THE PERSONAL Data Protection Commission (PDPC) has cautioned online lenders against demanding and using personal data of those seeking loans.

Dr Emmanuel Mkilia, the PDPC director general, issued this warning when addressing a press conference in the capital yesterday, in the wake of controversies concerning practices of online lending platforms where the Bank of Tanzania has recommended that most of them be delisted.

The personal data czar intimated legal measures on entities which will persist in demanding personal data for use and misuse on their clients in case of lateness in returning loans.

He said that lending platforms which display individuals' personal data on networking groups, when proved will have legal actions taken against them on the basis of the law.

Up to the end of this month, upwards of 700 entities collecting and sorting out personal data were registered with the commission, while lending agencies are not legally allowed to issue reports of individuals taking loans.

"This is an offence in law and those identified to be engaged in such misconduct will face the full force of the law," he said.

The commission invites members of the public to provide information on persons or entities emitting their personal data without their permission as there is legislation to protect the privacy of individuals, he urged.

He said that the problem with leaking private information has led to harrowing pains for a section of society, including pushing a number of people to commit suicide.

The Personal Data Protection Act, No. 11 of 2022 and its regulations were legislated to protect personal privacy, as the digital environment has ushered in plenty of changes in the way people live, thus leading to personal data and their intimacies leaking to public notice.

The commission plans to organise a workshop in the city of Dar es Salaam to provide educational instructions to various groups on the protection of personal data.

This reporter yesterday visited some online applications and noticed that they still demand the personal data of loan applicants, including seeing an applicant's photo on the lender's mobile phone.

They also demand seeing the phone numbers such a person has on their phonebook, seeing short messages sent and without agreeing to those conditions, a loan application is bound to fail.