The Centre for Internet and Society
https://cis-india.org
These are the search results for the query, showing results 41 to 55.
Workshop on Enabling Information Systems for Local Governance
https://cis-india.org/internet-governance/news/workshop-on-enabling-information-systems-for-local-governance
<b>This event was organized by Jamia Milla Islamia at Tagore Hall in New Delhi on September 18, 2014. Sunil Abraham was a participant.</b>
<p style="text-align: justify; ">The One day workshop brings together practitioners, researchers and thinkers from the overlapping fields of IT, sociology and governance to seek mechanisms for involvement of local communities as active participants in information systems for governance. Conventional technological models are based on certain apriori assumptions on how engineers and designers expect people to use technologies as well as the social universe in which the information systems function. Social scientists and ethnographers on the other hand, concern themselves with how people use and interpret technologies and tend to have a better understanding of the role of technologies in the everyday life of users.</p>
<p style="text-align: justify; ">The first panel concerns itself with how these two diverse and possibly complementary ways of approaching technologies may synergise as a combined sociotechnical process rather than a purely technological one. Another useful way to understand the information systems as inherently socio-technical amalgamations is to examine the “informational model” – or the concepts, categories, and relationships – underlying the systems.Describing the systems in terms of their informational models enables people who understand issues of governance to speak to technologists on a common platform. Thus, the idea in the second panel is to discuss whether there is a need to rethink the mechanisms for building information models for local governance.</p>
<p style="text-align: justify; ">Some of the questions relevant to the workshop are:</p>
<ul style="text-align: justify; ">
<li> What is the role of local communities in information systems for governance? How can local participation in governance be enabled/enhanced?</li>
<li>What are some of the existing applications and mechanisms for creating the concepts, categories, relationships, rules and constraints (the information model) used in building information systems for governance and is there a need to rethink them? </li>
</ul>
<p style="text-align: justify; "><b><span style="text-decoration: underline;">Workshop Program - 18 Sep 2014</span></b></p>
<p style="text-align: justify; "><b>9:30-10:00</b> - Registration</p>
<p style="text-align: justify; "><b>10:00-10:15</b> - Introduction to the Symposium</p>
<p style="text-align: justify; "><b>10:15-11:45 - </b> Panel 1: Community Participation in IT Processes.</p>
<p style="text-align: justify; ">Information systems for governance generally involve many different kinds of users and stakeholders. The presentations in this panel are reflect how the role that these communities play at different stages of the technical process shape the conceptualization and outcomes of these diverse systems.</p>
<p style="text-align: justify; ">Atanu Garai (Fellow, Society for New Communications Research, Bubhaneshwar): Mechanisms of Community Enrollment in mHealth</p>
<p style="text-align: justify; ">Jagdish Mitra (CEO, CanvasM,A Tech Mahindra Company) – Arriving at Saral Zindagi: A suite of mobile applications to ease consumer life styles.</p>
<p style="text-align: justify; ">Chair: Dr Biswajit Das, Director, Centre for Culture Media and Governance (CCMG), Jamia Millia Islamia, New Delhi</p>
<p style="text-align: justify; ">Discussant: Dr. Richa Kumar (Department of Humanities and Social Sciences, IIT-Delhi)</p>
<p style="text-align: justify; "><b>11:45-12:00</b> – Tea/Coffee break</p>
<p style="text-align: justify; "><b>12:00-13:30 - </b> Panel 2: Community Representation in Information Modelling.</p>
<p style="text-align: justify; ">This panel describes the (often) implicit "Information Model" underlying IT enabled systems of governance. Making these models explicit also opens up the discussion of how social concepts and categories may be included as part of the model.</p>
<ul style="text-align: justify; ">
<li> Dr Vignesh Ilavarasan P (Department of Management Studies, IIT-Delhi) – Information Models for Service Delivery in the Telecom Sector</li>
<li>Ravi Shukla (CCMG, JMI)–Prototyping Community Participation in Informational Models.</li>
<li>Chair: Dr. Arul Chib (NTU, Singapore)</li>
<li>Discussant: Sunil Abraham (CIS, Bangalore) </li>
</ul>
<p style="text-align: justify; "><b>1</b> <b>3:30-14:30</b> – Lunch</p>
<p style="text-align: justify; "><b>14:30 - 16:00 – Focus Group Workshop - </b> Mechanisms for Community Participation in Information Systems.</p>
<p style="text-align: justify; ">The current research with communities around the Jamia Nagar area is taken as a case study. Participants are divided into two groups, the "process" group which is to suggest ways for community involvement in the process, and the "informational model" structure group. Each group is to suggest 5 ways in which communities can participate in IT systems.</p>
<p style="text-align: justify; ">List of People in the Second Half (there maybe more/different people):</p>
<ul style="text-align: justify; ">
<li> Atanu Garai, P Vignesh, Ravi Shukla, Arul Chib, Sunil Abraham, Amit Prakash, Vibodh Parthasarathi, Pankaj Aggarwal, Biswajit Das. </li>
<li> Chair: Amit Prakash - I will speak to him beforehand about this. </li>
<li> Introducer: Ravi Shukla (5 Mins) - Q & A (10 mins) </li>
<li> Group Sessions (these can be in different parts of the same room) - it will require writing pads, pens , two white boards and markers/busters. Time is 20 mins. </li>
<li> Group 1 (Processes and Procedures to Involve Communities in Information Systems): </li>
</ul>
<ul style="text-align: justify; ">
<li> Facilitator: Arul Chib </li>
</ul>
<ul style="text-align: justify; ">
<li> Participants: Atanu Garai, Pankaj Aggarwal, Vibodh Parthasarthi </li>
</ul>
<p style="text-align: justify; ">This group builds on their own experiences and comes up with 5 suggestions on how the IT process can be made more inclusive. This could mean - what are the different stages at which communities may get involved and how - as well as new ways of involvement.</p>
<p style="text-align: justify; ">Group 2 (Inclusion of Communities in Information Models)</p>
<ul style="text-align: justify; ">
<li> Facilitator: Ravi Shukla </li>
<li> Participants: P Vignesh, Sunil Abraham </li>
</ul>
<p style="text-align: justify; ">This group builds on their experiences to come up 5 suggestions on how community voices and concerns may be included in the Information Model. This could mean for instance - how to include minority voices in the model, or other factors of geography, culture, scale and temporality.</p>
<p style="text-align: justify; ">After this there are 10 minutes of presentation each by one representative from each group (this gives other people the space to wind-up/present).</p>
