sir82-
these privacy laws are to protect individuals by giving them clear rights as to what can be collected, stored or shared(sold) to third parties by the collector.
Data collection is supposed to be business specific (only as much and no more) than that particular business needs to function effectively. Issues such as security clearances, health problems and financial situation of employees vary widely from industry to industry - thus should the collection of it´s data vary accordingly.
Furthermore it is the individual who controls how much is offered for collection and to whom it may be shared.
WT is dishonest in giving the impression that anyone MUST sign anything for them.