Upload­s propos­ed legisl­ation on websit­e for public, stakeh­older feedba­ckISLAMABAD: In today’s digital age, personal data has become an extremely valuable commodity and for many businesses the sole source of their income is the personal data of users they generate. Personal data is often collected, processed and even sold without the knowledge of the person it belongs to. Knowing the power of data and its other aspects like privacy, confidentiality and integrity, the Ministry of Information Technology (IT) and Telecommunication has prepared a draft bill seeking to ensure privacy of personal data of an individual. The bill was drafted by officials of the ministry on direction of the Secretary Information Technology Shoaib Ahmad Siddiqui. According to the ‘statement of objects’ of the draft, digitization of businesses and various public services employing modern computing technologies involve processing of personal data and the growth of technological advancements have not only made it easier to collect personal data but also enabled processing of personal data in so many ways that were not possible in the past.

Source: The Express Tribune April 11, 2020 06:33 UTC