According to the 2007 report published by Privacy International (PI) , India has a very poor record when it comes to governments protecting the privacy of its citizens. India has no explicit right to privacy, though the Supreme Court sees it as implicit under Article 21 on the right to liberty. PI is a watchdog on surveillance and privacy invasions by governments and corporations.
India scored 1.9 points, which makes it an “extensive surveillance society”. The US scored 1.5 points while the UK managed 1.3. Both countries are labelled “Endemic surveillance societies”. A score between 4.1 and 5.0 (the highest score) would mean a country “consistently upholds human rights standards”.
India has a history of abuse of wiretapping and NGOs complain of their communications being intercepted; law requires disclosure of encryption keys, and there are stiff penalties on anyone who fails to provide requested information to authorities.
Greece, Romania and Canada had the best privacy records of 47 countries surveyed by Privacy International, while Malaysia, Russia and China were ranked worst. The report said the trends had been fueled by the emergence “of a profitable surveillance industry dominated by global IT companies and the creation of numerous international treaties that frequently operate outside judicial or democratic processes.”
Each year since 1997, the US-based Electronic Privacy Information Center and the UK-based Privacy International have undertaken what has now become the most comprehensive survey of global privacy ever published. The Privacy & Human Rights Report surveys developments in 70 countries, assessing the state of surveillance and privacy protection. The new 2007 global rankings extend the survey to 47 countries (from the original 37) and, for the first time, provide an opportunity to assess trends.
Privacy International’s’ report is the most comprehensive single volume report published in the human rights field. The report runs over 1,100 pages and includes 6,000 footnotes. More than 200 experts from around the world have provided materials and commentary. The participants range from eminent privacy scholars to high-level officials charged with safeguarding constitutional freedoms in their countries. Academics, human rights advocates, journalists and researchers provided reports, insight, documents and advice. In 2006 Privacy International took the decision to use this annual report as the basis for a ranking assessment of the state of privacy in all EU countries together with eleven non-EU benchmark countries.
Follow this link for more details of last year’s results.
