A privacy policy is a document that tells your users about the ways in which you will collect, use, and share their personal information. It should be clear to your users what information you will collect and how it will be used.
When creating your privacy policy, you should take into account the following considerations:
1. What information will you need from your users?
2. How will you protect that information?
3. What will you do with user data once it is collected?
4. How will you notify your users if there is a change to your privacy policy?
5. Do any of the policies in your privacy policy contradict each other? If so, how will you resolve the conflict?
6. Are there any exceptions to the policies in your privacy policy? If so, list them.
7. Will the policy apply to all of your web sites, or just this one blog site? If this is a blog site only, are there any specific policies that apply to blog content specifically? For example, if you post comments on other sites, do they fall under the same privacy policy as blog posts? If not, how do you handle comments on blog posts specifically?
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How often will you review and update your privacy policy?
9. Are there any fees associated with using or accessing your site’s Privacy Policy? If so, what are they and how do they work?
10. Is it possible for users to contact you about any issues or questions they have about using your site’s Privacy Policy? If so, where can they find your contact information?
11. Do any of the policies in your privacy policy override local law in your jurisdiction(s)? If so, specify which laws and/or regulations are being overridden.
12. Do any of the policies in your privacy policy apply only to certain types of user data (e.g., personally identifiable data vs non-personally identifiable data)? If so, specify which types of data are covered by each policy and list any exceptions to the policies that apply to those types of data.
13. What recourse does a user have if he or she disagrees with one or more aspects of the Privacy Policy? For example, can a user request that his or her personal information be removed from Your Site’s records even if he or she has not violated any policies defined in the Privacy Policy? Can a user request changes to one or more aspects of his or her personal information that has been collected by Your Site without having to go through an invasive process such as requesting a “data removal” form from You Site administrator(s)? How does Your Site respond to such requests? And finally… .
What can be done better: In order for users to truly understand and appreciate how their personal information is being used on Your Site (and by extension why certain actions may require their consent), it is important for You Site administrators to communicate effectively with their users on topics such as consenting to using cookies and providing demographic information about Your Site’s audience (e.g., age range, gender composition).
Additionally, incorporating prominent notices throughout Your Site informing visitors about our use of cookies (e g., “You can disable cookies through your browser settings”), providing easy access to unsubscribe from future email communications (if desired), and prominently displaying links to our Privacy Policy on all pages where personally identifiable information may be requested (e g., registration forms) would go a long way in reassuring visitors that their data is being handled respectfully and with transparency – two key tenets of good online privacy management practices!.