Running a WordPress website that serves Brazilian visitors changed everything for me in 2020. I was managing multiple client sites when Brazil’s data protection law went into effect.

Suddenly, I had to figure out how to make every single site compliant with new regulations I’d never heard of before. I spent weeks researching LGPD requirements, trying to understand what data my sites were collecting and how to get proper consent from users.

Every contact form, newsletter signup, and analytics cookie became a potential compliance issue. However, with the right plugin and tools, ensuring LGPD WordPress compliance is straightforward.

In this guide, I’ll walk you through LGPD compliance for WordPress sites.

You’ll discover how to set up proper consent management, handle user data correctly, and avoid the hefty penalties that come with non-compliance. Simply click the links below to jump ahead to your perferred section:

What is LGPD?

LGPD is short for Lei Geral de Proteção de Dados, which is Brazil’s General Data Protection Law. Officially in effect since August 2020, the law was created to give Brazilian citizens more control over their personal data.

If you’re familiar with Europe’s GDPR, then LGPD might sound similar because it’s inspired by it. It establishes clear rules about how companies can collect, store, and use personal information from people in Brazil. Whether it’s your name, email, or even sensitive info like your health data or beliefs, this law makes sure it’s treated with care.

What makes LGPD interesting is that it doesn’t just apply to Brazilian companies. It also applies to anyone processing data from people in Brazil, no matter where they’re located in the world.

This means even if your business is based outside Brazil, you still need to comply if you have Brazilian visitors on your website.

How Does LGPD Affect WordPress Users?

The reality is that most WordPress sites collect personal data without site owners even realizing it. Your contact forms capture names and email addresses, your analytics track user behavior, and your hosting server logs IP addresses from every visitor.

Even a simple blog comment system falls under LGPD if Brazilian users leave comments. Their names, email addresses, and IP addresses all count as personal data that requires proper handling and consent.

E-commerce sites face even more complexity. Shopping carts store customer information, payment processors handle financial data, and marketing tools track purchase behavior. Each of these touchpoints needs LGPD compliance measures.

Many popular plugins like Google Analytics, Mailchimp integrations, and social media widgets automatically collect user data. Most site owners install these without considering the privacy implications.

The penalties for getting this wrong are serious. Brazilian authorities can fine businesses up to 2% of their annual revenue, or 50 million Brazilian Reais (around 10 million USD) per violation.

The key is understanding that LGPD compliance isn’t just about adding a cookie banner. You need proper consent mechanisms, clear privacy policies, and systems to handle user data requests.

That said, let’s look at how you can ensure LGPD WordPress compliance.

Ensure LGPD WordPress Compliance

Getting your WordPress site LGPD compliant doesn’t have to be overwhelming, if you know which WordPress plugins and tools to use.

Let’s break down all the steps you can take to meet LGPD requirements and ensure compliance.

1. Get Hold of a Cookie Management Plugin

To fully comply with LGPD requirements, you’ll need a comprehensive solution that automates all technical tasks while allowing you to adjust settings as needed. Now, you could manually perform these tasks, but they’re time-consuming and often require a developer.

So, I suggest WPConsent, as it is a top-tier cookie consent management plugin for WordPress. It expertly handles consent management, cookie blocking, consent banner creation, log management, and even offers a Do Not Track form.

What sets WPConsent apart from other SaaS cookie notice solutions is that it is a self-hosted WordPress plugin, which means you retain complete control over your data. Additionally, you can use it across unlimited pages or page views on your site, unlike other cookie software that charges based on the number of page views or pages.

WPConsent is the premier cookie management plugin for WordPress, and it’s incredibly user-friendly. A setup wizard guides you through each step of configuration, providing full control over cookie compliance for your WordPress site.

Another powerful feature offered by WPConsent is its geolocation options. It allows you to set up location-based rules and configure consent settings in just a few clicks. As a result, it automatically loads the correct script blocking settings, cookie consent banner, and more for visitors from a particular region.

