The DPDP Enforcement Landscape in 2025
The Digital Personal Data Protection Act (DPDP) has moved beyond the bill phase and is no longer just a minor notice with trivial consequences. Now, in the enforcement stage, this Act can be a heavy burden for organisations that defy the terms in any way.
Failing to comply can lead to serious financial, operational, and reputational consequences. The regulatory bodies set up by the Indian government continue to increase the intensity of their scrutiny, and organisations need to act quickly to avoid risks and implement strict data protection steps.
Beyond the legal implications, the DPDP Act represents a shift in how data privacy is perceived in India. The sudden surge in consumer awareness and the global pressure for stringent data protection have forced Indian businesses to rethink their data governance strategies. Organisations have only one choice: invest in compliance now or face increasing financial and reputational consequences later.
Breaking Down the Penalty Structure
Non-compliance with the DPDP Act’s terms leads organisations to the first and biggest repercussion – financial costs. The financial risks associated with DPDP non-compliance are severe, and businesses that fail to secure personal data or neglect breach notification requirements face penalties of up to ₹250 crore. This massive fine structure enforces accountability and encourages enterprises to prioritize data privacy.
The Act also adds to the financial loss of companies with a series of costs that can severely disrupt business operations.
The structure for different penalties is based on the severity of the violations. For example, for the most severe violations like breaches of security safeguards or unauthorized data processing, the maximum fine imposed is ₹250 crore. The idea behind higher fines is to make sure that organisations aren’t negligent or non-compliant.
The detailed breakdown of the data breach costs in India are listed in the following table:
Every penalty has been put in place considering the nature of the breach and impact, intent of the breach and whether it was a result of a mistake or a purposeful disregard, and finally, the extent of damages caused by the breach. The Data Protection Board of India (DPBI) is set up to scrutinise the offenders and enforce the Act, and has powers similar to a civil court. They can take the following actions when necessary:
- Conduct strict examinations of complaints
- Monitor the different data fiduciary activities to ensure compliance
- Impose different penalties based on the details of each case
The DPDP Act imposes composite penalties, allowing cumulative fines for multiple breaches without a financial ceiling. Meaning, the payback of fines for businesses will never end. Its stringent enforcement, overseen by the DPBI, stands to remind everyone that data protection is non-negotiable, with penalties ranging from minor fines to severe financial consequences.
Enabling Continuous DPDP Compliance Through Strategic Monitoring
Indian enterprises must move from reactive compliance to real-time, continuous oversight to meet the enforcement expectations of the DPDP Act. iValue Group delivers this capability by integrating world-class monitoring platforms like Splunk, Google Chronicle, ServiceNow GRC, Forcepoint, and Varonis—each addressing a critical dimension of compliance.
Splunk: Real-Time Intelligence for Regulatory Readiness
Splunk enables organisations to meet DPDP mandates through high-speed detection, forensic analysis, and compliance-grade logging. It consolidates massive volumes of data, detects anomalies using machine learning, and triggers alerts that allow teams to contain threats instantly. Strategic Capabilities:
- AI-Driven Detection: Identifies suspicious patterns and behavioral anomalies.
- Compliance Reporting: Creates audit-ready dashboards and reports aligned with regulatory requirements.
- Forensic Traceability: Offers historical insights to investigate and remediate incidents.
Google Chronicle: Scalable Threat Correlation and Telemetry Analytics
Google Chronicle brings cloud-native analytics at petabyte scale, giving organisations full visibility across security telemetry. It enriches raw data with threat intelligence and assigns risk scores—helping CISOs prioritise incident response aligned with DPDP obligations.
Key Differentiators:
- Massive-scale telemetry correlation
- Continuous compliance assessment
- Contextualised insights for faster decisions
Deep Data Security and Visibility with Forcepoint + Varonis DSPM
Compliance is not just about documentation, it requires deep visibility into who is accessing what data, where, and when. Forcepoint and Varonis, through iValue, provide the data-centric security backbone for DPDP-aligned operations.
Forcepoint: Risk-Adaptive Data Protection
Forcepoint delivers continuous monitoring, content classification, and behavioral analytics to protect sensitive data in real time.
- Intelligent DLP
- Risk-adaptive access control
- Insider threat monitoring
Varonis: Granular Data Access and Audit Trails
Varonis helps enterprises classify data, control access, and generate actionable insights through local data centers, supporting both DPDP compliance and business continuity.
- Automated classification and tagging
- Least-privilege access enforcement
- Local compliance storage options
ServiceNow GRC for Governance and Risk Visibility
In the BFSI sector, designated as a Significant Data Fiduciary, risk governance is non-negotiable. iValue integrates ServiceNow GRC to help financial institutions build end-to-end compliance workflows, track controls, and streamline audits under DPDP and RBI mandates.
Business Outcomes:
- Automated risk mapping
- Real-time control monitoring
- Centralised audit readiness
Unified Compliance Strategy with iValue’s OEM Ecosystem
DPDP compliance is complex, but with the right tools integrated through a single strategic partner, it becomes scalable and sustainable. iValue Group combines the power of OEMs like Splunk, Chronicle, ServiceNow, Forcepoint, and Varonis to offer Indian enterprises a future-proof, audit-ready, and continuously secure environment.
