The Internet and Mobile Association of India (IAMAI) has proposed changes in the draft data protection bill of the Union government to lower the age of consent in the prpposed Data Protection Bill, 2021. The association represents entertainment and social media companies like Meta, Google, Disney Star, Dell and Reliance Jio. It argues that considering 18 as the age of consent would hinder access to educational content, as well entertainment products and services for children.
It proposes that the definition of “child” should be lowered from 18 years aligned with global norms, and the consent age should be determined based on the “risk factor” and nature of the service being provided. It also says that the ‘data fiduciary’, the entity that processes data, should not be required to verify the age of users and that should be a self-declaration.
The association is also lobbying for the ‘parental consent’ clause in the Bill to be removed, or at least be considered on a ongoing basis. Such a mechanism for approving the use of personal data before accessing products and services can have a “chilling effect”, hinder access, and stop children from exercising their legal rights fearing legal action.
Young users and their parents should be empowered to engage with privacy and transparency tools and the service providers should be left free to work on
In terms of advertisements, it said that a complete banning of ads targeted at children is not feasible, but their content should be monitored.
The association made these submissions to a Joint Parliamentary Committee considering the Bill by the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology for suggestions.
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