Union Minister of State for Electronics and Information Technology Rajeev Chandrasekhar has urged people to not share their mobile numbers with a retailer if there is no “justifiable reason” after a Twitter user shared his experience at Delhi’s IGI Airport on social media.
Dinesh S Thakur, founder of an independent funding organisation, tweeted that when he went to buy a pack of gum at one of the bookstores at the IGI airport, he was asked to share his phone number.
When he questioned the shopkeeper for the need to share his phone number, Thakur was told that it was for “security purposes”. But, as explained by the Twitter user, when he enquired more about the so-called security factor, he received no response.
Apparently, the manager of the store was summoned after the encounter with Thakur, who further stated on Twitter “what amazed me was there were so many fellow travellers who obediently disclosed this information even without batting an eyelid”.
Minister Chandrasekhar said: “The misuse of digital personal data of Indians will stop after the Digital Personal Data Protection (DPDP) Bill is enacted.”
The DPDP bill outlines the rights and duties of a citizen and the fiduciary’s obligations to use collected data lawfully. It proposes to impose obligations on companies or data fiduciaries that determine the purposes and means of processing.
Additionally, the bill also aims to regulate entities that process such data, referred to as Data Processors, in accordance with the companies’ decisions.
The Concern
News18 reached out to Amit Relan, Founder and CEO at mFilterIt, who said using phone numbers for marketing purposes has become a common practice worldwide, including in India.
“Retailers play the trust card to access the first-party data of customers. To ensure that there is no doubt in the customer’s mind, they claim to provide a personalised experience and give access to loyalty programmes,” Relan said.
But he also believes that the practice of collecting phone numbers leads to various forms of misuse.
“The collected data is a gold mine, and it is sold unauthorised to third parties. In some cases, it also leads to invasion of privacy and financial loss,” he added.
Meanwhile, Major Vineet Kumar, Founder and Global President of CyberPeace Foundation told News18 that in the Delhi Airport case, it seems unreasonable for the bookstore to ask for the phone number just to buy a pack of gum and even if they argue that it is for “security purposes,” there is likely no legitimate need for this information.
According to him, anyone has the right to deny no to such requests and also should feel free to seek more information as the key is to be informed and to make decisions, without jeopardising the privacy and personal information.
Furthermore, the expert said: “The DPDP bill would strengthen the privacy rights of individuals in India and provide them with more control over their personal data.”
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