Privacy Laws In Plain English

You do not need to be a lawyer to tag responsibly, but you should know the shape of the main rules. They differ in detail, yet share a few principles: be transparent about what you collect, collect it for a clear purpose, and respect people's choices.

The big three

• GDPRGDPRGeneral Data Protection Regulation: EU/UK law requiring consent before setting non-essential cookies or processing personal data. (EU/UK): you generally need consent before setting non-essential cookies or processing personal data, and people have rights to access and deletion.
• CCPA / CPRACCPACalifornia Consumer Privacy Act: US state law giving residents the right to opt out of the sale or sharing of their personal information. (California): focuses on the right to opt out of the "sale" or "sharing" of personal information.
• ePrivacy (EU): the "cookie law" behind consent banners for storage and tracking.

This is general information, not legal advice. When in doubt about a specific situation, check with whoever owns privacy at your organization.