Right to be forgotten

Prelims:          

Polity & Governance

Mains:

GS Paper II-Polity & Governance

            Recently Delhi High Court has laid down principles governing Right to Be Forgotten. The court has evolved a new jurisprudence to protect the privacy of those who continue to be victimised on account of their digital footprints on social media and elsewhere, despite having those matters settled in their favour.

1. Definition:

The Right to be Forgotten means that an individual may request the removal, de-indexing, or restriction of access to personal information available online when its continued availability causes unjustified harm and no larger public interest requires it to remain accessible.

2. Constitutional provision:

The RTBF is implicitly provided under Right to Privacy mentioned article 21, (Puttasamy case 2017).

3. Delhi High Court decision:

1. Recognized the Right to be Forgotten (RTBF): The Court held that, in appropriate cases, individuals can seek the removal or restriction of personal information available online.
2. Privacy is a Fundamental Right: The Court reaffirmed that RTBF flows from the Right to Privacy under Article 21 of the Constitution.
3. Need for institutional mechanism: The Court observed that an effective framework, including the Data Protection Board under the DPDP Act, would help deal with RTBF requests more efficiently.
4. Judicial records should generally remain public: Instead of deleting court judgments, the Court suggested that in suitable cases names and personal details may be redacted (masked) to protect privacy.
5. Case-by-case approach: The Court clarified that every RTBF request should be decided based on the specific facts of the case. There cannot be a one-size-fits-all rule.
6. RTBF is not an absolute right: A person's privacy must be balanced against freedom of speech, public interest, and the principle of open justice.

4. Digital Personal Data Protection (DPDP) Act, 2023

1. The DPDP Act, 2023 provides the Right to Erasure of personal data under specified conditions. Under the DPDP Act, 2023, a Data Principal may request the erasure of personal data once the purpose for its collection has been fulfilled, consent has been withdrawn, or retention of the data is no longer required under the Act. However, the Act does not expressly recognise or define the "Right to be Forgotten" as a distinct legal right.
2. Under the DPDP Act, 2023, a Data Principal may request the erasure of personal data once the purpose for its collection has been fulfilled, consent has been withdrawn, or retention of the data is no longer required under the Act.
3. However, the Act does not expressly recognise or define the "Right to be Forgotten" as a distinct legal right.

Source: THE HINDU - RIGHT TO BE FORGOTTON