For newcomers, the world of data privacy can feel a little like alphabet soup. There are so many acronyms floating around the data privacy world that understanding which laws, activities, and concepts belong where is a real challenge.

The General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) is Europe's data privacy law — the first of its kind, and still the world's most comprehensive piece of privacy legislation.

Governments and citizens across the world are increasingly aware of the importance of data privacy. With the rise in awareness, authorities in many countries have drafted regulations and laws to protect their citizens on the internet. Other countries have laws in late stages of development.

The issue of privacy has found rare bipartisan support in the United States Senate. Ethyca CEO Cillian Kieran recently sat down for a conversation on the state of the US federal privacy conversation with Amie Stepanovich.