Selling with Confidence: Privacy Policy Guidelines for Course Creators
Get ready. You are about to learn about the reasons why course-based websites might require privacy guidelines.
Ok, it's isn't the most interesting topic but it's an important one.
Privacy has become a bigger and more important issue. The public is demanding website owners to safeguard their personal information. If they do not, the fines could be very costly just because they don't disclose your privacy policies.
If your website is used by your institution to collect data which is controlled, you are legally required to disclose specific information to help users know exactly what's happening with their information.
The piece (and the webinar) is intended to provide course creators the fundamentals of the policies for websites which are mandatory to be posted on specific websites for creators of courses, as well as how to ensure proper policies implemented (and ensure that they are up to date in the course of time).
Before we proceed It is important to be aware that this piece of content and webinar is not legal advice and is meant for informative purposes only. It is recommended to speak to an attorney in the area to assist you meet your compliance needs.
What kind of data are thought to be subject to regulation?
Email addresses, names, and IP addresses are governed by numerous privacy laws around the world. If you're collecting any of these details, you might need a privacy Policy regardless of where you're located.
The big lesson: The governments who make privacy laws aren't concerned about the geographical location of your business. They're focused on protecting individuals' data. If you're gathering data in multiple places, it might be necessary to comply with different privacy laws and provide the required disclosures under each of them (yes each privacy law is distinct).
Is collecting regulated data bad?
Not at all! It is only necessary to make certain disclosures regarding this issue.
Data collection such as names, email addresses, and IP addresses can help your customers have a great experience while visiting your website. Additionally, it allows you to develop improvements for your website to come in the near future.
The only thing that's really altered is the need to be aware of the procedures you employ to protect your privacy. Ensure that you've got the appropriate guidelines on your site that include the appropriate disclosures that you are specifically legally required to disclose in accordance with the law(s) that apply to your site.
Does your website course collect regulated data?
A majority of websites collect controlled data. It's almost mandatory to ensure spammers aren't trying to take advantage of your contact forms and is impossible to accept payment with out. Thus, collecting personal information is commonplace for websites, and it could be more extensive than you imagined.
The most common features on platforms that gather regulated information:
- The registration process for classes and memberships is open.
- Accepting payments
- Video embedded from 3rd site sites of 3rd
- Engage triggers
- Rewarding your Learners
- Email drips
- Discussion forums
- Integrity
- Quizzes
HTML0Common integrations that let course creators share data with partners from third parties:
- embedding 3rd party video clips into classes (YouTube, Vimeo, etc.)
- Integrations with payment gateways (Stripe, PayPal, etc.)
- Automated renewal notification (Mailgun, ActiveCampaign, Mailchimp and others.)
- Email newsletter subscription forms (Mailchimp, ActiveCampaign, Constant Contact, etc.)
- Data transfer providers (Zapier, etc.)
What should I do if I am worried?
In simple terms, it is essential to set up policies on your website in order to generate more sales and avoid non-compliance of penalties or legal actions. Also, by applying website policies that build trust, you help comply to the laws.
Privacy isn't going anywhere (if you look at it this way the importance of privacy is growing) and the inability to maintain a completely compliant Privacy Policy can land webmasters in problems when it comes to privacy laws (where penalties start at $2500 for every user of a site whose rights have been violated by you).
It is worth considering attending our live webinar which we'll teach you the fundamentals of web policies and how to get appropriate ones and the best way to keep them up to date over time!
What can you do about it?
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