Data Protection Law in India A comparative Study of existing data protection regime With reference to EU UK USA

Abstract

It is often said that Data is the new oil1. With an intensely digitalized world and an increasingly digitalized India, the significance assumed by the data has reached unprecedented heights in the last couple of decades. The motive behind most of the cyber security attacks in India in the recent past has been aimed at stealing data. There have been numerous instances of health data2, financial data3 and other important personal4 and sensitive data5 being compromised by the cyber attackers. Numerous instances of data breaches including the hacking of social media accounts6, theft of credit and debit card details and other privacy breaches go unreported due to the lack of stringent data protection laws in India that could afford adequate protection to the sensitive and personal data of the citizens in the recent past.