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Cyber security, surveillance and the right to privacy: country perspectives

praskrishna — 2013-01-23T12:10:23Z

This blog post is fourth in a series of eight blog posts to report on the “Third South Asian Meeting on the Internet and Freedom of Expression” recently concluded in Dhaka, Bangladesh.

This post was published in the Internet Democracy Project Website on January 22, 2013. All the blog posts in this series are written by Richa Kaul Padte, the official rapporteur at the meeting.

'The best way to protect people’s rights is to enable people to protect their rights themselves' – Chinmayi Arun

Pranesh Prakash, CIS India	Opening the session on cyber security, surveillance and privacy, moderator Pranesh Prakash from the Centre for Internet and Society (India) frames the debate by talking about how the principles raised by discussions on security, privacy and surveillance are always in tension with each other. ‘The boundaries that have been drawn in a pre-digital era don’t apply online always [and] the classic model of state-controlled surveillance is not as relevant [today].’

Taking forward the discussion by setting both a global and national framework around the issue, Assistant Professor at the Delhi-based National Law University Chinmayi Arun brings to light the ways in which cyber security is consistently tabled on several global agendas; however, with little to no meaningful parallel discussions around the right to privacy. She also connects the idea of surveillance to notions of censorship vis a vis freedom of expression, and poignantly states: ‘surveillance is a lot more insidious than censorship – [so much] more can take place before people realise it is happening.’ Prakash furthers this idea in his transition between country perspectives by highlighting the ways in which surveillance measures are already established and heavily pervasive, with both Prakash and Arun advocating greater transparency in areas where these measures are in place. As Arun says, ‘it’s not true that every instance of surveillance needs to be secret until it’s done’, and distinguishing between necessary surveillance measures (in the case of crime investigations, for example) and those that position all people as criminals who must be monitored, is key to taking the discussion forward.

Chinmayi Arun, National Law University Delhi, India

Mohammed Nazmuzzaman Bhuian, Dhaka University

Mohammad Nazmuzzaman Bhuian, an Associate Professor from the University of Dhaka, opens a Bangladeshi country perspective with the question, ‘how does a cyber security act become a surveillance act?’ A cyber crime refers to any crime that involves a computer or a network, and the crimes under this can play out in two ways. The computer itself may be a target, or it may be used to carry out a crime. It is when it is used to carry out a crime that the question of online surveillance arises

Offering another perspective from Bangladesh, Head of the Centre for IT Security and Privacy and Assistant Professor, University of Asia Pacific, Mohammad Shahriar Rahman, discusses the manipulation of security and surveillance laws by the State in order to create greater security for itself. He cites the ban of YouTube in the country in response to a US-produced video ridiculing the Prophet Mohammed and the attacks on bloggers who have advocated for free speech on the Internet, including speech that may be anti-authoritarian or anti-religious. These examples echo Mariyath Mohamed’s perspectives on the interplay between religion, politics and censorship from the previous session, which clearly resound through many South Asian countries.

Mohammad Shahriar Rahman, University of Asia Pacific, Bangladesh

Kailash Prasad Neupane, Nepal Telecommunications Authority	Perspectives from Nepal, offered by speaker Kailash Prasad Neupane from the Nepal Telecommunications Authority, highlight the acute similarities between the laws in different South Asian countries, which all position the freedom of expression as ‘subject to certain restrictions’, where the subjectivity of the clause tends to be interpreted by a powerful and majority State against its minority citizens, thus undermining both democracy and citizens’ rights. As Rahman says, ‘if the government wants to be seen as democratic in these times, they need to realise you can’t jail everyone who is critical of the Prime Minister.’

Speaking from the floor, Bishakha Datta, from Mumbai-based women’s media organisation Point of View, expands on the speakers’ views by highlighting the ways in which, given the extensive measures of State security and surveillance, societies themselves become structured around a culture of surveillance that citizens in turn internalise and see as a necessary part of their lives. She asks, ‘when we talk about the right to privacy, are we saying that we are willing to accept surveillance as long as our privacy is maintained, or are we opposing it on the grounds of privacy?’ Echoing Prakash’s idea that ‘the way in which security and privacy are portrayed as being at loggerheads is false’, Arun responds to Datta by advocating privacy as the starting point for all discussions surrounding security. In summary she states, ‘we must underline our right to privacy,and that right must always dominate. One must always start with that right, and then narrow the circumstances in which, only when it is absolutely necessary and to the extent absolutely necessary, it may be violated.’ And it is through this consistent demand for the right to privacy, and the placing of citizens and individuals (rather than the interests of the State) at the heart of these conversations, that we can see security and privacy as co-existing notions that work to ensure, rather than suppress, freedom of expression.	Bishakha Datta, Point of View, India

For more details visit https://cis-india.org/news/internet-democracy-richa-kaul-padte-jan-22-2013-cyber-security-surveillance-and-the-right-to-privacy

Cyber security tips for small businesses

Theres Sudeep — 2019-12-05T23:35:59Z

It is important to have good cyber security practices, experts recommend.

The article by Theres Sudeep was published in the Deccan Herald on December 1, 2019. Arindrajit Basu was quoted.

Many times small businesses don’t allocate any of their budgets to cybersecurity. This is due to the common misconception that it’s only larger companies and governments that need to worry about attacks by hackers and the like.

This is not the case as Arindrajit Basu of The Centre for Internet and Society explains, “The kind of risks that smaller players are vulnerable to may not be on the scale of threats that larger companies encounter, but it is equally important for them to have good cybersecurity practices,” he says.

Phishing, an attempt to obtain sensitive information by disguising oneself as a trustworthy entity, and ransomware, a type of malware that threatens to publish the victim’s data or block access to it unless a ransom is paid, are the two most common kinds of attacks on small business according to Basu.

