The Law and Your Blog

Many people blog these days without being fully aware of the potential legal consequences for the things that they say online. How far does the Freedom of Speech extend? What sort of legal turmoil can you find yourself facing? Let’s see…

The most popular is ‘Defamation and Libel’ which is writing any sort of false statement that might have a negative effect on your target’s reputation or character. This is especially true when talking about another person’s business or trade as they are more apt to follow through with getting justice and will most likely have the resources to do so. The consequences also have the ability to be much more severe. When reviewing or describing any sort of product, be sure that you are accurate and that any negative information can either be verified or is a clear opinion. Fabricating a story to make your blog more interesting will land you in trouble.

Next in line is our friend ‘Copyright Infringement.’ You are not allowed to simply take material that you find on the internet and use it how you please unless you have permission from the copyright holder. It is generally considered to be alright if you take some snippets of another person’s content and then reference them and their site. This would be considered ‘fair use.’ To copy the aforementioned person’s entire piece of content and imply that it is your own would be a prime example of copyright infringement and could land you in trouble with the law. Some webhosts will go so far as to disable your account. Depending on the situation your ISP may also be contacted. If a person approaches you saying that you have material to which they own the copyright on your site, respond quickly. Remove the content if appropriate.

Finally, there is abuse towards a company from an employee or contractor. If you’re given any sort of plans or data – basically anything that the company could consider ‘confidental,’ it would be illegal for you to post it for anyone else to see. If you come across any company secrets it is your responsibility to protect them and refrain from disseminating them. Typically your company will have guidelines on how to handle things like this and it should outline what you can and cannot do.

In conclusion, it is best to always maintain a professional and respectful attitude and learn the laws in your area. Contact a business lawyer if applicable. It may take a bit of time but it will certainly be worth it in the end. Remember that your blog can be cached for everyone to see! Never post anything that you think might come back at you in the end. While you are granted the freedom of speech, you are also in charge of accepting the consequences for that speech.