‘Consent’ in the digital space: Navigating grant and withdrawal of consent in the digital era

In a world increasingly dominated by the digital space, the law needs to keep up with the rapidly changing practices, especially on the subject of consent and its relevance on the internet.

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THE internet has become one of the primary modes of communication. It helps us keep tabs on family and friends. The key word here is keeping tabs. While most interactions in the real world are stored only in our memories, interactions over the internet can be stored outside our brains, where others might be able to access them without our consent.

Clearly, the notion of 'consent' in digital interactions is an important concept that deserves to be unpacked legally.

While "user consent" (in terms of free, fair and informed consent with respect to internet cookies, privacy policies, terms and conditions, etc.) has been discussed aplenty, an aspect that remains to be evaluated is the concept of 'consent' in light of user-generated content.

A plethora of Indian laws such as criminal law, contract law and data protection law deal with the concept of consent.