Exploring the Predatory Practices of Terms of Service Contracts and Privacy Policies

This research paper primarily examined how Internet users interact with terms of service contracts and privacy policies. Terms of service contracts and privacy policies regulate the interaction between users and online services and how their data is managed. Despite this, Internet users seldom take the time to read, analyze, and understand these contractual terms. This research paper incorporated numerous studies and surveyed participants to determine the extent to which this ignorance occurs. In addition, the reasoning behind opting not to read terms of service contracts and privacy policies was explored. Lastly, this paper synthesized expert recommendations and participant suggestions to clearly outline multiple methods to increase interaction between users and terms and policies. Information on proactively protecting personal information was also included to expand on simple alternatives to data protection. The conducted research focused on the jurisprudence of the United States. A contextual foundation was built by incorporating articles and research on legislation and judicial precedent. A historical foundation was built by incorporating articles and research on foreign statutes and historic data communication systems.