Navigating Data Privacy & Security In India’s Digitalised Entertainment Sector
Introduction
In an epoch where digitalisation has permeated in almost every aspect, India’s entertainment industry has also seen a major shift in the way people consume entertainment. The transition from simply turning on the television to logging into accounts such as social media and OTT platforms, has resulted the entertainment industry to witness an astonishing evolution. With the growth of abovementioned platforms, driven by digitalization, concerns for data privacy and security and, potential misuse of the data has steeped in the minds of people who share personal information to access such platforms.
The personal data of individuals is collected to better understand the taste and preferences of society to tailor content to meet the demands of the people. However, this has given rise to the prominent question: how will the personal data of individuals be utilized? While the data provided by individuals are handled safely by the industry, yet, there exists an apprehension that sharing data could be misused and will lead to a flood of advertisements as based on the interests of individuals or even to potential fraud and scams.
To address these alarming concerns, India has introduced Digital Personal Data Protection Act, 2023, a long-awaited legislation. Individuals who share their data must have the rights to control how their data will be used, to sort out any inaccuracies and to determine with whom their data will be shared. While sharing any personal information, people place a significant level of trust in these platforms, expecting that their trust will be respected. Hence, compliance with the Digital Data Protection Act, 2023 is not merely a legal requirement for the industry but also a means to gain trust from the individuals who are essential for growth and subsistence of the entertainment industry.
Data Privacy And Security Concerns In Entertainment Industry
The entertainment industry offers a wide array of content for diverse consumer preferences, with digitalized entertainment platforms depending heavily on understanding tastes and preferences within the particular market area. To understand the data privacy and security concerns, it is important to first must comprehend the wide range of information that is included in the data. According to the Digital Personal Data Protection Act, 2023(Government of India, 2023), data refers to “a depiction of data, whether it’s information, facts, concepts, opinions, or instructions, crafted in a way that is appropriate for conveying, understanding, or handling by either people or automated systems”. These data comprise of the personal information such as name, phone number, age, gender or any other information which might lead to identification of the individual along with their location and demographics. Furthermore, the viewing habits of the individual is continuously tracked by the streaming services and platforms so that suggestions could be given according to the same. In addition to this, users share crucial and sensitive information such as financial transactions which include credit card information or other payment methods to attain subscription of a particular platform. All these collection of data aids the production companies to identify the demanded content and customize them accordingly. For example, platforms like Instagram provides recommendation for reels to their consumer on the basis of their viewing history.
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This situation gave rise to a conundrum surrounding the issue of data privacy. On one side of the coin, the collection of data enables entertainment industry to tailor contents according to taste and preferences of individuals to maximize satisfaction. On the other side, it raises significant questions about data privacy and security.
Despite industry’s guidelines to safeguard data and prevent misuse, the data breach cases fuel concerns. For example, the Air India data breach in February 2021, wherein hackers successfully stole the personal and sensitive information of the passengers. Such incidents raise concerns among people who entrust their data to digital entertainment platforms.
Entertainment platforms such as social media and streaming service, gather a substantial amount of data that collectively builds an individual’s profile. Such number of information is enough for hackers to impersonate the individuals for their own benefits and gains. The surveillance on viewing the habit of individuals is often used to advertise similar targeted content. While this might enhance satisfaction of individuals, but it may also result to a feeling of discomfort. Additionally, such digital platforms can often identify the location of the person through smartphone, which raises severe privacy and security concerns. Leak of location and demographic data of a person poses high risks. Moreover, entertainment platforms such as YouTube allows users to upload content which include their images and videos or any other personal information. With the advancement of Artificial Intelligence, these images and videos of individuals could be highly manipulated and portrayed falsely in a different light. Addressing all such concerns and safeguarding the data privacy of individuals is highly essential in this digitalized era of entertainment.
Compliance with Digital Personal Data Protection Act, 2023
The digitalised entertainment sector should adhere to the Digital Personal Data Protection Act, 2023 not just as a legal requirement but also to foster trust of among people and to ensure a continued willingness of individuals to share the data. Compliance with the act to align with provisions of the act related to data protection, privacy and data processing, can further accelerate their commitment to address the concerns of data privacy and security while gaining the trust of users in India.
