DailyPost 627
GDPR – THE INDIAN DIMENSION
GDPR is an European law pertaining to data protection of personally identifiable information of European citizens residing in 28 member states. That the same laws applies to others if data is stored & processed outside the European Union. While European companies took the lead, all MNCs with business interests in Europe will have to comply. A recent report said that only 13 % of the Indian industry was GDPR ready.
India has invested around $56 billion since 2003, so it needs to look at GDPR with an intention to comply. The law is already enforced. There are large numbers of Indian business & start ups in Europe, the implications can be suicidal given the stringent provisions of the law, hefty fines being one of them. The nature of fines might be difficult for a start up to sustain, it can be an existential crisis, besides the disrepute it has to face. In recent past, deep technology, product development & hardware start ups from India have found their way into Europe.
The larger companies are better positioned to comply. The mid-size & the small ones have a still a long way to go. They are trying to get professionals help to reach the compliance levels required. Data from Indeed shows Bangalore leading the the Cybersecurity jobs requirements at 36%, followed by Mumbai at 17% & National Capital Region at 12%. The process & the technology tools for the purpose needs to be sorted out.
Compliance is an ongoing process but it has to start in the right earnest. The initial confusion & disinterest should vanish. The cost consideration cannot be given as an explanation. Business without compliance is not going to happen henceforth. With a fully aware client base, transparency is important. If the consumers know how the data is being used by the start ups, it would automatically develop trust. It’s a must for any enterprise to get created & thrive. Estonia, Lithuania & France are rolling out incentives for start-ups; Indian start-ups can use this opportunity, the GDPR way.
BEING INTERNATIONALLY COMPLIANT IS A MUST FOR INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS.
Sanjay Sahay