He adds that many hackers see small businesses as an easy way into a larger network. Once the smaller nodes are breached, they can easily get to the bigger players on the network.

Bengaluru, the startup capital of the country, has many such small businesses that need to better their cybersecurity practices.

The first and foremost step recommended by Basu is to create a strategy within your business plan and revise it periodically. This must include employee training and guidelines on what to if there is a breach.

Apart from this owners and employees are advised to routinely change passwords and back up their data on a device that doesn’t connect to the internet.

Owners are also advised to monitor access to admin accounts.

Many small businesses and startups don’t have offices of their own, which means employees end up working at a cafe or the like.

When working at these venues, make sure to carry your own WiFi or use the hotspot from your phone. Open WiFi networks are vulnerable to attacks.

Basu concludes by saying that small businesses must be periodically audited by an independent cybersecurity firm.

For more details visit https://cis-india.org/internet-governance/news/deccan-herald-december-1-2019-theres-sudeep-cyber-security-tips-for-small-businesses

Cyber Security Summit 2015

praskrishna — 2015-12-16T02:10:24Z

The Government of Karnataka in association with Biz Wingz Production House organized this Summit on November 27, 2015 at JW Marriott, Bangalore from 10.30 a.m. to 5.30 p.m. Sunil Abraham was a panelist.

Cloud-based applications are often the darling of the CFO and the nemesis of the CISO & CIOs. How can an organization migrate to the cloud, thus relinquishing control, but still maintain security? Are we sacrificing security and robustness in exchange for other priorities? How do ‘Snowden’ disclosures change the legal and risk nature of cloud decision making and governance? What can proactive cloud providers do to capture the opportunity in the disruption? The panel explored these topics and more to provide the cutting edge thinking and perspectives you need to shape your own cloud strategies in ways that balance multiple priorities.

Panelists

Parag Deodhar, Chief Risk Officer, Bharti AXA General Insurance & Chief Operational Risk Officer India
Sunil Abraham, Executive Director, Centre for Internet and Society
Atul kumar, GM IT, Syndicate Bank
Lopa Mudra Basu, AVP & Head of Enterprise Security & Risk Governance, SLK Global
Sagar Karan, Chief Information Security Officer, Fullerton India Credit Co. Ltd.
R Vijay, CISO –Technology, Mahindra & Mahindra Financial Services Limited
Sanjivan S Shirke, Senior Vice President-Information Technology, Head -Information Security, UTI Asset Management Company Limited.
Sanjay Sahay, IPS, ADGP, Grievances & Human Rights, Police Dept, Govt of Karnataka (moderator).

More information about this event

For more details visit https://cis-india.org/internet-governance/news/cyber-security-summit-2015

Cyber Security Policy Research

praskrishna — 2015-10-16T16:47:12Z

Tim Maurer will give a presentation on cybersecurity policy research at the Centre for Internet & Society's New Delhi office on October 18, 2015, from 2 p.m. to 5 p.m. Geetha Hariharan and Sunil Abraham will participate in this event.

Tim Maurer's talk will give an outline of the definitional issues involved, the various threats to the confidentiality, integrity, and availability of information and underlying infrastructure, the actors involved and international efforts to address cybersecurity. The talk will also provide an overview of existing and ongoing cyber security policy research.

Tim Maurer

Tim Maurer is an associate at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace. His work focuses on cyberspace and international affairs, with a concentration on global cybersecurity norms, human rights online, Internet governance, and their interlinkages. He is writing a book on cybersecurity and proxy actors.

Maurer serves as a member of the Research Advisory Network of the Global Commission on Internet Governance, the Freedom Online Coalition’s cybersecurity working group “An Internet Free and Secure,” and co-chaired the Civil Society Advisory Board of the Global Conference on CyberSpace. In 2014, he developed the Global Cyber Definitions Database for the chair of the OSCE to support the implementation of the OSCE’s cyber confidence-building measures. In 2013 and 2014, Maurer spoke about cybersecurity at the United Nations in New York and Geneva and co-authored “Tipping the Scale: An Analysis of Global Swing States in the Internet Governance Debate,” published by the Global Commission on Internet Governance. His work has also been published by Jane’s Intelligence Review, TIME, Foreign Policy, CNN, Slate, and other academic and media venues.

Prior to joining Carnegie, Maurer was the director of the Global Cybersecurity Norms and Resilience Project at New America and head of research of New America’s Cybersecurity Initiative. He also gained experience with the United Nations in Rwanda, Geneva, and New York focusing on humanitarian assistance and the coordination of the UN system.

For more details visit https://cis-india.org/internet-governance/events/cyber-security-policy-research

Cyber Security of Smart Grids in India

Elonnai Hickok and Vanya Rakesh — 2016-04-28T15:34:17Z

An integral component of the ambitious flagship programme of the Indian Government- Digital India, which paves way for a digital data avalanche in the country, is a well-designed digital infrastructure ensuring high connectivity and integration of services, the potential areas being smart cities, smart homes, smart energy and smart grids, to list a few. Likewise, the 100 Smart Cities Mission envisions changing the face of urbanization in India, to manage the exponential growth of population in the cities by creating smart cities with ICT driven solutions, along with big data analytics. Smart grid technologies are key for both these schemes.

The article by Elonnai Hickok and Vanya Rakesh was published by Dataquest on April 25, 2016

Smart grid is a promising power delivery infrastructure integrated with communication and information technologies which enables monitoring, prediction and management of energy usages. Establishment of smart grids becomes highly important for the Indian economy, as the present grid losses are one of the highest in the world at upto 50% and costing India upto 1.5% of its GDP. India operates one of the largest synchronous grids in the world – covering an area of over 3 million sq km, 260 GW capacity and over 200 million customers with the estimated demand of India increasing 4 times by the year 2032.

