Regarding the Beat taxi case, what happens to my personal data when a company leaves the country?

Beat closed operations in Peru and other Latin American countries on November 9. The company made the decision to leave the region to focus on the European market. However, there are some inconveniences for users, since the accounts in the app contain the personal data of millions of people.

“Unfortunately, it will no longer be possible for you to take trips with our app after 00:00 on November 9; nevertheless, your account will remain active until December 7, 2022. If you have available credit with us, this value will be transferred to the payment method of your account”, was what Beat communicated in the email announcing that it would cease operations.

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That is, users will have access to their accounts, and therefore to their personal data, only up to that date. However, as of the closing of this report The application did not allow deletion of all the information that has been entered and neither did the account itself. At least not manually.

In a second email, Beat assured that users’ personal data will be treated in accordance with current laws. “Any claim or query received will be addressed through the Help Menu of the application until December 7, 2022. As of 00:00 on December 8, 2022, the application will no longer be available. The personal data associated with the accounts of our users will be handled in accordance with current personal data protection regulations.”, he indicated.

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What can I do to make sure my personal data is deleted?

Law No. 29733, Personal Data Protection Law, has been in force since 2011 in Peru. According to Óscar Montezuma Panez, a technology specialist lawyer, this regulation gives us the power to decide what happens with our information. “The personal data protection law requires that all use of personal information has the consent of its owner”, he assures, in an interview with Trade.

Likewise, the current law allows citizens to request that our personal data be deleted, if we wish. “On the other hand, the norm empowers citizens so that they can, among other things, ”, adds the expert.

Óscar Montezuma Panez, lawyer specializing in technology. (Photo: Diffusion)

According to the Personal Data Protection Law, in article 67, we do not need the company to cease operations to make this type of request. “The owner of the personal data and in other cases in which they are not being treated in accordance with the Law and these regulations”, indicates Law No. 29733.

Likewise, we can choose what information we want to delete. “The request for deletion or cancellation may refer to ”, adds the regulations.

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What should I do if the company does not respond or refuses to delete my personal data?

According to Montezuma, by exercising our right to cancel, the company is obligated to respond to our request. “Through . This action is exercised before the platform or company and if it does not respond within a maximum period of ten days, it gives way for the intervention of the National Authority for the Protection of Personal Data [del Ministerio de Justicia]”, assures the expert.

According to Law No. 29733, in its article 68, the company must indicate exactly what happens with the personal data of the users when they are asked to delete them. “The owner of the personal data bank or person responsible for the treatment must document before the owner of the personal data that they have complied with the request and indicate the transfers of the deleted data, identifying to whom or to whom they were transferred, as well as the communication of the corresponding deletion”, indicates.

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However, there are circumstances where this information may not be deleted. “The deletion will not proceed when the personal data must be kept by virtue of historical, statistical or scientific reasons in accordance with the applicable legislation or, where appropriate, in the contractual relations between the person in charge and the owner of the personal data, which justify the treatment of the same”, says article 69 of the law.

That is, only on some specific occasions our personal data could remain in the data bank. Despite this, there are ways protected by current law for its use to be measured. “Whenever possible, depending on the nature of the reasons that support the refusal provided for in the preceding paragraph, means of dissociation or anonymization must be used to continue the treatment”, is stated in article 70 of the regulations.

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How should I act with respect to my personal data when a company ceases operations in Peru?

Taking into account the aforementioned, We must start by informing ourselves about what is happening. Following the example of Beat, the company has practically given a single month for users to finish their business with it.

Namely, any type of claim, balance, request, etc., must be concluded before the app can no longer be used. So, users need to do the following:

Users must resolve any inconvenience with the company before proceeding to delete our information from the app. (Pixabay/)

Source: Elcomercio