What is Personally Identifiable Information?

Personally identifiable information (PII) refers to any data that can be used to identify a specific individual. It includes information like full names, addresses, social security numbers, phone numbers, email addresses, financial account numbers, and medical records. Biometric data like fingerprints are also considered PII.

Regulations like CPRA exist to protect PII and ensure organizations collecting PII use proper security measures. Organizations must be careful in how they collect, store, and share PII.

Online identifiers like cookies, on their own, are not inherently PII. They become PII only if directly associated with identifying information of a specific individual. Cookies can be used to store or track PII, which makes them a potential privacy concern and subject to privacy compliance regulations.

For detailed information on PII, click here.