In the year 2013, the Ministry of Power (MoP), in consultation with India Smart Grid Forum and India Smart Grid Task Force released a smart grid vision and roadmap for India, a key policy document aligned to MoP’s overarching objectives of “Access, Availability and Affordability of Power for All”. It lays plans for a framework to address cyber security concerns in smart grids as well. To achieve goals envisaged in the roadmap, the Government of India established the National Smart Grid Mission in the year 2015 for planning, monitoring and implementation of policies and programs related to Smart Grid activities.

A number of smart grid projects have been introduced, and are currently underway. KEPCO in Kerala has established smart meter/intelligent power transmission and distribution equipment system in the year 2011 and the smart grid operations focus on peak reduction, load standardization, reduction in power transmission/distribution loss, response to new/renewable energy and reduction in black-out time. Gujarat was introduced to India’s first modernized electrical grid in the year 2014, to study consumer behaviour of electricity usage and propose a tariff structure based on usage and load on the power utility by installing new meters embedded with SIM card to monitor the data. The Bangalore Electricity Supply Company Ltd. (BESCOM) project in Bangalore envisaged the Smart Grid Pilot Project for integration of renewable and distributed energy resources into the grid, which is vital to meet growing electricity demands of the country, curb power losses, and enhance accessibility to quality power.

Cybersecurity challenges

At the same time, the introduction of a smart grid brings with it certain security risks and concerns, particularly to a nation’s cyber security. Increased interconnection and integration may render the grids vulnerable to cyber threats, putting stored data and computers at great risk.With sufficient cyber security measures, policies and framework in place, a Smart Grid can be made more efficient, reliable and secure as failure to address these problems will hinder the modernization of the existing power system. Smart Grids, comprising of numerous communication, intelligent, monitoring and electrical elements employed in power grid, have a greater exposure to cyber-attacks that can potentially disrupt power supply in a city.

Cyber security and data privacy are some of the key challenges for smart grids in India, as establishment of digital electricity infrastructure entails the challenge of communication security and data management. Digital network and systems are highly prone to malicious attacks from hackers which can lead to misutilisation of consumers’ data, making cyber security the key issue to be addressed. Vulnerabilities allow an attacker to break a system, corrupt user privacy, acquire unauthorized access to control the software, and modify load conditions to destabilize the grid. Hackers or attackers, who compromise a smart meter can immediately alter their energy costs or change generated energy meter readings to monetize it by help of remote PCs. Also, inserting false information could mislead the electric utility into making incorrect decisions about the local usage and capacity.

Initiatives in India

As cybersecurity is critical for Digital India and the Smart City Concept note highlights a smart grid to be resilient to cyber attacks, a National Cyber Coordination Centre is being established by the Indian Government. Also, National Cyber Safety and Security Standards has been started with a vision to safeguard the nation from the current threats in the cyberspace, undertaking research to understand the nature of cyber threats and Cyber Crimes by facilitating a common platform where experts shall provide an effective solution for the complex and alarming problems in the society towards cyber security domain. Innovative strategies and compliance procedures are being developed to curb the increasing complexity of the Global Cyber Threats faced by countries at large.

The National Cyber Security Policy 2013 was released with an umbrella framework for providing guidance for actions related to security of cyberspace, by the Department of Electronics and Information Technology (DeitY). The Working Group on Information Technology established under the Planning Commission has also published a 12 year plan on IT development in India with a road map for cyber security, stating six key priority and focus areas for cyber security including:Enabling Legal Framework ; Security Policy, Compliance and Assurance; Security R&D; Security Incident – Early Warning and Response ; Security awareness, skill development and training, and Collaboration.

In case of Bangalore, to ensure smooth implementation of BESCOM’s vision, the company realised the need to put a cyber-security system in place to protect the smart grid installations in Bangalore city. To ensure security, BESCOM has come out with a separate IT security policy and dedicated trained IT cadre to safeguard its data and servers, becoming one of the few Discoms in India to take such measures for safeguarding the servers and data network from cyber crimes and threats.

Way forward

An electric system like Smart grids has enormous and far-reaching economic and social benefits. However, increased interconnection and integration tends to introduce cyber-vulnerabilities into the grid. With the evolution of cyber threats/attacks over time, it can be said that there are a lot of challenges for implementing cyber security in Indian smart grid. Considering importance of secure smart grid networks for flagship projects in India, the existing regulatory framework does not seem to adequately take into consideration the cyber security implications.

In light of this, the government must aim to develop and adopt high level cybersecurity policy to withstand cyber-attacks. Also, India must focus on skills development in this domain and have a capable workforce to achieve the targets set by Indian Government. The country must look up to develop an overall intelligence framework that brings together industry, governments and individuals with specific capabilities for this purpose.

The National Cyber Security Policy 2013, protecting public and private infrastructure from cyber attacks, along with all kinds of information, such as personal information of web users, banking and financial information,etc. is yet to be implemented by the Government properly. In the Indian Power sector, the cyber security regulations or mandates are absent in the National Electricity Policy (NEP) as well as the Electricity Act 2003 and its amendment in 2007, with no reference to cyber security concerns. These key legislations must be amended to take into account the growing challenges due to increased use of ICT in the power sector.

As the concept of smart grids is still evolving in India, professional intervention from various domains has pushed for adoption and development of standard process and products. Many international standard setting organisations like IEC, IEEE, NIST, CENELEC are engaged in standardization activities of Smart Grids and in India, the Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS) has been rolling out several varieties of standards targeting various technologies. Therefore, BIS must develop standards taking into account the security challenges in the cyberspace as well.

