UN Guidelines
The United Nations' role in recognizing privacy as a human right in the digital era.
🎯 Learning Objectives
- ▸ Analyze the UN's stance on digital privacy
- ▸ Understand the 2015 UN resolution on privacy
- ▸ Recognize the human rights approach to data protection
Privacy as a Human Right
Article 12 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (1948) protects privacy. However, as digital surveillance expanded following the 2013 Snowden revelations, the UN had to explicitly address digital privacy.
In 2015, the UN General Assembly unanimously adopted a resolution affirming that the same rights that people have offline must also be protected online, including the right to privacy.
The Special Rapporteur
The UN established a Special Rapporteur on the right to privacy. This independent expert investigates mass surveillance and advises countries on how to protect privacy.
The UN's work makes it clear that data protection is not just an IT issue—it is a fundamental human rights issue. The Indian Supreme Court's Puttaswamy judgment referenced these global human rights frameworks.
📖 Glossary
- Special Rapporteur
- An independent expert appointed by the UN to investigate and report on a specific human rights issue.
- Mass Surveillance
- Systematic monitoring of large populations, often by governments, which the UN views as a privacy violation.
🔑 Key Takeaways
- The UN affirmed that privacy is a human right that applies online.
- It appointed a Special Rapporteur on the right to privacy.
- The UN guidelines stress that mass surveillance violates human rights.
📚 Further Reading
- UN Resolution on the Right to Privacy — United Nations (2015)
Shilpi Kulshrestha
Shilpi is a corporate lawyer with over a decade of experience in data protection, company law, and regulatory compliance. She has advised 50+ startups and enterprises on DPDPA readiness, privacy gover...