The fundamental features of the act are designed in a way that the collection of data and its utilisation are such that the private information of users are secured and in case of breaches, proper penalties are imposed on entertainment platforms. These features are: (a) usage of the personal data after gaining consent in a lawful and transparent manner, (b) collecting personal data to serve the specified purpose to adhere to data minimisation, (c) to ensure data accuracy by regularly updating the data, (d) storage of data only till it is required, (e) imposing penalties in cases of breach in maintaining privacy and security of data and, failure to take reasonable safeguards measures.
While the act aims to ensure that privacy and security of digital data is maintained, it has various loopholes that could potentially be exploited. One such loophole is the lack of detailed provision related to the usage of data. As long as the purpose is deemed lawful, it can be utilised. Hence, the issue of tracking of viewing habits for advertisement purposes and taking advantage of personal data for the same, will prevail. Additionally, the act does not address the issue of big companies using the data that users publicly share online. If users voluntarily disclose their personal information on any entertainment platforms publicly, there is no clear limitation on how long such information can be utilised. Furthermore, the act mandates Data Fiduciary (digital entertainment platforms, in this context) to take reasonable security measures to maintain security of information shared by individuals. However, what constitutes a ‘reasonable security measure’ is not addressed specifically in the act or the definition of ‘reasonable security measure’ is not provided. This ambiguity could lead to various interpretations and implementing security measures by different platforms as per their understanding thereby leading to lack of consensus on the how to efficiently tackle the issue of data security breach.
Conclusion
The digital world is in a constant expanding state, and the digitalized entertainment sector will keep undergoing changes from time to time. With increasing dependence on entertainment platforms, sharing of data will remain a prevalent practice. As a result, data privacy and security are the central point of focus, and it is necessary to that concerns regarding the same are addressed to ensure loyal user base.
With the advancement of Artificial Intelligence, challenges in terms of data security and privacy will remain the central issues, as eradication of the same seems like a utopian idea. However, establishing robust data protection measures such as encryption and transparency of consent among others, can significantly minimise the risks. Equally important is employee training in data protection and adoption of the best practices to avoid negligence on their part, which often leads to data breaches. These strategies seem like plausible options for entertainment service provider companies to mitigate the concerns of user data privacy and security. The Personal Data Protection Act, 2023 is a strong legal framework designed to safeguard the user data and compliance with this legislation is a key to gaining the trust of individuals using entertainment services.
In the digital entertainment sector, the aspect of data privacy is all about striking a balance between tailoring personalised content to engage users and respecting the trust, rights and privacy of users. Additionally, users need to be educated and made aware of their data rights, and should take proactive measures to prevent themselves from potential misuse or violations of their data privacy and security. It is essential to ensure that the digitalised entertainment sector is engaging for the audience while maximising satisfaction, and at the same time it is maintaining a secure and respectful environment for individual data privacy.
Author:Maitrayai, A student at Symbiosis Law School Hyderabad, in case of any queries please contact/write back to us at support@ipandlegalfilings.com or IP & Legal Filing.
REFERENCES:
- Berecki, B. (2019, March 19). End Point Protector. Retrieved from End Point Protector Web site: https://www.endpointprotector.com/blog/data-security-tips-indian-media-industry/
- Krishna, N. (2023, September 3). The Times of India. Retrieved from The Times of India web site: htps://timesofindia.indiatimes.com
- Rizwan, H. (2023, August tuesday). Digital Personal Data Protection Bill: Privacy Progress Or Intrusive Loopholes? Retrieved from Boom Live: https://www.boomlive.in/explainers/digital-personal-data-protection-bill-privacy-progress-or-intrusive-loopholes-22721?infinitescroll=1
- Government of India. (2023). Digital Personal Data Protection Act 2023. The Gazette of India, Dl. https://www.meity.gov.in/writereaddata/files/Digital Personal Data Protection Act 2023.pdf
