How to Add a Privacy Policy in Blogger (BlogSpot)

Written by FreePrivacyPolicy Legal Writing Team and last updated on 03 July 2023.

How to Add a Privacy Policy in Blogger (BlogSpot)

While Blogger (BlogSpot) doesn't specifically require bloggers to have a Privacy Policy, your blog may need this agreement.

If your blog is collecting personal information from people who visit it, a number of privacy laws require a Privacy Policy. Additionally, if your blog utilizes third-party features or functionality (such as Google Analytics or AdSense), these third parties will oftentimes require a Privacy Policy in their Terms of Use agreements.

Why a Privacy Policy is Required for a Blog

A Privacy Policy may be required by law even if not required by Blogger (BlogSpot) directly.

These privacy laws are in place around the world and work to protect the privacy rights of individuals. And they don't only apply to blogs operating from their geographic region.

For example, the EU's GDPR applies when personal information is collected from people in the EU, regardless of where the information collector is located. In other words, if you live in and blog from the United States but have a user base in the EU, you'll fall under the jurisdiction of the GDPR.

Some of the most influential and wide-reaching of these laws include CalOPPA in the United States and the GDPR in the EU.

Something as basic as having an email subscription form on your blog will mean your blog legally needs a Privacy Policy.

How to Create a Privacy Policy

Our Free Privacy Policy Generator helps you create a custom Privacy Policy for your website and mobile app. Just follow these few simple steps and your Privacy Policy will be ready to display in minutes.

  1. Click on the "Free Privacy Policy Generator" button, located at the top of the website.
  2. Select where your Privacy Policy will be used:
  3. FreePrivacyPolicy: Privacy Policy Generator - Select platforms where your Privacy Policy will be used - Step 1

  4. Answer a few questions about your business:
  5. FreePrivacyPolicy: Privacy Policy Generator - Answer a few questions about your business - Step 2

  6. Enter the country and click on the "Next Step" button:
  7. FreePrivacyPolicy: Privacy Policy Generator - Enter the country - Step 2

  8. Continue with building your Privacy Policy while answering on questions from our wizard:
  9. FreePrivacyPolicy: Privacy Policy Generator -  Answer on questions from our wizard - Step 3

  10. Almost done. Now enter your email address where you'd like your new Privacy Policy sent and click on the "Generate" button and you're done.

    FreePrivacyPolicy: Privacy Policy Generator - Enter your email address - Step 4

    That's it. Now you can copy and paste your Privacy Policy code into your website, or link to your hosted Privacy Policy.

Blogger (BlogSpot) allows bloggers to insert an HTML widget where an email newsletter subscription form can be used. If you're using this feature, you'll need a Privacy Policy.

Example of Email Subscription Form in Blogger - BlogSpot

In addition to the law, third parties often require a Privacy Policy if you use their services.

For example, if you sign-up to use Google AdSense to show ads on your blog, you'll have to agree to the AdSense Terms of Service. These terms require you to have a "clearly labeled and easily accessible" Privacy Policy that includes some specific information:

Google AdSense Online Terms of Service: Privacy clause

The AdSense Program Policies state that publishers must "have and abide by" a Privacy Policy that discloses specific information, and provides a link to a resource for preparing your policy:

Google AdSense Program Policies: Google Advertising Cookies clause with Privacy Policy requirement

When AdSense users click on the resource link they're taken to very specific instructions for what to include in a Privacy Policy:

Google AdSense Content Policies: Required Content for a Privacy Policy section

Google states that your Privacy Policy should include the following information:

  • That third party vendors, including Google, use cookies to serve ads based on a user's prior visits to your blog
  • That Google uses advertising cookies so it and its partners can serve ads to your users based on their visit to your blog and/or other blogs on the internet
  • That users may opt out of all of this by visiting the Ad Settings page and other opt-out methods

Your Privacy Policy is where you let your readers know:

  • What personal information you collect from them,
  • How you collect, use and store this personal information,
  • Why you need this personal information, and
  • If you let any third parties collect, use or store this personal information

Let's take a look at a few examples of clauses that should be part of your blog's Privacy Policy:

  • Information Collection and Use. This is where you inform users what personal information is being collected and how that collected data is used.
  • Asana Privacy Policy: Information Collected from Third-Party Integrations clause

  • Cookies. This is required by many third parties that you may end up using for your blog such as Google AdSense, Google AdWords and others as discussed above, as well as by the EU Cookies Directive in some cases.
  • Buffer Privacy Policy: Cookies and Similar Technologies clause excerpt

  • Links to Other Sites. This clause is usually used by individuals and companies to inform that their websites will contain links to other websites that are not controlled or owned by them. If your blog promotes third-party links like other blogs or recommended sites, you should include such a clause.
  • Brightcove Privacy Policy: Third-Party Sites and the Site clause - links to other websites clause

Even if you don't collect, use or store any personal information from your readers, having a Privacy Policy on your blog still comes with a huge benefit.

With privacy issues being more important than ever these days, users are considering Privacy Policies a sign of trustworthiness.

If you don't collect, use or store personal data, let users know that. Your Privacy Policy can be short and to the point, letting users know you don't do anything with their data.

Here's an example from Rudd Studio that makes it really clear that the company doesn't have any of your data:

Rudd Studio Privacy Policy excerpt
It's never a bad idea to have a Privacy Policy, even if you don't actually need one according to laws or third parties.

How to Add a Privacy Policy on BlogSpot

Here are a few quick and easy steps for adding a Privacy Policy to your BlogSpot blog.

  1. Sign in to your Blogger account. If you run more than one blog, select which blog you want to add the Privacy Policy to.
  2. Select Pages in the left menu.
  3. BlogSpot dashboard menu: Pages

  4. Click on New Page.
  5. BlogSpot Dashboard: New Page

  6. Title your page "Privacy Policy" and paste the text of your Privacy Policy in the main text box. Click Publish when you're done.
  7. BlogSpot Pages: Add a new Page: Privacy Policy

  8. Look in the left menu again and click Layout.
  9. BlogSpot dashboard menu: Layout

  10. Decide which section of your blog you want your Privacy Policy link to show up in. Head to that section and click Add a Gadget.
  11. BlogSpot: Layout: Add a Gadget

  12. A window with available gadgets will open. Scroll down to the Pages gadget and click the blue add icon for it.
  13. BlogSpot Gadget: Pages section

  14. In the Configure Page List window, check the box next to your Privacy Policy page and click Save.
  15. BlogSpot Dashboard: Configure Page List

Your Privacy Policy page will now be linked to your blog for your visitors to access.