Apart from policy and regulatory measure, the system on which the smart grids are built and networked must be made architecturally strong and secure.One of the areas where due attention is required is making the Supervisory Control and Data Acquisition (SCADA) secure, a system that operates with coded signals to provide control of remote equipment and is entirely based on computer systems and network. Numerous systems also employ the Public Key Infrastructure (PKI) to secure the Smart Grids and address the security challenges by enabling identification, verification, validation and authentication of connected meters for network access. This can be leveraged for securing data integrity, revenue streams and service continuity. The key vulnerable areas prone to cyber attacks on information transmission are network information, data integrity and privacy of information. The information transmission networks must be well-designed as the network unavailability may result in the loss of real-time monitoring of critical smart grid infrastructures and power system disasters.

Addressing these fast growing challenges and cyber security needs of the country by adopting suitable regulatory, policy and architectural steps would help achieve the objectives of Digital India and Smart Cities enabling “Access, Availability and Affordability for All”.

For more details visit https://cis-india.org/internet-governance/blog/dataquest-april-25-2016-vanya-rakesh-and-elonnai-hickok-cyber-security-of-smart-grids-in-india

Cyber Policy Centres Meeting in Sri Lanka

Admin — 2019-01-21T23:50:45Z

Elonnai Hickok, Sunil Abraham and Ambika Tandon participated in this event organized by IDRC in Sri Lanka on January 11 - 14, 2019.

Download the agenda here

See the presentation here

For more details visit https://cis-india.org/internet-governance/news/cyber-policy-centres-meeting-in-sri-lanka

Cyber Policy 2.0

Admin — 2019-08-19T14:18:13Z

National Law University organized an executive education program in Bangalore on August 17, 2019. Arindrajit Basu was a speaker. He spoke on Deconstructing the India regulatory approach to data governance and cyber security.

For more details about the program, click here

For more details visit https://cis-india.org/internet-governance/news/cyber-policy-2.0

Cyber law experts asks why CERT-In removed advisory warning about WhatsApp vulnerability

Megha Mandavia — 2019-11-15T00:48:00Z

On the missing web page note, CERT-In had provided a detailed explanation of the vulnerability, which could be exploited by an attacker by making a decoy voice call to a target.

The article by Megha Mandavia was published in ET Tech.com on November 4, 2019. Pranesh Prakash was quoted.

Cyber law experts have asked the government to explain why the Indian computer emergency response team (CERT-In) removed from its website two days ago an advisory it had put out in May warning users of a vulnerability that could be used to exploit WhatsApp on their smartphones.

“This is merely further evidence that the explanation is to be provided by GoI (Government of India) instead of blame shifting and politicizing the issue,” said Mishi Choudhary, the legal director of the New York-based Software Freedom Law Center. “India is a surveillance state with no judicial oversight.”

On the missing web page note, CERT-In had provided a detailed explanation of the vulnerability, which could be exploited by an attacker by making a decoy voice call to a target.

It had warned WhatsApp users that the vulnerability could allow an attacker to access information on the system, such as logs, messages and photos, and could further compromise it. CERT-In rated the severity “high” and asked users to upgrade to the latest version of the app.

It also listed links to hackernews and cyber security firm Check Point Software that pointed to the alleged involvement of Israeli cyber software firm NSO Group in the hacking of WhatsApp messenger.

CERT-In Director-General Sanjay Bahl did not respond to ET’s mails or calls seeking clarity on why the advisory was pulled from its website.

The Times of India reported first the development.

The government had blamed WhatsApp for not informing it about the attack and asked the Facebook-owned company to respond by November 4.

In response, WhatsApp sources pointed out that it had informed CERT-in in May about the vulnerability and updated in September that 121 Indian nationals were targeted using the exploit, ET reported on Sunday.

“We should not read too much into it. It could just be bad website management. The vulnerability was public knowledge. It was reported by the Common Vulnerabilities and Exposures (CVE) organization in May,” said Pranesh Prakash, fellow at the Centre of Internet and Society, a non-profit organisation.

The government has also questioned the timing of the disclosure, as it comes amid a request by it to the Supreme Court seeking three months to frame rules to curb misuse of social media in the country.

The government has categorically told WhatsApp that it wants the platform to bring in a mechanism that would enable tracing of the origin of messages, a demand that the instant messaging platform has resisted citing privacy concerns.

For more details visit https://cis-india.org/internet-governance/news/et-tech-megha-mandavia-november-4-2019-cyber-law-experts-asks-why-cert-in-removed-advisory-warning-about-whatsapp-vulnerability

Cyber experts suggest using open source software to protect privacy

praskrishna — 2013-07-03T04:32:48Z

Big Brother is watching. With the Central Monitoring System (CMS) at home and PRISM from the US, millions of users worldwide have become vulnerable to online surveillance by state agencies without even realizing it. No surprise, several cyber security experts feel that building one's own personal firewall is a good way of fortifying online privacy.

The article by Kim Arora was published in the Times of India on June 22, 2013. Sunil Abraham is quoted.

One enterprising netizen has compiled a list of services, from social networks to email clients, and even web browsers, that offer better protection from surveillance. They are listed on a web page called prism-break.org.

When asked about steps that a digital native can take to protect his privacy and online data, Sunil Abraham, executive director of Bangalore-based non-profit Center for Internet and Society said, "Stop using proprietary software, shift to free/open source software for your operating system and applications on your computer and phone. Android is not sufficiently free; shift to CyanogenMod. Encrypt all sensitive Internet traffic and email using software like TOR and GNU Privacy Guard. Use community based infrastructure such as Open Street Maps and Wikipedia. Opt for alternatives to mainstream services. For example, replace Google Search with DuckDuckGo."

Use of licensed or proprietary software, which bind users legally when it comes to use and distribution, seems to be losing favour among an informed niche. While alternative software cannot offer absolute protection, it is being seen as a "better-than-nothing" option. Anonymisers like TOR, though also not entirely foolproof, are also a popular option among those who wish to keep their web usage untraceable. Once installed on a browser, anonymisers can hide the route that digital traffic takes when sent from your computer over a network before emerging at an end node.

