A Privacy Notice, also known as a Privacy Policy, is a statement or a legal document that discloses how a party gathers, uses, discloses, and manages a customer’s or client’s data.
It fulfills a legal requirement to protect a customer or client’s privacy. Personal information can be anything that can be used to identify an individual, including but not limited to their name, address, date of birth, marital status, contact information, ID issue and expiry date, financial records, credit information, medical history, where one travels, and intentions to acquire goods and services.
For example, when you visit a website, the Privacy Notice should inform you about the types of personal data the website collects from you, how this data is used, who it is shared with, the legal basis for processing the data, and how you can exercise your privacy rights.
This notice is usually accessible from the website’s footer so that it can be easily found by website visitors.
The purpose of a Privacy Notice is not only to inform you about how your personal data is handled but also to provide transparency and build trust between data collectors (such as businesses) and individuals.
It’s a way for businesses to communicate their data processing practices to users and to assure them that their information is being handled responsibly and in compliance with privacy laws like the GDPR in the European Union or the CCPA in California, USA.
Privacy Notices are essential for compliance with data protection laws that require clear communication about the collection and use of personal data.
They must be written in clear and plain language so that they are easily understood by the general public. Furthermore, they should be readily accessible at all times, allowing individuals to review them before providing any personal data.
If a website or a company plans to change how it processes personal data, it must update the Privacy Notice and inform individuals about these changes.
This ensures that individuals are always aware of what happens with their data and can make informed decisions about whether they want to continue using a service based on how their data is treated.
