National Critical Information Infrastructure Protection Centre (NCIPC) Of India

In the recent times, there is an increasing stress upon cyber security at the international level. This is so because cyber attacks are happening at the international level and all the countries are facing this threat.

Countries are trying to coordinate cyber security initiatives at national and international levels. However, cyber security in India is still not up to the mark. India is increasingly facing cyber attacks and cyber threats from foreign nationals.

The cyber laws and cyber security trends of India 2011 by Perry4Law and Perry4Law Techno Legal Base (PTLB) has clearly showed the cyber security vulnerabilities of India. The cyber law trends of India 2012 have also projected an increased rate of cyber crimes in India and cyber attacks against India in the year 2012.

For instance, cyber terrorism against India, cyber warfare against India, cyber espionage against India and cyber attacks against India have increased a lot. Presently, we do not have a strong cyber law to deter cyber attacks and cyber crimes. Further, we have no cyber security laws in India as well.

Cyber security is also crucial to protect critical infrastructure protection of India. Critical infrastructure protection in India requires a well formulated policy. Presently we have no critical infrastructure protection policy of India. Even critical ICT infrastructure protection in India is required.

A national critical information infrastructure protection centre (NCIPC) of India has been proposed. It intends to ensure critical infrastructure protection and critical ICT infrastructure protection in India.

There are few prerequisites that can make the NCIPC of India successful. Firstly, there must be a centralised ICT command centre of India that can coordinate various cyber security issues. Secondly, specialised agencies and authorities must be constituted for critical infrastructure areas like power, telecom, defense, etc. These agencies and authorities must coordinate with the centralised command centre for cyber security related issues.

Ministry of communication and information technology (MCIT) has already taken certain initiatives in this regard. For instance, a central monitoring system (CMS) project of India has been launched by MCIT to monitor and intercept electronic communications, messages and information. Further, a national telecom network security coordination board (NTNSCB) of India has also been proposed to strengthen the national telecom security of India.

Similarly, the home ministry of India has also launched national intelligence grid (Natgrid) project of India, crime and criminal tracking networks and systems (CCTNS) project of India, national counter terrorism centre (NCTC) of India, etc. These projects intend to strengthen the intelligence gathering and counter terrorism capabilities of India.

However, there is a big problem in the successful implementation of all the abovementioned projects and initiatives as well as the NCIPC of India. Indian government has been avoiding parliamentary oversight of these projects. This is a bad precedent that needs to be urgently taken care of. We need urgent parliamentary oversight for e-surveillance in India, Internet censorship in India, intelligence gathering in India, intelligence authorities of India, central bureau of Investigation, law enforcement agencies of India, Aadhar project of India, etc.

Even privacy laws in India, data security laws in India, data protection laws in India, etc are urgently required to be formulated. The cyber law of India must be suitably amended, perhaps repealed, to make a more robust and stringent cyber law of India. We need dedicated cyber security legal framework in India and cyber forensics laws in India.

For too long Indian parliament has been ignoring its crucial legislative business and it is high time for Indian parliament to do the needful in this regard. Contemporary techno legal issues cannot be left at the mercy and indifference of Indian parliament and Indian government as that may have serious adverse effects upon Indian economy and national security of India.

Source: ICTPS Blog

National Cyber Coordination Centre (NCCC) Of India

Cyber law issues, cyber security and national security are on agenda of Indian government these days. However, till now cyber security in India is not upto the mark and cyber law of India requires an urgent repeal. This is because the entire approach and attitude of India government is defective.

Indian government has failed to understand that e-surveillance is not a substitute for cyber security capabilities. Instead of developing cyber security capabilities of India, the Indian government is stressing upon growing use of e-surveillance in India and Internet censorship in India.

All these exercises of India government have been done without any legal framework supporting these initiatives of Indian government. Phones are tapped in India without a constitutionally valid phone tapping laws in India. The central monitoring system project of India (CMS Project of India) is also not supported by any legal framework. Surveillance of Internet traffic in India is also another area that requires a sound legal framework. Various authorities with far reaching powers have been created without any legal backing.

Now the government has proposed setting up of National Cyber Coordination Centre (NCCC) of India. The NCCC would provide actionable alerts to government departments in cases of perceived security threats. It is hoped that this would help in fighting terrorists and other cyber criminals.

The NCCC will scan whole cyber traffic flowing at the point of entry and exit at India’s international Internet gateways. The web scanning centre will provide actionable alerts for proactive actions to be taken by government departments. All government departments will now talk to the Internet Service Providers (ISPs) through NCCC for real time information and data on threats. Presently, the monitoring of web traffic is done by Centre for Development of Telematics (C-DoT) which has installed its equipments at the premises of ISPs and gateways.

