think it’s something they can just get to later. The truth is, no matter the size or age of your website, you must let users know what type of information you are collecting and how you will use it.

You need to do this more importantly for legal reasons, but also because it is an effective way to demonstrate your transparency and strengthen the bond of trust with your customers.

Here are 8 Reasons Why You Need a Privacy Policy On Your Blog

It communicates your intent

A blog should have a privacy policy because it communicates the intent of the owner. Users are entitled to know the nature of the information collected, personal or not, as well as their functions;

It’s required by law

A privacy policy is required by law in many jurisdictions, including the United States, for sites that sell any products or collect any personal information, including emails, online. Even if you think you don’t collect any personal information you probably do because today, most plugins and websites cannot function without collecting user information.

It let’s your users know you are not responsible for other websites

It informs users that the site owner is not responsible for any content on external sites. If a user decides to follow links that lead to other sites, they are no longer protected by the original site’s privacy policy;

It let’s your users know that you use cookies

The privacy policy makes it possible to announce that the owner of the site or third-party advertisers may use cookies, which make it possible to collect data on the browsing habits of users;

Google requires that you have one

Google services, such as Google Analytics, Google AdWords, and Google AdSense, require the inclusion of certain privacy rules in your policy. When you use the services of Google AdWords (advertisements), you must comply with its regulations. In case of non-compliance, Google reserves the right to block your ads and may even, in some cases, delete your account. Also, some affiliate programs and advertisers may refuse to work with you, if you do not have a proper up-to-date privacy policy on your site.

It allows you to explain to your users

Your online privacy policy explains to users:

• The information you collect
• The way you collect it
• How you store and protect it

You must inform users who visit your website, what data you will collect, and how you will use it. You must have a clear, detailed policy and the information must be understandable for all types of visitors.

Reassure your audience

The purpose of the Privacy Policy is to assure users that their data will be collected for a specific purpose that they will know about and that you will always do so with their consent, protecting their privacy. The data cannot be transferred to third parties, and they will only receive information from you. Web pages and blogs are being legally regulated to give the user security.

You need to able to collect data

You want to be able collect data (and you probably already do). If user data is stored, you will be able to know what your web statistics are, have subscriptions by email, and registrations on your platform. If you’re already collecting emails then you need to implement the privacy policy to comply with the established law and guarantee the security of the data collected.

Conclusion

If you’re thinking that you need a privacy policy for your blog yesterday, then you are probably thinking right.

In addition to a Privacy Policy, you also need a Terms of Use and a Disclaimer to have your blog legally protected. I talk about that more in depth in this blog post.

Luckily, I have put my law degree and my student loans to work and wrote one specifically for bloggers. My easy-to-use, affordable Website Legal Bundle includes the three legal pages that every blogger needs on their site for one low price.

Any questions about the Privacy Policy? Let me know in the comments.