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personal data

What It Means

Personal data is any information that can identify a specific person, either directly (like their name or email) or indirectly (like combining their job title, location, and age). This includes obvious identifiers as well as digital footprints like IP addresses, device IDs, or even patterns of behavior that could point back to an individual.

Why Chief AI Officers Care

Mishandling personal data can result in massive regulatory fines (up to 4% of global revenue under GDPR), damage customer trust, and create legal liability. CIOs must ensure all systems properly identify, protect, and govern this data across the entire technology stack.

Real-World Example

A retail company's customer database containing email addresses is clearly personal data, but so is their website analytics showing which products anonymous visitors viewed, if that data could be combined with other information to identify specific customers.

Common Confusion

Many executives think personal data only means obvious identifiers like names and social security numbers, not realizing that location data, device fingerprints, and even 'anonymized' datasets can often be traced back to individuals and still qualify as personal data under privacy laws.

Industry-Specific Applications

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Healthcare: In healthcare, personal data encompasses all patient information including medical records, treatment history, genetic d...

Finance: In finance, personal data encompasses all client information used for banking, lending, investment, and payment services...

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Technical Definitions

NISTNational Institute of Standards and Technology
"‘Personal data’ means any information relating to an identified or identifiable natural person (‘data subject’); an identifiable natural person is one who can be identified, directly or indirectly, in particular by reference to an identifier such as a name, an identification number, location data, an online identifier or to one or more factors specific to the physical, physiological, genetic, mental, economic, cultural or social identity of that natural person."
Source: GDPR
"(1) “Personal information” means information that identifies, relates to, describes, is reasonably capable of being associated with, or could reasonably be linked, directly or indirectly, with a particular consumer or household. Personal information includes, but is not limited to, the following if it identifies, relates to, describes, is reasonably capable of being associated with, or could be reasonably linked, directly or indirectly, with a particular consumer or household: (A) Identifiers such as a real name, alias, postal address, unique personal identifier, online identifier, Internet Protocol address, email address, account name, social security number, driver’s license number, passport number, or other similar identifiers. (B) Any personal information described in subdivision (e) of Section 1798.80. (C) Characteristics of protected classifications under California or federal law. (D) Commercial information, including records of personal property, products or services purchased, obtained, or considered, or other purchasing or consuming histories or tendencies. (E) Biometric information. (F) Internet or other electronic network activity information, including, but not limited to, browsing history, search history, and information regarding a consumer’s interaction with an internet website application, or advertisement. (G) Geolocation data. (H) Audio, electronic, visual, thermal, olfactory, or similar information. (I) Professional or employment-related information. (J) Education information, defined as information that is not publicly available personally identifiable information as defined in the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (20 U.S.C. Sec. 1232g; 34 C.F.R. Part 99). (K) Inferences drawn from any of the information identified in this subdivision to create a profile about a consumer reflecting the consumer’s preferences, characteristics, psychological trends, predispositions, behavior, attitudes, intelligence, abilities, and aptitudes. (L) Sensitive personal information. (2) “Personal information” does not include publicly available information or lawfully obtained, truthful information that is a matter of public concern. For purposes of this paragraph, “publicly available” means: information that is lawfully made available from federal, state, or local government records, or information that a business has a reasonable basis to believe is lawfully made available to the general public by the consumer or from widely distributed media; or information made available by a person to whom the consumer has disclosed the information if the consumer has not restricted the information to a specific audience. “Publicly available” does not mean biometric information collected by a business about a consumer without the consumer’s knowledge. (3) “Personal information” does not include consumer information that is deidentified or aggregate consumer information."
Source: CCPA

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