Prashant Mali, President and Founder of Cyber Law Consulting (Advocates &
Attorneys), Mumbai, writes about the right to have an individual’s data deleted from the internet upon withdrawal of consent to store such data by such person.
Abstract
The “right to be forgotten” reflects the claim of an individual to have certain data deleted so that third persons can no longer trace them. The right to be forgotten was recognized for the first time in India through the judgment delivered by Karnataka High Court in the matter of Sri Vasunathan v. The Registrar-General in 2017. However, it has long been recognised in the EU jurisdiction. This article traces this development and discusses the legal implications of this right with the introduction of artificial intelligence. It finally concludes by discussing the right to be forgotten in India and how it has been merged with the right to privacy.