in an about-turn that privacy advocates say will weaken key protections and gives excessive discretionary powers to the government.
In August, the Parliament abruptly withdrew an older version that was criticised as being too heavy-handed. The draft retains earlier provisions that require companies to seek explicit consent from users before processing their data, and to protect user data and stop storing it when it is no longer needed.
Worse, individuals can themselves face penalties for filing “false or frivolous” grievances or not providing accurate personal information. The draft law retains wide exceptions that allow the government to access people’s personal data under grounds such as security of the state and maintenance of public order. The Internet Freedom Foundation, an advocacy group, warned that these standards are “excessively vague and broad” and could result in “immense violations” of user privacy.