The National Privacy Commission (NPC) said it plans to democratize data privacy education by expanding beyond Metro Manila in 2024.
NPC deputy commissioner Leandro Angelo Aguirre outlined key initiatives during a fireside chat hosted by the International Association of Privacy Professionals Knowledgenet Philippines.
“We want to institutionalize [privacy education] because the input coming from the private sector, from people who are actually affected by these issuances is very valuable,” Aguirre said as he highlighted the importance of engaging affected parties.
NPC aims to release the course materials prior to Privacy Awareness Week in May. The intention is to enable groups outside of Metro Manila to run their own courses with materials from the agency.
It plans to create a data privacy foundational course that can be easily implemented by training providers outside of Metro Manila.
This includes crafting of issuances pertaining to the research exception under Section 4 of the Data Privacy Act, as well as guidelines for data scraping.
NPC also stressed its commitment to transparency by launching “calls for public input in addition to public consultation.”
Other initiatives include plans to issue a notice for public consultation over CCTV issuance, circulars for model contractual terms for cross-border transfers and on privacy codes with the goal of establishing a clear approval process.
The agency is also coming up with guidelines on children’s privacy and on tracking mechanisms, with focus on consent cookies.
Aguirre also announced plans to issue an advisory for the protection of lawful rights and interests in court proceedings and the development of legal claims, as well as an upcoming circular on security measures for both the private and public sector to follow.
He said the circular is not intended to establish new requirements but rather to serve as a benchmark for organizations to evaluate their existing security measures.
The NPC expressed hope that these initiatives would strengthen the foundation of data privacy in the coming years.
