Applicable Law

The specific laws, regulations, and legal requirements that govern your data processing activities. Determining applicable law isn't always straightforward—it depends on where your organization is located, where your users are located, where data is processed, and the nature of your activities. A U.S. company might need to comply with GDPR if it offers services to EU residents, CCPA if it handles California residents' data, and PIPEDA if it processes Canadian data. Multiple laws often apply simultaneously, requiring compliance with all of them. Applicable law also includes sector-specific regulations (like HIPAA for healthcare or GLBA for financial services) and emerging state privacy laws. Your privacy policy should identify which laws apply to your processing and explain how users can exercise rights under those laws. Getting this wrong can mean missing critical compliance obligations.