DPDP rules will need to wait for elections to be over

Focusing on privacy and data security, the Union government plans to notify rules for the Digital Personal Data Protection Act (DPDPA) and introduce an amendment to the IT rules within the first 100 days of the next government, a senior government official told Business Standard.

While the rules for DPDPA are long overdue and will provide enforcement for the eight-month-old data privacy law, the IT rules amendment will address governing critical areas such as Artificial Intelligence-led misinformation and deep fakes until a comprehensive Digital India Act is crafted, the official said.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi, during a cabinet meeting last month, reportedly asked his ministers to draft roadmaps for the first 100 days of his next term.

In this regard, the official said that the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY) has prepared an action plan for the first 100 days for key sectors under its domain.

“The rules for the DPDPA were ready but we could not notify them before the elections due to various factors; they will now be done within the first 100 days of the new government,” he said.

The notification of India’s data privacy law rules has been long-awaited. Once the rules are notified, there will be a consultation period of 45 days, followed by establishment of the Data Protection Board (DPB).

Industry players have repeatedly expressed their concerns about the delay in notification of the rules, saying that most platforms will need to align their products and services based on the requirements under the rules, and they need adequate time to comply.

Another important ruling to govern internet organisations, privacy, and data protection is the IT Rules, 2020. The government has been issuing advisories as per the current version of the rules and is now planning to bring an amendment to it to further broaden its scope to address the issues arising from AI, particularly deep fakes.

“The Digital India Act is in process, but will take some time; in the meantime, an amendment to the IT rules will be introduced to address the risks and user harms that arise from AI,” the official said.

The Digital India Act, which is being introduced to replace the 23-year-old Information Technology Act, is said to focus on areas such as cybersecurity, AI, and privacy among others. Business Standard