In the age of the Internet, one might think that maintaining a website is easy to do. You post, you get your readers, and you become successful. For the most part, this is true – but if you do it wrong, you might end up facing a lawsuit. One blogger was sued due to the simple fact that she unknowingly used a copyrighted image.

Even on the Internet, the law still stands. If you don’t want to be sued over some random thing, you need to be careful about what you post, and how you post it. Here are a few things that you should keep in mind.

Data Privacy and Collection

Data privacy is a hot topic nowadays. Considering the cybersecurity threats out there, people don’t like it when their data is collected without their permission. Also, they don’t like it when their data is passed around without them knowing.

If you have a website, you may need to collect data from your visitors for marketing purposes. This can include things such as their email, location, preferences when they’re browsing your pages, and general activity while they are on your website.

Most websites collect such information, commonly known as “cookies.” However, since that is considered “personal data,” you need explicit permission. For this reason, you must set up a privacy policy, along with some terms and conditions.

Once you post that, your clients are considered notified and in agreement. As a result, they cannot hold you liable for the fact that you collected their data. You might want to do this content with the help of a lawyer, as they will know what is permitted and what’s not.

Make sure to place a link to your privacy policy in an obvious spot. Most websites will link to it in the website footer. This way, regardless of what page people are on, they will likely see your content. This will protect you from troublesome legal issues.

ADA Compliance

Nowadays, every website, big or small, should make sure that it is ADA-compliant. Not doing so might be considered discrimination and can have legal ramifications. Netflix, for example, was sued by a group of deaf people simply because it lacked subtitles. If such a big company was sued, then the smaller ones may not stand a chance.

To reduce your risk of being sued, you have to follow the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines. Depending on the type of content that you provide, you may be required to add the following:

Captions for videos
Alternative (Alt) text for pictures
Keyboard navigation on your website
Accessible forms that have clear messages
Appropriate ratios for color contrast

This is only a small list of things that you need to do to be compliant. If you have a business and your business has a website, then you must make sure the site can be accessed by anyone.

You might get away with some if it’s just a personal non-monetized blog. However, if you use it for income, you may want to be particularly careful.

Disclaimers

Disclaimers might seem like a small technicality, but in the right circumstances, they can protect you from being sued. Very often, disclaimers are a part of your Terms and Conditions page, but can also have a page of their own.

With a disclaimer section, you can disclaim all kinds of legal liabilities coming your way. You will not be held responsible for anything that a user might experience on your website.

Disclaimers have a variety of purposes, but the most important ones are:

They ensure that the users may not use any of your website content, without receiving express permission first.
To disclaim responsibility and expertise for any action that a user might take on your website, driven by your content.
Disclaim potential liabilities for advertisement and third-party content on your website
Inform your readers that the content of your website is for informational purposes and in no way professional.
Express that the opinions on your website are solely your own

For the most part, a disclaimer will protect you from legal actions, should any of your claims go wrong. For example, if you write a blog post with information that you gathered, disclaimers will cover you if your readers find it biased or lacking.

These pages can be tricky to write on your own, especially if you do not have experience with legal jargon. Most website owners opt for a blogger outreach agency, as they can make sure everything is covered.

Copyright Protection and Notice

As a business owner, you also need to protect and copyright your intellectual property. This will keep you away from copyright infringement. To prevent someone from using your content without express permission, you should add a copyright notice in your website’s footer.

To put it in effect, most website owners will create the copyright notice while building their page, or during a redesign project. For it to be valid, you need three things:

The copyright symbol (©) or “copyright”
The year in which you published your website
The website owner’s name, which would also be your business name

Bear in mind that if you want to protect your intellectual property, you should also be mindful of other people’s copyright. Make sure that you do not accidentally violate copyright laws while you are creating your website.

For example, using the incorrect image can land you in a variety of legal issues, such as a lengthy lawsuit. It may seem like something obvious, but you should not use random images downloaded from Google. There is a good chance that those pictures may be licensed.

Make sure that you use a copyright-free image. Stock image platforms are a good place to start. You may also purchase stock images, which will give you full rights over the picture. Free stock websites save you from legal hassle, but there is a chance that those images can be found on other pages, as well.

Legal Requirements for Websites Conclusion

Owning a website is not easy. If your readers are negatively affected by it, they may easily sue you. You can get liability insurance for this, but it’s best to avoid problems before they arise. The right content at the right time can save your business.

If you have questions about the legal requirements for websites near you, speak to an attorney.

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Legal Requirements for Websites and How to Meet Them