DPDP Act 2023 & E-Waste
Data Destruction Compliance
Kochi · Kerala · India
India's DPDP Act 2023 requires every business to permanently destroy personal data when retiring IT equipment. Penalties reach ₹250 crore. EWaste Kochi's NIST 800-88 certified destruction and Certificate of Destruction is your compliance solution.
DPDP Act Penalties You Must Avoid
5-Step DPDP Act Compliance for IT Disposal
Classify Device Data
Identify all data-bearing devices being retired. Classify data sensitivity: low (general files), medium (HR/financial records), high (customer PII, payment data, medical).
Choose Destruction Method
Low sensitivity: NIST Clear (software overwrite). Medium: NIST Purge (cryptographic erase or degauss). High/any SSD: NIST Destroy (physical shredding). Our team advises the right level.
Engage Certified Vendor
Use only a KSPCB-authorized ITAD vendor with NIST 800-88 certification. Verify authorization number. EWaste Kochi: Auth. No. KL/EW/628.
Obtain Certificate of Destruction
Every device must receive a serial-numbered CoD listing the destruction method, date and NIST level. This is your DPDP Act audit evidence.
Maintain Audit Records
Keep CoDs, E-Waste Manifests and compliance declarations for 3+ years. Your DPO should store these in your Data Processing Register as evidence of technical and organizational measures.
Everything Your DPO Needs
- ✓Certificate of Destruction — NIST 800-88 level per device
- ✓DPDP Act Data Disposal Declaration (signed)
- ✓E-Waste Transfer Manifest (KSPCB format)
- ✓Chain-of-Custody documentation
- ✓Technical & Organizational Measures description
- ✓Audit-ready PDF package within 24 hours
DPDP Act FAQ
India's Digital Personal Data Protection Act 2023 makes businesses legally responsible for permanently erasing personal data when IT devices are retired. Simply deleting files or reformatting is not sufficient — certified destruction is required. Non-compliance can attract penalties from ₹50 crore to ₹250 crore under Section 66.
Every business that processes personal data — which includes virtually all companies in Kochi. Highest exposure: IT companies at Infopark (customer databases, employee records), banks on MG Road (customer KYC data), hospitals (patient health records), BPOs and call centres (customer PII), and any company that uses CRM, HR or ERP software.
Yes. While the DPDP Act doesn't mandate a specific standard, NIST SP 800-88 R1 is accepted by Data Protection Board of India auditors, Big 4 accounting firms and courts as satisfying the Act's destruction obligation. EWaste Kochi's Certificate of Destruction specifically references NIST 800-88 compliance, making it suitable as DPO audit evidence.
Our DPDP compliance package includes: Certificate of Destruction with device serial numbers and NIST level, DPDP Act Data Disposal Declaration signed by our authorized representative, E-Waste Transfer Manifest (KSPCB format), and a process description document suitable for your DPO's Technical and Organizational Measures register.
Yes. The DPDP Act applies to any "data fiduciary" — any entity that processes personal data — regardless of company size. A 10-person startup in Infopark with customer email addresses is a data fiduciary. When they retire laptops, they must ensure personal data is properly destroyed. Penalties are scaled by violation severity, but small companies are not exempt.