• Home
  • Latest
  • Fortune 500
  • Finance
  • Tech
  • Leadership
  • Lifestyle
  • Rankings
  • Multimedia

Trendingnow

1

Despite a $45 million net worth, Big Bang Theory star Kunal Nayyar still works tough, 16-hour days—he repeats this mantra when he's overwhelmed

2

A $1,000 loan kept MacKenzie Scott in college—now the billionaire philanthropist is giving away her $37 billion fortune to pay it forward

3

Mark Cuban wants to solve wealth inequality by making employers choose between paying higher taxes or giving every member of staff company stock

1

Despite a $45 million net worth, Big Bang Theory star Kunal Nayyar still works tough, 16-hour days—he repeats this mantra when he's overwhelmed

2

A $1,000 loan kept MacKenzie Scott in college—now the billionaire philanthropist is giving away her $37 billion fortune to pay it forward

3

Mark Cuban wants to solve wealth inequality by making employers choose between paying higher taxes or giving every member of staff company stock
TechTerms of Service

This Stunt Will Show How Absurd Terms of Service Are

By
David Meyer
David Meyer
Down Arrow Button Icon
By
David Meyer
David Meyer
Down Arrow Button Icon
May 23, 2016, 9:04 AM ET
Inside An Orange SA Mobile Phone Store
Photograph by Balint Porneczi — Bloomberg via Getty Images
Add Fortune on Google for similar content.

The Norwegian consumer authority has been making waves recently by targeting Runkeeper and Tinder over their privacy deficiencies, and now it hopes to highlight one of the tech world’s biggest failures with a deliberately mind-numbing stunt.

On Tuesday, the watchdog will begin hosting a live-streamed reading of the terms of service and privacy policies for all the apps found on an average mobile phone in Norway—33 in total. It says the reading will probably last over 24 hours, as the combined texts are longer than the New Testament.

The point of all this is to show how crazy it is for anyone to expect people to really read the terms of service and privacy policies for which they must click “I agree” in order to use the app.

Get Data Sheet, Fortune’s technology newsletter.

“The current state of terms and conditions for digital services is bordering on the absurd. Their scope, length and complexity mean it is virtually impossible to make good and informed decisions,” said Finn Myrstad, the Norwegian Consumer Council’s digital policy director.

“When we also know that apps often take away our rights by granting themselves the power to unilaterally amend the contract and licensing themselves to track, store and sell on user content, it is self-evident that consumers are put at a disadvantage.”

Terms of service and privacy policies are, of course, written by lawyers to make sure their companies are covered as they go about doing what they do. Their legibility for regular people is in many cases an afterthought.

For more on app privacy, watch:

According to the Norwegian watchdog, those writing the documents should avoid legal terms where possible, keep things as concise as possible, structure the text to make it easy to read, and “avoid writing whole paragraphs using capital letters.”

Industry standards for comprehensible terms and policies would also be very helpful, it added.

A campaign called “Terms of Service; Didn’t Read” or “TOS;DR” is tackling much the same issue, while illustrator Robert Sikoryak last year released a graphic-novel rendition of Apple’s (AAPL) iTunes terms and conditions.

About the Author
By David Meyer
LinkedIn icon
See full bioRight Arrow Button Icon
Add Fortune on Google for similar content.

Latest in Tech


Most Popular

Fortune Secondary Logo
Rankings
  • 100 Best Companies
  • Fortune 500
  • Global 500
  • Fortune 500 Europe
  • Most Powerful Women
  • World's Most Admired Companies
  • See All Rankings
  • Lists Calendar
Sections
  • Finance
  • Fortune Crypto
  • Features
  • Leadership
  • Health
  • Commentary
  • Success
  • Retail
  • Mpw
  • Tech
  • Lifestyle
  • CEO Initiative
  • Asia
  • Politics
  • Conferences
  • Europe
  • Newsletters
  • Personal Finance
  • Environment
  • Magazine
  • Education
Customer Support
  • Frequently Asked Questions
  • Customer Service Portal
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms Of Use
  • Single Issues For Purchase
  • International Print
Commercial Services
  • Advertising
  • Fortune Brand Studio
  • Fortune Analytics
  • Fortune Conferences
  • Business Development
  • Group Subscriptions
About Us
  • About Us
  • Press Center
  • Work At Fortune
  • Terms And Conditions
  • Site Map
  • About Us
  • Press Center
  • Work At Fortune
  • Terms And Conditions
  • Site Map
  • Facebook icon
  • Twitter icon
  • LinkedIn icon
  • Instagram icon
  • TikTok icon
  • YouTube icon

    Latest in Tech


    Most Popular

    © 2026 Fortune Media IP Limited. All Rights Reserved. Use of this site constitutes acceptance of our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy | CA Notice at Collection and Privacy Notice | Do Not Sell/Share My Personal Information
    FORTUNE is a trademark of Fortune Media IP Limited, registered in the U.S. and other countries. FORTUNE may receive compensation for some links to products and services on this website. Offers may be subject to change without notice.