Does it apply to me
Does DPDP apply to freelancers and sole proprietors?
- Short answer
- Yes, if you handle other people's digital personal data for your work. A freelance designer holding a client list, or a consultant holding contact details, is a Data Fiduciary. Purely personal or domestic use of data is outside the Act.
The Act applies to a person, which includes an individual, so being unincorporated changes nothing about scope.
The line that matters is personal or domestic purpose. Your own address book is outside the Act. A client list you use to run a business is not.
For most sole practitioners the practical burden is modest, because there are few systems and few purposes. What is still expected is that you know what you hold, you keep it securely, and you can answer someone who asks you to correct or erase it.
Where this comes from
- Section 3, DPDP Act 2023
The mistake people make
Assuming the Act only reaches registered companies. It reaches any person determining the purpose and means of processing.