Rule 11: Exemptions for Processing Children’s Data
While Rule 10 requires parental or guardian consent before processing a child’s personal data, Rule 11 introduces certain exemptions. These exemptions exist because not every instance of handling a child’s data poses a risk, and the law recognizes the need for practical flexibility.
Under this rule:
- The Central Government may specify classes of Data Fiduciaries or certain purposes for which verifiable parental consent is not mandatory.
- Such exemptions are allowed only when the processing of a child’s data is considered safe and does not pose any harm to the child’s rights or well-being.
- The exemptions are meant to strike a balance: protecting children without unnecessarily obstructing services that are beneficial or harmless.
Exemptions apply only when processing is harmless and safe. Any activity that could risk a child’s rights or well-being will still require verifiable parental consent.
Example Scenarios
An educational technology platform like ABC Learning App may be exempted from parental consent if it only processes basic login details and study progress to deliver lessons to school students, and does not use the data for targeted advertising.
A government examination board collecting information about students to issue hall tickets or results may process data without requiring every parent to separately give consent, since the activity is clearly safe, necessary, and in the child’s interest.
A healthcare research project studying vaccination coverage in children may be allowed to process anonymized or limited data without parental approvals, provided safeguards are in place to prevent misuse.
The underlying principle is risk-based regulation. If the processing is harmless, clearly beneficial, and carried out with safeguards, then parental consent should not become a bureaucratic hurdle. At the same time, the government retains the power to decide which activities qualify, ensuring that the exemption is not misused.