# The GDPR in other countries

> Data is often called the new oil, and many countries have written laws to protect what companies may do with your personal information.

By Finn Rübo · 2023-10-20 · data privacy

Data gets called the new oil often enough that it has become a cliché, and it is also why so many countries have passed laws about what happens to personal information. Those laws regulate how data is collected, stored, processed, and passed on, so people keep a say over their own privacy.

## European Union: the GDPR

The General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) is the best-known of these laws. It took effect in 2018 and was written to strengthen data protection for people in the European Union. A company that collects data about EU residents has to ask for consent, say plainly how the data will be used, and keep it secure. Break the rules and the fines are serious.

## United States: CCPA and HIPAA

In the United States, the California Consumer Privacy Act (CCPA) gives people the right to know which personal information a business has collected, and to have it deleted. The Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) covers health information.

## Other countries

Canada, India, Brazil, South Korea, and many countries between them have passed their own privacy laws. The details differ. What they share is a demand for transparency, consent, and a right to deletion.

## Conclusion

Personal information has become something companies pay for. Laws that limit what they can do with it matter, because they force a more careful handling of data and leave you a way to decide who sees it and how it is used. It still helps to know the rules yourself, and to be deliberate about what you hand over.

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Source: https://www.datapods.app/en/blog/consumer/the-gdpr-in-other-countries