Data Privacy Day: Data Protection Commission advocates public awareness 

As Nigeria joins the rest of the world to celebrate World Data Privacy Day with the theme “Take Control of your Data”, the Nigeria Data Protection Commission (NDPC) has advocated for continuous public awareness of the rights of data subjects and the obligations of the data controllers and processors in the country.

This, the Commission said, will help the effective application of the Nigeria Data Protection Act 2023 (NDPA).

According to an IANS Research, despite an increasing number of privacy laws around the world, many people still have little understanding of how much information is collected about them every hour of every day.

Speaking with Voice of Nigeria in Abuja, Nigeria, the National Commissioner of NDPC Dr. Vincent Olatunji said the Nigerian government is working assiduously through awareness and education projects and programmes to ensure that data management becomes a culture in Nigeria.

He added that the protection of its citizens from malicious use of their identities and unauthorised access to their data is a top priority for the government.

“At NDPC, we are mandated to implement that law. We are to ensure that the data privacy rights, freedom and interests of all Nigerians are adequately protected. In effect, we must hold data controllers and processors accountable for any personal data that is with them

“As the regulator, we are to ensure that the data of Nigerians are collected, processed, stored and shared, in a safe and secure manner through appropriate safeguards.” Olatunji affirmed

The NDPC boss, however, identified the lack of awareness as a factor that exposes individuals to losing their data, therefore affecting them negatively.

“Many Nigerians do not know their data rights. We are coming up with a lot of awareness activities for people to know their rights. Whatever data that is being collected; the data subjects need to know the essence,” he said.

To this end, Olatunji gave the assurance that “we will also create awareness activities for data collectors and data processors. They need to understand why they collect people’s data. It is crucial that the organizations they work with provide timely training for them, especially as new data-driven systems keep emerging.

“We sensitize organizations, including banks, schools, and digital lending companies that we have had cause to investigate and take them through the compliance mechanism.

“We are trying to improve compliance culture, to encourage companies to make it part of their practices,” he emphasized.

Also Read: NDPC issues code of conduct for data protection

He urged Nigerians to take proactive steps to secure their personal information online and to become more cautious about sharing their data.

The National Commission’s boss also expressed concern over the low compliance with data privacy laws in the public sector.

“We are expecting the level of compliance by MDAs to increase from now. We are also creating awareness to ensure that all MDAs comply with the provisions of the law,” he stated.

Olatunji stressed the need for data compliance, adding that global bodies and international investors currently consider data protection legislation and level of data compliance as standard requirements for investments.

He added that the commission would be working to firm up the implementation of a standardised framework allowing every part and section of the law to be broken down into specific activities for the public to comprehend.

According to NDPC World Data Privacy Week provides an opportunity for the commission to bring its expertise on protection and privacy regulations to the forefront, providing guidance and insights to all.

2024 marks the fifth year Nigeria is joining the international community to celebrate World Data Privacy Day, which is marked every January 28. The day is set aside to create awareness of fundamental rights and freedoms relating to the privacy of citizens in the data processing ecosystem.

The commemoration also offers opportunities for collaboration among governments, industries, academia, non-profit organizations, privacy professionals, and educators, among other stakeholders.