By IANS,
New Delhi: No government agency has been provided undue powers to access sensitive personal information under rules of the Information Technology Act, the communications and information technology ministry said Tuesday.
“These rules do not provide free access to sensitive personal information. The nature and applicability of these rules have been clearly specified,” the ministry said in a statement.
The intent of rules under section 43A of the Information Technology Act 2000 is to protect sensitive personal information and does not give any undue powers to government agencies for free access of sensitive personal information, it said.
“Wide public consultations had been conducted for finalising the rules and the rules have been duly endorsed by the industry association,” the statement added.
The rules under section 43A cast onus on the body corporate to provide policy for privacy and disclosure of information.
Any such disclosure of sensitive personal data or information by body corporate to any third party shall require prior permission from the provider of such information, it said.
The rules provide for inherent checks-and-balances in the form that the government agencies must have been mandated under the law to obtain such information for the purpose of verification of identity, investigation including cyber incidents, prosecution and punishment of offences, said the statement adding that any such agency receiving such information has to give an undertaking that the information so obtained shall not be published or shared with any other person.