Data securitisation: the challenges of data sovereignty in India

VILA SEOANE, MAXIMILIANO FACUNDO

Third World Quarterly

Taylor & Francis

Año: 2021

0143-6597

The rules employed to govern cross-border dataflows are in dispute, the outcome of which will certainly affect digitalisationpolicies in the so-called Global South. Against this backdrop, datalocalisation has become one of the most prominent and disputed policy measuresfor states seeking to regulate cross-border data flows. This article arguesthat data localisation can be understood as the product of a new type ofresource securitisation, namely data securitisation. This process is shaped bya range of state-specific political and economic issues, and by the outcome ofthe pressure exerted by national and foreign interest groups.  Specifically, the article examines the case ofIndia, where a set of policy measures and initiatives introduced in 2018 begana set of strict data securitisation moves, however, their results wereambivalent. On the one hand, economically driven data localisation requirementshave been softened by the stark lobby of foreign governments and transnationalcorporations, in tandem with local actors, illustrating the structural limitsfaced by Global South states? sovereign digitalisation policies. On the otherhand, a geopolitically driven data securitisation move against Chinese firmshas been successful. The article concludes by outlining what lessons GlobalSouth actors can draw from this case.