In today’s digital age, the Personal Data Protection Act (PDPA) is much required to safeguard individuals’ personal information. Name, address, telephone number, and email address are examples of personal information.
The PDPA was enacted as a result of the widespread collection and use of individuals’ personal information without permission or security precautions.
This made individuals concerned for their privacy and safety. The PDPA establishes rules that businesses must observe in order to collect and use personal information.
For instance, they must first obtain permission and ensure that the information is stored securely. This helps safeguard individuals’ privacy and information.
What is Personal Data Protection Act (PDPA)?
The Personal Data Protection Act (PDPA) is a privacy law in Singapore that sets a minimum level of safety for personal data. It works with laws and rules that are specific to certain industries, like the Banking Act and the Insurance Act.
It has rules about how personal information can be collected, used, shared, and kept safe in Singapore. It also calls for a national Do Not Call (DNC) Registry to be set up.
People can register their Singapore phone numbers with the DNC Registry to stop companies from sending them unwanted telemarketing calls.
Why is Data Important?
In the digital age we live in now, data is like money. People are sharing it online at a worrisome rate.
In fact, we give away a lot of Personally Identifiable Information (PII) when we use the internet. This includes the accounts we have, the emails we send, and the things we buy online.
Digital companies can’t get enough of this data, which can be used to make interesting customer behaviour analytics that can get more people to buy goods or services.
But as businesses want more and more customer data, there is a growing belief that businesses don’t have the right tools to keep the data they collect safe and handle it well. This is because there have been a lot of data leaks and thefts of customer information.
Along with this growing concern, the government is teaching people how to protect their own customer data and only give it to a service when it’s necessary.
The Objectives of PDPA
The Personal Data Protection Act (PDPA) takes into account both the need to protect people’s personal information and the need for businesses to only collect, use, or share personal information for good reasons.
A data security regime is needed to keep personal information from being used in bad ways and to keep people’s trust in organisations that handle their information.
By controlling how personal information moves between organizations, the PDPA also aims to make Singapore a more trusted place for companies to do business.
The Scope of PDPA
The PDPA applies to personal information in both electronic and non-electronic formats. Most of the time, it doesn’t relate to:
- Anyone acting on a personal or domestic basis.
- Anyone acting as an employee with a company.
- Any public agency when it comes to the collection, use or disclosure of personal data.
- Business contact information, including the person’s name, position, business telephone number, business address, business email, business fax number and other similar information.
PDPA: Challenges for Businesses
One of the most important Personal Data Protection Act (PDPA) rules that companies break is that they don’t get permission from customers before collecting their data. So, companies must now be honest with their customers about how they gather data.
For example, they now have to write special cookies and privacy policies for websites that explain who can see and work with the data and how long it will be kept.
This is especially important in the digital marketing ecosystem, where organisations can make mistakes when they try to get as much customer information as possible.
The Cambridge Analytica-Facebook incident was one of the high-profile cases that put personal data privacy in the spotlight.
As a result, businesses need to carefully look over the requirements on their online and offline forms to see if the information they ask customers for is important. Organizations can no longer call or email people without their permission.
If they do, the organisation could be fined under the PDPA. The collection of National Registration Identity Card (NRIC) Numbers and other National Identification Numbers is also being regulated.
PDPA: Opportunities for Businesses
Even though PDPA has led to some challenges, it has also given businesses opportunities to assist other businesses in following the rules about protecting people’s personal information.
Businesses that can help solve problems in this area have a good chance of becoming successful. Here are some examples:
- Data Protection Services: Companies can help other companies protect people’s personal information by providing services and solutions. This can include showing companies how to protect data, making sure they are following the rules, and giving them advice on how to get better.
- Data Management Solutions: As companies try to follow the rules of the Personal Data Protection Act, they need safe ways to store data. This has opened up new business possibilities for companies that offer safe ways to store data and back it up.
- Consent Management: Companies must get permission from people before they gather, use, or share their personal information. This has made it possible for companies to make it easy for people to give or refuse permission.
- Compliance Software: Some businesses create software that helps other businesses follow the rules of the Personal Data Protection Act. This can include tools that check if a company is following the rules and records that show how well they are doing.
- Privacy-improving technologies: As people worry more about their privacy, they need new ways to keep their information safe. Companies can come up with ways to keep data safe, such as blockchain solutions that focus on privacy, security, and other methods.
In Summary
The Personal Data Protection Act (PDPA) is essential legislation that provides individuals with greater control over their personal information and ensures that companies handle this data appropriately. It was established in 2013 with the creation of the PDPC.
Subsequently, the DNC provisions and main data protection rules were introduced in 2014. Next, amendments to the PDPA were passed in 2020, with the changes taking effect on February 1st, 2021, including mandatory data breach notification and increased fines for non-compliance.
Today, the Personal Data Protection Act (PDPA) continues to evolve to protect personal data.
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