<p style="text-align: justify; ">This is followed by a summary by the discussant (Arul Chib) followed by discussion and winding up/ thanks giving by VP. (30 + 5 mins)</p>
<p>
For more details visit <a href='https://cis-india.org/internet-governance/news/workshop-on-enabling-information-systems-for-local-governance'>https://cis-india.org/internet-governance/news/workshop-on-enabling-information-systems-for-local-governance</a>
</p>
No publisherpraskrishnaInternet Governance2014-09-30T08:18:42ZNews ItemWorkshop on Digital Security for Journalists
https://cis-india.org/internet-governance/events/workshop-on-digital-security-for-journalists
<b>The Foundation for Media Professionals and the Centre for Internet and Society (CIS) are jointly hosting a workshop on 'Digital Security for Journalists' in New Delhi on January 16, 2015.</b>
<p style="text-align: justify; "><span class="fsl">This workshop will be a hands-on training — so all journalists are strongly encouraged to bring their laptops and smartphones — on how to assess security threats, how to protect your sources, how to prevent your ISP from snooping on your communications, and how to harden your computer's security.</span></p>
<p style="text-align: justify; "><span class="fsl"><span class="fsl"><span class="text_exposed_show">This workshop furthers CIS's work as part of the Cyber Stewards Network with aid of a grant from the International Development Research Centre, and the space for this workshop has been provided by the Times of India.</span></span></span></p>
<p style="text-align: justify; "><span class="fsl"><br /></span></p>
<p>
For more details visit <a href='https://cis-india.org/internet-governance/events/workshop-on-digital-security-for-journalists'>https://cis-india.org/internet-governance/events/workshop-on-digital-security-for-journalists</a>
</p>
No publisherpraskrishnaDigital SecurityEventInternet Governance2015-01-15T14:07:16ZEventWorkshop on Democratic Accountability in the Digital Age (Delhi, November 14-15)
https://cis-india.org/internet-governance/events/workshop-on-democratic-accountability-in-the-digital-age-delhi-november-14-15
<b>IT for Change, along with Centre for Internet and Society (CIS), Digital Empowerment Foundation (DEF), Mazdoor Kisan Shakti Sangathan (MKSS) and National Campaign for People’s Right to Information (NCPRI), is organising a two day workshop on ‘Democratic Accountability in the Digital Age’. The workshop will focus on evolving a comprehensive policy approach to data based governance and digital democracy, grounded in a rights and social justice framework. It will be held at the United Service Institution of India, Delhi, during November 14-15, 2016. The CIS team to participate in the workshop includes Sumandro Chattapadhyay (speaker), Amber Sinha (speaker), Vanya Rakesh (participant), and Himadri Chatterjee (participant).</b>
<p> </p>
<p>The workshop aims to:</p>
<ul><li>
<p>Discuss the institutional norms, rules and practices appropriate to the rise of ‘governance by networks’ and ‘rule by data’ that can guarantee democratic accountability and citizen participation, and</p>
</li>
<li>
<p>Articulate the steps to claim the civic-public value of digital technologies so that data and the new possibilities for networking are harnessed for a vibrant grassroots democracy.</p>
</li></ul>
<p>We hope the workshop can create a civil society coalition that can build effective strategies for legal and policy reform to further participatory democracy in the digital age. On the first day, the workshop will set the context through knowledge sharing and thematic presentations and discussions. On the second day, we aim to concretize strategies for collective action to further democratic accountability in the digital age.</p>
<hr />
<h4><a href="http://itforchange.net/mavc/wp-content/uploads/2016/11/Workshop-Agenda-Democratic-accountability-in-the-digital-age-14-to-15-Nov-2016-2.pdf">Workshop Agenda</a> (PDF)</h4>
<h4><a href="http://itforchange.net/mavc/wp-content/uploads/2016/10/Background-note-for-workshop-on-Democracy-in-Digital-Age-Sep21.odt">Background Note</a> (ODT)</h4>
<p> </p>
<p>
For more details visit <a href='https://cis-india.org/internet-governance/events/workshop-on-democratic-accountability-in-the-digital-age-delhi-november-14-15'>https://cis-india.org/internet-governance/events/workshop-on-democratic-accountability-in-the-digital-age-delhi-november-14-15</a>
</p>
No publishersumandroDigital IDDigital GovernancePrivacyUIDInternet GovernanceAccountabilityDigital IndiaAadhaarWelfare GovernanceE-GovernanceDigital Rights2016-12-15T09:27:22ZEventWorkshop on Cybersecurity Illustrations
https://cis-india.org/internet-governance/events/workshop-on-cybersecurity-illustrations
<b>The Centre for Internet & Society (CIS) is organizing a workshop to engage with the design community in order to examine, explore, and expand this visual narrative of cybersecurity.</b>
<h2>Concept Note</h2>
<p style="text-align: justify;">The notions around cybersecurity are deeply influenced by the visual associations available on it in the public sphere. The existing imagery on cybersecurity usually consists of stereotypical visual elements such as a silhouette of a man, binary codes, locks, etc. The dark colour palette in these visuals primarily comprising shades of blues and greens adds to the masculine imagery. The conception of the term is limited by these images. The Centre for Internet and Society hence, plans to engage with the design community in order to examine, explore, and expand this visual narrative of cybersecurity. CIS is organising a workshop on the 15th of November, in collaboration with a design collective in order to brainstorm ideas on creating illustrations for cybersecurity that shift the focus from coding to the human aspects.</p>
<p style="text-align: justify;">Presently, the visuals suggest only data breaches when it comes to cybersecurity. Several nuanced concepts such as the implication on more vulnerable populations are not reflected in the images. The illustrations can also present the different stakeholders in the cybersecurity ecosystem. The workshop would be directed at generating more dialogues on cybersecurity through visuals.</p>
<h2 style="text-align: justify;">Agenda</h2>
<ul>
<li>10:00 a.m. to 11:00 a.m.: Introduction and Presentation of the Brief</li></ul>
<ul>
<li>11:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m.: Brainstorming session (ideation and suggestions from participants for keywords)</li></ul>
<ul>
<li>1:30 p.m. to 2:30 p.m.: Lunch</li></ul>
<ul>
<li>2:30 p.m. to 5:30 p.m.: Breakaway session in groups (creation of draft illustrations)</li></ul>
<hr />
<p style="text-align: justify;"><strong><a class="external-link" href="http://cis-india.org/internet-governance/files/workshop-on-cybersecurity-illustrations.pdf">Download the file to read more</a></strong></p>
<p style="text-align: justify;"> </p>
<p style="text-align: justify;">You can find the event report <a href="https://cis-india.org/internet-governance/workshop-on-cyber-security-illustrations" class="internal-link" title="Workshop on Cyber Security Illustrations">here</a>.</p>
