GS4 · 20 marks · 250 words
You are posted as the Joint Secretary in the Department of Information Technology of a state. The government recently implemented several citizen-centric digital services, collecting large volumes of personal data from residents. The Digital Personal Data Protection (DPDP) Act, 2023, requires that such data be processed only with explicit and informed consent, and mandates that processing must cease immediately upon withdrawal of consent. During an internal audit, you discover that the department continues to process and analyze personal data of several citizens even after they have formally withdrawn their consent. This data is being used for policy analytics and service improvement, purposes not explicitly disclosed at the time of data collection. When you bring this to the attention of your department head, you are informed that halting the processing will disrupt ongoing digital initiatives and may affect state-level performance metrics. Moreover, you find that the consent withdrawal process is cumbersome, and many citizens are unaware of their rights under the DPDP Act. You also learn that a prominent social activist is planning to file a complaint with the Data Protection Board against involuntary use of personal data, which could attract public scrutiny and legal action against the department.
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