The Digital Personal Data Protection (DPDP) Act 2023 gives every Indian a right to correction and erasure of their personal data under Section 12. You can write to any company holding your data, state that you are exercising this right, and ask them to delete it. If they ignore you, you escalate through grievance redressal (Section 13) and, ultimately, the Data Protection Board.
For years, getting your data off an Indian website meant begging and hoping. The DPDP Act 2023 changed that: data removal is now a legal right, not a favour. Here's what the law gives you and how to actually use it.
Your rights as a "Data Principal"
The Act calls you a Data Principal and the company holding your data a Data Fiduciary. Your key rights:
- Section 11 — Right to access: ask what personal data a company holds about you.
- Section 12 — Right to correction and erasure: have inaccurate data fixed and have your personal data deleted when it's no longer needed for the purpose it was collected (and you withdraw consent).
- Section 13 — Right of grievance redressal: a route to complain if a company doesn't respond.
- Section 14 — Right to nominate: nominate someone to exercise your rights.
How to send a data-deletion request
Find the right contact
Look for the company's Grievance Officer or Data Protection contact (usually in their privacy policy). That's who must act on your request.
State the right you're exercising
Be explicit: "I am exercising my right to erasure under Section 12 of the DPDP Act 2023." Vague requests get ignored; citing the law doesn't.
Identify exactly what to delete
List the data — name, phone, email, listing URL — so there's no ambiguity, and ask for written confirmation of deletion.
Escalate if ignored
No response? Send a follow-up invoking grievance redressal (Section 13), and note your right to complain to the Data Protection Board of India. Keep every email.
A template you can copy
Subject: Data Erasure Request — DPDP Act 2023, Section 12
"Dear Grievance Officer, I, [Name], exercise my right to erasure of personal data under Section 12 of the Digital Personal Data Protection Act 2023. Please delete all personal data you hold about me — [Name, Phone, Email, listing URL] — and confirm deletion in writing. Regards, [Name]."
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Saaph drafts and sends DPDP Act erasure requests on your behalf, then tracks each one to completion.
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What is the right to erasure under the DPDP Act 2023?
Section 12 gives you the right to correction and erasure of your personal data — you can require a company to delete data that's no longer necessary for its original purpose.
How do I send a data deletion request?
Write to the company's grievance officer, state you're exercising your Section 12 right to erasure, list the data, and ask for written confirmation. Escalate via Section 13 if ignored.
What's the penalty for non-compliance?
The Act's schedule sets significant financial penalties — up to hundreds of crores depending on the violation — adjudicated by the Data Protection Board.
This is general information, not legal advice, and the DPDP Act 2023 and its rules continue to be operationalised. For authoritative interpretation, consult the Act and a qualified legal professional.