Global IT companies concerned about data protection Bill

Global IT companies have expressed their “strong concern” over the data protection bill recommended by the Joint Committee of Parliament. In a letter sent to the Union Minister of Electronics & Information Technology Ashwini Vaishnaw, the association which includes global companies such as Microsoft, Amazon, Apple, Google, Dell, etc, gave the argument that the recommendations that are proposed by the Joint Committee of the Parliament in the data protection bill are contrary to the global standards. The association said: “Many of our joint member companies in India and from across the globe will be significantly impacted by the report. To ensure the success of India’s first comprehensive data protection law, we respectfully request MEITY to launch additional stakeholder consultations before introducing the Personal Data Protection (PDP) Bill in Parliament.” The JCP recommended that PDP should be amended to Data Protection Bill as it would include non-personal data too. The major concerns for these companies are limitations on cross-border data transfers, data localization obligations, mandatory hardware/IOT, and AI software certifications, and the addition of non-personal data in the bill. They further wrote: “Our companies rely on this data to reach consumers, drive business efficiencies, and continue to innovate. The Report includes new recommendations and novel concepts to the PDP Bill, which, if enacted, would create powerful disincentives for India’s innovation ecosystem and the promise of a trillion-dollar digital economy."