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There is a growing global concern regarding the protection of personal data for individuals, given the rapid technological advances that geographically universalize information and could have considerable impacts on citizens' lives. Brazil, following the global trend, enacted its General Data Protection Act (LGPD) in August 2018, which came into force in September 2020, except for its penalties, which only came into force in August 2021.
On May 19, 2024, we published an article on the mapping of personal data protection laws around the world based on data provided by UNCTAD (United Nations Conference on Trade and Development), in which the following map was identified:
A little over four years have passed and the map has undergone some changes, as can be seen in its updated version below:
At first glance, we can identify that countries that had pending data protection laws at the time now have consolidated data protection legislation, such as Russia, Uganda, Botswana, and Zimbabwe. On the other hand, countries that lacked this type of law now have pending legislation, such as Ethiopia. And finally, countries that previously had no legislation or for which there was no available data now have a consolidated data protection law, such as Guatemala, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Egypt, and Cameroon.
Currently, very few countries still lack even a draft bill for data protection, which can be quickly named: Venezuela, Cuba, Libya, Sudan, Central African Republic, Eritrea, Liberia, Sierra Leone, Guinea-Bissau, Burundi, Syria, Afghanistan, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, Brunei, East Timor, and Papua New Guinea.
Furthermore, there are also very few countries that do not provide information regarding the existence or absence of internal data protection legislation, namely: French Guiana, Western Sahara, Mozambique, Somalia, South Sudan, Congo, North Korea, and Vatican.
Thus, the current global scenario can be summarized as follows:
The relevant data protection and/or privacy legislation are divided below by region as follows:
1. Americas (35 countries)
2. Europe (45 countries)
3. Asia-Pacific (60 countries)
4. Africa (54 countries)
5. Developing Countries (46 countries)
6. Islands (38 countries)
In the era of artificial intelligence, the panorama above clearly shows that countries are increasingly aware of the need to establish guarantees so that the population's data are appropriately and fairly used. Furthermore, they are becoming aware of the duty, especially for legal entities, to protect their respective data.
While some legislations, such as those in Brazil and Europe, frame the processing of personal data on legal bases, other legislations, such as those enacted in some U.S. states, protect data subjects solely with respect to the commercialization of their personal data.
Finally, it is important to note that the recent regulation of artificial intelligence use by the European Union is a significant step for other nations in regulating situations that similarly impact data subjects.
