COMMITMENT TO A SECURE DIGITAL FUTURE

In today’s hyper-connected world, where every click, swipe, and scan leaves behind a digital trail, the potential misuse of personal data looms larger than ever. The alarming reality is that most online platforms harvest user information, placing consumers at significant risk of privacy breaches, data theft, and even criminal exploitation. Fortunately, this troubling era may be on the verge of change.

The Digital Personal Data Protection (DPDP) Act, 2023, complemented by the DPDP Rules, 2025, heralds a pivotal shift in how personal data is gathered, utilized, and safeguarded in India. With a robust consent-based framework at its core, the law aspires to empower individuals with greater control over their personal information while holding data collectors accountable for their practices. Pune—a city renowned for its bustling IT corridors, esteemed educational institutions, innovative startup culture, and tech-savvy citizenry—stands poised at the forefront of this digital metamorphosis.

Everyday life in Pune is intertwined with data-driven systems, from biometric attendance systems in schools to telemedicine services, fintech applications, ride-hailing platforms, and social media networks. With the DPDP Act now officially in effect, Pune’s digital landscape is bracing for a sweeping compliance overhaul. Organizations—be they offices, educational institutions, hospitals, or food delivery apps—must reevaluate how they gather, store, process, and protect personal data.

Why the DPDP Regime Hits Home

As India’s third-largest technology hub and a vital education center, Pune’s reliance on digital systems renders it particularly susceptible to data misuse. Thousands of IT professionals submit personal and biometric data to employers, students provide identity details on educational platforms, and hospitals digitally store sensitive medical records. The implications of the DPDP Act are profound—experts assert that compliance goes beyond mere legal updates. “It requires organisations to abandon blanket permissions, slash excessive data collection, adopt purpose-specific consent, and clean up redundant data,” an industry insider notes, emphasizing that the changes must be deep structural shifts rather than mere cosmetic updates.

The rules are even stricter when it comes to minors. Cyber expert Rohan Nyayadhish explains, “For minors, behavioral tracking and profiling will be completely switched off. This will necessitate reliable parental-consent systems, fundamentally altering how youth-focused applications operate in India.”

What the Act & Rules Require

The DPDP Act and its accompanying rules establish a comprehensive framework anchored on seven core principles: Consent, Transparency, Purpose Limitation, Data Minimization, Accuracy, Storage Limitation, Strong Security Safeguards, and Accountability. Together, these principles dictate how organisations must collect, store, process, and protect personal data, establishing a new norm for digital ethics and consumer rights.

Impact on Social Media Platforms

With social media and messaging platforms playing a central role in Pune’s fabric, the DPDP Act evokes significant changes. For instance, WhatsApp, which enjoys immense popularity among Pune’s IT workforce, will now be required to offer clearer data-use disclosures, impose limits on metadata analysis, issue breach alerts, and provide straightforward options for users to delete or correct personal information. Notably, the ban on behavioral profiling for minors has tremendous implications for workplace communications, prompting companies to implement robust internal policies to safeguard employee and client data.

Instagram, favored by students and local entrepreneurs, must now secure verified parental consent for users under 18, disable personalized advertising for minors, and strengthen controls around image and facial data. Meanwhile, the influencer economy in Pune will come under scrutiny as it aligns with stricter regulations when managing audience data during brand collaborations.

Facebook, widely utilized by housing societies and community groups, must now acquire explicit consent for targeted advertising, clarify data usage practices, facilitate easy withdrawal of consent, and promptly notify users of breaches—thus fostering greater safety and transparency within community interactions.

Impact on Pune’s IT Workforce

With over seven lakh IT professionals in the region, the DPDP Act fundamentally redefines workplace data practices. Employers will need to enhance employee data forms, roll out breach-reporting systems, tighten data retention policies, and scrutinize cross-border data flows. As global clients increasingly demand proof of compliance, there will likely be a surge in demand for roles in privacy engineering, cybersecurity, compliance, and data governance.

Changes in the Education Sector

Pune’s universities, colleges, and coaching institutes must now seek explicit consent before collecting student data, allow corrections or deletions, rationalize biometric attendance systems, and secure critical admission-related records. These measures are essential for a city that hosts a vast number of outstation and international students, ensuring their personal information remains protected.

Healthcare Under the Scanner

Hospitals and clinics are poised to implement stronger protections for digital medical records, necessitate explicit consent for telemedicine and diagnostics, enforce immediate breach reporting, and impose limits on using patient data for marketing purposes. Given the rising number of cyberattacks on hospitals across India, these safeguards are more crucial than ever. “While large IT firms typically have established security frameworks, many SMEs, healthcare providers, and educational institutions still lack fundamental incident-response protocols. Detecting breaches within hours is a unique challenge,” Nyayadhish cautions.

Everyday Apps, Stronger Rights

Pune’s popular food delivery, ride-hailing, and public transport apps—such as Zomato, Swiggy, Uber, Ola, PMPML, and Pune Metro—must now secure explicit consent for location tracking, minimize data retention, enable straightforward deletion options, and eliminate ambiguous, pre-ticked permissions. The path ahead will require a cultural shift in how these organisations view user consent and privacy.

“One of the biggest blind spots for Pune’s organizations is the absence of structured cybersecurity audits. Many treat these audits merely as a one-time paperwork exercise. Yet, weaknesses like outdated passwords, unpatched servers, and misconfigured clouds can become convenient targets for cyber attackers. Most organisations do not even know what personal data they possess or where it is stored,” Nyayadhish warns.

Safety Promised

The DPDP Act elevates India’s status alongside global privacy standards while acknowledging the unique aspects of the country’s digital landscape. For Pune residents, the law promises enhanced control over personal data, improved online safety for students and minors, and heightened accountability for IT firms and startups. Furthermore, it opens the door to greater transparency in hospitals, schools, and public services, signaling a shift toward user-first digital platforms.

As Nyayadhish aptly states, “India’s challenge lies not in choosing between privacy and security, but in developing a framework where both complement each other. If executed properly, the DPDP Act could fortify national security, increase public trust, and boost India’s global digital standing.”

India’s Long Road to Privacy Law

The journey toward a privacy-centric digital ecosystem in India has spanned nearly a decade, beginning with the 2017 Supreme Court ruling that declared privacy a fundamental right. Following multiple drafts, consultations, and revisions, the DPDP Act was finally passed in 2023, with the finalized rules announced in November 2025. The compliance phase is set to continue through 2026.

Key Obligations for Firms

Under the new law, firms are mandated to deliver clear, multilingual consent notices, practice data minimization, facilitate easy withdrawal of consent, implement timely breach reporting, execute strict audits, appoint Consent Managers, obtain parental consent for minors, refrain from profiling minors, and impose restrictions on cross-border data transfers without due approval. These obligations will compel global tech platforms to rethink and redesign their data management systems comprehensively.