Which statement correctly defines PII?

Which statement correctly defines PII?

• A. Data that cannot be linked to a specific individual.
• B. Data used solely for non-identifiable analytics.
• C. Data that is publicly available.
• D. Information that can be used on its own or with other information to identify, contact, or locate a person.

Answer: (D)

PII means information that can identify a person, either by itself or when combined with other data. This includes direct identifiers like a full name, SSN, driver’s license number, email address, or phone number, and it also covers data that could identify someone when married with other information—such as a birth date, city, or medical record number. Publicly available data can still be PII if it can be used to identify someone, for example a real name paired with an address that appears in public records. Data that cannot be linked to any specific person isn’t PII, and data that’s used only for non-identifiable analytics or is fully de-identified/aggregated isn’t PII either.

PII means information that can identify a person, either by itself or when combined with other data. This includes direct identifiers like a full name, SSN, driver’s license number, email address, or phone number, and it also covers data that could identify someone when married with other information—such as a birth date, city, or medical record number. Publicly available data can still be PII if it can be used to identify someone, for example a real name paired with an address that appears in public records. Data that cannot be linked to any specific person isn’t PII, and data that’s used only for non-identifiable analytics or is fully de-identified/aggregated isn’t PII either.