Tech Firms Move to Oppose India’s Proposed Data Law

Global companies such as Facebook, Mastercard, and Paypal are reportedly planning to lobby against India’s new legislation that would require such organizations to store the data of Indians within the country.

In a letter to India’s information technology minister, the firms said that restricting cross-border data flow would make an impact on both Indian and global companies. Organizations such as the U.S.-India Strategic Partnership Forum, the Washington-based Information Technology Industry Council (ITI), London-based techUK, and India’s NASSCOM have expressed their support of the message.

However, an IT ministry official said that data localization was a necessity to prevent breaches and to aid government investigations, adding that the industry is being ambitious in thinking that the bill won’t become a law this year.

Source: Reuters