Best examples of privacy policy disclaimer examples for e-commerce

Real examples of privacy policy disclaimer examples for e-commerce stores

Let’s start where most merchants struggle: the actual wording. Below are practical, copy‑ready examples of privacy policy disclaimer examples for e-commerce sites, written in plain English but aligned with current expectations under laws like the GDPR, CCPA/CPRA, and other global privacy rules.

These are illustrative only. You still need a lawyer to adapt them to your business, but they show how a modern e-commerce privacy policy can look and feel.

Example of core data collection disclaimer for an online store

Every e-commerce privacy policy needs a clear, upfront statement about what you collect and why. Here’s a common pattern:

Information We Collect
When you visit our website or make a purchase, we collect certain information about you. This includes:

Contact details, such as your name, billing address, shipping address, email address, and phone number.

Order information, such as products you purchase, payment method (last four digits only), and transaction dates.

Technical data, such as your IP address, browser type, device identifiers, and how you interact with our site.

Marketing preferences, such as whether you choose to receive promotional emails or text messages.

We use this information to process your orders, provide customer support, improve our services, and—when permitted—send you marketing communications.

This is one of the best examples to start from because it:

Uses clear categories (contact, order, technical, marketing)
Explains the business purpose in one clean paragraph
Avoids vague language like “we may collect any information you provide” without context

If you want more structure, compare this to guidance from the U.S. Federal Trade Commission (FTC) on privacy notices and transparency: https://www.ftc.gov/business-guidance/privacy-security.

E-commerce lives on analytics and personalization, which means cookies, pixels, and SDKs. Your visitors should know what’s going on under the hood.

Cookies and Tracking Technologies
We use cookies, web beacons, and similar technologies to:

Keep you signed in and remember items in your cart

Understand how you use our website so we can improve it

Show you relevant ads on our site and on other websites

Some cookies are set by us ("first‑party cookies"), and others are set by third parties, such as analytics providers and advertising partners ("third‑party cookies"). You can control cookies through your browser settings and, where required by law, through our cookie banner or preference center.

For stores selling to EU or UK customers, you might add a consent disclaimer:

Where required by law, we will only use non‑essential cookies and similar technologies with your consent. You can withdraw your consent at any time by updating your cookie preferences.

This is a strong example of privacy policy disclaimer language because it:

Explains why you use cookies in plain terms
Distinguishes first‑party vs third‑party cookies
References consent and control rather than burying it

For deeper background on cookies and consent, see the UK Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) guidance: https://ico.org.uk/for-organisations/guide-to-pecr/cookies-and-similar-technologies/.

If you accept credit cards, PayPal, Apple Pay, or similar methods, you’re sharing data with payment processors. That needs to be spelled out.

Payment Processing and Third‑Party Service Providers
We do not store or collect your full payment card details. That information is provided directly to our third‑party payment processors, who use your information in accordance with their own privacy policies.

We share your personal information with service providers who help us operate our business, such as:

Payment processors

Shipping and logistics providers

Cloud hosting and data storage providers

Email and SMS communication platforms

These service providers are only allowed to use your personal information as needed to perform services on our behalf and are not permitted to use it for their own independent purposes.

This example of a privacy policy disclaimer clarifies two things regulators care about:

You’re not hoarding full card details
Third parties are limited to service‑provider roles, not free‑for‑all data monetization

The FTC’s general privacy and data security guidance backs up this approach of describing your vendors and their roles: https://www.ftc.gov/business-guidance/small-businesses/cybersecurity.

E-commerce brands live and die by email and SMS, and regulators are paying attention. Your privacy policy should match your signup forms.

Marketing Communications
If you choose to receive marketing emails or text messages from us, we may use your contact information to send you special offers, promotions, and other updates about our products and services.

You can opt out at any time by following the unsubscribe link in our emails, replying STOP to our text messages, or contacting us using the details in the Contact Us section below. If you opt out, we may still send you non‑marketing messages related to your orders or account.

If you run SMS campaigns in the U.S., you’ll usually also see a disclaimer along these lines:

By entering your phone number and opting in, you agree to receive recurring automated marketing text messages from us at the number provided. Consent is not a condition of purchase. Message and data rates may apply.

These are realistic examples of privacy policy disclaimer examples for e-commerce because they:

Connect the policy to real‑world signup flows
Clarify that marketing is separate from transactional messages
Use familiar compliance language around SMS consent

Examples include user rights and data access for global customers

Modern e-commerce is global by default. Even a small U.S. shop can have EU, UK, or Canadian customers. That means user rights language is no longer optional.

Your Privacy Rights
Depending on where you live, you may have certain rights regarding your personal information. These may include the right to:

Access the personal information we hold about you

Correct inaccurate or incomplete information

Request deletion of your personal information

Object to or restrict certain types of processing

Opt out of the sale or sharing of your personal information for targeted advertising, where applicable

To exercise your rights, please contact us using the information in the Contact Us section. We may need to verify your identity before responding to your request.

For California residents, some of the best examples now explicitly refer to the California Consumer Privacy Act (CCPA) as amended by the CPRA:

If you are a California resident, you have additional rights under the California Consumer Privacy Act (CCPA), as amended by the California Privacy Rights Act (CPRA). These include the right to know what personal information we collect, use, disclose, and sell, and the right to opt out of the sale or sharing of your personal information.

For authoritative overviews of privacy rights, many businesses reference materials from the International Association of Privacy Professionals (IAPP): https://iapp.org/resources/topics/.

Example of data retention and security disclaimer for online retailers

Customers increasingly want to know how long you keep their data and how you protect it.

