The Coming Trend in Simplified Terms of Service

Google did it. Facebook did it. It’s time to consider simplifying the terms of service for a new generation of customers that demand more transparency. Not only can this approach become a competitive advantage in the short term, it may become standard business practice in the very near future. There is a growing sentiment among regulatory agencies that a lengthy terms of service page written in legalese cannot qualify as a channel for informed consent.

In Europe, where privacy concerns are more of a public discussion currently, The European Commons Science and Technology Select Committee insisted that social media companies simplify their terms of service in a recent report. The report concluded,

“Let’s face it, most people click yes to terms and conditions contracts without reading them, because they are often laughably long and written in the kind of legalese you need a law degree from the USA to understand. Socially responsible companies wouldn’t want to bamboozle their users, of course, so we are sure most social media developers will be happy to sign up to the new guidelines on clear communication and informed consent that we are asking the Government to draw up.”

Facebook’s Response

Facebook has responded by creating a new section called Privacy Basics. A streamlined version of Facebook’s new terms and conditions, especially relating to privacy and ownership of images, is illustrated using infographics. A connected site walks users through how to adjust their default privacy settings.

The Committee left the door open to legal action if companies don’t comply voluntarily. The director of privacy watchdog Big Brother Watch, Emma Carr, said she expects companies to do more:

“There is always more that could and should be done. With many internet companies’ [extremely long] privacy policies and terms and conditions…users are undoubtedly still in the dark about how their information is accessed and manipulated.”

ToS;DR

In addition, a project called Terms of Service; Didn’t Read (ToS;DR) has created a rating system for the transparency of terms of service pages. The site is still being developed so many of the largest sites on the web, like Facebook and Twitter, aren’t rated yet. Sites that have been thoroughly investigated range from DuckDuckGo, which received a top A rating, to TwitPic, which received the lowest possible rating of E.

Privacy and security policies are emerging as a critical battleground in the war for customer experience excellence as consumers spend more of their lives online and trust their financial information to more and more recurring billers.

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