Data privacy refers to the laws and legislations which are aimed at minimizing invasion of one’s privacy caused by storage of data on a digital/electronic platform.Amidst the increasing significance of privacy in today’s world the Cabinet approved the Personal Data Protection Bill, 2019 which was tabled in the Lok Sabha in December, 2019. The Bill governs the processing of personal data by:
(i) government,
(ii) companies incorporated in India, and
(iii) foreign companies dealing with personal data of individuals in India. Personal data is data which pertains to characteristics, traits or attributes of identity, which can be used to identify an individual.
The Bill categorises certain personal data as sensitive personal data. This includes financial data, biometric data, caste, religious or political beliefs, or any other category of data specified by the government, in consultation with the Authority and the concerned sectoral regulator. The Bill has been tabled and awaits passage.The Information Technology Act, 2000 (hereinafter referred to as ‘The Act’) focuses on privacy of data in digital format and provides for compensation to the victim in the case of unauthorized access and leakage of sensitive personal information. The Act provides for punishment for damaging the computer system without permission of the owner/person in charge of the computer system, which includes inter alia downloading of information, installing a virus, tampering ofor manipulation of data etc. Further, the Act talks about offences such as tampering with the computer source documents, hacking a computer system, and publishing of obscene information in electronic form. The Act also mentions that network service providers will not be made liable for any contravention made without his knowledge.