All tweets, messages, emails, status updates and even email drafts will now pass through the new scanning centre. The centre may probe further into any email or social media account if it finds a perceived threat.

India’s National Security Council Secretariat (NCSC) has asked various departments to assess their needs for officials, who will coordinate with the scanning agency. The National Security Council handles the political, nuclear, energy and strategic security concerns of the country.

This can be another agency without a legal framework. Creating agencies without legal framework is counter productive as it violates civil liberties and human rights. The Indian government must keep this in mind while creating NCCC.

Source: ICTPS Blog

Cyber Security Of Banks In India And RBI

Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has in the past constituted a Working Group on Information Security. The Working Group submitted its initial report a few months back. RBI invited public comments upon that report and after analysing these comments, it issued a “Notification” asking the banks of India to comply with its recommendations.

Multiple deadlines were demarcated by RBI for implementation of its recommendation by banks of India. While not all these recommendations are mandatory some of them are and banks of India must comply with the same till October 31, 2011. These mandatory recommendations pertain to policies and procedures which do not require extensive investment.

For instance, RBI has directed that all banks would have to create a position of chief information officers (CIOs) as well as steering committees on information security at the board level at the earliest. This is a policy decision that may be required by RBI to be implemented till October 31, 2011.

However, it seems the recommendations of the RBI have still not been implemented. Till now there are no signs that cyber security of banks has been streamlines. ATM frauds, credit card frauds, phishing frauds, Internet banking frauds, etc are increasing in India. In fact, RBI ombudsman office is flooded with ATM frauds related complaints.

Recently RBI imposed penalty upon 19 banks for non compliance of prescribed standards. Similarly, RBI has also directed that any strictures passed against directors of a bank by any financial sector regulators must be reported to it. Non compliance of the recommendations of RBI Working group may attract both penalty and strictures.

Banks need to adopt techno legal measures to prevent ATM and other similar frauds. Further, cyber due diligence trainings for bank employees can also be beneficial in this regard. Banks must also appoint steering committees and CIOs as soon as possible.

Source: ICTPS Blog.

Managing India’s Cyber Security Problems, Issues and Challenges

One area where lot of stress and importance is given these days is cyber security of India. India remained indifferent towards cyber security for long hence it has to work really hard to make its cyber security infrastructure proper, effective and robust. There are many cyber security issues of India that have still been left unattended. The cyber security issues and challenges in India require urgent attention of Indian government as we have already delayed this process.

India is facing cyber threats from cyber terrorism, cyber warfare, cyber espionage, etc and we must develop both offensive and defensive cyber security capabilities in India. India is also facing continuous and serious cyber threats that have been endangering the critical infrastructures of India. In these circumstances, there is an urgent need to strengthen critical infrastructure protection in India. We cannot achieve this task without ensuring cyber security skills development in India.

Concerns regarding insufficient cyber security in India have been raised for long but the Indian government remained indifferent to cyber security of India for long. However, some committed and dedicated private players have been playing a pro active role in strengthening the cyber security of India.

We at Perry4Law, Perry4Law Techno Legal Base (PTLB) and Perry4Law Techno Legal ICT Training Centre (PTLITC) have launched exclusive techno legal Cyber Forensics Research Centre Of India, Cyber Security Research Centre Of India And Cyber Crimes Investigation Centre Of India To Strengthen Indian Cyber Security And Cyber Forensics Capabilities.

Another major lacuna in the cyber security field is absence of implementable cyber security policy of India. Till various cyber security declarations and promises are actually implemented, they are of no use. As on date we have no implementable national cyber security policy of India.

Even basic level techno legal frameworks are missing in India. For instance, we have no dedicated cyber security laws in India. We also do not have dedicated encryption laws and regulations in India. Even Legal Framework For Mandatory E-Governance In India And Legal Framework For Cloud Computing In India are missing. The Mandatory E-Delivery Of Services In India is also missing.

India has to cover a long road in order to make its cyber security effective. It is high time to move beyond declarations and promises as they would not serve any purpose in the present times.

Source: CSRDCI.

International Cyber Security Treaty Is Required

The threats of Cyber Crimes and Cyber Security attacks are alarming these days. As more and more Critical Infrastructure is connected to Information and Communication Technology (ICT), a need has been felt to protect Critical ICT Infrastructures all over the World.

In a typical Cyber Attack by an Enemy State, the Critical Infrastructure is the first choice. Estonia witnessed this truth in the past. Further, in cases of Cyber Warfare and Cyber Terrorism also Critical Infrastructure is the chief target of Cyber Attack.

