It seems, the young at heart weren’t the only ones who had trouble making sense of Instagram’s terms of use. The Washington Post reported that actual youngsters also found them hard to understand.
A UK privacy lawyer, Jenny Afia, reworked the terms and conditions – and renamed them as “Our Rules if you want to use Instagram” – to include the following simplified passages, among others:
• Don’t let anyone else use your account.
• Keep your password secret.
• Don’t bully anyone or post anything horrible about people.
• Don’t post other peoples’ private or personal information.
• You have the right to feel safe using Instagram.
• Don’t send us ideas on how to improve Instagram.
• Officially you own any original pictures and videos you post, but we are allowed to use them, and we can let others use them as well, anywhere around the world. Other people might pay us to use them and we will not pay you for that.
• We may keep, use and share your personal information with companies connected with Instagram. This information includes your name, email address, school, where you live, pictures, phone number, your likes and dislikes, where you go, who your friends are, how often you use Instagram, and any other personal information we find such as your birthday or who you are chatting with, including in private messages (DMs).
• We are not responsible for what other companies might do with this information.
• We can change these rules whenever we like by posting an update on Instagram, whether you notice it or not.
Now, it likely comes as no surprise that kids can actually figure out what these passages mean.
And, maybe we all can benefit from this sort of initiative – Instagram and other online providers not least of all…
More understandable legal writing can make for a better meeting of the minds, and more enforceable terms, conditions, and agreements.
With simple and clear writing, HOLBECHE LAW can help clients prepare better agreements to protect and enforce their IP.