In today's digital age, data privacy is an ongoing concern for many people. A huge amount of information is collected by many companies, including when people use websites, smartphone apps, and other digital services. In some cases, this has resulted in people’s personal information being released in data breaches. Due to increasing concerns about cyber threats and a growing awareness among internet users about their right to privacy, stringent data protection laws have been put in place around the world. In some cases, these laws may affect websites that collect information about visitors. When developing and maintaining websites, it is important to understand how to comply with these regulations and assure users that their data is protected.

If you own a website that collects any kind of personal data from your visitors, it is essential to understand and comply with the applicable data privacy laws. In some cases, failure to do so could lead to legal consequences, and it could also damage your reputation. Some data privacy laws you should know about may include:

The General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR)

The General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) was put in place by the European Union (EU) in 2018. Although the GDPR applies mainly to EU member countries, it may affect websites outside the EU that process the personal data of EU citizens.

In the 21st century, nearly everyone uses online services on a daily basis, and information about many people and companies is stored in a variety of systems. While data is protected by passwords, firewalls, encryption, and other methods, security breaches occur all too regularly, resulting in the potential exposure of sensitive information. One recent security breach demonstrated the potential risks that may affect some websites that use the WordPress content management system (CMS). By understanding the security issues that can affect them, website owners can make sure they are taking the correct steps to protect their data and continue operating their sites successfully.

GoDaddy Managed WordPress Sites Hacked

On November 17, 2021, GoDaddy announced that it had discovered a security breach that affected WordPress websites managed through the GoDaddy environment. Beginning in September of 2021, hackers exploited a vulnerability in GoDaddy’s systems and gained access to its WordPress platform. This breach resulted in the potential exposure of 1.2 million customer email addresses, and hackers were also able to access these customers’ websites and install malware.

WordPress is the most popular content management system in the world, and it is used by millions of websites. However, because this platform is so widely used, and due to its open-source nature and the extensive use of plugins, it is often targeted by hackers. There are many vulnerabilities in WordPress software, and when a site is hacked, malware or other types of code may be installed that is used to gain access to sensitive information or spread viruses.

In the 21st century, we spend much of our lives online. However, while browsing websites, performing online searches or using mobile apps is a simple and easy process for most people, those who have disabilities often struggle to navigate the internet. Because of this, advocates for the disabled have worked to ensure that websites can be used by everyone, and in fact, some companies have even faced lawsuits for failing to provide accessible websites. By following accessibility guidelines during the website design process, law firms can avoid these issues and ensure that they can connect with potential clients with disabilities.

What Are Accessibility Guidelines?

The Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) is the law that is most often used in cases related to website accessibility. Under the ADA, people with disabilities cannot be discriminated against in places of “public accommodation.” This is the basis for many of the lawsuits regarding website accessibility, since courts have found that websites fall into the category of places of public accommodation.

The ADA does not list technical standards for what makes a website accessible, but in many cases, the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) are used to determine whether a site can be used by those with disabilities. These guidelines were created by the World Wide Web Consortium (W3C) Web Accessibility Initiative (WAI), and they are regularly updated based on changes in technology, design trends, and any other issues that can affect the way people with and without disabilities use websites and digital technologies.

If you are like most Americans, you have come to rely on the internet for a significant portion of your day’s news, information, and entertainment. Your ability to perform your job and promote your company may even be reliant on a global connection. When something happens that disrupts your connection to the digital world, the results can be more than just inconvenient. When something happens that disrupts everyone’s connection, the problems get even bigger.

Denial of Service Attack

Early last Friday morning, Americans on the East Coast woke up to find that they could not access popular websites, including Reddit, Twitter, Netflix, PayPal, and even Amazon. Users scrambled to check their internet connection and the status of their service provider, but the problem was not with individual households or broadband services. Instead, experts and government officials believe that the issues were a result of a distributed denial of service (DDoS) attack orchestrated by hackers. There are even indications that similar, smaller-scale attacks using the same malware are continuing to affect seemingly random targets.

You may have one of the best websites in the industry. It could be full of visually stunning elements, interactive menus, and useful information for prospective clients. Your site could even be built for viewing on any size screen, offering an unmatched user experience. The greatest website on the internet, however, is virtually worthless if nobody ever visits it. The reality is that very few potential clients are going to take the time to type out your site’s Uniform Resource Identifier, or URL—more commonly referred to as your web address. Instead, traffic to your site depends on your ability to be seen in search engine results, which, in turn, is driven by search engine optimization, or SEO. There are many factors that go into effective SEO, but a new study suggests that optimization help may be available from a somewhat surprising source.

Top-Level Domains

Around the time Google was first launched, entrepreneurs and business speculators saw massive opportunity in tech-related companies and internet-based startups. The push, however, was relatively short-lived and became known as the “dot-com” bubble, which burst in about 2000. The “dot-com” descriptor came from the most common domain throughout the world. Check out the address bar in your browser right now and you will see an address containing that domain: www.ovclawyermarkting.com. While .com is by far the most popular, there are countless domains that could be used for your site.