With hardly a week to go before the launch of the Certified Data Protection Officer (CDPO) program, the Future Crime Research Foundation (FCRF) has announced that more than 400 participants have already registered. Only a limited number of seats remain, and demand has surged in the final days as organizations, students, and professionals prepare to meet the enforcement of India’s Digital Personal Data Protection Act (DPDPA).
The program begins on September 6, 2025, and runs across four weeks of live weekend sessions, each carefully designed to equip participants with the legal, technical, and governance expertise needed to lead in India’s new privacy regime.
Urgent Demand for Privacy Leaders
The DPDPA, India’s landmark privacy law, is entering into enforcement with severe penalties—up to ₹250 crore for serious violations. It requires organizations, particularly Significant Data Fiduciaries, to appoint Data Protection Officers responsible for compliance, user rights, and engagement with regulators.
Despite this, India faces a critical shortage of trained professionals ready to assume these roles. This talent gap is driving record enrollments in the CDPO course, as professionals across civil services, defense, cybersecurity, PSUs, IT, law, and academia rush to become DPDPA-ready.
As one senior participant from the corporate sector explained:
“Our organization can’t afford the reputational and financial risks of non-compliance.”
A Program Backed by Proven National Impact
This isn’t FCRF’s first large-scale training initiative. Earlier this year, in collaboration with CERT-In, the foundation delivered the Certified Cyber Crisis Management Professional (CCMP) course, attended by more than 500 senior officials from India’s civil services, police forces, defense establishments, regulators, and cybersecurity units.
The CCMP program was hailed as a national benchmark in cyber capacity building, blending real-world breach simulations with regulatory and executive-level training. The CDPO course builds directly on this legacy—this time targeting India’s privacy and data protection ecosystem.
Inside the CDPO Program
The Certified Data Protection Officer course is structured into 16 intensive modules, covering:
- Foundations of Data Protection (GDPR, CCPA, and DPDPA principles)
- Governance & the Role of the DPO (privacy frameworks, reporting structures, advisory duties)
- Operational Compliance (data mapping, RoPA, retention, secure disposal)
- Consent, Rights & Transparency (valid consent, children’s data, cookie compliance, DSAR workflows)
- Risk & Breach Oversight (DPIAs, cross-border transfers, breach response and notifications, vendor risk)
Sessions are held every Saturday and Sunday, 11 AM – 1 PM, with recordings available for participants who cannot attend live. The modules includes case studies, compliance simulations, and real-world templates to ensure professionals leave with actionable expertise.
Graduates earn the official Certified Data Protection Officer (CDPO) credential from FCRF Academy—an industry-recognized certification in data protection and compliance.
About FCRF: A Trusted Institution in Cyber & Privacy Training
The Future Crime Research Foundation (FCRF), incubated at IIT Kanpur, has emerged as one of India’s leading think tanks on cybercrime, digital governance, and risk management. Its flagship FutureCrime Summit has brought together leaders from law enforcement, regulators, defense, corporate sectors, and academia for back-to-back editions in 2024 and 2025.
FCRF also maintains strategic academic partnerships through MOUs with institutions such as Dr. Ram Manohar Lohiya National Law University (RMLNLU), Lucknow, UPSIFS and the Bankers Institute of Rural Development (BIRD-NABARD), Lucknow. Its training programs have reached police academies, PSUs, regulators, and industry leaders, underlining its credibility as a trusted knowledge partner.
Final Countdown: Last Chance to Enroll
With the CDPO program set to begin on September 6, this is the final call for professionals, students, and organizations seeking to build compliance capacity ahead of DPDPA’s enforcement.
Seats are limited, and enrollment is closing quickly. FCRF has confirmed that once the current batch is filled, further applicants will be deferred to later sessions.
“We built CCMP with CERT-In to train India’s cyber leaders. With CDPO, we are now shaping India’s next generation privacy leaders,” said Prof. Triveni Singh, Ex-IPS and Director of FCRF.
For individuals and institutions alike, the Certified Data Protection Officer program offers not just a credential, but a strategic pathway into India’s privacy-first future. Interested participants can register through the official FCRF Academy portal by clicking here.