Parliament debates personal info Bill

The new draft proposal includes amendments dealing with the processing of personal information outside of the country.

The Department of Justice has submitted a new draft of the Protection of Personal Information (POPI) Bill to Parliament.

This would be the eighth working draft of the Bill which was first introduced in February 2009.

Henk Du Preez, State Law Adviser from the Department of Justice and Constitutional Development (DoJ&CD) said the new draft proposal dealt with the processing of personal information outside of the country.

The most recent draft introduces a cross-border principle which requires that the transfer of personal information had to be to a country that had laws which adequately protected such information.

According to the Parliamentary Monitoring Group (PMG), the clause notes the receiving party was also subject to specific requirements for the processing of specific information. If there was a non-binding MOU then there would be the requirement that a responsible party in South Africa (SA) would remain accountable for any processing not in line with the provisions of the Bill.

The POPI Bill aims to promote the protection of personal information processed by public and private bodies and introduce minimum requirements for the processing of personal information.

The Bill also makes provision for the establishment of an Information Regulator to exercise certain powers, duties and functions in terms of existing laws. It also provides for the issuing of codes of conduct; provides for the rights of persons regarding unsolicited electronic communications and automated decision making; and regulates the flow of personal information across national borders.