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DPDP Insights › Central government: ministries and departments › Marketing department

Central government: ministries and departments

DPDP for the Marketing department in Central government

Media and outreach units publish photos, testimonials and beneficiary stories.

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What is different here

Ministries and departments run some of the largest personal data systems in the country: scheme beneficiaries, licences, registrations, permits and grievances. The DPDP Act applies to the State too, with specific room for its functions: Section 7(b) and 7(c) allow processing for benefits, services and functions under law without consent, and Rule 5 sets the standards that processing must meet. Section 17(4) also lifts some erasure duties. The duties of security, breach reporting, accuracy and grievance redressal still apply in full.

The first four things to sort out

  1. Consent for photos and stories.
  2. No Aadhaar or phone numbers in publicity.
  3. Children's images with parent consent.
  4. Check agency contracts.

A worked example: A success story with a beneficiary's photo

  1. Day 1Outreach plans a story with a photo and quote.
  2. Day 2Written consent is taken.
  3. Day 3Aadhaar and phone are removed from the image.
  4. AfterConsent form is standard.

Evidence kept: Consent form.

Stories need consent.

What others in the sector usually do. Publicity material is checked for personal details.

Where it usually goes wrong, by organisation type

Organisation typeHotspots
Ministry of Ports, Shipping and Waterways and its officesPort entry passes with ID copies held by many parties; Seafarer records shared with training institutes and agencies; Terminal operator systems outside the ministry's direct control
Ministry of Road Transport and Highways and its officesBulk or API access by private entities; Accident and challan data; Toll and FASTag transaction data with vendors
Ministry of Chemicals and Fertilizers and its departmentsAadhaar authentication at retailer PoS devices; Farmer purchase data visible to companies and dealers; Kendra operators holding prescriptions and customer details
Other line ministries and departmentsBeneficiary lists published or shared in spreadsheets; System integrators with admin access; Grievance records with personal details
Citizen portals and DBT schemesAadhaar numbers stored outside a data vault; Bulk beneficiary data sent to states by email; Dashboards showing names and amounts publicly
Regulators and statutory bodiesOrders and filings published with personal details; Complaint data shared with regulated entities; Investigation files on shared drives

6 guides for the Marketing department, in full

Do we need citizens' consent to run a scheme?

Short answer: Usually not; Section 7(b) or 7(c) with Rule 5 standards

Usually not. Section 7(b) allows the State to process personal data to give a subsidy, benefit, service, certificate, licence or permit, and Section 7(c) covers functions under law. Rule 5 then asks that this processing meet the Second Schedule standards. Consent is still needed for uses outside these, such as publicity stories or surveys not tied to the scheme.

What the law says

Section 7(b) and 7(c) set the bases. Rule 5 and the Second Schedule set the standards. Section 7 · Section 4

Steps
  1. Write the basis for each scheme: 7(b), 7(c) or consent.
  2. Check each scheme against the Second Schedule standards.
  3. Remove fields not needed for the benefit.
  4. Publish a contact for questions and rights.
  5. Take consent for extra uses.
Evidence to keep
  • Basis register
  • Standards check
  • Published contact
Common mistakes
  • Taking 'consent' that citizens cannot refuse
  • Collecting extra fields 'for analysis'
  • No contact for questions
Related questions

Someone withdraws consent. What has to stop, and how fast?

Short answer: Stop that use quickly, across every system and vendor

Withdrawal must be as easy as giving consent. Once someone withdraws, you and every vendor working for you must stop that use within a reasonable time. What was done before withdrawal stays lawful, and data that a law requires you to keep is kept.

From your seat: Marketing department. Make the stop option work across every channel and agency within a day.
In Central government

Where consent was the basis, such as newsletters, withdrawal must work.

What the law says

Section 6(4) to 6(6) give the right to withdraw at any time, with the same ease, and require processors to stop as well. Section 8(7) then asks for erasure unless a law requires retention. Section 6 · Section 8(7) · Rule 8 · Section 8(1)–(2)

Steps
  1. Give one simple way to withdraw on every channel where consent is taken.
  2. Record the withdrawal against the person and the purpose.
  3. Push the change to every system and vendor that uses that purpose.
  4. Confirm to the person, in writing, what has stopped and what is kept by law.
  5. Check a sample every month to see that the change actually reached every list.
Evidence to keep
  • Withdrawal log with time stamps
  • Proof that downstream systems and vendors updated
  • Confirmation sent to the person
Common mistakes
  • Withdrawal by email only, while consent was one tap in an app
  • Stopping in the main system but not in vendor lists
  • Deleting records a law requires you to keep
Related questions

What should our privacy notice say, and where must people see it?

Short answer: Yes, at every point where you collect data

A notice must tell people, in plain words, what data you collect, why, how they can withdraw consent, how they can use their rights and how they can complain to the Data Protection Board. It has to stand on its own, separate from long terms and conditions, and be shown at the point where data is collected.

From your seat: Marketing department. Landing pages, contest forms and event sign-ups each need a short notice.
In Central government

A scheme portal should show what data is collected, why, and a contact for questions and corrections, even where consent is not the basis.

What the law says

Section 5 and Rule 3 ask for a notice that can be understood on its own, with an itemised list of the data and the purpose for each item. Data you already hold from before the Act also needs a notice, as soon as reasonably practicable. Section 5 · Rule 3 · Section 6 · Sections 11–14 · Rule 14

Steps
  1. List every point where personal data comes in: forms, apps, counters, calls, emails, partner feeds.
  2. Write one short notice per collection point, with the data items and purpose side by side.
  3. Add how to withdraw consent, how to make a request and the DPO or contact person's details.
  4. Offer the notice in English and in the languages your citizens and beneficiaries actually use.
  5. Keep each version with the date it went live.
Evidence to keep
  • Screenshots or copies of the notice at each collection point, with dates
  • Notice version history
  • Translations, where used
Common mistakes
  • Hiding the notice inside terms and conditions
  • One notice for everything, with no link between data items and purposes
  • Forgetting old data collected before the Act
Related questions

Do we process children's data, and what changes if we do?