You can simply head to WPConsent’s Geolocation page from your WordPress dashboard to view the location based rules and click the Add LGPD Location Template option.

The plugin will then automatically block scripts and cookies added by various services, show a consent banner, and add an opt-in consent mode.

It works by recognizing visitors from Brazil on your site and presents them with privacy choices. It then manages their preferences across all your tracking tools and marketing plugins.

To get started, I recommend the WPConsent Pro version, as it includes advanced features that simplify cookie management.

For instance, you get a pre-built library of services, multilingual support, Do Not Track addon, geolocation rules, block custom scripts and iframes, and more. However, a free Lite version of WPConsent is also available if you’re looking for a free option.

2. Perform a Data Audit of Your Site

The next step is to audit your site and find out which services and scripts add cookies on your site. This is important for LGPD compliance, as you’ll need users to opt-in and grant permission to allow scripts from adding cookies.

With WPConsent, this process is seamless and only takes a few minutes with its built-in scanner. You can simply head to WPConsent » Scanner from your WordPress dashboard and click the ‘Scan Your Website’ button to automatically detect cookies and tracking scripts.

The best part about using WPConsent is that you can also select other pages to scan. By default, it will only scan your homepage, but you can change that. This is really helpful if you know there are scripts running in other areas of your site and don’t want to miss anything.

For example, you can include the checkout page, contact page, contact us page, shopping cart, and other similar pages in the scanning process.

After the plugin has scanned your site, you’ll see a Detailed Report section. WPConsent will organize the cookies as Essential, Statistics, and Marketing based on their purpose. You can view all the services that add cookies on your site.

You can learn more by following our guide on how to find which cookies your WordPress website is using.

3. Block Third-Party Cookies Before Consent

So, you’ve done the legwork and identified the cookies your site uses. Now, the next step is making sure these cookies don’t load until your visitors have given their consent.

This is where WPConsent makes life easy. It automatically handles this with its script blocking feature, ensuring that scripts only load after your visitors give the go-ahead. Besides that, WPConsent offers a range of features to help you stay compliant with LGPD.

To set it up, navigate to the ‘Detailed Report’ section and scroll to the bottom. There, just make sure the ‘Prevent known scripts from adding cookies before consent is given’ checkbox is checked. Then, click the ‘Automatically Configure Cookies’ button, and you’re all set!

For more details, feel free to check out our guide on how to block third-party cookies in WordPress.

Another advantage of WPConsent is its built-in library of services. If the scanner misses something, you can add it in just one click.

Besides that, you can also block custom scripts and iframes in WordPress. For example, if you’re running an email marketing service like Drip or social media ads like Reddit on your site, then using WPConsent, you can add these scripts and load cookies when the user gives consent.

WPConsent also offers a powerful Content Blocking feature that handles cookies from popular video platforms, like YouTube, Dailymotion, and Vimeo. Plus, it also works with Google Maps and reCAPTCHA.

It works by stopping embedded content from loading until a visitor gives permission. Once they do, the content will load for them.

4. Create a Cookie Consent Banner

Now it’s time to set up the consent banner that Brazilian visitors will see when they first visit your site. 

Since the banner is the first thing users will see, you want it to look professional and match your site’s design. WPConsent offers several pre-built banner styles that you can choose from.

Besides that, you also get lots of customization options to change the appearance of the banner. For example, you can edit the background color, button styling, text color and font, and more.

WPConsent will offer a default text for the banner. But you can edit it to match your brand’s tone. The best part? You get multi-language support, so you can display a cookie consent banner in Portuguese, Spanish, and other languages, so users can read the consent message in their native language.

For more details, please see our detailed guide on how to create a cookie consent banner in WordPress.

5. Display a Privacy Policy and Cookie Policy

LGPD requires clear and transparent policies that fully explain how you collect, use, and protect personal data from your users. To meet these requirements, it’s essential to have both a privacy policy and a cookie policy on your WordPress website.

