Boilerplate

Standardized, reusable text used across multiple legal documents or contracts with minimal customization. In privacy contexts, boilerplate language appears in privacy policies, terms of service, and data processing agreements—sections that apply broadly regardless of specific circumstances. While boilerplate serves efficiency purposes, over-reliance on generic boilerplate language can undermine privacy compliance. Your privacy policy should accurately reflect your actual data practices, not just include standard language copied from templates. Regulators scrutinize discrepancies between boilerplate statements and actual practices. Effective privacy documents balance boilerplate (for standard legal provisions) with customized content (describing your specific data handling). Common boilerplate includes general disclaimer language, jurisdictional clauses, definitions, and standard rights descriptions. However, critical sections like what data you collect, how you use it, and who you share it with should never be pure boilerplate—they must accurately describe your practices.