It is surprising that despite the seriousness of the issue we have no International Cyber Law Treaty and International Cyber Security Treaty. International Organisations and Institutions have still not taken Cyber Crimes and Cyber Security very seriously. Even Human Rights Protection in Cyberspace has not been taken by seriously by all concerned.

Organisations like United Nations, North Atlantic Treaty Organisation (NATO), etc have also not shown much interest in this regard in the past. Now these Organisations have taken notice of the nuisances of Cyberspace and they are gradually shifting their attentions to Cyber Crimes and Cyber Attacks.

International Organisations dealing with Human Rights, Cyber Law and Cyber Security must start thinking in this direction as issues like Cyber Warfare, Cyber Terrorism, Cyber Espionage, Cyber Crimes, E-Surveillance, Unlawful Interceptions, etc are “Transnational” in nature.

If different Countries would have different laws for these issues, it would be very difficult to truly enforce protective provisions against these menaces at National and International levels. It is high time for UN to seriously consider issues like International Cyber Law Treaty, International Cyber Security Treaty and Protection of Human Rights in Cyberspace.

Source: ICTPS Blog.

US International Strategy For Cyberspace

Cyberspace issues have assumed great importance for countries around the world. This is the reason why issues like Cyber Law and Cyber Security have become an essential part of national as well as international ICT policies and strategies.

Although cyberspace is a boundary less place yet there is no internationally acceptable cyberspace treaty till now. Even the basic International Cyber Law Treaty, which can be uniformly accepted by all countries of the world, is missing. Till now India is not a part of this cyber law treaty.

United States (US) has recently revealed its international strategy for cyberspace to promote an open and secure information and communications infrastructure. US will work internationally to promote an open, interoperable, secure, and reliable information and communications infrastructure that supports international trade and commerce, strengthens international security, and fosters free expression and innovation, said US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton in remarks during the release of strategy at the State Department.

To achieve that goal, we will build and sustain an environment in which norms of responsible behavior guides states actions, sustains partnerships, and support the rule of law in cyberspace, she added.

What they are able to do in cyberspace, whether they can exchange ideas and opinions openly, freely explore the subjects of their choosing, stay safe from cyber criminals, and engage in professional and personal activities online, confident that doing so will remain private and secure, depends a great deal on the policies that we will adopt together, she added.

Of late, Civil Liberties of netizens are openly violated in the name of national security. We have already voiced our concerns in India in this regard. We have also dedicated an initiative titled Human Rights Protection in Cyberspace that has been providing Techno Legal ICT Policies and Strategies for protecting Civil Liberties in Cyberspace.

While US initiative is praiseworthy, it cannot succeed till it collaborates at international level. We may secure some aspects of cyberspace at national level but at international level it is an altogether different issue. But at least a good step has been taken by US and we welcome the same.

Source: ICTPS Blog.

NATO Requests Cyber Security Cooperation From India

In the absence of international cyber crimes treaty and international cyber security treaty, the next best thing is to have mutual cooperation between various countries. However, nothing can benefit more than an international cyber security cooperation that is urgently required.

In the absence of international harmonisation, the concept like cyber warfare still haunts the international community. This is also the main reason for blame game for various cyber attacks. However, mere suspicion or blame without actual authorship attribution for cyber attacks can produce only insignificantly beneficial results.

Recently India and US had signed a cyber security cooperation agreement. Now North Atlantic Treaty Organisation (NATO) has sought stronger cooperation with India to counter growing cyber threats, particularly emanating from China. Top NATO officials listed cyber security very high on the list of possible areas of cooperation, which included counter-terrorism, missile defence and anti-piracy operations.

"The cyber world does not recognise alignments. It only understands switches," said a top NATO official during a briefing to visiting Indian journalists, while making a strong pitch for joint efforts to combat cyber threats.

The NATO official made this remark in context of India's sensitivity against military alliances and its commitment to non-alignment. He suggested this could be a functional alignment in which both sides could give and take.

"India has an advanced cyber and IT industry and is very strong in cyber issues", he said, hinting that India and NATO can cooperate in this field. Democracies face challenges that are common. As democracies we can have a dialogue, as we deal with issues differently... We need to work together, because individually we cannot. It is better to deal with such issues commonly than deal with them individually."

He added that even though the threats were different, the nature of our responses could be similar, while seeing India as a strong partner with NATO on various issues. Though he did not mention any of India's neighbours from where the cyber attack challenge came, he hinted at China from where such threats had come in the recent past.

