Dhaka: Faiz Ahmed Taiyeb, Special Assistant to the Chief Adviser of the Ministry of Posts, Telecommunications and Information Technology, announced today that data classification is being incorporated into the Personal Data Protection Act (PDPA). He made this statement during a seminar at the Press Institute Bangladesh (PIB) in the capital.
According to Bangladesh Sangbad Sangstha, Taiyeb explained that the part of the data that identifies individuals is being classified to ensure that Personal Identification Information (PII) is stored separately within the country, preventing it from being transferred abroad. He outlined that confidential information, such as health records or financial data, can be utilized under specified conditions and through a transparent process. However, while data including images, videos, and speech can be stored anywhere through mapping, the storage of PII must remain domestic.
Taiyeb also noted that the Cyber Security Ordinance has categorized all content produced and prepared with artificial intelligence within the boundaries of cyberspace, thereby bringing it under the ambit of crime.
In addition, PIB Director General Farooq Wasif commented on the state's role in the dissemination of misinformation. He argued that the state has become a factory of lies, with the media playing a supportive role over the past 15 years. Wasif emphasized that addressing misinformation requires more than fact-checking; it must evolve into a social movement.
Mamun-or-Rashid, a consultant for the Bangladesh Computer Council's Enhancement of Bengali Language in Information Technology (EBLICT) project, presented the keynote paper at the seminar, focusing on research and development initiatives.