Resources

The first time that I came across the acronym EULA, I wondered what it stood for simply because I was unfamiliar with it. Today, this acronym is becoming more widely spread and familiar to most Internet users. EULA refers to End User License Agreement. It’s the statement that we need to agree to in order to download software or use specific websites. If we don’t agree to the terms within the EULA, we will not be able to access the website or its software. Once most people realize this, they quickly click off the “yes” box whether they have read the EULA or not.

Even if you are tempted to pass up reading the End User License Agreement, you should still read it. I agree that it is all too easy to assume that it does not contain any worthwhile information. I would also have to agree that it often seems as though each End User License Agreement is the same as any other. After all, these paragraphs that seem to say something without actually saying anything all look the same and sound the same.

Nonetheless, we need to pay attention to every EULA that is attached to every website we visit. We shouldn’t blithely click off the box in front of the “yes,” agreeing to whatever terms are included in an End User License Agreement without actually reading what it says. I admit that it is tempting, especially when the EULA is a particularly long one. It is so much easier to simply click and make the box disappear. However, the EULA is a legal agreement. Once we click on the “yes,” we have agreed to whatever the EULA states within it- good or bad.

With all of the spyware that’s floating around in cyberspace today, reading the EULA becomes even more important. Some websites aren’t quite on the up and up and they include the right to perform various questionable actions within their EULAs. In particular, specific phrasing is included in some of these End User License Agreements that grants permission for the software vendor to install spyware as well as other types of detrimental installations. Some even prohibit you from using tools to remove the associated malicious program! Spyware is an undesirable presence that can disrupt your computer’s functioning, modify your operating system, and soak up memory resources.

This is why it is so important to read to the end of the EULA because that is where you are going to find the information that these websites don’t actually want you to see. Their EULAs start out innocently enough with basic comments, masking the End User License Agreement into one that is completely harmless.

Privacy policies are legal notices posted on a Web site detailing how the Web site will use personal information. Privacy policy requirements vary depending on the privacy laws governing the Web site. For example, privacy laws are different in Canada, the United States, and the European Union. Since you may visit Web sites from around the globe, you can’t be sure that your privacy is being protected according to your country’s laws.

While various laws or even an absence of laws dictate privacy policies, most contain similar information. Privacy policies generally tell you whether the Web site uses cookies or other data mining items, what personal information is collected, how they will use the information, who will receive the information, and how they will protect the information.

Most privacy policies are readily available through a link on the home page, often at the bottom of the page. For example, the Filetonic Web site provides a link to our privacy policy in the “footer” area located at the bottom of all pages. This privacy policy, like many privacy policies on the Internet, is based on US Safe Harbor principles.

US Safe Harbor for Privacy is a framework of data protection principles covering: notice, choice, onward transfer, security, data integrity, access, and enforcement. The safe harbor addresses the stricter privacy requirements of the EU and provides a means of providing privacy protection that meets these requirements. You can read more about Safe Harbor here.

It’s important to ready privacy policies so that you completely understand how your personal information is being used and protected. For example, if you purchase a product, you must reveal your credit card number as well as other personal information. Does the Web site have security measures in place to prevent someone accessing their servers and stealing their data?

Even if you aren’t going to purchase products from the Web site, you may be giving up personal information simply by landing on their home page. It’s not uncommon for IP addresses to be collected and recorded. While not necessarily personally identifiable, some users object to this.

If you can’t find a privacy policy posted on a web site, try Googling the Web site’s name followed by “privacy policy.” For example, typing in “Amazon privacy policy” immediately displays a link to Amazon’s privacy notice. Of course, had you scrolled to the bottom of the Amazon home page, you would have found a privacy notice link right next to the copyright notice.

Your assignment as you browse the Internet over the next few days is to start reading privacy policies. These are good measures of a Web site’s credibility. As you learn more about privacy issues, come back to Filetonic.com for advice covering protecting your privacy.