Seeking a partnership on matters relating to cyber security, the official pointed out that India and NATO had already reached at a tactical level understanding in dealing with piracy and shared a strategic level understanding in countering terrorism. Incidentally, in July this year some anonymous hackers had targeted NATO in a cyber attack and it decided recently to create a special task force to detect and respond to such attacks by beefing up its cyber defence network. While the United States has already signed a cyber security collaboration with India this July, the 28-nation political and military alliance is of the view that it can collaborate with it in protecting its cyber systems. NATO's 2010 Summit in Lisbon also recognised the growing threat of cyber attacks and sought to ally with partner nations to step its cyber security.

Source: ICTPS Blog.

US News Organisations Under Cyber Attack

Media reports have announced that news organisations like Washington Post, Wall Street Journal, New York Times, etc are under cyber attacks. The Washington Post believes that it has been attacked by Chinese hackers. As per the allegations the attackers gained compromised their computer systems as early as 2008 or 2009, but the cyber breach was only discovered in 2011.

The computer systems of these newspapers were infected by a malware that was communicating with its command-and-control server associated with a Chinese hacking group.

It has also been reported that these new organisations have now removed the malware and have made their computer systems malware free once again. It seems the passwords of these computers were compromised that gave the crackers access to the computers of these news organisations.

Meanwhile, the Chinese Defense Ministry released a statement that claims that the “Chinese military has never supported any hack attacks. Cyber attacks have transnational and anonymous characteristics. It is unprofessional and groundless to accuse the Chinese military of launching cyber attacks without any conclusive evidence.”

Eric Schmidt, Google’s executive chairman, has described China as the most “sophisticated and prolific” hacker of foreign companies in his forthcoming book co-authored by Jared Cohen. According Schmidt Chinese state backed cyber crime is the biggest online threat in the world.

Crisis Management Plan For Preventing Cyber Attacks On The Power Utilities In India

Cyber security for power energy and utilities in India is a major cause of concern these days. As cyber attacks are increasing against India, power utilities are also vulnerable to these cyber attacks. To effectively tackle the menace of cyber attacks against India, a crisis management plan of India for cyber attacks and cyber terrorism is absolutely required. A crisis management plan (CMP) is essentially part of the anti cyber attack plan of India that is presently missing.

CMP pertaining to information and communication technology (ICT) is also an essential part of national ICT policy of India. The other parts of national ICT policy of India are cyber security policy of India, critical infrastructure protection policy of India, critical national infrastructure protection policy of India from cyber attacks, national security policy of India, etc.

The position of cyber security in India is not very good. There us a lack of cyber security awareness in India. Techno legal expertise to manage cyber security issues of India is also missing. The critical infrastructure protection in India is not satisfactory and we still miss an implementable critical ICT infrastructure protection policy of India. The critical infrastructures around the world like power grids, nuclear facilities, satellites, defense networks, governmental informatics infrastructures, etc are vulnerable to known and unknown malware.

Cyber security challenges for smart grids and utilities in India are well known in India. Realising the cyber security risks of power utilities and sector of India, the Power Ministry of India has directed all state governments to ensure that power utilities are ready with crisis management plans for restoring normalcy in the “shortest possible time” in case of disruptions in generation, transmission or distribution of electricity. Indian government has also recently announced that cyber security awareness brochures would be mandatory for hardware sales in India.

At Perry4Law and Perry4Law’s Techno Legal Base (PTLB) we welcome this move of Indian government and we believe that this is a good step in the right direction. This direction must include cyber security preparedness on the part of power utilities of India as well, if the same has not already been prescribed. As on date, the state government regulated power utilities are grossly deficient in ensuring cyber security for their respective grids.

The proposed CMP for power utilities of India should also have details about “hierarchical set up at various levels” to ensure effective handling of crisis situations. Such plans would be applicable for both public and private sector entities. The Central Electricity Authority (CEA) has already written to all state governments asking them to prepare crisis management plans with regard to power utilities of their respective states.

India must develop both offensive and defensive cyber security capabilities that must be robust enough to detect and nullify cyber warfare against India, cyber terrorism against India, cyber attacks against India, cyber espionage against India, etc. Cyber security of banks in India is still deficient. The business community must also keep in mind the cyber law due diligence requirements in India. Cyber due diligence for Indian companies is now a statutory obligation and failure to observe cyber due diligence can bring serious legal ramifications.

Power grids and utilities cyber security in India and their challenges are not easy to manage. They require a systematic, dedicated and security oriented approach on the part of Indian government. In fact, smart meters are becoming headache for power companies world wide.

