The Office of the Data Protection Commissioner (ODPC) is seeking to register all Data Controllers and Data Processors in accordance to the provisions of the Data Protection Act of 2019.
This is part of the mandate of the office, as it seeks to regulate all entities that collect data from individuals and those who process this data.
The head of legal services at the ODPC, Ms. Susan Waweru, said that the ODPC has to date registered close to 4,000 such entities in the last one year but noted that the majority have yet to comply.
She was speaking in Tharaka Nithi and Meru Counties, where she led a team from ODPC to sensitize Data Controllers and Processors on the mandate of the Office of the Data Commissioner and the provisions of the Data Protection Act of 2019.
Data collectors refer to entities that collect personal data and determine the purpose and means of processing this data, while data processors are the entities that process this data on behalf of the controllers. They include government departments, learning and health institutions, civil society organizations, and even religious organizations.
Ms. Waweru said that the registration of data controllers and entities would help the ODPC regulate the processing of personal data in the country.
“This office will ensure that those who collect and process data do so for lawful purposes only as provided in the Data Protection Act of 2019,” she said.
Apart from regulation, the Office of the Data Protection Commissioner is mandated to protect the privacy of individuals, legally known as the Data Subject, by ensuring that the processing of personal data is guided by the principles set out in the Act.
The head of legal said that although the ODPC has put in place legal and institutional mechanisms to protect personal data, individuals, too, have a big responsibility in ensuring the data is safe. Among the precautions the data subjects can take is to exercise their right to know why their data was required before allowing a collector to obtain it.
The public was also cautioned against posting personal data on unsecured social media platforms, as this information was at risk of falling into the hands of fraudsters. Data subjects were asked to adhere to ODPC’s clarion call “Data yako, Jukumu lako”.
By Jane Gicharu
