Protection of Kazakhstanis’ personal data: what will change with adoption of new Constitution

Tengrinews.kz - The protection of citizens’ personal data will be strengthened in Kazakhstan following the adoption of the new Constitution. This was announced by Deputy Prime Minister - Minister of Artificial Intelligence and Digital Development Zhaslan Madiyev.

According to him, the adopted Constitution for the first time enshrines a provision on the protection of personal data at the level of the Basic Law.

“The right to privacy, personal and family secrecy, as well as the protection of personal data, including when using digital technologies, from unlawful collection, processing, storage, and dissemination, are guaranteed by law,” Madiyev noted.

He stressed that this will become the foundation for further development of legislation in this area.

What will change

As Madiyev reported, amendments are planned to a number of laws, including the Code of Administrative Offenses, the Criminal Code, as well as legislation on personal data and cybersecurity.

The work will proceed in two directions.

The first is organizational and technical measures. In particular, modern data protection tools are planned to be introduced, including masking and hashing. Downloading data from state databases will also be restricted - it will only be possible in exceptional cases provided for by law.

In addition, a register of personal data operators and a register of trusted foreign recipients of data will be created.

Stronger liability

Operators will be required to notify the authorized bodies and the citizens themselves about personal data leaks, as well as report the start of personal data processing.

In addition, it is planned to:

• introduce criminal liability for the mass dissemination of personal data;
• increase administrative fines to 5,000 monthly calculation indices (MCIs).
• State oversight and the handling of citizens’ complaints will also be strengthened.

According to Madiyev, all these measures are aimed at creating a reliable system of personal data protection and increasing responsibility in their processing.

It is expected that this will increase citizens’ trust in digital services and state institutions.

Earlier in Kazakhstan, it was proposed to enshrine in the Constitution a direct provision on protecting citizens’ personal data from unlawful collection, processing, storage, and use, including through the use of digital technologies.

As Mazhilis deputy Snezhanna Imasheva previously reported at a meeting of the Constitutional Reform Commission, the relevant changes were planned to be introduced into Article 18 of the Constitution.

According to her, the innovation also provides for the state’s obligation to establish clear rules for handling data and liability for leaks and abuse.