The Personal Data Glossary: 20 Terms Every User Should Know
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In this article
From metadata to data brokers, here's a quick-reference guide to the privacy terms you'll encounter and what they actually mean.
Why These Terms Matter to You
Privacy policies, app permission screens, and news headlines are packed with terminology that most people skip right over. That skipping has a cost: when you don't know what "data broker" or "inference" means, you can't make informed decisions about your own information. This glossary cuts through the jargon so you can actually act on what you read. For a related look at how these concepts show up inside apps specifically, see the App Data Terminology Glossary.
| Terms covered in this glossary | 20 |
| Key US privacy law referenced | California Consumer Privacy Act (CCPA) (California Attorney General) |
| Key EU privacy regulation referenced | General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) (European Commission) |
| Right to request data deletion | Available under GDPR and CCPA (Varies by jurisdiction and data type) |
| Where to find a company's data practices | Its published Privacy Policy |
Use this reference whenever you encounter an unfamiliar term in a privacy setting, a terms-of-service document, or a data-breach notification. The definitions below reflect broadly accepted usage across the privacy and security field.
The 20 Terms, Defined
These definitions cover the vocabulary you're most likely to encounter across privacy dashboards, app stores, and consumer data-rights requests. If you want to see how this kind of plain-language approach applies to other tech categories, the App Privacy & Safety hub is a useful companion resource.
Your Rights May Vary by State
Privacy rights in the United States differ significantly depending on where you live. California, Virginia, Colorado, and several other states have enacted their own consumer data-privacy laws, each with different rights and thresholds. Check your state attorney general's website for the rules that apply to you. Federal-level comprehensive privacy legislation, as of this writing, is still evolving.
Author
Cyber Security Editorial Team
Cyber Security Editorial Team is the collective byline for our editorial team and contributor network. Articles published under this byline or an editorial pen name are researched, written, and reviewed according to our editorial standards for clarity, consistency, and independence before publication.
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