Earlier this year I wrote a post called Is Your Website Protected from Lawsuits? In that post I addressed the need to have an up-to-date Privacy Policy on your website. This issue has become more critical over the last few months.
Did you know there is a California law that allows you or your business to be sued if your website is in non-compliance – even if you are outside California?
The California Invasion of Privacy Act (CIPA) law has been getting a lot of press recently, and not in a good way for small and medium-sized businesses. The law, which went into effect in 1994, was originally meant to protect residents from third party eaves dropping on private communications (at that time, phone conversations). But, over the years, it has been reinterpreted to cover all kinds of communication, including on a website.
The short story is that any website that uses third party tracking of any kind, without asking for and receiving consent from the visitor first, can be sued by a consumer for up to $5000. Third party tracking apps includes tools like Google Analytics, Meta Pixel, Chatbots, YouTube embedded videos and more. It’s safe to say that A LOT of small businesses are using these tools.
Litigious individuals are willfully using these laws to their advantage to demand companies pay up or risk an even more expensive lawsuit (remember that lawsuits cost money on top of the $5000 fine!). These aren’t empty threats; there are more and more law firms willing to take part in these lawsuits.
There are a few steps you can take to ensure you are in compliance with CIPA:
- Look over any tools used on your website to identify what data is being collected and how.
- Update your website privacy disclosure to match your tracking tools.
- Use a consent banner that blocks tracking on your website until the visitor accepts your terms.
At Web Savvy, we use a third-party app to stay on top of the latest laws and interpretations of the law to ensure that your website complies with the current legal framework – without you having to stay on top of it! Our colleagues said they have recently gone from 10 calls a month, to 10 calls a day about the CIPA lawsuits. Don’t leave yourself at risk. Reach out to us today to find out how Web Savvy can help you stay protected.