If you have a website or are hoping to set up one, it is important that you are aware of the relevant policies and legal pages you need.
For more information on website policies and legal pages, please see our FAQ on “Which policies or legal pages should my e-commerce website have?”
Along the same lines, in order to properly understand these policies and legal pages, you should be clear about the differences between them. In the below table, we focus on the key differences between the Terms and Conditions and Privacy Policy.
| Terms and Conditions | Privacy Policy | |
| Nature | Terms and Conditions and a Privacy Policy are both policies and legal pages that you should have on your website. Both take the form of an agreement and are legally binding contracts. Having both of these pages, therefore, will help minimize any potential legal complications or issues and the high costs associated with it. | |
| Purpose | Terms and Conditions detail what the user can and cannot do on your website as well as the rights and obligations of you, the company, and online visitors and customers. For instance, they set out what will happen if the user terminates the contract or breaks any rule. | A Privacy Policy details how you will collect and process the data of your online visitors and customers. |
| Parties involved | An agreement between you and online visitors/customers. | |
| Generally drafted in favour of protecting your business. | Generally drafted in favour of protecting customers and online visitors. | |
| Required by Law? | No. Although not strictly mandated by law, it is strongly recommended that you incorporate one on your website. Having Terms and Conditions will help to legally protect your business, limit your liability and ensure transparency and compliance with the relevant laws. | Yes. You must have a Privacy Policy page on your website in order to comply with the local Laws of Hong Kong in the Personal Data (Privacy) Ordinance (Cap. 486). Your Privacy Policy may also need to comply with the EU General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) if you process personal data relating to the offering of goods or services to individuals in the EU or the monitoring of the behaviour of individuals within the EU. |
| Template | For an example of what a Terms and Conditions page should look like and contain, you may refer to and use our Terms of Use template. Download and customize it according to your requirements. | For an example of what a Privacy Policy page should look like and contain, you may refer to and use our Privacy Policy template. Download and customize it according to your requirements. |
Key takeaways
- Terms and Conditions and Privacy Policy pages are both essential policies and legal pages on your website which comprise of legally binding agreements between your business and online visitors/customers.
- However, Terms and Conditions and Privacy Policy pages are fundamentally different and can be distinguished by their purpose, the parties involved, requirement by law, and contents.