After gaining presidential approval, the Digital Personal Data Protection Act, 2023 (the “Act”) was finally passed by both chambers of Parliament and published in the official gazette. The Puttaswamy Judgements and subsequent rulings by other constitutional courts by the Supreme Court of India, which delineated the boundaries of the right to privacy, are to be legislatively expressed by the Act. The tenet—which has now essentially solidified—is that an individual’s liberty is intrinsically tied to their control over their personal information. Therefore, in a system that is still firmly founded on permission, the answers to the problems of what constitutes a kid, who may provide consent for the collection of their personal data, and what can and cannot be done with it will be crucial to their future position as “Digital Nagariks.” As we continue our series on the Act, we now look at how children are treated under it and some worldwide comparisons.
Children And Consent
The age of majority was set at eighteen years old in the draught Digital Personal Data Protection Bill, 2022, which was made available for public input on November 18, 2022. The bill placed strong prohibitions on a number of broadly defined acts. Over 20,000 consultation comments and many in-person discussions later, it has become clear that this stance need considerable nuancing. In today’s digital economy, where youth consume more and more services ranging from entertainment to education, and where a growing number of young people use the internet, it is not only practical but also essential to offer goods and services to children and, when necessary, make sure that specific kinds of content is directed towards them.
This is even more true for other quasi-commercial and non-commercial processing activities such as age-gating, screening adult content and interactions, and providing minors with mental health and protective services. India has always treated all people under the age of majority as minors, with certain exceptions. Since these people are thought to be incapable of contracting, most forms of engagement with them rely on parental or guardian agreement. Although there are certain exceptions, such as when they enter into contracts or partnerships for their benefit, none of them—nor one-time parental consent—form a strong or even useful way to allow interaction between interactive platforms and people under the age of 18.
