Privacy laws govern the collection, use, storage, protection, sharing, and deletion of personally identifiable information (PII) of consumers and employees—and the disclosure to consumers of what PII a business has collected about them. Examples of PII include names, addresses, telephone numbers, credit card information, online user names and passwords, and health care information. Many states have privacy laws, and these laws vary from state to state.

In Ohio, privacy laws related to the handling of personally identifiable information (PII) are a combination of state statutes and federal regulations. Ohio does not have a comprehensive consumer privacy law like California's CCPA or Virginia's CDPA, but it does have sector-specific laws that protect PII. For example, the Ohio Personal Information Protection Act (House Bill 104) requires businesses to implement safeguards for personal information and to notify individuals of breaches that may affect them. Additionally, Ohio follows federal laws such as the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) for health care information, the Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA) for credit information, and the Children's Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA) for the online privacy of children under 13. Businesses must inform consumers about the PII they collect and provide avenues for consumers to request information about their data. The state also has laws that address specific aspects of data privacy, such as the disposal of personal information and restrictions on sharing social security numbers. It's important for businesses to stay compliant with both state and federal regulations regarding the collection, use, storage, protection, sharing, and deletion of PII.