In a rather historic move, the lower house of India‘s parliament has greenlit an update to a bill that will ease data compliance regulations for big tech giants. The Digital Personal Data Protection Bill 2023, which now demands less stringent rules for data storage, processing, and transfer, comes as a relief to many global tech companies, like Google, Meta, and Microsoft, as well as local firms looking to expand their geographic reach.
The Bill aims to regulate data exports from India, although the government retains the power to ban exports to countries of its choosing. In its initial state, the Bill mandated government consent for BigTech entities planning to collect personal data and prohibited these companies from selling collected data for reasons not stated in the contract. This, in essence, disallowed anonymization of personal data for AI training.
With billions of internet users, India presents a ripe market for growth. But the explosion of AI accessibility has sparked regulatory anxieties globally about how these products collect and use user data. Increased concerns about BigTech companies misusing data in the burgeoning tech industry makes this new Bill even more critical. India is currently collaborating with the Biden Administration in the United States to establish an international framework for AI.
A considerable cause for concern regarding data collection comes with the advent of the decentralized digital identity verification protocol Worldcoin. India is already home to two of its iris scanning orbs. Yet, the reduction of conformity requirements for companies under this exciting new Bill certainly appears to prioritize technological and economic advancement over potential security risks.
However, the bill isn’t finalized yet; it still needs to pass through the upper house of the parliament. This two-sided narrative puts the future of BigTech companies and personal data protection on a balance, raising pertinent questions about striking the perfect equilibrium between technological progression and robust data security. While massive tech brands would view this new legislative development in a positive light, the swelling fears about data misuse might make the public feel differently. It remains to be seen how this chapter will unfold and what ripple effects it might manifest on BigTech’s freedom and the public’s trust in technology. Whether this move will push India closer to being a technologically advanced economy or make it a hunting ground for data breaches is a storyline in progress.
Source: Cointelegraph
