How many of you actually read the legalese that comes before hitting the “Accept” or “Submit” button on any website? I never bothered, and I suspect most of you don’t either. If this is the behaviour of the vast majority of internet users, why would something like this be of any importance? I’ve been thinking about this in the past few weeks and maybe it’s all a ploy to keep lawyers employed.
Saw this ad a few nights ago and I think it hits the spot.
Here’s another one that I didn’t know about:
Putting myself in the lawyers’ shoes (I think they’re pretty expensive shoes), I’d say that I’m protecting the company. Still, doesn’t it make you look bad to the customer if you persistently use walls of jargon that nobody reads as a shield? In short, maybe we could all make our lives simpler by using something like this to start off your “Terms & Conditions”: Very bad things could happen to you and your computer if you use this website/service/product. If you accept, we’re not responsible.
This would even fit in Twitter’s 140 character limit.
Just to add to the relevance of this post, I’ll disclaim something too by saying the views expressed in this and other posts on this blog do not necessarily reflect those of my employers past, present and (why not?) future.
jljl: my life in briefs 