With the advent of sophisticated and specially customised malware like Stuxnet, Duqu, Flame, etc critical infrastructures like power grids, nuclear facilities, satellites, defense networks, governmental informatics infrastructures, etc are vulnerable to diverse range of cyber attacks.

Perry4Law and PTLB strongly recommend that Indian government must ensure cyber security of energy and utilities in India as soon as possible. SCADA may be the new cyber attack priority for cyber criminals and rouge nations. We must ensure sufficient cyber protection of SCADA systems in India in general and critical infrastructure in particular.

Cyber Security Awareness Brochures In India Mandatory For Hardware Sale

Cyber security awareness in India is still low among various stakeholders including software and hardware manufacturers, vendors, sellers, redistributors, etc. In a far reaching move, Indian government has decided to make it mandatory on the part of hardware sellers to provide cyber security awareness brochures while sale of such hardware.

Cyber security in India is of basic level. Sophisticated and complicated cyber security issues have yet to be managed by India. In particular, issues pertaining to cyber warfare against India and its defenses, cyber terrorism against India and its defences and solutions, cyber espionage against India and its challenges, solutions and defences, data security laws in India, critical infrastructure protection in India, cyber security laws in India, etc must be handled by India on an urgent and priority basis.

Reacting to various cyber threats, Indian government has prescribed the condition for hardware sellers to provide cyber security awareness brochures along with the hardware. Once implemented, every desktop computer, mobile phone, modem or USB stick will have to come pre-packaged with the cyber security awareness brochures.

The proposal is believed to have come from the a joint working group set up at the behest of the National Security Council Secretariat, which is looking at ways of increasing public-private partnership to strengthen India's cyber security preparedness.

However, hardware industry of India is not at all enthusiastic about this proposal of Indian government. They have their own fears and apprehensions in this regard especially those pertaining to logistical and supply chain management.

There is no doubt that the proposal given by Indian government is a good one and practical difficulties must be sorted out to make it an implementable one as well.

Cyber Security Awareness In India

Cyber security in India has been receiving the attention of various stakeholders. Whether it is private organisations and companies, individuals or government departments, all have realised the importance of effective and robust cyber security for their personal, public and professional needs.

Cyber security awareness in India is still at the infancy stage. There are very few cyber security research and development centers in India. At Perry4Law and Perry4Law’s Techno Legal Base (PTLB) we have been spreading public awareness about cyber security in India for long. The cyber security initiatives in India by PTLB are also unique in the sense that they are essentially techno legal in nature where both technical and legal aspects of cyber security are managed by us.

There are many crucial and critical cyber security issues that require attention of top policy makers of India. These include cyber warfare against India and its defenses, cyber terrorism against India and its defences and solutions, cyber espionage against India and its challenges, solutions and defences, data security laws in India, critical infrastructure protection in India, cyber security laws in India, etc.

PTLB is managing the exclusive techno legal cyber security research centre of India, national cyber security database of India (NCSDI), cyber crimes investigation centre of India, cyber forensics research and development centre of India, etc. These initiatives would not only strengthen the offensive and defensive cyber security capabilities of India but would also develop cyber forensics and cyber crimes investigation skills in India.

We hope these techno legal initiatives of Perry4Law and PTLB would prove useful to all concerned. If you are interested in online techno legal education, trainings, courses, skills development, etc of PTLB you may find the resources of institute for lifelong learning in India, e-learning in India by PTLB, virtual legal education campus in India, etc useful.

We hope our techno legal skills development, education and training courses would be beneficial for all the stakeholders. If you are interested in the techno legal courses of PTLB, you can fill the application form that can be downloaded from here. Additional information in this regard can be found here.

Cyber Security Initiatives In India By PTLB

In this annual report 2012 we are summarising the techno legal initiatives and projects that have been freshly undertaken and continued by us. These include awareness projects, research and development projects, trainings and education projects and initiatives, skills development initiatives and projects, etc.

Let us start with some background information before we go into the details of our cyber security projects and initiatives and other techno legal initiatives for the year 2102. Perry4Law is the exclusive techno legal ICT, IP and corporate law firm of India and one of the few in the world. Perry4Law is the umbrella organisation and other techno legal segments are supporting it.

Perry4Law’s Techno Legal Base (PTLB) is the leading techno legal segment of Perry4Law and Perry4Law’s Techno Legal ICT Training Centre (PTLITC) is the highly specialised and domain specific techno legal training provider of Perry4Law.

Both PTLB and PTLITC are managing the techno legal lifelong learning centre of India established by Perry4Law. PTLB is also managing the exclusive portal for techno legal e-learning in India and virtual legal education campus in India and techno legal e-learning centre of India.

