> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://docs.poly.ai/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

# Disclaimers and privacy policies

> Configure the legal disclosures your web chat shows, where they appear, and whether users must accept them before chatting.

Set what legal disclosures your web chat shows, where they appear, and whether users must accept them before chatting. You configure everything in Agent Studio, and changes apply to your widget without a code deploy.

All disclaimer settings live in one place: **Agent Studio → Deployment → Webchat → Web chat configuration → Content** tab. There are two sections:

* **Disclaimers** — your disclaimer message, consent and visibility settings.
* **Company policies** — links to your hosted Privacy Policy and Terms & Conditions.

<Note>
  These settings help you meet your disclosure obligations, but what you are required to display depends on your industry and the regions you operate in. Check with your legal or compliance team before choosing your setup.
</Note>

## The disclaimer message

The disclaimer message is the text shown to users in the chat widget, typically covering AI disclosure, call recording and data use. A default message is provided:

> This is an AI-powered system and responses should be verified. All chats are recorded in order to respond to your query and for training and quality control purposes.

Replace this with your own approved wording in the **Disclaimer message** field. The preview on the right updates as you type, so you can see exactly what users will see before you publish.

### Add links to your disclaimer

You can link out to your hosted legal pages from within the disclaimer itself, rather than packing the full legal copy into the message.

To add a link:

1. Highlight the text you want to turn into a link (for example, `Privacy Policy`).
2. Select the **Link** button in the toolbar that appears.
3. Enter the URL and confirm.

The link renders as clickable text in the widget and opens in a new tab, so users never lose their place in the conversation.

<Info>
  URLs must use HTTPS. Anything else is rejected when you save, with a clear error telling you why.
</Info>

## Consent button

The **Consent button** setting controls whether users must actively accept your disclaimer before the conversation starts.

* **Show** — users see the disclaimer with an "I consent and start chat" button. They cannot send a message until they accept.
* **Hide** — the chat opens straight away, with the disclaimer displayed but no acceptance step.

Use **Show** where you need evidence of acceptance, for example where you process sensitive data or your legal team requires explicit consent to recording. Use **Hide** where disclosure alone is sufficient and you want the lowest possible barrier to starting a chat.

## Disclaimer visibility

The **Disclaimer visibility** setting controls how long the disclaimer stays on screen.

* **Always show** — the disclaimer remains visible below the message input throughout the conversation.
* **Hide after first message** — the disclaimer displays until the user sends their first message, then clears to give the conversation more room.

**Always show** keeps the disclosure permanently in view, which suits deployments with stricter compliance requirements. **Hide after first message** ensures every user sees the disclaimer at the start, then prioritises the conversation itself.

## Company policies

The **Company policies** section adds standing links to your hosted Privacy Policy and Terms & Conditions, separate from the disclaimer message. Turn the section on, then add either or both URLs:

* **Privacy policy URL** (optional)
* **Terms & conditions URL** (optional)

Then choose a **Display location**:

* **Header menu** — the links sit in the widget's three-dot menu, alongside **End chat**. Discoverable at any point in the conversation, without taking up space in the chat window.
* **Below message input** — the links display beneath the message input throughout the conversation, permanently visible.

## Translating your disclaimer

If your widget supports multiple languages, you can author disclaimer copy per language, so users see the correct legal disclosure in their own language without needing separate widget deployments per region.

Select a language above the disclaimer content field and enter the approved copy for that language. Two things to know:

* **Content is authored manually.** Nothing is auto-translated, so the wording your legal team approved is exactly what users see.
* **Your default language disclaimer is required**, and acts as the fallback wherever a translation has not been provided.

For full details on configuring languages for your widget, see [Web chat localisation](/messaging-channel/localisation).

## Choosing the right setup

There is no single correct configuration. The right combination depends on your regulatory environment, your users and how much friction you can accept at the start of a chat. Below are the most common scenarios.

### Regulated industries or sensitive data

Healthcare, financial services, insurance, or any deployment handling sensitive personal data.

| Setting               | Recommendation                   |
| --------------------- | -------------------------------- |
| Consent button        | Show                             |
| Disclaimer visibility | Always show                      |
| Disclaimer links      | Link to your full privacy notice |
| Company policies      | Both URLs, Below message input   |

Users explicitly accept the disclaimer before chatting, and the disclosure stays visible for the whole conversation. This gives your compliance team the strongest posture: acceptance is required, and the disclosure is never off screen.

### Retail, hospitality and low-friction support

Deployments where speed to first message matters and disclosure alone is sufficient.

| Setting               | Recommendation           |
| --------------------- | ------------------------ |
| Consent button        | Hide                     |
| Disclaimer visibility | Hide after first message |
| Company policies      | Both URLs, Header menu   |

Every user sees the disclaimer when the chat opens, then it clears once they engage. Your legal links remain one tap away in the header menu without occupying the conversation window.

### Long or complex legal copy

Your legal team's required wording is too long to sit comfortably in a chat widget.

Keep the disclaimer message short (a sentence or two covering AI disclosure and recording) and link out to the full hosted document from within the disclaimer. The canonical legal copy stays on your website where your legal team maintains it, and the widget stays readable. Update the hosted page and the link keeps pointing to the current version, with no widget changes needed.

### Multi-market deployments

One widget serving users across several countries or languages.

Author your disclaimer per language, with your default language set to your primary market. Users see the disclosure in their own language, and any user whose language does not yet have a translation sees the default. Pair this with per-market legal review: disclosure requirements differ between regions, and your translated copy should reflect local requirements rather than being a direct translation.

### Explicit AI disclosure requirements

Regions or sectors where you are required to clearly inform users they are talking to an AI system.

Keep the AI disclosure in the disclaimer message itself rather than behind a link, and set visibility to **Always show** so the disclosure remains on screen. Whether you also require consent is a question for your legal team.

## Good to know

* **Changes preview live.** Edits in the Content tab appear in the on-page preview immediately, before you save and publish.
* **No code deploy needed.** Published changes reach your widget without any engineering work on your side.
* **Settings are audit-logged.** Changes to your disclaimer configuration are recorded, so your compliance team can evidence what was displayed and when.

## Related

* [Web chat localisation](/messaging-channel/localisation)
* [Chat configuration](/messaging-channel/advanced/chat-configuration)