There is one caveat, though. Some websites can deny service to users operating on certain anonymising networks. Also, anonymisers are known to reduce browsing speeds. In India, where broadband speeds are already abysmally low, anything that slows one down even further would find popularity hard to come by.

Computer and network security expert Aseem Jakhar too recommends open source software since they offer the convenience of customization to suit one's encryption needs and are able to verify the source code. For laypersons, there are other tools. "One can use anonymisers like TOR which encrypt your communication and hide your identity. With these it becomes very difficult to exactly locate the source. For email clients, it is best to use ones that offer end-to-end strong encryption," he says. Jakhar, co-founder of open security community "null", also recommends the use of customized and Linux systems for more advanced users. Default Linux distributions, he points out, may have free online services which can again be analysed by the governments.

The home-bred CMS programme seeks to directly procure data pertaining to call records and internet usage for intelligence purposes without going through telecom service providers. There were fears of abuse when information about the programme, kept under strict wraps by the government, trickled in. Department of Telecom and Ministry of IT and Communication have been reticent about the state of implementation of the 400-crore rupees programme.

PRISM, a similar, international monitoring programme mounted by the US and revealed to the world by the US National Security Authority whistleblower Edward Snowden, has raised concerns of safeguarding digital information the world over.

For more details visit https://cis-india.org/news/times-of-india-june-22-2013-kim-arora-cyber-experts-suggest-open-source-software-to-protect-privacy

Cyber experts say 'playground open' for influencing elections

Admin — 2018-05-03T03:17:33Z

Cyber experts said that under the provisions provided by 43 (A) of Indian IT Act, two types of data collection are completely legal: first, the data shared by the user in the public domain and secondly, the data published by the social platforms, like Facebook.

This article was published in the Economic Times on May 2, 2018. Sunil Abraham was quoted.

With the Karnataka Assembly elections round the corner, the cyber experts have said that it is quite possible to influence elections in India.

Talking to ANI, cyber expert Sunil Abraham did not rule out the possibility of influencing the voters as India does not have data protection law in place.

He said under the provisions provided by 43 (A) of Indian IT Act, two types of data collection are completely legal: first, the data shared by the user in the public domain and secondly, the data published by the social platforms, like Facebook and Twitter, which was shared by the user for his/her friends.

"Both these types of data are not considered sensitive personal data. Under Indian law, if they are collecting your biometrics, passwords and health information only then they need your consent," Abraham told in an exclusive interview.

Replying a question about the chances of political parties influencing elections, Abraham said, "One cannot answer this question with a clear yes or no. But, the more a political party has in its database about you; the more they can micro-target you for various types of advertising."

He, however, said with the literacy level of Indian internet users, the chances are high that they can be manipulated.

"Once they do this, especially in a country where 30 percent of the public is illiterate and only 10 percent of public knows English and many-many users have just come online, there is a high chance that these users can be manipulated," the cyber expert said.

When asked can it be termed influence, he said, "It will definitely be an influence. Most of the internet users in India have just come online, they don't have media literacy; they have not consumed older technologies like television and broadcast media like radio sufficiently enough so it is easy for these users to get fooled by the content that is propaganda and fake news etcetera."

Abraham said it is unlikely that India will have a data protection law before 2019 general elections, which means the playground is open for people with a clever idea to manipulate voters.

"India is working on data protection laws from last eight years. With the existing laws; all the political parties, social media companies, and search engine optimization companies etcetera can do what they want and they won't get into trouble. So, it is very unlikely that this data protection law is going to be approved by Parliament the 2019 elections. So for the 2019 elections, it is going to be very exciting times because anybody who has any clever idea when it comes to manipulating voters, they will definitely try it. Because, there is no law to stop them from trying those tricks," the cyber expert said.

Replying to another question about India's position in data security, he said, 'India is lagging as per the global trend across the world. The European Union's world-class data protection law called 'General Data Protection Regulation' is being followed by all the countries with the exception of the US. About 108 countries have the data protection laws which look similar to the EU's General Data Protection Regulation."

He, however, added, "We shouldn't be upset because making a law in a big country like India takes time. Shri Krishna Committee is going to present the draft of the Indian data protection law and hopefully, within one or two years India will have data protection law."

Another expert Shubhamangala Sunil told ANI that "In India, our data is not secure today. Be it politicians or businesses, they want the database of people. Many data breaches have already happened and they are being used for different propagandas".

She said the union government and state governments should come forward and tell people about data security measures instead of people complaining about the data breach.

She also said India is at least 10 years behind in comparison with the world in the cyber security domain.

The comments of the experts have come in the backdrop of recently data breach in the Facebook wherein its CEO Mark Zuckerberg faced US Congress for two days over the data theft. The Facebook-Cambridge Analytica data scandal involves the collection of personally identifiable information of up to 87 million Facebook users and almost certainly a much greater number that Cambridge Analytica began collecting in 2014.

For more details visit https://cis-india.org/internet-governance/news/economic-times-may-2-2018-cyber-experts-say-playground-open-for-influencing-elections

Cyber Dialogue Conference 2014

praskrishna — 2014-04-08T05:09:54Z

The Cyber Dialogue conference, presented by the Canada Centre for Global Security Studies at the Munk School of Global Affairs, University of Toronto, will convene an influential mix of global leaders from government, civil society, academia and private enterprise to participate in a series of facilitated public plenary conversations and working groups around cyberspace security and governance.

Malavika Jayaram is participating in this event being held on March 30 and 31, 2014. Full event details here.

After Snowden, Whither Internet Freedom?

A recent stream of documents leaked by former NSA contractor Edward Snowden has shed light on an otherwise highly secretive world of cyber surveillance. Among the revelations — which include details on mass domestic intercepts and covert efforts to shape and weaken global encryption standards — perhaps the most important for the future of global cyberspace are those concerning the way the U.S. government compelled the secret cooperation of American telecommunications, Internet, and social media companies with signals intelligence programs.