Short answer: Check every channel; children often appear where you least expect

Anyone under 18 is a child under the Act. For a child's data you need verifiable consent from a parent or lawful guardian, and you must not track, behaviourally monitor or show targeted ads to children. Some classes and purposes are exempt under Rule 12 and the Fourth Schedule, for example healthcare to the extent needed to protect the child's health, and educational institutions for their educational work.

From your seat: Marketing department. Switch off targeting for under-18 audiences and avoid tracking them.
In Central government

Scholarship, nutrition and school schemes involve children; Fourth Schedule exemptions may apply to some purposes.

What the law says

Section 9 sets the duties. Rule 10 explains how to verify the parent. Rule 12 and the Fourth Schedule list the exemptions. Section 9 · Rules 10, 12 · Section 6

Steps
  1. Find where children's data enters: customers, dependants, interns, visitors, scholarships, app sign-ups.
  2. Decide whether an exemption in the Fourth Schedule applies to that purpose.
  3. Where none applies, add an age question and a parent-consent step.
  4. Switch off tracking and targeted ads for under-18 users.
  5. Record the decision for each channel.
Evidence to keep
  • Channel-by-channel note on children's data
  • Parent-consent records
  • Ad and tracking settings
Common mistakes
  • Assuming 'we are B2B, so no children'
  • Using the age 13 or 16 from foreign laws
  • Treating a tick-box from the child as parental consent
Related questions

What must a vendor contract say about personal data?

Short answer: Yes, every vendor that touches personal data

You stay responsible for what your vendors do with personal data. The contract should say what data they get, for what purpose, the security they must keep, how fast they must tell you about an incident, that sub-contractors need your approval, and how data is returned or deleted at the end.

From your seat: Marketing department. Agencies, ad platforms and event partners receive data. Their contracts need data terms.
In Central government

System integrators, NIC, state agencies and field operators process data for the department.

What the law says

Section 8(1) keeps responsibility with you. Section 8(2) allows a processor only under a valid contract. Rule 6 asks for security terms in that contract. Section 8(1)–(2) · Section 8(5) · Rule 6 · Section 8(6) · Rule 7 · Section 8(7) · Rule 8

Steps
  1. List vendors who receive or can see personal data.
  2. Rank them by how much and how sensitive.
  3. Add a data-protection schedule to each contract, starting with the top ten.
  4. Ask for evidence: certificates, test results, deletion confirmations.
  5. Review the top vendors every year.
Evidence to keep
  • Vendor register
  • Signed data-protection schedules
  • Annual review notes
Common mistakes
  • Relying on the vendor's standard terms
  • No incident-notice time
  • No exit and deletion clause
Related questions

Practical examples

Notice wording, request log, retention schedule, vendor clause and breach notice for central government: ministries and departments.

The sections you will use most

Other rules that sit alongside DPDP

RuleWhat it saysWhat it means alongside DPDPSource
DPDP Act, Section 7(b) and 7(c) with Rule 5 and the Second ScheduleThe State may process personal data without consent to provide a subsidy, benefit, service, certificate, licence or permit, and to perform functions under law. Rule 5 asks that this processing follow the Second Schedule standards: lawful, for the stated use, limited to necessary data, accurate, kept only as long as needed, secured, and with a contact for questions and rights.Consent is not the basis for most scheme work. The standards are, and they need evidence.MeitY
DPDP Act, Section 17(4)For processing by the State, Section 8(7) (erasure) and Section 12(3) (erasure on request) do not apply, and where no decision affecting the person is made, Section 12(2) does not apply either.Retention follows public records rules rather than DPDP erasure. Security, accuracy, breach reporting and grievance duties still apply.MeitY
DPDP Act, Section 17(2)The Central Government may exempt notified instrumentalities for sovereignty, security, public order and related interests, and processing for research, archiving or statistics that does not lead to decisions about individuals.An exemption applies only if notified. Do not assume it.MeitY
RTI Act, Section 8(1)(j), as amended by DPDP Section 44(3) (in force 13 November 2025)Personal information is now exempt from disclosure under RTI, without the earlier public-interest test.Train CPIOs on the new wording; the amendment is being challenged before the Supreme Court, so watch for changes.SFLC.in summary
Public Records Act, 1993 and Public Records Rules, 1997Central government records may be destroyed only under approved record retention schedules.Erasure of personal data in files follows these schedules, since Section 17(4) lifts DPDP erasure for the State.National Archives of India
Aadhaar Act, 2016Section 7 allows Aadhaar for subsidies and benefits. Section 29 limits sharing of Aadhaar numbers and core biometric information. UIDAI asks entities storing Aadhaar numbers to keep them in an Aadhaar Data Vault.Scheme systems should store Aadhaar numbers only in a vault and show them masked.UIDAI
CERT-In Directions, 2022 and IT Act Section 70Report cyber incidents within six hours; keep ICT logs 180 days in India. Systems declared as protected systems under Section 70 come under NCIIPC.Ministries and their portals follow these in addition to DPDP.CERT-In
MeitY Email Policy and IT resources policy for GovernmentOfficial communication should use government email and approved resources.Personal email and chat apps for files with citizen data break both these policies and DPDP safeguards.MeitY
Guidelines for Indian Government Websites (GIGW)Government websites must carry standard policies, including a privacy policy.Update website privacy policies to DPDP notice standards with the contact person.MeitY / NIC
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