Besides education and trainings, PTLB is also engaged in techno legal skills development in India and world wide, online dispute resolution (ODR) in India, e-courts research and consultancy in India, etc. PTLB is managing the techno legal and cyber security aspects of skills development, ODR, e-courts, etc as well.

We at Perry4Law, PTLB and PTLITC have been spreading techno legal cyber security awareness in India for long. We are managing the exclusive techno legal national cyber security database of India (NCSDI). We are also managing the exclusive techno legal cyber security research and development centre of India (CSRDCI). To supplement these cyber security initiatives in India, we are also managing cyber forensics research and development centre of India and exclusive techno legal cyber crimes investigation centre of India (CCICI).

Further, dedicated blogs on computer security in India, computer forensics in India, e-discovery in India, international ICT policies and strategies, etc have also been launched by us.

Our cyber security initiatives and projects in general and techno legal initiatives in particular are moving towards global level. If you think that your organisation or you in your individual capacity can be a valuable addition to our projects and initiatives, you may find the segment of MOU and tie up with PTLB useful. Send us your professional proposals and we may revert back to you for a suitable business collaboration opportunity.

Cyber Security Training In India Is Needed

Cyber security in India is crucial for national defence and none can doubt about it. This realisation has come at a time when there are many glaring cyber security problems of India.  Cyber security challenges of India have become so vexing that even the highest level of Indian government has starting talking about it.

However, mere talking is not enough as it is high time for India to act. While acting India must not commit the conventional and classic blunder of procuring hardware and software and assume that its cyber security requirements have been duly met.

There is an urgent need to protect the critical infrastructure of India that is increasingly dependent upon information and communication technology (ICT) these days. Cyber security issues in India like cyber warfare, cyber terrorism, cyber espionage, critical infrastructure protection, etc cannot be ignored by us any more.  

The cyber security reflections of India in the year 2012 showed a poor state of affairs in India. We have no dedicated cyber security laws in India as on date. Indian critical infrastructures are vulnerable to cyber attacks and we must ensure sufficient cyber security for the same. We at Perry4Law’s Techno Legal Base (PTLB) are managing some very effective techno legal cyber security in initiatives in India.

These include cyber security research and development centre of India (CSRDCI), national cyber security database of India (NCSDI), cyber forensics research centre of India, cyber crime investigation centre of India, cyber security research centre of India, etc. These initiatives intend to strengthen the cyber security capabilities of India and resolve the cyber security issues and problems in India.  

In the present interconnected world, cyber security capabilities of India must be urgently developed. In fact, Indian critical infrastructure and cyber security challenges and issues have assumed so much significance that Indian government declared the establishment of National Critical Information Protection Centre (NCIPC) of India. It intends to ensure critical infrastructure protection and critical ICT infrastructure protection in India. 

In these circumstances, nothing is more important than having offensive and defensive cyber security capabilities of India.  The same cannot be acquired till we have techno legal expertise and skills development in India in this regard. At PTLB we are managing the exclusive techno legal cyber security skills development, training and education institution and centre of India. We are also providing lifelong cyber security training and education in India and world wide.

We hope our techno legal skills development, education and training courses would be beneficial for all the stakeholders. If you are interested in the techno legal courses of PTLB, you can fill the application form that can be downloaded from here. Additional information in this regard can be found here.

Offensive And Defensive Cyber Security Capabilities Of India

There are many glaring cyber security problems of India and challenges and the chief among them is to protect the critical infrastructure of India that is dependent upon information technology. Cyber security issues in India like cyber warfare, cyber terrorism, cyber espionage, critical infrastructure protection, etc cannot be ignored by Indian government any more.

The cyber security reflections of India have not shown a good picture about India. We have no dedicated cyber security laws in India as well. Indian critical infrastructures are vulnerable to cyber attacks and we must ensure sufficient cyber security for the same. We at Perry4Law Techno Legal Base (PTLB) are managing some very effective techno legal cyber security in initiatives in India.

These include cyber security research and development centre of India (CSRDCI), national cyber security database of India (NCSDI), cyber forensics research centre of India, cyber crime investigation centre of India, cyber security centre of India, etc. These initiatives intend to strengthen the cyber security capabilities of India and resolve the cyber security issues and problems in India.  

Maintaining cyber security at the international level is a tedious task. This is so because cyberspace does not recognizes any boundary and cyber attacks can be launched from any part of the world. While cyber attacks upon various computer systems and computer resources are cause of concern yet cyber attacks upon critical infrastructures is of grave concern.

