The Legal Side of No-Code App Building

You've built a really cool app, tested it thoroughly, and you're ready to market it and start making money. You've taken care of everything, right? Well, maybe. One very important detail that often gets overlooked is the legal requirements that may apply to your application.

First and foremost, if your app collects any personal information from the user you're automatically subject to a number of federal and state privacy laws. To be clear, personal information includes almost anything about the user: name, address, date of birth, email address, website login information, bank account number, prescription medications, and much more. If your application (or any third-party service it connects to) collects or has the ability to collect personal information from  its users, you're required to post a privacy policy regarding that ability and post it in a prominent place. That can be prominently displayed on the home screen of your app or anywhere that the user is sure to see it.

OK, so you need a "privacy policy", but what is that? Basically, it's a statement that lets your users know:

• Exactly what type of personal information your app will be collecting and why you need that information.
• How the app will be collecting the user's information.
• How you intend to protect their personal data (although you may want to include a statement that you're not responsible for malware that may extract that data).
• How long you may be storing their personal information and where it will be stored.
• If you use cookies in your app.
• What options the user has as far as restricting the personal information they supply.
• Who to contact if the user has questions or reservations about your privacy policy.

There are several options for creating a privacy policy. You can roll your own, you can consult with a lawyer, or there are a number of websites that can supply you with a template or generate a basic privacy policy for you. It's also a good idea to ask users to digitally sign something stating that they accept the terms of your policy. However you go about it, make sure that if your website or mobile app collects this type of information, make your users aware of it in order to avoid possible penalties or lawsuits.