The Data Protection Act permits the interception of communication in order to prevent bodily harm, loss of life, or damage to property, detection of a crime, or for the purposes of determining location in the cases of emergency. Additionally, public authorities can access personal data held by private organisation where the interests of national security, defence, and public order are concerned (Section 53). The legal bases are not exhaustive, however, it is reported that does not entail that those public authorities have discretion, as any access to such information must be authorised by a particular piece of legislation.

According to Art. 46 of the Data Protection Act, a Data Protection Impact Assessment (DPIA) by a data controller is required in circumstances where the processing is on a large scale and relates to sensitive personal data, or personal data relating to criminal convictions.

Section 22 of the Cyber Security and Cyber Crimes Act requires a controller of a critical information infrastructure to annually appoint an information technology auditor to audit the critical information infrastructure. The Authority is also empowered to order that an audit be conducted at any time.

Section 51 provides that a data controller and data processor shall keep personal information for as long as that personal information is used for the specific purpose for which the personal information was collected and for a period of at least one year thereafter or other period that may be prescribed.

Section 10 of the Cyber Security and Cyber Crimes Act, 2021 states that "Where a data retention notice is issued requiring an electronic communications service provider to retain internet connection records the specific data that the electronic communications service provider may be required to retain shall be specified in the retention notice. An electronic communication service provider shall not be required to retain data as part of an internet connection record."
Section 39 of the Cyber Security and Cyber Crimes Act 2021 requires an electronic communication service provider to obtain from subscribers information such as the person’s full name, residential address, and identity number contained in the person’s identity document before entering a service contract.

Section 50 of the Banking and Financial Services Act provides that a financial service provider shall retain a register or record for a period of at least ten years. Section 52 deals with maintenance of records and Section 48 with credit documentation.

The Data Protection Act No. 3 provides a comprehensive regime of data protection in Zambia. The key objectives of this Act are to not only provide for an effective system for the use and protection of personal data but also to regulate the collection, use, transmission, storage, and otherwise processing of personal data. The Act also creates an important office within the Office of the Data Protection Commissioner, whose responsibility it is to oversee all issues concerning data processing and registration of data controllers and licensing of data auditors. More importantly, the Act also provides for the rights of data subjects and in the same vein it stipulates the duties of data controllers and data processors.
In addition, the Data Protection (Registration and Licensing) Regulations, 2021, contained in Statutory Instrument No. 58 of 2021, were issued, on 14 May 2021, by the Minister of Transport and Communications, in the exercise of the powers established by Section 82 of the Data Protection Act. Moreover, related issues such as cybercrime and electronic communications are governed by legislation such as the Electronic Communications and Transactions Act No. 4 of 2021 (the ECT Act) and the Information and Communications Technologies Act No. 15 of 2009. The Zambia Information and Communications Technology Authority supervises the application of the ECT Act. Lastly, Art. 17 of the Constitution provides that no person can be subject to the search of their person or property or entry by others on their premises without their consent and further provides exceptions to this right.

Section 71 (1) of the Data Protection Act allows for the transfer of personal data outside Zambia, except sensitive personal data, on condition that:
- The data subject has consented; and the transfer is made subject to standard contracts or intra-group schemes that have been approved by the Data Protection Commissioner; or the Minister has prescribed that the transfer outside the Republic is permissible.
- The Data Protection Commissioner approves a particular transfer or set of transfers as permissible due to a situation of necessity.
Consideration by the Minister to sanction the cross-border transfer of personal data is based on the adequate level of protection, having regard to the applicable laws and international agreements in the destination country; and that the enforcement of data protection laws by authorities with appropriate jurisdiction is effective (Section 71 (2)).

Zambia has not joined any free trade agreement committing to open transfers of cross-border data flows.

Section 70(3) states that "sensitive personal data shall be processed and stored in a server or data centre located in the Republic". Sensitive personal data is defined in Section 2 of the Act as personal data which by its nature may be used to suppress the data subject’s fundamental rights and freedoms and includes: the race, marital status, ethnic origin, or sex of a data subject; genetic data and biometric data; child abuse data; a data subject’s political opinions; a data subject’s religious beliefs or other beliefs of a similar nature; whether a data subject is a member of a trade union; or a data subject’s physical or mental health, or physical or mental condition.
Section 14 of the Act prohibits the processing of sensitive personal data unless it is necessitated by legal claim or judicial function in court, or in the context of health service provision, or for reasons of public interest. In health service provision, the law requires that data be processed by or under the responsibility of a professional, subject to secrecy and other obligations imposed by any law or professional bodies regulating them. While data processed to serve public interest can only be processed where adequate measures to safeguard the rights and freedoms of the data subject have been put in place.

Part V of the Cyber Security and Cyber Crimes Act is dedicated to the protection of critical information and critical information infrastructure, where the former is defined as any information that is declared critical by the Ministry on account of its importance to the protection of national security, economic, or social well being of Zambia, and the latter is any infrastructure that contains such information (Section 17). Section 18 of the Cyber Security and Cyber Crimes Act of 2021 has a local processing requirement for ‘critical information’, which is defined in Section 2 as ‘information that is declared by the Minister to be critical for the purposes of national security or the economic and social wellbeing of the Republic’. All critical information must be stored on a server or data center within Zambia, unless otherwise authorised by the Ministry.

Zambia has not appended the World Trade Organization (WTO) Telecom Reference Paper to its schedule of commitments.

It is reported that the Zambia Information and Communications Technology Authority (ZICTA), the executive authority for the supervision and administration of services in the telecommunications sector, is independent from the government in the decision-making process.

It is reported that Zambia does not mandate accounting separation for operators with significant market power (SMP) in the telecom market. However, there is an obligation of functional separation.

All internet and mobile service providers in Zambia are privately owned, except for Zambia Telecommunications Company Limited (ZAMTEL), which was nationalized in 2012 under former president Michael Sata. Sata’s predecessor, Rupiah Banda, had privatized the company. The Sata Government reversed the sale of Zamtel to 100% government ownership. Despite Zamtel's smallest share in the mobile market, it has historically commanded a much larger share of fixed-line subscriptions. It is also the only mobile operator that offers landline telephone service. MTN is the dominant player among mobile service providers, with 44% of the mobile market, followed by Airtel with 39.7%, and Zamtel with 15.9%, as of May 2018.