For American citizens, the NSA story has touched off soul-searching discussions about the legality of mass surveillance programs, whether they violate the Fourth and Fifth Amendments of the U.S. Constitution, and whether proper oversight and accountability exist to protect American citizens' rights. But for the rest of the world, they lay bare an enormous “homefield advantage” enjoyed by the United States — a function of the fact that AT&T, Verizon, Google, Facebook, Twitter, Yahoo!, and many other brand name giants are headquartered in the United States.

Prior to the Snowden revelations, global governance of cyberspace was already at a breaking point. The vast majority of Internet users — now and into the future — are coming from the world’s global South, from regions like Africa, Asia, Latin America, and the Middle East. Of the six billion mobile phones on the planet, four billion of them are already located in the developing world. Notably, many of the fastest rates of connectivity to cyberspace are among the world’s most fragile states and/or autocratic regimes, or in countries where religion plays a major role in public life. Meanwhile, countries like Russia, China, Saudi Arabia, Indonesia, India, and others have been pushing for greater sovereign controls in cyberspace. While a US-led alliance of countries, known as the Freedom Online Coalition, was able to resist these pressures at the Dubai ITU summit and other forums like it, the Snowden revelations will certainly call into question the sincerity of this coalition. Already some world leaders, such as Brazil’s President Rousseff, have argued for a reordering of governance of global cyberspace away from U.S. controls.

For the fourth annual Cyber Dialogue, we are inviting a selected group of participants to address the question, “After Snowden, Whither Internet Freedom?” What are the likely reactions to the Snowden revelations going to be among countries of the global South? How will the Freedom Online Coalition respond? What is the future of the “multi-stakeholder” model of Internet governance? Does the “Internet Freedom” agenda still carry any legitimacy? What do we know about “other NSA’s” out there? What are the likely implications for rights, security, and openness in cyberspace of post-Snowden nationalization efforts, like those of Brazil’s?

As in previous Cyber Dialogues, participants will be drawn from a cross-section of government (including law enforcement, defence, and intelligence), the private sector, and civil society. In order to canvass worldwide reaction to the Snowden revelations, this year’s Cyber Dialogue will include an emphasis on thought leaders from the global South, including Africa, Asia, Latin America, and the Middle East.

For more details visit https://cis-india.org/news/cyber-dialogue-conference-2014

Cyber criminals hide in the ‘dark web’ to remain anonymous

Tushar Kaushik — 2019-05-02T13:55:39Z

An increasing number of cyber criminals are using the dark web — the encrypted part of the internet that cannot be tracked — to shop for software that helps them remain anonymous while carrying out their crimes.

The article by Tushar Kaushik was published in Economic Times on May 2, 2019. Karan Saini was quoted.

The dark web is a part of the deep web, the non-indexed part of the world wide web that cannot be accessed by standard search engines such as Google and requires encrypted networks such as Tor browser.

The most significant feature of this world is that the identity of its users is hidden and cannot be tracked, which is why several illicit products such as weapons and drugs are available here. Cyber criminals, too, appear to be shopping here.

According to app developer and cofounder of TBG Labs Harsha Halvi, the deep web makes up as much as about 65- 75% of the world wide web. “Many tools that can be used to commit cyber frauds are available on the dark web,” said cyber crime police station inspector M Chandrappa. Deputy superintendent at the cyber crime police station of CID MD Sharath said it was difficult to ascertain the frequency of usage of such applications by criminals.

Those fighting cyber crime in Bengaluru say that as most cases are not detected, chances are that more and more criminals are using the dark web. While investigating a case recently, a suspect admitted to having downloaded a software from the dark web that enabled him to disguise his number and also prevent it from being traced, the police said. “If a person has used tools from the dark web to hide his number, the investigation ends right there, as we do not have the necessary tools and software to trace the person,” a senior police officer said.

Experts say that while there are ways to trace activity on the dark web, police officials would require special training and specific information about the activity. Security researcher and policy officer at the Centre for Internet and Society Karan Saini said, “Attempting to track unconventional online behaviour would call for development of new methods, along with formal training for those involved, especially if malicious actors are using the Tor network to carry out illicit activities instead of the clear web.”

Halvi said some agencies like the FBI deploy ethical hackers to track specific websites on the dark web. “But they, too, have to rely on getting specific information from people to investigate the dark web. It is a time-consuming process.”

Bitcoin transactions are the preferred mode of payment for purchases on the dark web as they cannot be traced. However, Saini said some US-based researchers have written academic papers on how bitcoin exchanges can be tracked.

For more details visit https://cis-india.org/internet-governance/news/economic-times-may-2-2019-tushar-kaushik-cyber-criminals-hide-in-the-dark-web-to-remain-anonymous

Cyber crimes shoot up 52% in India over last year

praskrishna — 2014-07-03T10:14:26Z

There has been a sharp increase in the incidence of cyber crime in the country. The number of cases registered in 2013 under the IT Act has gone up by 52 per cent to 4,192 as against 2,761 in the previous year.

The article by K.V.Kurmanath was published in the Hindu Businessline on July 2, 2014. Bhairav Acharya gave his inputs.

If you add the cases registered under the IPC, the total number of cyber crime cases crosses the 5,500-mark. Police across the country arrested 3,301 persons in connection with these cases.

Maharashtra and Andhra Pradesh (undivided) have topped the list with 681 and 635 cases respectively under the IT Act, both showing an almost 50 per cent growth in cyber crimes over the previous year. In the previous year, Maharashtra had registered 471 and Andhra Pradesh 429.

Cyber security experts have been cautioning people to be careful while using the Internet. Besides increasing the security of the networks they are using, users must be careful while engaging with strangers.

