Privacy is a person’s legally protected interest in preventing government or other intrusion into their homes; their communications (phone, e-mail, in-person); their luggage; certain compartments of their motor vehicle (glovebox, trunk); their personally identifiable information (PII); their body (hair, clothing, unexposed body parts); their image and likeness (through unauthorized use); and other information, places, and property (real and personal) in which persons have a reasonable expectation of privacy.

People generally do not have a right to privacy from being photographed or heard (if done without use of surreptitious electronic or other surveillance technologies) in public places—essentially, when they step outside of their home. There are exceptions to this general rule in which persons do have a right to privacy—such as in a doctor’s exam room or when making a phone call in a phone booth.

The Fourth Amendment to the United States Constitution protects people against government intrusions into their privacy.

And state and federal laws (statutes and court opinions) generally protect persons from unauthorized use of their personal information and from intrusions into their privacy by nongovernmental persons or entities. These protected privacy interests are generally limited to areas in which persons have a reasonable expectation of privacy (home, health information, image and likeness, e-mail communications, etc.)—and these laws vary from state to state.

In Alaska, privacy is a legally protected interest that guards against unwarranted intrusions by the government and other entities into personal spaces and information. This includes protection against intrusion into homes, communications, vehicles, and the unauthorized use of personally identifiable information (PII). The Fourth Amendment of the U.S. Constitution provides a broad protection against unreasonable searches and seizures by the government, reinforcing the right to privacy in areas where an individual has a reasonable expectation of privacy. In public spaces, however, individuals generally do not have a right to privacy from being photographed or overheard, unless electronic or other surveillance technologies are used without consent. Alaska state statutes and federal laws also protect individuals from the unauthorized use of their personal information by non-governmental parties. These laws are designed to prevent the misuse of sensitive personal data and to uphold the privacy of individuals in areas such as healthcare, electronic communications, and personal image. It's important to note that the specifics of these protections can vary from state to state, and in Alaska, they are shaped by both state statutes and court opinions.