Privacy Among Elders​

INTRODUCTION

The majority of people momentarily have a broadband connection, and the elderly are becoming more interested in online services. The present investigation focuses on the privacy literacy as well as the behaviour of elderly individuals towards internet privacy and safeguarding their personal information practises. People use their mobile phones to generate and transmit sensitive data such as emails, text messages, and financial transactions, which may imperil their privacy and security. Data privacy refers to the manner in which a piece of data or other information should be treated based on its relevance. We typically apply our understanding of data privacy to essential personal information, commonly referred to as PII (personally identifiable data) and personal healthcare data (PHI), in the digital era.

ROLE OF PRIVACY AMONG OLDER GENERATION

Adults were not born in the digital era. They learned to utilise technology later in life and now spend a significant amount of time using it. According to Cybercrime Magazine, estimated losses from scams targeting the elderly are thought to cost families $36 billion annually. It was discovered that in the majority of cases where data like names, e-mail addresses, phone numbers, and other personal information was accidentally leaked, the elders faced terrible consequences. The majority of the elderly admitted to being victims of email scams, phishing scams, internet extortion, or targeted theft and are not aware how privacy of the elderly people were infringed. Therefore, in order to avoid scams and predators online, and have privacy among elders it is very critical for older people who spend time online to be aware of potential scams and know how to stay diligent while online.

 RELEVANT INDIAN LENGAL PROVISION FOR PRIVACY

India particularly doesn’t have privacy laws yet the following are the relevant provision that are recognised in India.

•       CONSTITUTION OF INDIA

The “Right to Privacy” is recognised as a basic right in Article 21 of the Indian Constitution. In the landmark ruling of Justice K.S. Puttaswamy (Retd) vs. Union of India, 2017, an Indian Supreme Court constitutional appellate court established “privacy” to be an inalienable right.

•       The Information Technology Act (2000)

It applies to companies in and outside of India that process personal data of persons within the country or a computer, computer system, or network of computers whose headquarters are in India. As stated in Sections 1(2) and 75 of the IT Act, the IT Act extends to breaches or violations committed outside of India. The IT Rule, 2021 (established under the provisions of Section 43A of the IT Amendments Act, 2008) governs:

-the collection, receipt, possession, storage, dealing, retention, use, transfer, and publication of SPDI.

-SPDI is in charge of information security procedures and practises (Section 8, Privacy Regulations).

-Rights of data subjects to assess and amend SPDI, as well as withdraw consent for SPDI treatment (Privacy Rules, Sections 5(6) and 5(7))

•       DATA PROTECTION BILL 2021

The Data Protection Bill 2021 covers personal and non-personal material. This safeguards both personal and non-personal data. Additionally, this requires a similar approach to the GDPR and the CPRA regarding who must comply with this new regulation.

RELEVANT INTERNATIONAL LEGAL PROVISIONS

Unlike India , internationally the privacy law has already received greater importance and following are few internationally reached privacy regulations:

•       GENERAL DATA PROTECTION REGULATION (GDRP) 

GDRP represents an EU legislative structure that supervises both the gathering and utilisation of personal information. An older individual’s citizenship gives them the exact same rights to confidentiality as any other adult EU participant. Additionally, individuals are guaranteed an obligation to live with dignity and autonomy under Article 25 of the European Union’s Charter of Fundamental Rights.

It also means that the European Union’s law requires information about older persons to be used in a fair, legitimate, and transparent manner. In addition, the information must be accurate while remaining up-to-date for as long as possible.

•       THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA

In the United States, there is no overarching congressional statute regulating the gathering and use of personally identifiable information for seniors. It is regulated by an interconnected set of federal and state rules and regulations, some of which overlap.

•       THE UNITED ARAB EMIRATES

The UAE government has enacted Federal Law No. 9 of 2019, safeguarding elderly people’s rights. The legal framework seeks to ensure that elderly people have access to the basic rights and freedoms awarded by the constitution, in addition to knowledge and assistance relating to their rights, as well as psychological, social, wellness, and stability care. It preserves the right to individuality and privacy, as well as the capacity to make decisions.

 OUTCOME OF THE RESEARCH

The outcomes of the present research suggest that consumers’ enthusiasm for confidentiality continues to increase, as does their concern about the misuse of their data. Notwithstanding seventy percent of the respondents being aware of the importance of data privacy, fifty-three percent of respondents in our poll claimed that they or someone in their network had become a victim of internet-based scams and other attacks via the internet. We concluded that due to the fact that privacy among elders is not highly technologically savvy, fifty-five percent of participants believed them to be an excluded demographic and failed to put them on a level playing field with their younger counterparts. It is true that, as opposed to others, they only experienced technological innovations at some point in their lives.

CONCLUSION

It makes it difficult for human beings to make the distinction between what they should and should not post online, explaining why just 34% of respondents believe they are aware of steps to protect their privacy. As a result, there is an elevated incidence of fraud targeting seniors, and greater than 70 percent of participants believe that elderly people are an appealing target for online fraud.