India DPDPA: Article 5 – Notice
5. Notice
(1) Every request made to a Data Principal under section 6 for consent shall be accompanied or preceded by a notice given by the Data Fiduciary to the Data Principal, informing her,—
(i) the personal data and the purpose for which the same is proposed to be processed;
(ii) the manner in which she may exercise her rights under sub-section (4) of section 6 and section 13; and
(iii) the manner in which the Data Principal may make a complaint to the Board, in such manner and as may be prescribed.
Illustration.
X, an individual, opens a bank account using the mobile app or website of Y, a bank. To complete the Know-Your-Customer requirements under law for opening of bank account, X opts for processing of her personal data by Y in a live, video-based customer identification process. Y shall accompany or precede the request for the personal data with notice to X, describing the personal data and the purpose of its processing.
(2) Where a Data Principal has given her consent for the processing of her personal data before the date of commencement of this Act,—
(a) the Data Fiduciary shall, as soon as it is reasonably practicable, give to the Data Principal a notice informing her,––
(i) the personal data and the purpose for which the same has been processed;
(ii) the manner in which she may exercise her rights under sub-section (4) of section 6 and section 13; and
(iii) the manner in which the Data Principal may make a complaint to the Board, in such manner and as may be prescribed.
(b) the Data Fiduciary may continue to process the personal data until and unless the Data Principal withdraws her consent.
Illustration.
X, an individual, gave her consent to the processing of her personal data for an online shopping app or website operated by Y, an e-commerce service provider, before the commencement of this Act. Upon commencement of the Act, Y shall, as soon as practicable, give through email, in-app notification or other effective method information to X, describing the personal data and the purpose of its processing.
(3) The Data Fiduciary shall give the Data Principal the option to access the contents of the notice referred to in sub-sections (1) and (2) in English or any language specified in the Eighth Schedule to the Constitution.
What Article 5 Means for Your Business
Article 5 requires every request for consent to be accompanied or preceded by a clear notice to the Data Principal. The notice must tell the individual what personal data will be collected, the purpose for which it will be processed, and how they can exercise their rights and make complaints. This notice obligation applies both to new data collections and, retrospectively, to existing data collected before the Act commenced.
- Every consent request must be paired with a notice, you cannot seek consent without first informing the individual what they are consenting to.
- The notice must be written in clear and plain language, available in English and any language in the Eighth Schedule to the Constitution of India.
- For data collected before the Act commenced, you must provide retrospective notices to existing users as soon as reasonably practicable.
- The notice must include contact details of your Data Protection Officer (if applicable) or another authorised person who can respond to Data Principal queries.
- Review all existing privacy notices, consent banners, and onboarding flows to ensure they meet Article 5 requirements before enforcement begins.
- Notices must explain how the individual can withdraw consent and how they can lodge a complaint with the Data Protection Board of India.