Sunday 22 April 2012

Is a Website Privacy Policy and a Confidentiality Policy on a Website the Same Thing?

AppId is over the quota
AppId is over the quota

A website privacy policy and confidentiality policy are the same type of policy and the terms may be used interchangeably. These policies are required on most websites to comply with Australian laws.

The law outlines that anytime personal information is being collected online, any visitors to and users of the site, must be aware of what information is being collected, why and how it is being collected as well as how and where it is being stored. This may seem straightforward in many cases, but this measure is in place to attempt to prevent the misuse of information and to ensure a website user is fully aware that their information is being collected.

A privacy or confidentiality policy is normally found directly on a website or through a link to a dedicated page outlining this important policy. Essentially, it is recommended that every website have a privacy policy.

When entering information into a website, customers and visitors will want to be sure that they know exactly what this information will be used for and how it will be retained. Ensuring you have a privacy policy on your site assists this and gives confirmation to visitors that any information sent or given to a site will not be used for any unwanted or unknown purpose. Privacy policies must even go further than this and outline how data is stored, essentially forcing website owners to securely store personal information.

By owning or running a business website you need to be aware of the significance of misuse of personal information and your requirements as a website owner. It is quite apparent that this legislation is in place to prevent both the inadvertent and intentional misuse of information such selling email and other addresses which may be used to send spam mail to email addresses and also to ensure the safety and secured storage of information such as credit card details.

Implementing these policies is not a change from the typical practice of most websites. It can instead be interpreted as a codification of a websites current practice.

Generally, as both a safeguard and anytime information is received from a website visitor in any way, it can still be used for whatever purpose a website wishes, provided that the privacy policy first outlines what the purpose/s are in the policy on their site and, in some instances, gives the visitors the opportunity to 'opt out'. Users must have the option to review this policy when visiting the website and if they do not agree with it, they can choose not to use the site. This privacy policy option must be available prior to them giving any of their details and if they choose to opt out, the website owner cannot use any of their details.

When publishing any privacy policy, a website will need to ensure that they consider all the ways in which they gather and store information collected from a visitor to their site and outline its exact use. In many cases this collection will be very obvious but in other instances, it may be less direct. However collected, a website privacy policy needs to be written, clear and easily available to website visitors to ensure compliance with Australian legislation.

Want to know more? Click here for Free information on Website Privacy. Australian legal agreements and forms from http://legal123.com.au/.


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