In 2018, California passed the California Consumer Privacy Act — one of the strongest data privacy laws in the world. Expanded by the CPRA in 2023, it gives you six specific legal rights over your personal data. Most teenagers have no idea these rights exist.
Who Is Protected
The CCPA protects all California residents including minors. If you live in California, these rights apply to you regardless of age. The law covers almost every major app, social media platform, and website you use.
Your Six Rights
Right 1: The Right to Know You can ask any covered company what personal data they have about you, why they collected it, and who they've shared it with. They have 45 days to respond.
Right 2: The Right to Access You can request a copy of the specific personal information a company holds about you — not just a summary, but the actual data.
Right 3: The Right to Delete You can ask a company to delete your personal data. They must comply within 45 days, with limited exceptions.
Right 4: The Right to Opt Out of Sale If a company sells your data, you can tell them to stop. Under the CPRA this extends to sharing for targeted advertising.
Right 5: The Right to Correct If a company has inaccurate information about you, you can ask them to fix it.
Right 6: The Right to Non-Discrimination A company cannot punish you for exercising your privacy rights — no denied services, higher prices, or worse experiences.
Extra Protections for Minors
The CCPA has extra protections for people under 16. Companies cannot sell or share the data of users under 16 without explicit opt-in consent. For users under 13, a parent or guardian must give consent.
Global Privacy Control
Install the Global Privacy Control browser extension (globalprivacycontrol.org). It automatically sends a legally binding opt-out signal to every California-covered website you visit — the most efficient way to exercise your opt-out right at scale.