A recent Microsoft report said many customer infections involve users tricked to install secondary offers, indicating a shift in malware proliferation. According to the latest data provided by the National Crime Records Bureau, the official chronicler of crime in the country, cyber crime registered under the Indian Penal Code (IPC) has shown a much higher growth rate of 122 per cent in 2013 over the previous year’s figure. IPC cases went up to 1,316 in 2013 from 595 in the previous year. Maharashtra topped the list here too with the cops booking 226 cases in this category.

Wrong nomenclature?

Bhairav Acharya of the Centre for Internet and Society feels that the term cyber crime has not been defined well. “It is time we do away with the practice of calling any crime a ‘cyber crime’ just because the person who does it uses a computer,” he said.

“Instead, I think the term ‘cyber crime’ should only be used in relation to offences that can only be committed by using information and communications technology (ICT) such as the internet (which is comprised of the world wide web, email protocols, file transfer protocols, and more) as well as network infrastructure that is not the internet,” he said.

Hence, only if there is a direct causal link between the crime and ICT and network technology should a crime be called a cyber crime, Acharya says.

Other States with a high number of cases booked under the IT Act include Karnataka (513), Kerala (349), Madhya Pradesh (282) and Rajasthan (239). Gujarat showed a decline with the number coming down to 61 from 68 in the previous year.

For more details visit https://cis-india.org/news/the-hindu-business-line-july-2-2014-kv-kurmanath-cyber-crimes-shoot-up-in-india-over-last-year

Cyber Crime & Privacy

merlin — 2011-09-01T09:36:11Z

India is a growing area in the field of active Internet usage with 71 million Internet users.

Introduction

India is a growing area in the field of active Internet usage with 71 million Internet users.[1] “Cyberspace is shorthand for the Web of consumer electronics; computers and communication networks that interconnect the World”. [2] The recent incidents of hacking into various popular websites of Yahoo, CNN, Sony, the CBI and the Indian Army raise the very pertinent issue of online data privacy. This blog will examine the growing instances of hacking websites and its impact on data privacy.

Cyber Crime

“Cybercrime is a criminal offence on the Web, a criminal offence regarding the Internet, a violation of law on the Internet, an illegality committed with regard to the Internet, breach of law on the Internet, computer crime, contravention through the Web, corruption regarding Internet, disrupting operations through malevolent programs on the Internet, electric crime, sale of contraband on the Internet, stalking victims on the Internet and theft of identity on the Internet.”[3]

The computer age gave rise to a new field of crime namely “cybercrime” or “computer crime”. During the 1960s and 1970s cybercrime involved physical damage to the consumer system. Gradually computers were attacked using more sophisticated modus operandi where individuals would hack into the operating system to gain access to consumer files. The 1970s - through to the present - saw cybercrimes taking different trajectories like impersonation, credit card frauds, identity theft, and virus attacks, etc.[4]

The IT Act 2000 was enacted by the government to punish such acts of cyber crime. The Act was amended in the year 2008[5].

Cybercrime — An Overview: India

The IT Act 2000 was enacted by the government in 2000 to punish acts of cyber crime. The Act was amended in the year 2008[5]. According to the National Crime Records Bureau, cyber crime is on the rise. The Bureau reported that 420 cases were reported under the IT Act in the year 2009 alone, which was a 45.8 per cent increase from the year 2008. [6] The NCRB data on cyber crime also provides a useful insight as to the growing awareness of the IT Act. The data clearly shows an increase in the number of cases reported from the years 2005 to 2009.[7]. Hacking and obscene [8] publication/transmission are the highest reported crimes with the highest rate of conviction under the IT Act 2008.

Cyber Attack: No One is Safe!!

In February 2000 the many ‘busy’ Internet websites were jammed shut by hackers causing a national upheaval in the USA with the then President Clinton calling in a high level meeting with experts from around the world. Websites like Yahoo.com were forced to shut down for three hours after they were ‘smurfed’ by hackers [9]. Many other websites like Amazon.com and CNN.com were also attacked by the same hackers. Hacking such popular websites within a span of few hours was unprecedented which left many, including the FBI, clueless. By far these are the most serious cyber attacks in the history of Internet. The attacks not only shut down important sites, but also highlighted a very disturbing growing trend. If such popular websites were shut down by unknown perpetrators then how in the world will these and similar sites be able to protect scores of personal data and credit card information of the customers they pledge to serve?

More recently cyber vandals attacked the US Senate website on the 14 June 2011, causing a huge security scare [10]. This instance again brings us to the pertinent question of the safety of our personal data held by these websites. If the personal data of the US Senators can be breached by somebody, then certainly we as consumers should be very wary of the cyberspace and its ability to protect our data.

Closer Home

On June 8, a group claiming to be “anonymous” hacked into the government’s National Information Centre to protest against the anti-graft agitation [11]. The same group was accused of hacking into the Indian Army’s website although no report of data theft was claimed by the government. Last year in December a Pakistani hacker group named Predators PK hacked into various websites including the website of the CBI.[12]

Cyber Crime: Its Implications to Privacy

Internet security has become an important issue. Recent cyber attacks on various important websites has placed many consumers at risk and vulnerable to cyber criminals. The hacking attack on the Sony website on April 16 and 17 led to the theft of 26.4 million SOE (Sony Online Enterprise) Accounts. The criminals even hacked into a 2007 database which held credit and debit card information of 23,400 customers.[13]

Attacks such as these demonstrate the vulnerability of websites, and the possibility of serious harm to a countries economy and security. Furthermore, consumers’ personal data can be used by hackers to extort and blackmail individuals.

The Internet has become a huge stakeholder in facilitating trade and e-commerce, subsequently cyberspace has become a large network of communication and commerce. We carry out a number of tasks on the Internet — from e-shopping and e-ticketing to e-banking. Though the recent attacks on the CBI website, and the Indian Army website did catch some attention from the media, and the government did make some noise about it, the issue slowly faded away. The government cannot seem to protect its own websites which houses sensitive details of national security, but seems confident about putting personal data and biometrics of a billion plus population under the AADHAR scheme [14] onto a web server which can be hacked anytime by almost anybody with a personal computer in China or Pakistan.[15]

Privacy: No More?

