Well... this question is tricky. Because not everyone has to protect your privacy and depending on who you are, where you live, who you share your personal information with, and what type of information you share can make a difference in the rights you have to the personal information you have shared.

For example, in California, starting January 1, 2023, the new CPRA will apply to any for-profit entity doing business in California that collects California consumers' personal data and:

  • Had gross revenues exceeding $25 million as of January 1 in the preceding calendar year; or
  • Buys, sells, or shares the information of 100,000 or more consumers or households; or
  • Derives 50 percent or more of their annual revenue from selling or sharing consumers' personal information

It means that not all websites with which you share your information (and because of the cookies and web beacons, the simple act of browsing the website is sharing personal information) have to request your consent before sharing or selling any of your personal information.

Having said that, in America, as soon as the website has a Privacy notice, the owner of the website has to implement it. If not, you can file a complaint to the FTC for unfair or deceptive practices or consumer protection law violations.

In Europe, the situation is different. The GDPR is a comprehensive privacy regulation extending privacy compliance requirements to all businesses, non-profit organizations, and government agencies in all 28 EU member countries.

Your residency is crucial in determining which privacy laws apply to you. For example, if you're a US citizen residing in the EU, the GDPR will apply to you.

 

To sum up, every situation is different. However, you can assume nowadays that when you share your personal information with another person, either natural or legal, you can expect your privacy to be taken care of, and you can expect to exercise your rights to privacy. If you feel that something's wrong, then you can consult an attorney to check if your case is legit and if you can claim reparations.