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Navigating the murky waters of Data Protection Law: Time to seal the deal
While deliberations of the data protection bill will bring a temporary relief to internet users, the clause-by-clause analysis shows the other way around.
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Illustration of data protection (Shutterstock.com/Ico Maker)
T
he government and the House of Representatives need to immediately approve the long-awaited bill on the protection of personal data. Personal data protection is not only essential to ensure data privacy and the process of safeguarding data from malicious actions, but is also pertinent in unlocking paths to greater connection and business value.
Furthermore, protection of personal data demonstrates the government’s seriousness in supporting the digital transformation it has been championing.
Indonesia’s digital economy is the largest and fastest growing in Southeast Asia, with an economic value recorded at US$70 billion in 2021. The exponential growth of the Indonesian digital economy, however, takes shape at a quicker pace than the law.
To address the regulatory gap, the government is targeting to pass a data protection bill into law immediately in the upcoming House’s September sitting to build a sense of security among internet users and to provide reassurance to businesses.
The government has taken this step after nearly eight years. It has gone through multiple iterations, including an initial assessment of the bill in 2014, a review by the House in 2020 with reference to the European General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) and a week-long rally of meetings on its deliberation in June 2022 amidst the mounting public pressure against a string of data breaches and cyberattacks.
Yet, it keeps getting pushed back due to the absence of compromise regarding some institutional standards, including the establishment of a data protection oversight agency.
While the bill’s completion in the House’s next sitting period is monumental to building a safe digital ecosystem in the country, the answer to Indonesia’s issue with digital best practices remains unclear. This is pertinent in the following three points.
