IM Compliance with the Law

[explorer]

What are the legal requirements for doing business on the internet?

Can anyone answer this question, as I want to be legal, and I do not want any trouble with legal issues.
Thanks
Tony

[golfer57]

Hello,
Just do a search on Google and I bet you will get more answers than you will want to read. But that is the place to find out for sure.
Steve

[jasonga]

It does depend a bit on what you want to do exactly, and where you live can affect things too. Bearing in mind that I'm not a lawyer, at the most basic:

* If you have site that is health or make-money related, you want a disclaimer on your site (you're not a doctor so this isn't medical advice, you're not a financial expert and income claims aren't guaranteed, etc).
* You want a privacy policy document, especially if you have a mailing list or your site might be accessed by younger people.
* You want a "terms of use" document, that basically says people use information from your site at their own risk, they can't copy it (or they can if you want them to), and you're not responsible for the content of any sites that you link to (very important).

You can find plenty of privacy and terms of use templates online, or buy a pack that has them (there are a few).

There are probably a few more things, but they escape my mind at the moment

Cheers,
Jason

[explorer]

Thank you guys, for your answers. Jason, that is exactly the info I was looking for. Appreciate it.
Tony

[cobwab]

hi,
Here's a couple:

1. Copyscape-search for copies of your page on the web- avoid plagiarism
2. Herzlich Willkommen! Check 18 countries for trademark - is your website name infringing on someones trademark

Then their are libel and slander issues in forums, more so in GB than USA