Major internet, tech firms to write to MeitY for extension on DPDP Act transition

Ministry for Electronics and Information Technology held a consultation meeting on the Digital Personal Data Protection Act on September 20

Various significant internet and technology companies are set to write to the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY) listing out various provisions of the Digital Personal Data Protection (DPDP) Act for which the companies will be requesting a longer transition period, multiple sources told Moneycontrol.

This comes after the government held a consultation meeting with the industry, where it was conveyed that provisions such as those on processing of children's data (as per the law) etc would require additional architectural changes in companies.

The DPDP Act, which was enacted into law in August, mandates that parental consent is required to process the data of a child. Hence, social media and other firms have to develop age-gating mechanisms where one can verify their age.

Also read: What the Digital Personal Data Protection Act means for you

The letter, which companies expect to send by next week, may list out the provisions of children's data and the difficulties surrounding it in terms of compliance.

It was also recently mentioned by Minister for Electronics and Information Technology Ashwini Vaishnaw that one can use the Digi Locker to verify one's age. However, sources say that the letter would also point out that transactions or verifications done through Digi Locker can be very expensive and can burden a startup or MSME.

The letter will also point out complexities arising in terms of compliance where data fiduciaries have to depend on third parties, sources said. Right to Erasure provisions in the DPDP Act will also require additional transition time and may be figured in the letter.

During the consultation meeting, Minister for State in MeitY Rajeev Chandrasekhar informed the audience comprising of industry stakeholders that the government will notify the Data Protection Board and come out with a few rules for the DPDP Act in the next 30 days.

While speaking to media persons on the sidelines of the consultation on September 20, Chandrasekhar said that the government expects compliance with most provisions of the DPDP Act within a year, barring provisions such as the age-gating mechanism which would require additional architectural changes.