Data privacy has become a huge threat in the United States. But it is now a risk that is just as perilous throughout the globe as employee data privacy laws become more prevalent and complex worldwide.For instance, in Hong Kong, an employee can now legally request companies to reveal what personal data they hold on the worker -- information some have been using to bring suits against their employers. In the United Kingdom, the Data Protection Act grants people the rights over their own personal data and mandates precisely how employers can handle such info. The United States doesn't have one overarching regulation; it has a host of rules specific to how employers can handle different types of data, including social security numbers, health records and credit reports. There is also the "Red Flags Rule," signed into law last December, that sets new procedures for how companies must respond to potential identity theft threats.
All this and more is outlined in Mayer Brown's new report, "Employee Data Privacy - A Global Overview." And in a complicated world with many different bodies mandating many different ways that employee data must be handled, this is knowledge that no multinational company can afford to misunderstand.