Vexing questions over personal data protection bill hang over tech firms

MUMBAI: Technology companies, including Microsoft and Cisco, have sought clarity on the technical challenges of data localisation, stipulated in the Personal Data Protection Bill, which is being examined by a joint parliamentary committee.

The conditions on how data is to be classified have been clearly defined, but further information is needed on the technical specifications or gateways at which this classification will take place, said Vishak Raman, director, security business, Cisco India and SAARC.

“Where the Bill needs to add more clarity is the technical controls – you classify the data, but how do you do it? You do it at a proxy (level), at the firewall, at your Cloud or during file submission, at the DNS security or at email security?” Raman pointed out.