Meanwhile, India is increasingly facing cyber attacks and cyber threats from foreign nationals. Cyber terrorism against India, cyber warfare against India, cyber espionage against India and cyber attacks against India has already increased a lot. Even the cyber law trends of India 2012 by various sources have also projected an increased rate of cyber crimes in India and cyber attacks against India in the year 2012.

The biggest cyber threat against India is originating in the form of cyber attacks upon Indian critical infrastructures. Critical infrastructure protection in India requires a well formulated policy. Presently we have no critical infrastructure protection policy of India. Further, critical ICT (Information and Communication Technology) infrastructure protection in India  is one area that requires special attention of Indian government.

In the present interconnected world, cyber security capabilities of India must be urgently developed. In fact, Indian critical infrastructure and cyber security challenges and issues have assumed so much significance that Indian government declared the establishment of National Critical Information Protection Centre (NCIPC) of India. It intends to ensure critical infrastructure protection and critical ICT infrastructure protection in India. 

This is a good beginning and we at PTLB welcome this initiative of Indian government. At the same time we would keep on strengthening the techno legal cyber security capabilities of India from time to time.  

Why Indian Critical Infrastructure Are Vulnerable To Cyber Attacks?

In the present interconnected world, cyber security capabilities of India must be urgently developed. In fact, Indian critical infrastructure and cyber security challenges and issues have assumed so much significance that Indian government declared the establishment of National Critical Information Protection Centre (NCIPC) of India.

The best way to ensure critical infrastructure protection in India is to make it a part of national cyber security policy of India. Various cyber security issues of India must also be part of such cyber security policy of India. Further, besides energy, defense, transportation and telecommunication, the financial sector which includes banks and stock exchanges must be suitably protected in India. Unfortunately, till now cyber security challenges of India remain unredressed.

The reliance of consumers and businesses on the cyberspace and interconnected networks would continue to increase. Critical industries like electric, water, oil and natural gas, transportation, automotive, and aerospace are increasingly dependent upon Industrial Control Systems like Supervisory Control And Data Acquisition (SCADA).

In fact, SCADA has become the new cyber attacks battlefield against India. An attack upon SCADA is essentially an attack upon the critical infrastructure of a nation. The SCADA systems may involve a human machine interface (HMI), a supervisory system managing the processes, remote terminal units (RTUs) interacting with the supervisory systems, programmable logic controller (PLCs) usable as field devices, etc.

Initially, running on proprietary control these have evolved with the availability of low-cost Internet Protocol (IP) devices, thus increasing the possibility of cyber security vulnerabilities and incidents.

The arrival of technology and augmented accessibility of broadband connectivity together with smart phones have eased the way in which consumer interacts and transacts online. Moreover, with the mass use of e-governance applications under the mission mode projects (MMPs) where citizen services are being provided online, human rights protection in cyberspace of digital citizens (netizens) must be ensured. This has resulted in the emergence of some very unique “Digital Issues” that were not available before the traditional governmental functioning.

Businesses are trying to cater this digital citizen by providing a whole host of applications operating at various platforms through various channels. Cyber security of these platforms, channels and applications are utmost important for the government and industry to ensure trust in the customer.

We must focus on the national cyber security elements- Framework, Machinery, Responsibility and Operations for all the critical information sectors like power, energy and finance. Suitable deliberations must take place with cyber security stakeholders of India on operating technologies like smart grid and industrial control system; the security and privacy imperatives of e-commerce, m-commerce and e-governance application and platforms. The cyber security ramifications at the global level must also be analysed. If Indian government is willing to protect t its critical infrastructures all these issues must be kept in mind.

The Glaring Cyber Security Problems Of India

It is very difficult to predict the future cyber security issues in India or in other nations. Even it is very difficult to analyse all the cyber security issues, challenges and problems of India and other jurisdictions.

However, one thing is for sure. Cyber security challenges in India are going to increase with the advent of sophisticated malware like Stuxnet, Duqu, Flame, Shamoon, etc. These customised malware are targeting the critical infrastructures around the world. To tackle these malware, cyber security capabilities in India must be strengthened.

If we analyse the cyber security reflections of India the position is really worrisome. The cyber law, cyber crimes and cyber security trends by Perry4Law and Perry4Law’s Techno Legal Base (PTLB) have marked many shortcomings of Indian cyber security capabilities.

Critical infrastructure protection in India is not in a very good shape. We have no critical ICT infrastructure protection policy of India as well. The critical infrastructures around the world like power grids, nuclear facilities, satellites, defense networks, governmental informatics infrastructures, etc are vulnerable to known and unknown malware.