A privacy policy is a legal document that details how your website processes and safeguards personal data collected from visitors. The purpose is to be upfront and transparent with users about what kind of personal information you gather, how you use it, and how you protect it.

To get started, you can use the WordPress built-in privacy policy tool. Just go to Settings » Privacy from your WordPress dashboard and click the ‘Create’ button to generate a privacy policy tailored for your site’s data processing activities.

In addition to the privacy policy, it’s also important to add a cookie policy outlining all the types of cookies your site uses. Whether they are essential for website functionality, used for statistical analysis, or for marketing purposes.

With plugins like WPConsent, you can quickly generate a dedicated cookie policy page that informs users about the cookies your site employs and explains what data is collected through them.

Simply navigate to WPConsent settings, find the Cookie Policy section, and click the ‘Generate Cookie Policy Page’ button. The plugin will scan your site to identify cookies and automatically create a page listing them, saving you time and ensuring transparency in line with LGPD standards.

You can go through our detailed guide on how to create a cookie policy in WordPress.

6. Record and View User Consent Logs

Under LGPD, it’s crucial to keep detailed records of when and how your visitors provide consent for processing their personal data. Fortunately, WPConsent makes this easy by automatically logging consents for you.

Just head over to WPConsent » Consent Logs from your WordPress dashboard. Here, you’ll find a full history of consent data gathered since the plugin was activated.

WPConsent also allows you to export these records as CSV files, making it simple to maintain your compliance documentation or provide proof if requested by Brazil’s data protection authority.

To learn more, you can check out our step-by-step tutorial on managing consent data in WordPress.

7. Handle Do Not Track Requests

The Brazilian General Data Protection Law (LGPD) does give users the right to object to the processing of their personal data. This includes certain situations such as direct marketing or processing based on legitimate interests.

Now, handling these requests manually can be a hassle, but WPConsent offers a smooth solution.

You can easily set up a Do Not Track (DNT) form with WPConsent. This lets users submit their requests through a dedicated page, no coding required.

All requests are neatly organized within your WordPress dashboard, so you can review and process them quickly and efficiently without leaving your site’s backend.

If you want to learn more, then please see our guide on how to set up and manage Do Not Track requests in WordPress.

8. Allow Users the Right to Erase Data

One of LGPD’s core principles is giving users control over their personal data, including the right to have their data erased upon request.

WordPress offers built-in tools to help site owners meet this requirement effortlessly. You can manage, export, or remove users’ personal data with just a few clicks.

To handle data deletion requests, simply go to Tools » Erase Personal Data in your WordPress dashboard. Here, you can process all the requests to remove personal information in compliance with LGPD.

FAQs about LGPD WordPress Compliance

Here are some frequently asked questions about LGDP and how to ensure your site is compliant.

1. What is LGPD, and why does my WordPress site need to comply?

LGPD is Brazil’s General Data Protection Law that regulates how personal data of Brazilian users must be handled. If your WordPress site collects or processes personal data from visitors in Brazil, you must comply to avoid penalties and build user trust.

2. What types of personal data does LGPD protect?

LGPD covers all personal data, including names, emails, IP addresses, and more sensitive information like health data, religious beliefs, or biometric data. Any data that can identify an individual is protected under LGPD.

3. What are the consequences if my WordPress site fails to comply with LGPD?

Non-compliance can result in warnings, fines up to 2% of your Brazilian revenue (capped at 50 million Brazilian Reais), daily penalties, data blocking or deletion orders, and reputational damage.

4. How can I make my WordPress site LGPD compliant?

Start by creating clear privacy and cookie policies, implement a user consent mechanism (such as cookie consent banners), keep detailed records of consent, allow users to opt out of tracking, and provide data access and deletion options. Using specialized plugins like WPConsent can simplify these tasks.

I hope this article helped you learn how to make your WordPress website LGPD compliant. You may also want to see our guide on what are tracking cookies and ultimate guide to WordPress and CCPA compliance.

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