Personal information
Also known as: personal data · PII · personally identifiable information
Personal information is any information about a natural person that makes them identifiable, directly or indirectly.
The definition is deliberately broad. A name qualifies, but so does an IP address, a device identifier, a voice recording or a purchase history, as soon as reasonable cross-referencing leads back to someone.
The word doing the work is "indirectly". A database containing no names can still be full of personal information if a customer number links out to somewhere else.
Company data is not personal information — a corporation's revenue is not protected on that basis — but its executive's named email address is.
What it means for a small business
The common mistake is believing you hold none. A newsletter list, web server logs and a sales inbox all three contain it.
So what actually applies to you?
A definition tells you what a term means, not what your organization must do. The assessment answers the second question — free, no credit card.
Updated September 1, 2026 · Educational definition; not legal advice.