Flight safety 2.0: Airline bookings must assure privacy

Online booking platforms must fully implement India's new law to keep our personal data secure

- AMAR PATNAIK

The Digital Personal Data Protection (DPDP) Act of 2023 has been viewed as a crucial step in safeguarding Indian data and privacy in digital spaces. With the growing reliance on the internet for various services globally, online businesses have seen a significant surge, particularly in fields like airline ticket reservations. Services such as MakeMyTrip and Goibibo that allow one to make bookings online, as well as the websites of airlines like Indigo, Air India, etc., have transformed how people plan and book a trip. These websites deal with and store private information that includes names, contact details, travel plans, payment method details and even data from official identity-proof documents such as passports and PAN or Aadhaar cards. All these pieces of information fall under the definition of 'personal data' under Section 2(t) of the DPDP Act because they can be used to identify the person to whom it belongs. Even though online reservations are convenient, they raise privacy concerns. There are risks of mass data breaches and the unauthorized use of an individual's data stolen from these databases.