<p>
For more details visit <a href='https://cis-india.org/internet-governance/events/workshop-on-cybersecurity-illustrations'>https://cis-india.org/internet-governance/events/workshop-on-cybersecurity-illustrations</a>
</p>
No publisherAdminEventInternet Governance2018-12-10T06:13:50ZEventWorkshop on Cyber-Ethics: Values-driven Innovative Solutions
https://cis-india.org/internet-governance/news/workshop-on-cyber-ethics-values-driven-innovative-solutions
<b>Arindrajit Basu moderated a discussion on Cyber-Ethics at Swiss Nex (Consulate General of Switzerland, Bangalore on 28 June 2019. The event was organized by the Embassy of Switzerland.</b>
<p style="text-align: justify; ">Cyber-space – the virtual reality – influences all countries in the world and all sectors of society. The cyber-world of e-mails, e-commerce, e-government, e-education, e-music, e-prosecutors, artificial intelligence, crypto-currencies are daily reality, with new opportunities. On the other hand, cyber-bullying, cyber-criminality, cyber-security, cyber-war etc. are great challenges.</p>
<p style="text-align: justify; ">Cyber-ethics looks for values-driven innovative solutions to these challenges and opportunities between freedom and privacy, security and peace. Switzerland is a world leader in innovation, India is a world leader in information technologies. How can both countries strengthen ethical, values-driven solutions for the cyber-world? Indian and Swiss Experts present challenges and solutions.</p>
<h3 style="text-align: justify; ">Programme</h3>
<p class="Standard">10.00 Registration & welcome tea n coffee</p>
<p class="Standard">10:30 <b>Welcome remarks</b></p>
<p class="Standard"><b>Mr.Sebastien Hug</b>, CEO, swissnex India and Consul General of Switzerland</p>
<p class="Standard">10:35 <b>Keynote address: Cyber-Ethics between Global Values and Contextual Interests</b></p>
<p class="Standard"><b>Prof. Dr. H.C. Christoph Stückelberger</b>, Founder and President of Globethics.net, Visiting Professor of Ethics in Nigeria, Russia, China</p>
<p class="Standard">11:05 <b>Moderated panel discussion</b></p>
<p class="Standard"><i>Moderator</i>: <b>Arindrajit Basu, </b>Senior Policy Officer, Center for Internet and Society,</p>
<p class="Standard"><i>Panelists</i>:</p>
<p class="Standard"><b>Dr. Pavan Duggal</b>, Founder and President of the International Commission on Cyber Security Law, Advocate at Supreme Court of India</p>
<p class="Standard"><b>Dr Siobhán Martin</b>, Deputy Head, Leadership, Crisis and Conflict Management, Geneva Centre for Security Policy</p>
<p class="Standard"><b>Mr Sameer Chothani</b>, Managing Director - Group Technology, India, UBS</p>
<p class="Standard">12:15 Q&A</p>
<p class="Standard">12:45 Networking lunch</p>
<p>
For more details visit <a href='https://cis-india.org/internet-governance/news/workshop-on-cyber-ethics-values-driven-innovative-solutions'>https://cis-india.org/internet-governance/news/workshop-on-cyber-ethics-values-driven-innovative-solutions</a>
</p>
No publisherAdminCyber SecurityInternet Governance2019-07-06T00:51:20ZNews ItemWorkshop on Center for IT and Society
https://cis-india.org/internet-governance/news/workshop-on-center-for-it-and-society
<b>This workshop was held at IIT, Delhi on December 20, 2016. Amber Sinha attended the workshop. The meeting focused on the curriculum and the way forward, especially with respect to the industry requirements.</b>
<ul style="text-align: justify; ">
<li>Session 1 (11:00 - 13:00*): Quick recap of the earlier workshop. Description and focus area of the center. Feedback about the interdisciplinary program in IT and Social Sciences.</li>
<li>Session 2 (14:00 - 16:00)*: Discussion on industry requirement and absorption criterion.</li>
</ul>
<p>
For more details visit <a href='https://cis-india.org/internet-governance/news/workshop-on-center-for-it-and-society'>https://cis-india.org/internet-governance/news/workshop-on-center-for-it-and-society</a>
</p>
No publisherpraskrishnaInternet Governance2016-12-23T14:05:00ZNews ItemWorkshop on Big Data in India: Benefits, Harms, and Human Rights (Delhi, October 01)
https://cis-india.org/internet-governance/events/big-data-in-india-benefits-harms-and-human-rights-oct-01-2016
<b>CIS welcomes you to participate in the workshop we are organising on Saturday, October 01 at India Habitat Centre, Delhi, to discuss benefits, harms, and human rights implications of big data technologies, and explore potential research questions. A quick RSVP will be much appreciated.</b>
<p> </p>
<h4>Workshop invitation: <a href="http://cis-india.org/internet-governance/files/big-data-in-india-invitatation-to-workshop/at_download/file">Download</a> (PDF)</h4>
<h4>Workshop agenda: <a href="http://cis-india.org/internet-governance/files/big-data-in-india-workshop-agenda/at_download/file">Download</a> (PDF)</h4>
<hr />
<p>In the last few years, there has been an emergence of the discourse of big data viewing it as an instrument not just for ensuring efficient, targeted and personalised services in the private sector, but also for development, social and policy research, and formalising and monetising various sections of the economy. This possibility is premised upon the idea that there is great knowledge that resides in both traditional and new forms of data made possible by our digital selves, and that we may now have the capability to tap into that knowledge for insights across diverse sectors like healthcare, finance, e-governance, education, law enforcement and disaster management, to name but a few. Alongside, various commentators have also pointed to the new problems and risks that big data could create for privacy of individuals through greater profiling, for free speech and economic choice by strengthening monopolistic tendencies, and for socio-economic inequalities by making existing disparities more acute and facilitating algorithmic bias and exclusion.</p>
<p>From a regulatory perspective, big data technologies pose fundamental challenges to the national data regulatory frameworks that have existed since many years. The nature of collection and utilisation of big data, which is often not driven by immediate purpose of the collected data, conflict with the principles of data minimisation and collection limitation that have been integral to data protection laws globally. This compels us to revisit existing theories of data governance. Additionally, use of big data in public decision-making highlights the question of how algorithmic control and governance must be regulated. This raises concerns around taking determining a balanced position that recognises the importance of big data, including for development actions, and ensures unhindered innovation with simultaneous focus on greater transparency and anonymisation to protect individual privacy, and various big data risks faced by population groups. In order to answer these questions, we need to begin with identifying the different harms and benefits of big data that could arise through its use across sectors and disciplines, especially in the context of human rights.</p>
