What is a blog?
A blog (short for 'weblog') is a website or a section of a website that's regularly updated with new content, known as blog posts. These posts are typically displayed in reverse chronological order. Blogging can be done by an individual, a group, or a business and can cover almost any topic, from a personal blog about hobbies to a business blog for marketing. While some blogs are purely for expression, others may also be monetised through advertising, sponsored content, or selling products and services.
What legal information must my blog include?
Certain key documents and information are essential for making sure your blog is legally compliant and for building trust with your audience.
Privacy policy
If you collect any personal data from your visitors, you legally need a Privacy policy. Personal data includes names, email addresses (for example, for a newsletter), and IP addresses. Your privacy policy must explain what data you collect, why you collect it, how you use it, and how visitors can manage their data. This is a key requirement under data protection laws like the UK General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR).
If you are an individual operating a website (such as a blog), you will be responsible for how visitors interact with your website. Your privacy policy should let your website visitors know who you are and what you’re doing with their daye. This allows visitors to be aware of what to expect.
In order to ensure transparency between you and your blog visitors, your privacy policy will need to name or otherwise identify a person who visitors can contact about their data rights. If you are concerned about your personal details, you can use other forms of contact such as a PO Box for your address.
Privacy notice
You may also consider having a privacy notice (or ‘fair processing notice’) in place. As the blog owner, you're responsible for any personal data you collect (like names or emails), and this notice clearly explains what you do with it. In other words, a privacy notice is a simplified version of a privacy policy.
Your notice should clearly explain:
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who you are - your blog's name and a contact email for privacy questions
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why you're collecting data - your purpose, for example, to send a newsletter
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how you use and share it - what you do with the data and if you use third-party services (like analytics tools)
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how long you keep it - your data retention period (eg for as long as a user stays subscribed)
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your legal reason - your legal basis for using the data, which is often 'consent'
Ask a lawyer if you have any questions about privacy notices.
Cookies policy
If your blog uses cookies (small files that track user activity), you must have a Cookie policy. You also need to get your visitors' consent before using any non-essential cookies, usually via a cookie banner. Your policy should explain what cookies are, which ones your site uses, and what they do.
Terms and conditions
While not always a strict legal requirement for every blog, having Website terms and conditions is highly recommended. This document sets out the rules for using your site and covers things like:
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intellectual property - you want to safeguard your intellectual property, to prohibit visitors from potentially infringing your content
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prohibited use - this is where you set out what visitors cannot do on your website (eg no profanity, abusive language or spamming or copying content under copyright laws)
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permitted use - explain to your visitors what they are allowed to do on your website (eg downloading cooking recipes)
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limitation of liability - these protect your interests if someone brings a claim against you. Whilst you cannot exclude your liability completely, you could state that you will not be liable for certain losses if your visitors cannot use your website
If you sell products or services through your blog, you will need relevant Terms and conditions.
Disclaimers
A disclaimer can help protect you from legal liability. The type of disclaimer you need depends on your blog's content. For example, if you give advice (eg financial, health, or legal), you should include a disclaimer stating that your content is for informational purposes only and doesn't constitute professional advice. If you use affiliate links, where you earn a commission if a reader buys a product you link to, you must clearly disclose this. For more information, read Disclaimers.
Where should I display my legal documents?
Making your legal documents easy to find is a key part of compliance. They need to be clearly visible and accessible.
Privacy policy, privacy notice and cookie policy
Your privacy policy, privacy notice, and cookie policy should be accessible from every page of your blog. The standard and best practice is to place links to these documents in your website's footer. You must also provide a link to your privacy policy or notice at the point where you actively collect data, such as on a contact form or next to a newsletter sign-up button.
Terms and conditions placement
A link to your website terms and conditions should also be placed in your website's footer for general access. Crucially, if your blog requires visitors to create an account or purchase something, you must also provide a link and require them to agree to the terms (eg with a checkbox) before they can complete the registration or checkout process.
Disclaimer and disclosure placement
General disclaimers can be on a dedicated page linked in your footer. However, disclosures for sponsored posts, ads, or affiliate links have stricter placement rules. They must be visible and obvious within the content itself, right at the beginning of the relevant blog post, before the reader has to scroll down.
Do I need to register my blog as a business?
Your blog starts as a hobby, but it can become a business in the eyes of the law once you start earning a regular income from it. In the UK, if you earn more than £1,000 from your blog in a tax year (from 6 April to 5 April), you've surpassed the 'trading allowance'. This means you must register with HMRC and file a Self Assessment tax return for your income tax. Income can come from various sources, including:
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advertising
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sponsored posts
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affiliate marketing
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selling your own products or services
Failing to register and declare your income can lead to penalties, so it's important to keep track of your earnings from the start. For more information, read Setting up as a sole trader.
How do I handle sponsored content and advertising?
If you're paid to promote a product or service in a blog post (a 'sponsored post' or 'advertorial'), you must make it clear to your readers that the content is an advertisement. The Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) and the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) require that ads are obviously identifiable.
You should use clear labels like 'Ad', 'Advertisement', or 'Sponsored' at the very beginning of the post. Simply saying 'in collaboration with' or 'thanks to brand X for making this post possible' isn't usually considered clear enough. Being transparent about advertising is not only a legal requirement but also crucial for maintaining your readers' trust.
For more information, read Social media advertising and endorsements and How to set up as an influencer.
How can I protect my blog's content?
You automatically own the copyright to the original content you create for your blog, including your text, photos, and videos. This means that others cannot legally use your work without your permission.
To remind visitors of this, you can include a Copyright notice on your blog, usually in the footer. This typically reads: '© [Your Name/Blog Name] [Year]. All rights reserved'.
If you find that someone has copied your content without permission, you can take action. The first step is usually to contact them and issue a takedown notice asking them to remove it. You can do this yourself, or you can Ask a lawyer to help you. It’s also important to respect others' copyright by only using images, quotes, or other content when you have the right to do so, for example, by using royalty-free stock photos or getting permission from the creator.
If you need to make key legal documents for your blog, you can make a Privacy policy, Cookie policy, Website terms and conditions, or Terms and conditions for the sale of goods or service in minutes.
Do not hesitate to Ask a lawyer if you have any questions or need help protecting your blog.