Data Retention
We keep your personal information only for as long as necessary to fulfill the purposes we collected it for, including to meet any legal, accounting, or reporting requirements. When we no longer need your personal information, we will delete or anonymize it.

Data Security
We use administrative, technical, and physical safeguards designed to protect your personal information from unauthorized access, use, or disclosure. However, no method of transmission over the Internet or method of electronic storage is 100% secure, and we cannot guarantee absolute security.

That final sentence—admitting you cannot guarantee perfect security—is a subtle but important example of privacy policy disclaimer wording. It manages expectations while still showing you’re taking reasonable steps.

For practical security practices that inform this kind of language, the U.S. Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) publishes accessible advice: https://www.cisa.gov/resources-tools/resources.

Cross‑border data transfer examples for privacy policy disclaimer examples for e-commerce

If your store uses U.S.-based tools but sells into the EU, UK, or other regions, you need to address international transfers.

International Data Transfers
We are based in [Country], and your personal information may be transferred to, stored in, or accessed from countries that may not provide the same level of data protection as your home country.

When we transfer personal information from the European Economic Area (EEA), the United Kingdom, or Switzerland to countries that have not been deemed to provide an adequate level of protection, we use appropriate safeguards, such as standard contractual clauses approved by the European Commission or other legally recognized transfer mechanisms.

This example of a privacy policy disclaimer reflects ongoing 2024–2025 trends:

Heavy reliance on cloud providers and SaaS platforms
Continued focus on EU‑U.S. data transfer mechanisms and contractual protections

Even if you’re a U.S.‑only shop today, building this in now makes expansion much easier later.

Real examples of privacy policy disclaimer language tailored to specific e-commerce models

Not every online store works the same way. Here are targeted examples of privacy policy disclaimer examples for e-commerce across different models.

Subscription box businesses often include language about ongoing billing and profile‑based recommendations:

We may use information about your past purchases and preferences to recommend future products and to customize your subscription boxes. You can update your preferences at any time in your account settings.

Marketplaces that connect buyers and sellers usually clarify the roles:

We provide a platform that connects buyers and independent sellers. When you make a purchase from a third‑party seller, we share your order details and shipping address with that seller so they can fulfill your order. Each seller is responsible for its own privacy practices, which may differ from ours.

Print‑on‑demand or dropshipping stores often highlight third‑party fulfillment partners:

To produce and ship your orders, we share your name, shipping address, and order details with our fulfillment partners. These partners are only allowed to use your information to fulfill your orders and are not permitted to use it for their own marketing.

These are all real‑world examples of privacy policy disclaimer wording that match how online businesses actually function, rather than generic boilerplate.

How to use these examples of privacy policy disclaimer examples for e-commerce without copying blindly

It’s tempting to grab the best examples you find and paste them into your site. That’s risky. Regulators increasingly compare what your policy says with what your tech stack actually does.

Use these examples of privacy policy disclaimer examples for e-commerce as a checklist against your operations:

Walk through your checkout flow, email signup, and account creation screens. Make sure every data collection point is reflected somewhere in your policy.
List the third‑party tools you use—payment processors, email platforms, analytics, ad networks, chat widgets—and confirm your policy explains how they interact with customer data.
Review your policy at least once a year or whenever you add a major new tool or launch in a new region.

The goal is alignment: your privacy policy disclaimer should read like an honest, accurate description of how your store actually works in 2024–2025, not a generic promise from 2015.

FAQ: Short, practical answers with examples

Q1. Can I use a template as an example of a privacy policy disclaimer for my e-commerce site?
You can use a template as a starting example, but you should customize it heavily. Templates rarely match your specific mix of tools (like Shopify, Stripe, Klaviyo, Google Analytics, Meta Pixel) or your customer locations. Use templates and the examples of privacy policy disclaimer examples for e-commerce in this guide as inspiration, then have an attorney review the final version.

Q2. What are some common examples of data I must mention in my e-commerce privacy policy?
Common examples include contact information (name, email, addresses), payment‑related information (though usually not full card numbers), order history, browsing behavior, device identifiers, and marketing preferences. If you collect more sensitive categories—like health information, geolocation, or data about children—you need to be very explicit about that.

Q3. Do I need separate cookie and privacy notices, or can I combine them?
Many stores combine them in one policy with a dedicated cookies section, like the examples of privacy policy disclaimer examples for e-commerce above. However, some jurisdictions prefer or require a separate cookie notice and consent mechanism. If you have significant EU or UK traffic, talk with counsel about whether a standalone cookie notice is appropriate.

Q4. What is a good example of language about selling or sharing personal information?
If you participate in data sharing or targeted advertising that could be considered a “sale” or “share” under laws like the CCPA/CPRA, you might see language such as: “We may share certain information with advertising partners to show you more relevant ads. In some states, this may be considered a ‘sale’ or ‘sharing’ of personal information. You can opt out of this by [link to opt‑out mechanism].” That kind of explicit statement is now common in the best examples of privacy policy disclaimer examples for e-commerce.

Q5. How often should I update my e-commerce privacy policy disclaimer?
At minimum, review it annually. In practice, you should update it whenever you add major new features (like SMS marketing), change platforms (for example, move to a new payment processor), start selling in new countries, or adopt new tracking/advertising tools. When you update it, change the “Last Updated” date and, if the changes are significant, notify customers by email or a banner.

The bottom line: the best examples of privacy policy disclaimer examples for e-commerce are specific, honest, and tightly aligned with your real operations. Use the sample language here as a working draft, then refine it with your legal counsel so your store is not only compliant on paper, but also trustworthy in practice.

Best examples of privacy policy disclaimer examples for e-commerce stores