<p>This workshop is designed around an extensive study of current and potential future uses of big data for governance in India that CIS has undertaken over the last year. The study focused on key central government projects and initiatives like the UID project, the Digital India programme, the Smart Cities Challenge, etc.</p>
<p>We will initiate the workshop with a detailed presentation of our findings and key concerns, which will then shape the discussion agenda of the workshop. We look forward to discuss aspects of big data technologies through the entry points of harms, opportunities, and human rights.</p>
<p>The final session of the workshop will focus on identifying key research questions on the topic, and exploring potential alliances of scholars and organisations that can drive such research activities.</p>
<p>We look forward to making this a forum for knowledge exchange for our friends and colleagues attending the discussion and discuss the opportunity to for potential collaboration.</p>
<p><strong>RSVP:</strong> Please send an email to Ajoy Kumar at <<a href="mailto:ajoy@cis-india.org">ajoy@cis-india.org</a>>.</p>
<p><strong>Organisers:</strong> Amber Sinha <<a href="mailto:amber@cis-india.org">amber@cis-india.org</a>> and Sumandro Chattapadhyay <<a href="mailto:sumandro@cis-india.org">sumandro@cis-india.org</a>>.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
For more details visit <a href='https://cis-india.org/internet-governance/events/big-data-in-india-benefits-harms-and-human-rights-oct-01-2016'>https://cis-india.org/internet-governance/events/big-data-in-india-benefits-harms-and-human-rights-oct-01-2016</a>
</p>
No publishervanyaDevelopmentBig DataInternet GovernanceDigital SecurityDigital IndiaDigitisationDigital subjectivitiesBiometricsBig Data for DevelopmentE-GovernanceDigital Rights2016-09-28T05:53:55ZEventWorkshop on 'Urban Data, Inequality and Justice in the Global South'
https://cis-india.org/internet-governance/news/workshop-on-urban-data-inequality-and-justice-in-the-global-south
<b>Aayush Rathi and Ambika Tandon presented our research on video-based surveillance in New Delhi at a workshop on urban data, inequality, and justice in the global South at the University of Manchester on 14 June 2019.</b>
<p style="text-align: justify; ">The agenda for the workshop and the presentations made by CIS can be <a class="external-link" href="https://cis-india.org/raw/unpacking-video-based-surveillance-in-new-delhi-urban-data-justice">accessed here</a>. <span>The research was conducted as part of a grant from the University, as part of a project on justice in data systems within cities. It will bepublished as a working paper by the university in July-August.</span></p>
<p> </p>
<p>
For more details visit <a href='https://cis-india.org/internet-governance/news/workshop-on-urban-data-inequality-and-justice-in-the-global-south'>https://cis-india.org/internet-governance/news/workshop-on-urban-data-inequality-and-justice-in-the-global-south</a>
</p>
No publisherAdminSurveillanceInternet GovernancePrivacy2019-07-06T01:30:16ZNews ItemWorkshop on 'Privacy after Big Data' (Delhi, November 12)
https://cis-india.org/internet-governance/events/privacy-after-big-data-delhi-nov-12-2016
<b>The Centre for Internet and Society (CIS) and the Sarai programme, CSDS, invite you to a workshop on 'Privacy after Big Data: What Changes? What should Change?' on Saturday, November 12. This workshop aims to build a dialogue around some of the key government-led big data initiatives in India and elsewhere that are contributing significant new challenges and concerns to the ongoing debates on the right to privacy. It is an open event. Please register to participate.</b>
<p> </p>
<h4>Invitation note and agenda: <a href="https://github.com/cis-india/website/raw/master/docs/CIS-Sarai_PrivacyAfterBigData_ConceptAgenda.pdf">Download</a> (PDF)</h4>
<hr />
<h3>Venue and RSVP</h3>
<p><strong>Venue:</strong> Centre for the Study of Developing Societies 29, Rajpur Road, Civil Lines, Delhi 110054.</p>
<p><strong>Location on Google Maps:</strong> <a href="https://www.google.com/maps/place/CSDS/@28.677775,77.2162523,17z/">https://www.google.com/maps/place/CSDS/@28.677775,77.2162523,17z/</a>.</p>
<p><strong>Registration:</strong> <a href="https://goo.gl/forms/py0Q0u8rMppu4smE3">Complete this form</a>.</p>
<h3>Concept Note</h3>
<p>In this age of big data, discussions about privacy are intertwined with the use of technology and the data deluge. Though big data possesses enormous value for driving innovation and contributing to productivity and efficiency, privacy concerns have gained significance in the dialogue around regulated use of data and the means by which individual privacy might be compromised through means such as surveillance, or protected. The tremendous opportunities big data creates in varied sectors ranges from financial technology, governance, education, health, welfare schemes, smart cities to name a few.</p>
<p>With the UID (“Aadhaar”) project re-animating the Right to Privacy debate in India, and the financial technology ecosystem growing rapidly, striking a balance between benefits of big data and privacy concerns is a critical policy question that demands public dialogue and research to inform an evidence based decision.</p>
<p>Also, with the advent of potential big data initiatives like the ambitious Smart Cities Mission under the Digital India Scheme, which would rely on harvesting large data sets and the use of analytics in city subsystems to make public utilities and services efficient, the tasks of ensuring data security on one hand and protecting individual privacy on the other become harder.</p>
<p>As key privacy principles are at loggerheads with big data activities, it is important to consider privacy as an embedded component in the processes, systems and projects, rather than being considered as an afterthought. These examples highlight the current state of discourse around data protection and privacy in India and the shapes they are likely to take in near future.</p>
<p>This workshop aims to build a dialogue around some of the key government-led big data initiatives in India and elsewhere that are contributing significant new challenges and concerns to the ongoing debates on the right to privacy.</p>
<h3>Agenda</h3>
<h4>09:00-09:30 Tea and Coffee</h4>
<h4>09:30-10:00 Introduction</h4>
<p><a href="#amber">Mr. Amber Sinha</a> and <a href="#sandeep">Mr. Sandeep Mertia</a><br />
<em>This session will introduce the topic of the workshop in the context of the ongoing works at CIS and Sarai.</em></p>
<h4>10:00-11:00 From Privacy Bill(s) to ‘Habeas Data’</h4>
<p><a href="#usha">Dr. Usha Ramanathan</a> and <a href="#vipul">Mr. Vipul Kharbanda</a><br />
<em>This session will present a brief history of the privacy bill(s) in India and end with reflections on ‘habeas data’ as a lens for thinking and actualising privacy after big data.</em></p>
<h4>11:00-11:30 Tea and Coffee</h4>
<h4>11:30-12:30 Digital ID, Data Protection, and Exclusion</h4>
