The law for trust in the digital economy (LCEN) of June 21, 2004, requires any website published for professional purposes to permanently display legal notices that are easily accessible. This obligation applies to both showcase sites and online shops or monetized blogs. The legal notices of a website allow users to identify the person responsible for the content and to contact them in case of a dispute.
GDPR Consistency and Legal Notices: What the CNIL Checks During Its Inspections
Articles that address the mandatory notices of a website often merely list their content. The CNIL, in its recent inspection reports, takes a different approach: it checks the consistency between legal notices, privacy policy, and processing register.
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Specifically, if your “legal notices” page states that personal data is collected for managing the newsletter, but your processing register also mentions advertising profiling, the inconsistency may indicate a risk of overall non-compliance. The purposes of collection, the legal basis for processing, the data recipients, and the retention periods must correspond from one document to another.
To see how this information is structured on an existing site, you can consult the notices on the Geek Gazette site and observe the adopted structure.
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This requirement for consistency implies that drafting the legal notices cannot be separated from drafting the privacy policy. Writing one without checking the other risks creating a contradiction that the CNIL will identify during an online inspection.
Legal Notices of a Professional Site: Information to Publish
The exact content of the mandatory notices varies according to the legal status of the website publisher. A sole proprietor, a commercial company, and an association do not have the same elements to provide. Some information remains common to all cases.
Identification of the Website Publisher
The publisher must display their name (or corporate name), address, a means of contact (email address, phone number), and their registration number with the RCS. For a sole proprietor, the mention “sole proprietor” or the initials “EI” must accompany the name and surname.
- The VAT identification number, if the company is subject to it
- The name, address, and phone number of the website host
- The name of the publication director (or the editor-in-chief for an editorial site)
- For a regulated activity: the name and address of the authority that granted the authorization to operate
Personal Data and Right of Access
The mentions related to personal data complement the identification information. They must specify the purposes of collection, the legal basis for processing, the data recipients, and the methods for exercising the right of access, rectification, and deletion. Cookie management is part of this aspect: the visitor must be able to accept or refuse trackers before they are placed.
E-commerce Sites and Regulated Activities: Specific Obligations
An online sales site must display additional notices related to the general terms and conditions of sale. The non-premium phone number for customer service, delivery conditions, the right of withdrawal, and the methods for resolving disputes (mediation) are all required elements under consumer law.
Professionals engaged in a regulated activity (pharmacist, real estate agent, beverage vendor) must also mention the authority that granted them the authorization and, where applicable, the applicable professional rules.
Case of Crypto Platforms and PSANs
Providers of digital asset services (PSAN) registered with the AMF face enhanced obligations since the implementation of the European MiCA regulation. Their legal notices must visibly display the PSAN registration status with the AMF, the risks associated with crypto-assets, and the potential absence of deposit guarantees. A presentation deemed misleading exposes the publisher to sanctions from the AMF or ACPR.
This type of sector-specific obligation shows that legal notices are not limited to a single model applicable to all websites.
Sanctions for Absence of Legal Notices on a Website
The LCEN provides for criminal sanctions in case of non-compliance with the publication obligation. Individuals risk up to one year in prison and a fine, while legal entities face a higher fine. Beyond the criminal aspect, the absence of legal notices can also affect the commercial credibility of the site among visitors and partners.
CNIL inspections regarding GDPR compliance may also lead to separate formal notices if the information related to personal data is absent or inconsistent with the processing register.
Accessibility of the Legal Notices Page
The law requires that the notices be “easily accessible.” In practice, a visible link from all pages of the site (usually in the footer) fulfills this condition. A link buried in a submenu or accessible only from the homepage does not meet the legal requirement.
- Place the “Legal Notices” link in the footer, present on every page
- Use an explicit title, not a vague label like “Info” or “About”
- Ensure that the page is indexable and loads correctly on mobile
The legal notices of a website are not a fixed document. Any change of host, legal status, publication manager, or personal data processing policy must be reflected by an update of the page. The ongoing consistency between legal notices and the GDPR processing register remains the focus of the CNIL’s checks today.