Privacy Boosters, advancements in the tech industry

Data Privacy is the new buzzword that’s being discussed in many circles in India. India’s ‘Personal Data Protection Bill’ is in the pipeline and seeks to overhaul the current data protection policy. The new policy has many regulations put in place to ensure the safety of personal data and that data is collected with explicit consent from the users. Large companies will have to ensure proper data security measures are taken and large fines are in place in case of a breach.

The Indian public has also started to actively educate themselves on the issue of privacy. When WhatsApp intended to change its privacy policy, it was met with backlash, discussions & a large portion of the population was even looking to opt out of the app. There is a need for a consumer-centric privacy measure that’s being driven by consumers, regulators & other business partners. This necessity brings about opportunity for unicorns in the privacy tech start-up domain.

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Here are the sub-sectors within privacy tech start ups that will see fast growth -

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Identity & Access Management: With companies opting for a full or even partial Work-From-Home model, access to critical data should only be available to employees and genuine customers. Identity & Access Management (IAM) is expected to grow especially with the need to provide secure and fast customer experience. The Indian market holds a high potential for such companies and there is scope of innovation to replace the current outdated methods.

Data encryption: Data encryption is another sector that will see growth. Most data stored by businesses is unencrypted which allows hackers free access to this data in case of a breach. Technology can be used to encrypt this data, that is converting it to a code which is unreadable to outsiders who don’t have access. Start-ups can create encryption software for companies that don’t have internal IT teams or are looking to outsource this function.

Companies will have to set up internal systems that comply with the new data protection law. Consent managers & Data Compliance Management can step in here to help companies manage consent and ensure they are not in violation of any data protection policy.

While these start-ups help larger companies with their privacy needs, there is space for consumer-empowering privacy tech-start ups as well. Doosra helps protect your personal phone number by providing you with a second number that you can give out. This helps protect you from telemarketers, third-party vendors who’ve bought your data, scammers and eliminates the nuisance and risk of being defrauded. While there are still ways to go in terms of data privacy, there is momentum which can ensure that privacy tech will be an important domain in the near future!