<p><a href="#amelia">Ms. Amelia Andersdotter</a> and <a href="#srikanth">Mr. Srikanth Lakshmanan</a><br />
<em>This session will discuss national centralised digital ID systems, often operating at a cross-functional scale, and highlight its implications for discussions on data protection, welfare governance, and exclusion from public and private services.</em></p>
<h4>12:30-13:30 Digital Money and Financial Inclusion</h4>
<p><a href="#anupam">Dr. Anupam Saraph</a> and <a href="#astha">Ms. Astha Kapoor</a><br />
<em>This session will focus on the rise of digital banking and online payments as core instruments of financial inclusion in India, especially in the context of the Jan Dhan Yojana and UPI, and reflect on the concerns around privacy and financial data.</em></p>
<h4>13:30-14:30 Lunch</h4>
<h4>14:30-15:30 Big Data and Mass Surveillance</h4>
<p><a href="#anja">Dr. Anja Kovacs</a> and <a href="#matthew">Mr. Matthew Rice</a><br />
<em>This session will reflect on the rise of mass communication surveillance across the world, and the evolving challenges of regulating il/legal surveillance by government agencies.</em></p>
<h4>15:30-16:15 Privacy is (a) Right</h4>
<p><a href="#apar">Mr. Apar Gupta</a> and <a href="#kritika">Ms. Kritika Bhardwaj</a><br />
<em>This brief session is to share initial ideas and strategies for articulating and actualising a constitutional right to privacy in India.</em></p>
<h4>16:15-16:30 Tea and Coffee</h4>
<h4>16:30-17:30 Round Table</h4>
<p><em>An open discussion session to conclude the workshop.</em></p>
<h3>Speakers</h3>
<h4 id="amber">Mr. Amber Sinha</h4>
<p>Amber works on issues surrounding privacy, big data, and cyber security. He is interested in the impact of emerging technologies like artificial intelligence and learning algorithms on existing legal frameworks, and how they need to evolve in response. Amber studied humanities and law at National Law School of India University, Bangalore.</p>
<p>E-mail: amber at cis-india dot org.</p>
<p>Twitter: <a href="https://twitter.com/ambersinha07">@ambersinha07</a>.</p>
<h4 id="amelia">Ms. Amelia Andersdotter</h4>
<p>Amelia Andersdotter has been a Member of the European Parliament. She works on practical implications of data protection laws and consumer information security in Sweden, and digital rights in the Europe in general. Presently she is residing in Bangalore, where she is a visiting scholar with Centre for Internet and Society. She holds a BSc in Mathematics.</p>
<p>URL: <a href="https://dataskydd.net">https://dataskydd.net</a>.</p>
<p>Twitter: <a href="https://twitter.com/teirdes">@teirdes</a>.</p>
<h4 id="anja">Dr. Anja Kovacs</h4>
<p>Dr. Anja Kovacs directs the Internet Democracy Project in Delhi, India, which works for an Internet that supports free speech, democracy and social justice in India and beyond. Anja’s research and advocacy focuses especially on questions regarding freedom of expression, cybersecurity and the architecture of Internet governance. She has been a member of the of the Investment Committee of the Digital Defenders Partnership and of the Steering Committee of Best Bits, a global network of civil society members. She has also worked as an international consultant on Internet issues, including for the Independent Commission on Multilateralism, the United Nations Development Programme Asia Pacific and the UN Special Rapporteur on Freedom of Expression, Mr. Frank La Rue, as well as having been a Fellow at the Centre for Internet and Society in Bangalore, India.</p>
<p>Internet Democracy Project: <a href="https://internetdemocracy.in/">https://internetdemocracy.in</a>.</p>
<p>Twitter: <a href="https://twitter.com/anjakovacs">@anjakovacs</a>.</p>
<h4 id="anupam">Dr. Anupam Saraph</h4>
<p>Anupam Saraph has extensively researched India's UID number that has been widely regarded as the game changer in development programs. It has come to be linked with both public and private databases and become the requirement for access to entitlements, benefits, services and rights. Dr. Saraph, who has the design of at least two identification programs to his credit has researched the UID’s functional creep since its inception.</p>
<p>He has been dissecting the myths of what the UID is or is not. He has also tracked the consequences of its linkages on databases that protect national security, sovereignty, democratic status and the entire banking and money system in India. He has also highlighted the implications of its use for targeted delivery of cash subsidies from the Consolidated Fund of India. He has written and lectured widely about the devastating impact of the UID number on development programs, national security and the governability of India.</p>
<p>As a Professor of Systems, Governance and Decision Sciences, Environmental Systems and Business he mentors students and teaches systems, information systems, environmental systems and sustainable development at universities in Europe, Asia and the Americas. He has worked with the Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, Rijksuniversitiet Groningen, RIVM, University of Edinburgh, Resource Use Institute, Systems Research Institute among others. Dr. Saraph has had the unique distinction of being India’s only person who has held the only office of a City CIO in India, in a PPP arrangement with government, industry and himself. He has also been the first e-governance Advisor to a State government. Dr. Saraph has held CxO and ministerial level positions and serves as an independent director on the boards of Public and Private Sector companies and NGOs. He is also the President of the Nagrik Chetna Manch, an NGO charged with the mission to bring accountability in governance.</p>
<p>Dr. Saraph is also actively engaged in civil society where he participates in several environmental, resource and nature conservation initiatives, has authored draft legislations for river and natural resource conservation, right to good governance and has contributed to governance, election and democratic reforms. Dr. Saraph is a regular columnist in newspapers and writes on issues of governance, future design, technology and education from a systems perspective.</p>
<p>Dr. Saraph is also actively engaged in civil society where he participates in several environmental, resource and nature conservation initiatives, has authored draft legislations for river and natural resource conservation, right to good governance and has contributed to governance, election and democratic reforms. Dr. Saraph is a regular columnist in newspapers and writes on issues of governance, future design, technology and education from a systems perspective.</p>
<p>Dr. Saraph is also actively engaged in civil society where he participates in several environmental, resource and nature conservation initiatives, has authored draft legislations for river and natural resource conservation, right to good governance and has contributed to governance, election and democratic reforms. Dr. Saraph is a regular columnist in newspapers and writes on issues of governance, future design, technology and education from a systems perspective.</p>
