By Prashanth GJ, Chief Executive Officer, TechnoBind Solutions
India has taken a revolutionary step in creating a pro-digital ecosystem. If we consider just digital payments, India is #1 and has recorded 89.5 million transactions in 2022, which is 46% of all real-time payments made worldwide. But digital doesn’t just mean digital payments. Our personal data is now digitally stored and processed, many times without our consent or knowledge. Without data, however, businesses, research and innovation will not be possible. Acknowledging these factors, the Union Government was working on creating a suitable data protection bill and fulfilled this responsibility
spectacularly by passing the Digital Personal Data Protection 2023 bill (DPDP) last week. This bill puts India in the league of the European Union’s General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR), which is considered one of the toughest privacy and security laws in the world. India’s bill while being stringent is yet business and development-friendly.
Consent and notification are the foundation of the bill which is handing back the power to the public. Organizations that have collected the data of every individual need to notify them about the same and people can choose how they want their data to be utilized. DPDP bill 2023 provides an option for individuals to choose the data they wish to share with organizations and can ask them to – delete, modify or restrict their data usage. From individual web browsers that collect data in the background or provide standard, ‘I agree’ forms, to websites that ask upfront about data collection, changes will have to be implemented as per DPDP 2023. Despite the restrictions, the government has provided an exemption with the perspective of ease of doing business which is close to the initial consent individuals have provided. Apart from this the fines listed for data breaches i.e. Rs 200Cr and Rs 250Cr showcases the importance the government has given to data and a strong fight against its misuse. This would push cybersecurity providers and businesses that collect data to ensure that data breaches would be reduced and develop more robust security solutions/platforms. This will also stimulate a fight against cyber attacks that have considerably increased since the world embraced digital solutions post-pandemic.
The DPDP 2023 bill has come at the right moment as new-age technologies such as generative AI, automation, blockchain, AI/ML, IoT and cloud computing have taken hold of every vertical – from healthcare to local governance boards. The bill now ensures a responsible path of data utilization and provides ample time for businesses to modify their regulations according to the bill. This is yet another way where India is at the forefront of transformation. TechnoBind, as a specialist distributor in the Access, Management, Security, Infrastructure and Cloud space believes that the Digital Personal Data Protection 2023 bill will help India, its startups, the Make in India initiative along with business investments from foreign technology giants to evolve and transform showcasing to the world the importance of data and its protection. On an additional note, TechnoBind also welcomes and applauds the first step the union government has taken in recognizing various individuals with the usage of the pronouns ‘she/her’ which shows the inclusivity with which we are moving ahead in the digital age.
