The upcoming draft for India's data protection law will allow data to be transferred to and stored in "trusted geographies", reports the Economic Times. These geographies will be periodically defined by the Indian government, said sources aware of the matter. The "reciprocity" of these geographies with India will also be considered while determining this. Personal data will not be further segregated into sensitive or critical data, added the official, indicating that previously-mentioned data localisation provisions will not find a place in this law. For example, the 2021 Bill batted for sensitive and critical personal data to be stored in India, allowing cross-border transfers only under specific circumstances. It also pushed for the gradual implementation of a data localisation policy for India's economic, privacy, and security interests. This segregation makes no sense, added the official speaking to Economic Times, arguing that "personal data is personal data. A breach is a breach, whether it is sensitive or not". In this spirit of protecting "personal data" the law will be renamed the "Digital Data Protection Bill" as it deals with digital personal data, adds the report. This "qualitatively different approach" aims to ensure that the law evolves with changes in technology. Why it matters: Industry stakeholders have been concerned about the logistics of segregating and localising data for a while now. For example, "the datasets that we work with might be a mix of personal data, sensitive personal data, and maybe even critical personal data. But the data localisation or data mirroring requirement would be applicable…