<p>As a future designer and recognized as a global expert on complex systems he helps individuals and organisations understand and design the future of their worlds. Together they address the toughest challenges, accomplish missions and achieve business goals. He also supports building capacity to address the challenges of today as well as to build future designs through teams and effective leadership. Since the eighties Dr. Saraph has modeled complex systems of cities, countries, regions and even the planet. His models have been awarded internationally and even placed in 10-year permanent exhibitions.</p>
<p>Dr Saraph works with business and government executives, civil society leaders, politicians, generals, civil servants, police, trade unionists, community activists, United Nations and ASEAN officials, judges, writers, media, architects, designers, technologists, scientists, entrepreneurs, board members and business leaders of small, mid and large single and trans-national companies, religious leaders and artists across a dozen countries and various industry sectors to help them and their organisations succeed in their missions. He advises the World Economic Forum through its Global Agenda Council for Complex Systems and the Club of Rome, Indian National Association as a founder life member.</p>
<p>Dr Saraph holds a PhD in designing sustainable systems from the faculty of Mathematics and Natural Sciences of the Rijksuniversiteit Groningen, the Netherlands.</p>
<p>Website: <a href="http://anupam.saraph.in/">http://anupam.saraph.in</a>.</p>
<p>Twitter: <a href="https://twitter.com/anupamsaraph">@anupamsaraph</a>.</p>
<h4 id="apar">Mr. Apar Gupta</h4>
<p>Apar Gupta practices law in Delhi. He is also one of the co-founders of the Internet Freedom Foundation. His work and writing on public interest issues can be accessed at his personal website <a href="http://www.apargupta.com/">www.apargupta.com</a>.</p>
<p>Twitter: <a href="https://twitter.com/aparatbar">@aparatbar</a>.</p>
<h4 id="astha">Ms. Astha Kapoor</h4>
<p>Astha Kapoor is a public policy strategy consultant working on financial inclusion and digital payments. Currently, she is working with MicroSave. Her tasks involve a focus on government to people (G2P) payments - and her work spans strategy, advisory and evaluation with the DBT Mission, Office of the Chief Economic Advisor, NITI Aayog and ministries pertaining to food, fuel and fertilizer. She recently designed a pilot to digitize uptake of fertilizers in Krishna district, and evaluated the newly introduced coupon system in the Public Distribution System in Bengaluru.</p>
<p>Twitter: <a href="https://twitter.com/kapoorastha">@kapoorastha</a>.</p>
<h4 id="kritika">Ms. Kritika Bhardwaj</h4>
<p>Kritika Bhardwaj works as a Programme Officer at the Centre for Communication Governance (CCG), National Law University, Delhi. Her main areas of research are privacy and data protection. At CCG, she has written about the privacy implications of several contemporary issues such as Aadhaar (India's unique identification project), cloud computing and the right to be forgotten. A lawyer by training, Kritika has a keen interest in information law and human rights law.</p>
<p>Centre for Communication Governance, NLU Delhi: <a href="http://ccgdelhi.org/">http://ccgdelhi.org</a>.</p>
<p>Twitter: <a href="https://twitter.com/Kritika12">@Kritika12</a>.</p>
<h4 id="matthew">Mr. Matthew Rice</h4>
<p>Matthew Rice is an Advocacy Officer at Privacy International working across the organisation engaging with international partners and strengthening their capacity on communications surveillance issues. He has previously worked at Privacy International as a consultant building the Surveillance Industry Index, the largest publicly available database on the private surveillance sector ever assembled. Matthew graduated from University of Aberdeen with an LLB (Hons.) and also has an MA in Human Rights from University College London.</p>
<p>Privacy International: <a href="https://privacyinternational.org/">https://privacyinternational.org</a>.</p>
<p>Twitter: <a href="https://twitter.com/mattr3">@mattr3</a>.</p>
<h4 id="sandeep">Mr. Sandeep Mertia</h4>
<p>Sandeep Mertia is a Research Associate at The Sarai Programme, Centre for the Study of Developing Societies, Delhi. He is an ICT engineer by training with research interests in Science & Technology Studies, Software Studies
and Anthropology. He is conducting an ethnographic study of emerging modes of data-driven knowledge production in the social sector.</p>
<p>Sarai: <a href="http://sarai.net/">http://sarai.net</a>.</p>
<p>Twitter: <a href="https://twitter.com/SandeepMertia">@SandeepMertia</a>.</p>
<p>Academia: <a href="https://daiict.academia.edu/SandeepMertia">https://daiict.academia.edu/SandeepMertia</a>.</p>
<h4 id="srikanth">Mr. Srikanth Lakshmanan</h4>
<p>Srikanth is a software professional with interests in Internet, follower of Internet policy discussions, volunteers for multiple online campaigns related to Internet. He is also fascinated by FOSS, opendata, localization,
Wikipedia, maps, public transit, civic tech and occasionally contributes to them.</p>
<p>Site: <a href="http://www.srik.me/">http://www.srik.me</a>.</p>
<p>Twitter: <a href="https://twitter.com/logic">@logic</a>.</p>
<h4 id="vipul">Mr. Vipul Kharbanda</h4>
<p>Vipul Kharbanda is a consultant with the Center for Internet and Society, Bangalore. After finishing his BA.LLB.(Hons.) from National Law School of India University in Bangalore, he worked for India’s largest corporate law firm for two and a half years in their Mumbai office for two years working primarily on the financing of various infrastructure projects such as Power Plants, Roads, Airports, etc. Since quitting his corporate law job, Vipul has been working as the Associate Editor in a legal publishing house which has been publishing legal books and journals for the last 90 years in India. He has also been involved with the Center for Internet and Society as a Consultant working primarily on issues related to privacy and surveillance.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
For more details visit <a href='https://cis-india.org/internet-governance/events/privacy-after-big-data-delhi-nov-12-2016'>https://cis-india.org/internet-governance/events/privacy-after-big-data-delhi-nov-12-2016</a>
</p>
No publishersumandroData SystemsDigital GovernancePrivacyData RevolutionSurveillanceBig DataDigital IndiaInternet GovernanceBig Data for DevelopmentDigital Rights2016-11-12T10:14:52ZEventWomen's Safety? There is an App for That
https://cis-india.org/internet-governance/blog/gender-it-rohini-lakshane-may-19-2016-womens-safety-there-is-an-app-for-that
<b>“After locking ourselves in a room for more than 6 days, this is what we came out [sic] with. Join us in helping make WOMEN feel SAFE,” read a gloating press release about a smartphone app for women to notify their near ones that they were in distress. It was one among many such PRs frequently landing in my mailbox after the rape and murder of a young student on board a private bus in Delhi in 2012.
