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Legal Basics — Privacy Policy, Terms of Service, Cookie Banners

Understand the legal requirements for launching a web application and how to implement them.

12 min readreal-product, legal, privacy-policy, terms-of-service, gdpr, compliance

Nobody starts a side project excited about writing a privacy policy. But if you're building a product that real people use — especially one that collects any personal data or accepts payments — you need certain legal pages in place.

This isn't legal advice (I'm a developer, not a lawyer). This is a practical guide to what you need, why you need it, and how to get it done without spending thousands on attorneys.

What You Actually Need

The legal requirements depend on what your app does and where your users are. Here's a quick reference:

| Your App... | You Need | |-------------|----------| | Collects any personal data (email, name, etc.) | Privacy Policy | | Has users who create accounts or pay | Terms of Service | | Uses cookies or tracking (Google Analytics, etc.) | Cookie Consent

This lesson is part of the Guild Member curriculum. Plans start at $29/mo.