TY - JOUR

T1 - The Path to Recognition of Data Protection in India: The Role of the GDPR and International Standards

AU - Kuner, Christopher Barth

PY - 2021

Y1 - 2021

N2 - By providing rules of the road for data process- ing, data protection legislation has become a key enabler of the information society. The European Union’s General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) has been highly influential around the world, and the recent Schrems II judgment of the Court of Justice of the EU, which strengthened restrictions on international data transfers under EU law, has important implications for India as it prepares to adopt data protection legislation. While the Puttaswamy judgment that recognised privacy as a fundamental right represents a great stride for- ward for privacy protection in India, legislation is necessary to establish the right to data protection in the Indian legal system. The proposed Personal Data Protection Bill does not provide a sufficiently high standard of data protection, par- ticularly in light of surveillance initiatives and legal man- dates to collect data under Indian law. India should view the strengthening of its legal framework for data protection not just as a way to receive an EU adequacy decision, but also as having broad societal benefits. In adopting data protection legislation India should align itself both with the GDPR and also more broadly with data protection standards of important international bodies, such as those of the Council of Europe and the OECD.

AB - By providing rules of the road for data process- ing, data protection legislation has become a key enabler of the information society. The European Union’s General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) has been highly influential around the world, and the recent Schrems II judgment of the Court of Justice of the EU, which strengthened restrictions on international data transfers under EU law, has important implications for India as it prepares to adopt data protection legislation. While the Puttaswamy judgment that recognised privacy as a fundamental right represents a great stride for- ward for privacy protection in India, legislation is necessary to establish the right to data protection in the Indian legal system. The proposed Personal Data Protection Bill does not provide a sufficiently high standard of data protection, par- ticularly in light of surveillance initiatives and legal man- dates to collect data under Indian law. India should view the strengthening of its legal framework for data protection not just as a way to receive an EU adequacy decision, but also as having broad societal benefits. In adopting data protection legislation India should align itself both with the GDPR and also more broadly with data protection standards of important international bodies, such as those of the Council of Europe and the OECD.

KW - Faculty of Law

KW - data protection

KW - GDPR

KW - India

KW - privacy

KW - EU law

M3 - Journal article

VL - 33

SP - 69

EP - 91

JO - National Law School of India Review

JF - National Law School of India Review

SN - 2350-1200

IS - 1

ER -