</b>
<p style="text-align: justify; ">The article by Rohini Lakshané was <a class="external-link" href="http://www.genderit.org/node/4744/">published in Gender IT.org</a> on May 19, 2016. This was also mirrored by <a class="external-link" href="http://feminisminindia.com/2017/01/09/womens-safety-mobile-apps/">Feminism in India</a> on January 9, 2017.</p>
<hr style="text-align: justify; " />
<p style="text-align: justify; ">The incident had spurred protests across the country and made international headlines. Along with all this came a slew of new “women’s safety” apps. Existing ones, many of which had fizzled out, were conveniently relaunched. My own experience of user-testing such apps in India back then was that they were unreliable at best and dangerously counterproductive at worst. Some of them were endorsed by governments and celebrities and ended up being glorified despite their flaws, their technical and systemic handicaps never acknowledged at all.</p>
<p style="text-align: justify; ">There are myriad mobile phone apps meant to be deployed for personal safety, but their basic functioning is more or less the same: the user activates the app (by pressing a button, shaking the device or similar cue), which sends a distress message containing the users’ location to pre-defined contacts. Some apps include additional artefacts such as a short audio or video recording of the situation. Some others augment this mechanism by alerting the police and other agencies best placed to respond to the emergency. For example, the Companion app for students living on campus notifies the university along with police. The <a href="https://newsroom.uber.com/india/introducing-an-integrated-sos-alert-solution-for-law-enforcement/"><span style="text-decoration: underline;">SOS buttons in taxi-hailing apps such as Uber</span></a> enable the user’s contacts to follow the cab’s GPS trail and notify them and the cab company’s “incident response team” of emergencies. Apps such as Kitestring would treat the lack of the user’s response within a time-window as the trigger for a distress message. All their technical wizardry perhaps makes it easy to lose sight of the fact that technology is not a saviour but a tool or an enabler, that technology alone cannot be the panacea of a problem that is deeply complex and, in reality, rooted in society and governance.</p>
<p style="text-align: justify; ">The Indian government announced last month that every phone sold in the country from January 2017 should be equipped with a <a href="http://www.bbc.com/news/technology-36139985"><span style="text-decoration: underline;">panic button that sends distress flares to the police and a trusted set of contacts</span></a>. Nearly half the phones sold in India <a href="http://www.idc.com/getdoc.jsp?containerId=prSG25827215"><span style="text-decoration: underline;">cost USD 100 or less</span></a>. Prices are kept so low by sacrificing features and the quality of the hardware; there are a lot of phones with substandard GPS modules, poor touchscreens, slow processors, bad cameras, tiny memory, and dismal battery life. They run on different versions of different operating systems, some of them outdated. All of these factors would determine if someone is able to use the app at all and how quickly they and their phone would be able to respond to an emergency. Additionally, mobile phone signals become thin or shaky in areas with a high number of users and buildings located cheek-by-jowl. Even when the mobile hardware is good and the mobile signal usable, GPS accuracy can be spotty and constant location tracking would hog battery. These issues would affect the efficacy of any app. Besides, there is too much uncertainty for an app developer to factor in. (Two years ago, I learnt about an app called Pukar, then operational in collaboration with police departments in four cities in India. Pukar solved the problem of potential inaccuracy of the GPS location by getting the user’s contacts to tell the police where the person in distress might be.) Designing a one-size-fits-all safety app is almost impossible. The app that rings a loud alarm when triggered may save someone’s life or spoil the chances of someone who is trying to get help while hiding. Different people may be vulnerable to different kinds of distress situations and an app can at best be optimised for some target user groups.</p>
<blockquote style="text-align: justify; ">
<p>An app that does not work in tandem with existing machinery for law enforcement and public safety is a bad idea.</p>
</blockquote>
<p style="text-align: justify; ">In the end, the “technical” problems may actually be problems of economic disparity. Making it mandatory for people to own phones equipped with certain hardware or requiring them to upgrade to more reliable devices would drive the phones out of the financial reach of many. Indian manufacturers have expressed concerns that the proposed <a href="http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/tech/tech-news/Panic-button-GPS-feasible-within-the-deadline-but-will-raise-costs/articleshow/51998103.cms"><span style="text-decoration: underline;">panic button would raise costs for them as well the end buyers</span></a>. Popularising a downloadable app and informing its target users how to install and work it correctly needs a marketing blitzkrieg, which is something only the state or well-funded developers can afford. The New Delhi police department runs a dedicated control room for reports arriving from its safety app, Himmat (the word for courage in many Indian languages). It’s an expensive affair.</p>
<p style="text-align: justify; ">An app that does not work in tandem with existing machinery for law enforcement and public safety is a bad idea. It puts the onus of “keeping women safe” on members of their social circles or on intermediaries and private parties such as cab companies, while absolving law enforcement agencies of their failing to provide security. It opens doors to victim blaming in case someone is unable to use the app at the right time in the right way, or if the app fails.</p>
<p style="text-align: justify; ">On the contrary, an app that does loop in the police raises concerns about surveillance and protection of data available to the police, which is especially problematic in places such as India where there is no law for privacy or data protection. Alwar, one of the cities where Pukar was implemented, is super-populated with a large geographical area and a high crime rate. Police departments in such places tend to be overworked and understaffed. Without significant policing reforms, it is questionable whether they will be able to respond in time. A sting operation done by two media outlets on 30 senior officials of the New Delhi police department in 2012 showed the <a href="http://www.ndtv.com/india-news/in-and-around-delhi-cops-blame-rapes-on-women-tehelka-investigation-with-ndtv-475442"><span style="text-decoration: underline;">cops blaming victims of sexual violence with gay abandon</span></a>. “If girls don't stay within their boundaries, if they don't wear appropriate clothes, then naturally there is attraction. This attraction makes men aggressive, prompting them to just do it [sexual assault]," reads one of their nuggets. “It's never easy for the victim [to complain to the police]. Everyone is scared of humiliation. Everyone's wary of media and society. In reality, the ones who complain are only those who have turned rape into a business," goes another. An app that lets known people monitor someone’s location also poses the risk of abuse, coercion and surveillance by intimate partners or members of the family.</p>
<p style="text-align: justify; ">Unfortunately, there is no app for reforming a morass in law enforcement or dismantling patriarchy.</p>
<p>
For more details visit <a href='https://cis-india.org/internet-governance/blog/gender-it-rohini-lakshane-may-19-2016-womens-safety-there-is-an-app-for-that'>https://cis-india.org/internet-governance/blog/gender-it-rohini-lakshane-may-19-2016-womens-safety-there-is-an-app-for-that</a>
