The Philippines has secured a seat in the five-member panel of the International Conference of Data Protection and Privacy Commission (ICDPPC), notwithstanding the country’s nascent status in data privacy regulation.
The National Privacy Commission (NPC) said on Thursday that Manila clinched a voting seat in the Executive Committee of the ICDPPC. The commission is an international conference of 119 independent regulators from different countries exploring high-level proposals on data privacy and protection.
The executive committee is made up of five elected members with a term of two years. Its seating members are the privacy authorities of Australia, Canada, Burkina Faso and the United Kingdom, which holds the chairmanship.
The conference has two additional members, comprising the next hosting authorities: Albania and Mexico. The conference this year gathered more than 1,200 delegates from around the world.
“Having a seat at the committee’s table to take part in addressing challenges that privacy regulators face is definitely a privilege for the NPC. It is an opportunity for learning from each other’s experience,” NPC Chairman Raymund E. Liboro said.
“Definitely, the Philippines, although young, has a lot to contribute too, especially, in assisting new members,” he added.
Manila’s election in the executive committee came at a time the world is grappling with a challenge to govern data. Social-media giant Facebook in September was hit with a data breach that compromised the accounts of more than 30 million users.
“What we are seeing today is a crisis of trust that is fueled by unauthorized profiling, surveillance and increasing cases of personal data breaches. It is a hint for us to take a different tact and integrate ethics in the way we process personal data,” Liboro said.
The ICDPPC continues to expand its membership with the entry of four new members in the recent closed session, including Germany, South Korea and Argentina. Eleven new privacy authorities were also granted observer status, mostly from Asia, such as India, Indonesia, Malaysia, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates.
As part of the executive committee, the NPC is expected to take part in setting the agenda of the conference and in providing strategic direction on data privacy regulation for the next two years. The NPC became member of the ICDPPC in October of 2016 after passing membership requirements and demonstrating commitment to global standards on data privacy protection.