Data generated in cyberspace are a fingerprint of an individual which is detailed, processed, and made permanent.[16] The cyberspace generates a blue print of our whole personality as we navigate through a health site, pay our bills, or shop for books at Amazon.com. The data collected by surfing through all these domains creates a fitting profile of who we are. [17] When hackers and cyber vandals steal this very information, it becomes a gross violation of our privacy.

Conclusion

Privacy does not exist in cyber space. The various websites that offer varied services to its consumers fail to protect their personal data time and again. The Sony website including its play station and music website was hacked at least three times this year. Scores of personal data was stolen and the consumers were kept in dark regarding the breach for almost a week. Speaking as a consumer, if a large corporate company like Sony cannot protect its website from being hacked into, it is hard to imagine other websites protecting itself from attacks.

The rise of the Internet has brought with it a new dimension of crime. The IT Act 2000 has brought some reprieve to the aggrieved according to the NCRB. Despite this, the IT Act clearly will not completely deter criminals from hacking into websites, as was demonstrated in the NCRB report. The cyber criminals of the February 2000 cyber attacks have yet to be apprehended and the attacks on various websites have been increasing every year.

Despite progress being made on enacting cyber laws and implementing them, cyber crime is still not nipped in the bud. Governments can do precious little to stop it and only hope that a cyber criminal can be traced back and be punished. Hence, Internet users need to more careful of the sites they visit; know the privacy policy of these websites to protect their personal data as much as possible.

Notes

[1] According to an annual survey conducted by IMRB and Internet and Mobile Association of India for the year 2009 – 2010.

[2] http://www.jstor.org/stable/pdfplus/1229286.pdf?acceptTC=true

[3] http://legal-dictionary.thefreedictionary.com/cybercrime

[4] http://www.mekabay.com/overviews/history.pdf

[5]http://www.cyberlaws.net/itamendments/index1.htm

[6] http://ncrb.nic.in/CII%202009/cii-2009/Chapter%2018.pdf

[7] http://ncrb.nic.in/CII%202009/cii-2009/Chapter%2018.pdf

[8] http://ncrb.nic.in/CII%202009/cii-2009/Chapter%2018.pdf

[9] http://www.pbs.org/newshour/extra/features/jan-june00/hackers_2-17.html

[10] http://in.reuters.com/article/2011/06/14/idINIndia-57677720110614

[11] http://www.thinkdigit.com/General/Anonymous-hacks-Indian-govt-website-to-support_6933.html

[12] http://www.deccanherald.com/content/117901/pakistan-hackers-wage-cyber-war.html

[13] http://mashable.com/2011/05/03/sony-another-hacker-attack/

[14] http://uidai.gov.in/

[15] http://www.securitywatchindia.org.in/selected_Article_Cyber_warfare.aspx

[16] http://www.jstor.org/stable/pdfplus/1229286.pdf?acceptTC=true

[17] http://www.jstor.org/stable/pdfplus/1229286.pdf?acceptTC=true

For more details visit https://cis-india.org/internet-governance/cyber-crime-privacy

Cyber bullying is a crime, but open to interpretation: Expert

praskrishna — 2014-12-07T10:54:32Z

The social media attack on a Doordarshan anchor who made a series of gaffes at the recent Goa film festival would qualify as cyber bullying, experts say, but hasten to add there is not much that can be done to prevent such behaviour online, given the humungous size of the virtual universe.

The article by Neha Alawadhi was published in the Times of India on December 2, 2014. Pranesh Prakash gave his inputs.

The anchor reportedly shut down all her online accounts following the slew of unflattering and personal comments that she was bombarded with after the video of the event went viral and was shared across Facebook, Twitter and YouTube, among other such platforms.

Under Section 66 (A) of the IT Act, 2000, cyber bullying is a bailable offence, punishable with three years of imprisonment and fine. However, the complainant and police can interpret what constitutes offensive behaviour, said cyber law expert Pavan Duggal.

"Just as we don't regulate jeering and taunting of adults when it happens in person, as opposed to a threat of violence, unless there is a special case made out for the harm of online taunting, I don't think there is a case for a legislative response," said Pranesh Prakash, policy director at Bengaluru-based Centre for Internet and Society.

According to a recent report by McAfee, part of Intel Security, half of Indian youths have had some experience with cyber bullying and of these over a third (36%) have been bullied themselves online.

IT and cybersecurity expert Rakshit Tandon recalled the trauma a young professor at one of the top colleges underwent when an old picture of her, from one of her social media accounts, went viral and became the butt of unflattering comments by students. "Once it goes viral, you can't track who is sharing or sending it," he said.

"We don't have one personality anymore," said Adhvith Dhuddu, founder and CEO of digital marketing agency Alive-Now, which handles social and digital for brands online. "We have an offline personality and we have an online personality, and this is true for anyone —whether you are a brand, person, book or a movie," he added.

Several schools, NGOs and individuals are working towards educating children and young people about the dangers of sharing information online, but often find themselves at a loss when confronted with real situations every day.

The approach AliveNow's Dhuddu takes is to "engage first and ban later". He said, "We try to reason with people. We always take any grievance offline, we don't try to solve a grievance online."

For individuals, however, the offline route may be impractical or infeasible. Tandon believes the only way is to "sensitise people", while CIS's Prakash says a person can "block abusive users, set one's account in private mode and just get off such social networks for a while till the situation cools off".

For more details visit https://cis-india.org/internet-governance/news/economic-times-december-2-2014-neha-alawadhi-cyber-bullying-is-a-crime-but-open-to-interpretation