In Europe, protection of private digital data has taken center stage in recent years. Although there is currently no EU-wide disclosure legislation, national data protection laws have been in place as early as 1973 in Sweden. This trend has accelerated following the legislation enacted in most US states in the past few years.

Europe, in contrast to the US that focuses on the financial implications of identity theft, has focused on personal privacy. The EU has long had  legislation for standardizing on the handling its citizens digital data relying on the guidelines of EU 95/46 . All EU members have Data Commissioners with the legal obligation to be a watchdog of citizen’s privacy and the right to levy fines and jail sentences for mishandling of data.
Today, all EU members, and almost all European countries, have enacted data protection laws and/or set up national authorities for the protection of personal data.

This map will point you to the varying requirements of these laws in each country. Click on any state to see highlights from that country’s law.