GDPR Requirements and How It Differs From U.S. Laws The GDPR is the European Union's main law for protecting people's personal data. It requires companies to clearly explain what information they collect, why they need it, and how long they will keep it. It also gives individuals strong rights, like being able to see their data, request that it be deleted, or move it to another company. One major impact is that the GDPR applies to any company that handles data from someone in the EUeven if the business is not located there. Because of this, many global companies had to redesign their privacy policies and update their systems to avoid large fines. In the United States, data privacy is handled in a more fragmented way. There isn't one national law like the GDPR. Instead, the U.S. uses a mix of state laws and industry-specific rules. For example, health data is covered by HIPAA, and California has its own privacy law (CCPA). Overall, the U.S. system gives fewer uniform rights to consumers and offers more flexibility to businesses compared to the GDPR. Should There Be a Single Global Data Privacy Law? A global data privacy law could make things easier for companies that operate in multiple countries. It would create one standard instead of forcing businesses to follow many different rules. In theory, this could also help protect consumers by setting a clear, universal baseline for how personal information should be handled