GDPR - Why am I Getting all these Emails?

You may have noticed over the past week or so that you are receiving a few (possibly quite a few) emails requesting you to confirm that you want to continue receiving emails from certain companies (Ancestry, FamilySearch, WDYTYA, etc.) or asking you to read through updated privacy statements and confirm your agreement.  This is likely to be because of the GDPR. 
GDPR stands for General Data Protection Regulation. It’s the European Union’s new data protection law and it comes into effect on 25th May 2018. That’s just around the corner, and many companies are scrambling to make sure they are compliant with these new regulations.
The GDPR doesn’t just apply to EU businesses.  It applies to any business, anywhere in the world, that processes personal data relating to an individual in the European Union.  So while it is an EU regulation, it has worldwide impact.
And if there’s any common thread that runs through all of the parts of the GDPR, it’s that personally-identifying information like names and email addresses can’t be collected, stored or used without (a) the consent of the person whose name or email it is and (b) proof that consent was given.  The second part is the sticky one that's causing all these emails.
For many companies who regularly email me newsletters and information, it has simply been a matter of clicking to confirm that I do wish to continue receiving their emails.  That's their proof of my consent.  After carefully checking the link and email sender to confirm they are legitimate, I have clicked and received confirmation that I will stay on their mailing list.  One or two I have decided not to continue with and unsubscribed - at least this will clean up my inbox a bit.
So if you have received a few of these updates, the GDPR is the reason.  If you don't reply, you will probably drop off their mailing list - possibly after receiving a second email prompting you to confirm your choice.  What you do is up to you.