Once I heard that Intellectual Property is the height of capitalism. Owning land and goods could be considered as a "natural" thing (I apologize to the socialists out there) but owning ideas, such an abstract and intangible thing is only possible in this late stage of capitalism. Whichever the case, we live in a world where there are rules to protect and share information. Here, I write about the legal considerations you need to know when owning a website.

I've found that the 4 most mentioned legal precautions you should consider are:

1. Privacy Policy

2. Disclosure

3. Disclaimer

4. Terms and Conditions

You can look for some free templates in the internet and implement them in your website. However, you also have the option to hire a lawyer and be completely sure about their accuracy.

Let's look them closely.

1. Privacy Policy 🔏

According to Wikipedia,

A privacy policy is a statement or legal document (in privacy law) that discloses some or all of the ways a party gathers, uses, discloses, and manages a customer or client's data.

You must clearly states what kind of information you are collecting from your users. Are you gathering some personal, financial, social network, or third-party data? Inform it to your readers and be sure they agree to share their data with you.

Here you can find more information about this and see some examples of website privacy policies. The key questions you must include in your privacy policy are the what, when, who, why, and how of your data collection practices.

2. Disclosure 💲

If you are payed for sharing a certain kind of information, you must inform your users about it. It is ethical and could prevent you from future misunderstandings. Your users have the right to be informed about your sponsors, affiliations, or any financial benefit resulting from your website.

3. Disclaimer ⚖️

¿What kind of information are you sharing? and ¿How your readers must interpret it? A disclaimer protects you from any misuse of the information you share.

Disclaimers cover a variety of possible implications that could be wrongly derived from your website. This includes violation of copyright (someone stealing your content), prevents you from taking responsibility about damages caused by the use of your product, among other things.

Let's say that you write about nutrition and health, it is clear that you cannot take responsibility for someone following your advices without consulting a doctor. Even if you have good intentions, you cannot know the individual situation of every single reader you have. You need to limit the liability of your publications.

Check this site for an extensive explanation in this topic, more examples, and templates.

4. Terms and Conditions (can also be Terms of Service or Terms of Use) 📑

What are the rules that your users must follow? It is important that you set an agreement with your readers about the good use of your website. Is your content restricted to under-age users? Do your readers need to consult you first before they can share publications?

I share again the most reliable and comprehensive websites that I've found in this regard. If you want, you can read in more depth about the topic, see some examples, and have access to templates: Terms of Use, Terms and Conditions, Terms of Service

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If you are thinking about starting a blog, I wish you all the best!

See you soon!

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