According to cyber security experts cyber attacks are affecting Indian critical infrastructure and we are not even aware of the same. Critical infrastructure protection in India is needed as soon as possible.

India must develop both offensive and defensive cyber security capabilities that must be robust enough to detect and nullify cyber warfare against India, cyber terrorism against India, cyber attacks against India, cyber espionage against India, etc.

The national imperatives of securing operational technologies like smart grids, oil and gas, public utilities, etc are too essential to be ignored by Indian government. Today protecting key economic assets like securing financial backbone and stock exchange, payment infrastructures and financial switches is need of the hour. This includes architecting security for new age banking to make them cyber secure. Cyber security of banks in India is still deficient.

The business community must also keep in mind the cyber law due diligence requirements in India. Cyber due diligence for Indian companies is now a statutory obligation and failure to observe cyber due diligence can bring serious legal ramifications. Ensuring business models, technology transformations and channel revolutions in the midst of organised, focused, advanced and persistent cyber threats is not an easy task.

With the growth of enterprise mobility, mobile applications and cloud enablement data driven businesses, techno legal issues have become more prominent. Social networking platforms have further complicated the scenario.

The Internet is truly global in nature and regional and national regulations and efforts cannot bring the desired results. Cyber law and cyber security issues are global in nature. Indian response to international cyber law treaty is not pro active. International cyber law treaty is required to be formulated as soon as possible.

Similarly, cyber security framework must ensure both national responsibility and global accountability. Any cyber diplomacy must congregate both national and international interests to be effective and enforceable. Thus, an international cyber security treaty is required to be formulated as well.

With a growing focus upon electronic delivery (e-delivery) of services in India additional responsibilities of securing technology transformation of governance must be ensured. The e-governance projects of India would bring cyber security challenges for which we need readymade solutions.

           

Similarly, cyber security enablement of growing electronic and mobile commerce would also be required. With the projected increase in volume and growth of commerce and e-commerce in India, cyber security as enabler must be ensured.

Further, civil liberties issues like human rights protection in cyberspace, balancing of national security and civil liberties, balancing of national security and right to information, etc must be kept in mind by India.

The management of consumer rights and business responsibilities in the information age is not an easy task. For instance, the present telemarketing policy of India is anti consumer. Similarly, the telecom dispute resolution process in India is also anti consumer.

The future of cyber security in India is tough to manage. The sooner we start working in this direction on ground level and actual basis the better it would be for the larger interest of India.

Indian Cyber Security Problems, Issues and Challenges Management

Cyber security initiatives of India have started gaining momentum. However, cyber security initiatives in India in India are still deficient on many aspects. After all, managing India’s cyber security problems, issues and challenges is not an easy task. In these circumstances establishment of the national cyber security database of India (NCSDI) assumes great cyber security significance. The cyber security research and development centre of India (CSRDCI) is also a timely initiative.

Undoubtedly, there are many cyber security issues of India that have still been left unattended. The cyber security issues and challenges in India require urgent attention of Indian government as we have already delayed this process.

India is facing cyber threats from cyber terrorism, cyber warfare, cyber espionage, etc and we must develop both offensive and defensive cyber security capabilities in India. India is also facing continuous and serious cyber threats that have been endangering the critical infrastructures of India. In these circumstances, there is an urgent need to strengthen critical infrastructure protection in India. We cannot achieve this task without ensuring cyber security skills development in India.

Concerns regarding insufficient cyber security in India have been raised for long but the Indian government remained indifferent to cyber security of India for long. However, some committed and dedicated private players have been playing a pro active role in strengthening the cyber security of India.

We at Perry4Law, Perry4Law Techno Legal Base (PTLB) and Perry4Law Techno Legal ICT Training Centre (PTLITC) have launched exclusive techno legal Cyber Forensics Research Centre Of India, Cyber Security Research Centre Of India And Cyber Crimes Investigation Centre Of India (CCICI) To Strengthen Indian Cyber Security And Cyber Forensics Capabilities.

Another major lacuna in the cyber security field is absence of implementable cyber security policy of India. Till various cyber security declarations and promises are actually implemented, they are of no use. As on date we have no implementable national cyber security policy of India.

Even basic level techno legal frameworks are missing in India. For instance, we have no dedicated cyber security laws in India. We also do not have dedicated encryption laws and regulations in India. Even Legal Framework For Mandatory E-Governance In India And Legal Framework For Cloud Computing In India are missing. The Mandatory E-Delivery Of Services In India is also missing.

India has to cover a long road in order to make its cyber security effective. It is high time to move beyond declarations and promises as they would not serve any purpose in the present times.