Celebrity privacy refers to the right of celebrities and public figures, largely entertainers, athletes or politicians, to withhold the information they are unwilling to disclose. This term often pertains explicitly to personal information, which includes addresses and family members, among other data for personal identification. Different from the privacy of the general public, 'Celebrity Privacy' is considered as "controlled publicity," challenged by the press and the fans. In addition, Paparazzi make commercial use of their private data.

Some national and state governments set up privacy laws mainly to protect celebrity privacy and their family members. The legal impact of these celebrity privacy laws has currently been undetermined since the curb for celebrity privacy intrusion often counteracts the legal principle of "free press" in many countries.

Scholars have debated how much or what type of privacy celebrities and their friends or family can or should expect. Commonly posed arguments center upon topics such as the idea of celebrity privacy as controlled publicity, the intrusion of paparazzi or fans, and what types of privacy should be granted to and expected by children of celebrities.

Celebrities are often controlled by the public exposure they receive and the need to maintain positive professional images. This invasion of privacy causes their private lives to be governed by the public. Jamie Nordhaus says, "The boundaries of privacy and publicity for celebrities can become blurred, as they most are always watched by fans, paparazzi, and other potential stalkers." It has been suggested that celebrities "remain conscious of maintaining a public persona when they are in the public eye as opposed to a personal one in private" and "negotiate with the press to release staged private life photos." Jens Heffman argues that 'Celebrity attempts to sacrifice their privacy for publicity may result in a loss of legal protections, as celebrities claiming that an invasion of privacy by the press could be seen as using media to achieve or maintain fame.' The latter argument was used in a court decision on a stolen sex tape that featured American actress Pamela Anderson Lee and her then-boyfriend Bret Michaels. Lee has sued Internet Entertainment Group (IEG) and Paramount for broadcasting a story in 1998 that contained excerpts from the tape; however, the court considered her voluntarily sacrificing her privacy in hopes of publicizing herself. Scholar Seong Hong has stated Lee's privacy right was not protected because of her celebrity identity.

Celebrities' pictures are taken and sold to the press for financial purposes by freelance photographers known by the term "paparazzi." Some techniques which the term paparazzi use include stalking, which could cause turbulence to the lives of celebrities if approached aggressively. The method of stalking is harmful according to past events, as it has led to injury or death of the star. The death of Diana, Princess of Wales, has been cited as an example of the risks of paparazzi techniques. On the other hand, scholar Elizabeth Hindman claims that the sale of exaggerated content without context to sensationalize particular moments has decreased credibility in the news industry.

Ray Murray argues that "some paparazzi will draw an ethical line" by following specific rules. In a series of paparazzi interviews, most participants claimed they would not break the law. Some attested that they would not take any photo of celebrity children without consent." Scholar Andrew Mendelson has argued that "Paparazzi are valuable in that they reveal potential mismatches between the public image and the reality of celebrities who possess great power in contemporary society, which legitimizes the paparazzi's invasion of celebrity privacy as a form of watchdog journalism."

Anne Jerslev and Mette Mendelson have noted that the paparazzi have become integrated into mainstream culture, and their photographs are distributed widely and quickly by consumers.

Scholar Kinta Hung suggests that the "dual entertainment path model" shows that fans and non-fans use different ways to engage with their favourite celebrities. As for those who are not fans, they pay attention to celebrities and the released news to escape from boredom. For fans, they put a much higher emotional investment into creating an individual "bond" with stars, which gives them pleasure and a sense of satisfaction. Fans try to become physically and mentally closer to their idols by attending concerts, movies, and fan meetings. The term stalking also exists with fans, as in extreme circumstances, fans may be obsessed with their celebrities and invade the celebrities' privacy. Scholar Jens Hoffman has argued that this results from a pathological fixation. Fans exhibiting this can believe there is a special connection between their favourite celebrities and themselves, even though such a relationship does not exist. Once unsatisfied, this fixation can lead fans to invade celebrity privacy out of disappointment and resentment.