Privacy as priority: India can’t afford any further delay in notifying data protection rules

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Subscribe to enjoy similar stories. A few days ago, Signzy, a popular Know Your Customer (KYC) verification service used by India’s top banks and fintech firms, was affected by a cyber attack that may have exposed the sensitive personal information of millions. Our lack of safeguards for data that businesses collect and process is an urgent problem waiting to be addressed.

Major data breaches over the past four years include the exposure of personal and sensitive data of citizens held by the government (covid data from ICMR), airlines (Air India and Akasa), a major health insurer (Star Health), an ed-tech firm (Unacademy), financial intermediaries (JusPay and Upstox) and other consumer-facing internet firms (BigBasket and RentoMojo). India’s internet adoption continues at a blistering pace. We could have 900 million active users by 2025, with world-leading levels of app downloads and content consumption.

Both the government and private sector are betting on digital channels to strengthen service delivery and reach new markets. Existing internet businesses with large customer bases are turning to ad-supported business models in pursuit of sustainability, while states use WhatsApp to facilitate citizen-centric public services. These developments mean internet users have richer-than-ever digital footprints.

Individuals navigating the digital economy must increasingly deal with interfaces powered by artificial intelligence (AI). As businesses test the premise that AI-led automation will cut costs and enhance service levels, consumers are forced to share information with AI chatbots for everything from purchases to grievance redressal. AI’s lure as a productivity enhancer means that unsuspecting consumers are sharing