In today’s digital age, online privacy is becoming an increasingly important concern. With the rapid development of technology, it has become easier for companies to collect and use personal data from their users. Whether it’s for targeted advertising or other forms of marketing, this data can be indispensable to businesses.
However, it also poses serious risks to user privacy. To address this issue, many websites now have a privacy policy that outlines how they collect, use, and protect users’ data.
Local businesses working with clients in the state of Montana are not exempt from these online privacy policies.
Montana has several laws that govern online privacy. These include the Montana Consumer Protection Act, which prohibits unfair and deceptive practices related to online commercial activity, and the Montana Data Breach Notification Act, which requires businesses to notify consumers in the event of a data breach that compromises personal information. Just last month (May 2023) Montana passed the Montana Consumer Data Privacy Act (MCDPA). This law will go into effect on October 1, 2024, imposing requirements such as having a Privacy Policy on businesses that need to comply with this law.
To read more information about the MCDPA and how it applies to your website and online privacy, you can read this article from Termageddon (view article here).
What You Need To Do:
If your website has a contact form or is using Google Analytics, you need to have a privacy policy.
- If you already have a privacy policy, you may want to take a look and make sure it’s updated for the Montana Consumer Data Privacy Act.
- If you are subscribed to my Premium Maintenance & Security plan, you are eligible for a Premium privacy policy that will AUTOMATICALLY be updated when this privacy act goes into effect. That’s pretty awesome.
- If you’re on a different Maintenance & Security plan and would like to have a Premium policy that automatically updates itself, let me know. Plans are $10/month.
Overall, Montana takes online privacy seriously and has enacted various laws to protect consumers’ personal information. You should probably take your privacy policy seriously as well.
