Very common names may require additional data points, such as employer or address, to identify a specific person. A person’s name is personal data when it identifies a specific individual. The most effective protection combines technical controls (encryption, access controls, pseudonymisation) with organisational measures (staff training, clear retention policies, documented incident response, and regular audits).
Non-sensitive PII tends to be publicly available – for example, phone numbers listed in a directory. For example, research shows that 87% of US citizens could be identified based solely on their gender, ZIP code, and date of birth. Linkable information (also called indirect identifiers or quasi-identifiers) cannot always identify a person on its own, but can when combined with other data. However, because the US lacks one overriding law about PII, the definition may vary from jurisdiction to jurisdiction and state to state. This guide explains both concepts, how they relate to non-PII and non-personal data, and what your organization needs to do to stay compliant. Both cover information that can identify a person directly or indirectly, but their scope, legal coverage, and implications differ significantly.
However, the UK GDPR does apply to personal data relating to individuals acting as sole traders, employees, partners, and company directors wherever they are individually identifiable and the information relates to them as an individual rather than as the representative of a legal person. Consequently, information about a limited company or another legal entity, which might have a legal personality separate to its owners or directors, does not constitute personal data and does not fall within the scope of the UK GDPR. “…The principles of data protection should therefore not apply to anonymous information, namely information which does not relate to an identified or identifiable natural person or to personal data rendered anonymous in such a manner that the data subject is not or no longer identifiable. It must set out the subject matter, duration, nature, and purpose of the processing; the type of personal data involved; the processor’s security obligations; and the rights and obligations of both parties. A personal data breach is any security incident leading to the accidental or unlawful destruction, loss, alteration, unauthorised disclosure of, or access to personal data. • Replacing names with random reference numbers• Data masking (replacing characters in sensitive fields with placeholder characters)• Tokenisation (replacing payment card numbers with secure tokens)• Encryption with separately stored decryption keys
However, a separate, secure list correlates these codes to the actual names and is accessible only to authorised personnel. In video surveillance cases, companies often argue that only a fraction of the footage leads to identification, suggesting it is not personal data processing. When a customer calls the insurance company and gives instructions regarding their insurance policies, the insurance company could record these instructions, which would be considered personal data. The term ‘personal data’ includes any information relating to the individual’s private and family life and whatever type of activity is undertaken by the individual, e.g. working relations or economic or social behaviour.
This kind of personal data is typically categorised as confidential personal data. This understanding is formally captured in the GDPR by having different categories of personal data, such as special categories of personal data (commonly known as sensitive personal data) and non-sensitive personal data. For instance, when a company’s name includes an individual’s name or when a specific employee consistently uses a corporate email address, this information becomes linked to that individual. However, data related to a https://master-your-business.com/how-can-you-implement-iot-in-your-business/ business, such as in a sole proprietorship, is still considered personal information, as it is directly linked to the individual owner. In the context of personal data, it regards information about natural persons, not organisations.
Personally identifiable information (PII) and personal data both refer to information that can reveal who someone is – but they’re not the same thing, and mixing them up can have real compliance consequences. The legal information is provided for educational purposes only and is not a substitute for professional legal assistance. Look for a “Do Not Sell or Share My Personal Information” or “Your Privacy Choices” link at the bottom of a company’s website.
In relation to companies, consumers often have “imperfect information regarding when their data is collected, with what purposes, and with what consequences”. The most critical information, such as one’s password, date of birth, ID documents or social security number, can be used to log in to different websites (e.g. password reuse and account verification) to gather more information and access more content. Exclusivity of personally identifiable information affiliated with the U.S. highlights national data security concerns https://labverra.com/articles/understanding-patient-record-databases/ and the influence of personally identifiable information in U.S. federal data management systems. Additionally, any person may ask in writing a company managing data files to correct or delete any personal data. On 1 June 2023, the Hong Kong Office of the Privacy Commissioner for Personal Data published an investigation report on a data breach involving the unauthorised access of a credit reference database platform. Information can still be private, in the sense that a person may not wish for it to become publicly known, without being personally identifiable.
The data collected by social media platforms, e-commerce sites, and data brokers remained largely unregulated at the federal level. In the United States, there isn’t one single law that protects this entire portrait. In fact, many of these incidents occur when an employee accidentally makes personal information public. Personal data breaches are not always a result of cybercriminals hacking into a company system. In other cases, personal data that has been breached is used to create false online identities, such as fake social media profiles. Some individuals might alter personal data to hijack mailboxes, create fake documents, and use people’s contact information to harass them.
A drawing made as part of a psychological evaluation could reflect the person’s feelings, e.g. about family, work, or similar and therefore qualifies as personal data. Images of individuals captured by a video surveillance system can be personal data when these individuals are recognisable, which would almost always be true. This extends to texts within electronic documents, which are also considered personal data when they have identifiable details about an individual and meet the general criteria for personal data. Any file containing identifiable information about a person is classified as personal data. This includes personal data stored on paper, digitally, on tape, or otherwise. This fact is enshrined in the GDPR, which grants individuals the right to rectify, allowing them to correct their inaccurate personal data.
The reason for this distinction is that bits of information such as names, although they may not be sufficient by themselves to make an identification, may later be combined with other information to identify persons and expose them to harm. Your knowledge of what constitutes personal data will enable you to act against the incorrect processing of personal data, help your company progress towards compliance, and improve the trustworthiness of the company. Consultants would compile client profiles, capturing their business requirements and relevant personal preferences to fulfil their service to the client. Security footage showing identifiable individuals is treated as personal data even when it captures scenes in public areas.
That individual must be identified or identifiable either directly or indirectly from one or more identifiers or from factors specific to the individual. This means personal data has to be information that relates to an individual. Ana focuses on helping organisations understand their compliance obligations and find the right data protection solutions. What has changed is the technical sophistication required to meet those obligations at scale and the regulatory willingness to impose serious consequences when organisations fall short. Article 37 GDPR mandates a DPO for public authorities and bodies; organisations whose core activities require large-scale, systematic monitoring of individuals; and organisations that process special category data at scale. Photographs that clearly identify a living person are personal data under GDPR.