Data Protection Commission kicks off enforcement action on Data Protection Act (Act 843)
“The enforcement exercise may involve arrests of ultimate decision makers/ heads of institutions who have neglected their legal responsibilities and/or have defaulted."
The Data Protection Commission Monday, August 14, 2023, begun a nationwide enforcement action, to have institutions comply with the Data Protection Act 2012 (Act 843).
According to earlier publicised statements on the enforcement campaign, the Commission intends to enforce sections 46 and 50 on registration and renewals, as well as sections 56, 82, 88, and 95 of Act 843.
This means that defaulting firms or institutions are liable to a to summary conviction of a fine or a term of imprisonment.
“The enforcement exercise may involve arrests of ultimate decision makers/ heads of institutions who have neglected their legal responsibilities and/or have defaulted,” a statement said.
“Due to the sensitive nature of personal data and the reality that data is the new oil, issues relating to data subject rights and data controller responsibilities requires compliance to an existing legal framework that ensures that data subject privacy rights are not violated in the pursuit of making giant business strides on the back of processing of personal by data controllers."
During the exercise on Monday, the managers of three institutions were arrested for data breaches. They included Hisense, an electronic goods dealership, Marwako Fast Foods and Agyabeng Akrasi and Co Limited, a law firm.
