Unveiling the New Draft: Digital Personal Data Protection Rules Released

The government has made public the draft of the Digital Personal Data Protection Rules, inviting public consultations until February 18. These rules outline consent processing guidelines and data processing authorities' functions. However, they do not mention any penalties for violations under the Digital Personal Data Protection Act, 2023.

The government has finally released the long-awaited draft of the Digital Personal Data Protection Rules, which notably omit any penal action for violations. Published for public consultation, these draft rules are open for public feedback until February 18 and will inform the final version.

The draft, outlined under the powers granted by sub-sections (1) and (2) of section 40 of the Digital Personal Data Protection Act, 2023, covers provisions related to consent processing by individuals and the functioning of data processing bodies.

Despite the DPDP Act, 2023, allowing for penalties up to Rs 250 crore on data fiduciaries, the draft rules currently lack mention of any specific penalties, leaving their future implementation unclear until final consideration after February 18, 2025.

(With inputs from agencies.)