</p>
No publisherrohiniGenderInternet Governance2017-01-10T02:48:34ZBlog EntryWomen on Covid lists get lewd calls and messages
https://cis-india.org/internet-governance/news/deccan-herald-may-21-2021-krupa-joseph-women-on-covid-lists-get-lewd-calls-and-messages
<b>Perverts are eating into precious time in the middle of a pandemic and adding to the overall anxiety.</b>
<p><span>Women are getting lewd calls and messages when they share their phone numbers to seek and offer pandemic-related help.</span></p>
<p style="text-align: justify; ">On April 15, Shasvathi Siva tweeted about how her number, shared on blood donation and social media groups, received obscene photos and video calls from strangers.</p>
<p>When she spoke about the harassment on Instagram, she ended up receiving more abuse from men.</p>
<p>With the second wave of the pandemic raging, many patients and families are turning to social media to search for medicines, oxygen, and even hospital beds.</p>
<p style="text-align: justify; ">Ambika Tandon, senior researcher, Centre for Internet and Society, says, “There are many stories of how prominent and outspoken women like journalists and activists have received hate speech and messages threatening violence.” What is shocking, she says, is not the harassment, but that it is not stopping even during a medical emergency.</p>
<hr />
<p><a class="external-link" href="https://www.deccanherald.com/metrolife/metrolife-your-bond-with-bengaluru/women-on-covid-lists-get-lewd-calls-and-messages-988523.html"> Click to read</a> the complete coverage in Deccan Herald on May 21, 2022.</p>
<p>
For more details visit <a href='https://cis-india.org/internet-governance/news/deccan-herald-may-21-2021-krupa-joseph-women-on-covid-lists-get-lewd-calls-and-messages'>https://cis-india.org/internet-governance/news/deccan-herald-may-21-2021-krupa-joseph-women-on-covid-lists-get-lewd-calls-and-messages</a>
</p>
No publisherpraskrishnaGenderInternet Governance2021-05-24T06:35:20ZNews ItemWomen in the IT Industry: Request for Data
https://cis-india.org/internet-governance/blog/women-in-the-it-industry
<b>For CIS's research on indicators of female economic empowerment in the IT industry in India, we have sent formal request for participation in a short survey to the six largest IT companies based in India. A copy of the letter of request and survey as well as some details of the request for data can be found in this post. </b>
<hr />
<p style="text-align: justify; ">Click to see the <a href="https://cis-india.org/internet-governance/blog/letter-of-survey.pdf" class="internal-link">Letter of Survey Request</a> and the <a href="https://cis-india.org/internet-governance/blog/income-bracket.pdf" class="internal-link">Income Bracket Form</a></p>
<hr />
<p style="text-align: justify; ">As introduced in an earlier <a href="https://cis-india.org/internet-governance/blog/women-in-indias-it-industry" class="internal-link"><b>blog</b></a>, CIS has begun a short research project on female employees in the IT industry in India. This project aims to gather quantitative and qualitative data on women employed by the six largest Indian software companies in order to generate insight into whether or not these employers foster workplaces that are conducive to female economic empowerment. We have decided to gather some very basic quantitative data for this project by directly asking each of these companies to provide some information on data points that we deemed important indicators of women-friendly workplaces. This request has been carried out via post and, when possible, electronic mail.</p>
<p style="text-align: justify; ">In this letter of request, we have asked each of the companies to provide information on the number of women they employ, how much paid leave employees are allocated per month and per year, whether or not they have any complaints committees in place as per the Vishaka guidelines, and whether or not they offer any support for childcare or childcare services on their worksites.</p>
<p style="text-align: justify; ">Further, we also requested that they complete a form listing ascending monthly incomes (from below Rs. 19,999 to above Rs. 1.5 crore) by filling in how many female and male employees they employ in each income bracket. A copy of the letter and the form are attached to this blog post.</p>
<p style="text-align: justify; ">Each of these letters was addressed to the Chief Human Resources Officer (or equivalent title) at the corporate headquarters, and mailed as Registered Post, Acknowledgement Due on February the 19<sup>th</sup>, 2013. We plan to send two more copies of this letter on the same date for the next two months.</p>
<p style="text-align: justify; ">The contacts and addresses that these letters were sent to are listed below. All of this information was gathered from publicly available sources.</p>
<p><b>Tech Mahindra Ltd.:</b><br />Contact:<br />Sujitha Karnad - Senior Vice President: HR & QMG for IT Services<br />Address:<b><br />Tech Mahindra Limited, </b>Department of Human Resources<br />Sharda Centre, Off Karve Road,<br /> Pune 411004, Maharashtra<br /> India</p>
<p><b>Mahindra Satyam:</b><br />Contact:<br />Hari Thalapalli - Chief Marketing Officer and Chief People Officer<br />Address:<b><br />Satyam Computer Services Limited</b>, Department of Human Resources<br />Mahindra Satyam Technology Center<br /> Survey No.62/1A, Qutubullapaur Mandal<br /> Bahadurpally Village, RR Dist<br /> Hyderabad 500043</p>
<p><b>HCL Technologies Ltd.:</b><br />Contact:<br />Prithvi Shergill - Chief Human Resources Officer<br />Address:<br />HCL Technologies Limited, Department of Human Resources<br />A-104, Sector 58, Noida<br />Uttar Pradesh, 201 303<br />India</p>
<p><b>Tata Consultancy Services Ltd.:</b><br />Contact:<br />Ajoyendra Mukherjee - Executive Vice President & Head, Global Human Resources<br />Address:<br />Tata Consultancy Services, Department of Human Resources<br />TCS House,<br />Raveline street,<br />Fort, Mumbai, 400 001<br />India</p>
<p><b>Infosys Ltd.:</b><br />Contact:<br />Nandita Gurjar - Group Head of Human Resources<br />Address:<br />Infosys Limited, Department of Human Resources<br />Electronics City, Hosur Road<br />Bangalore, 560 100<br />India</p>
<p><b>Wipro Ltd.:</b><br />Contact:<br />Pratik Kumar - Executive Vice President, Human Resources<br />Address:<br />Wipro Limited, Department of Human Resources<br />Doddakannelli<br /> Sarjapur Road<br /> Bangalore, 560 035<br /> India</p>
<p style="text-align: justify; ">Further, emails were sent out and calls were made to the media contacts of each company requesting the contact information (email addresses in particular) of any relevant HR personnel and/or any individuals that may be able to provide us with the requested information. From the information gathered in this exercise, various Human Resources staff members from Wipro, HCL Technologies and TCS received the appeal to provide the requested information via email on the 11<sup>th</sup> of February.</p>
<p style="text-align: justify; ">We have not yet received any replies to either the email or post requests for information.</p>
<p>
For more details visit <a href='https://cis-india.org/internet-governance/blog/women-in-the-it-industry'>https://cis-india.org/internet-governance/blog/women-in-the-it-industry</a>
</p>
No publisherjdineInternet Governance2013-03-06T10:52:00ZBlog EntryWomen in love with Facebook
https://cis-india.org/news/women-love-facebook
<b>There’s one thing these days that determines the passion of the modern Indian woman: their ever-growing love affair with the internet. The article by L Subramani was published in the Deccan Herald on May 27, 2011.</b>
<p>The sight of women updating their Facebook status, tweeting or checking their emails on the move makes it apparently clear that women, more than men, take to internet and in particular to social networking.</p>
<p>Global researches have lent credence to the phenomena that women are either obsessed or even addicted to Facebook and other social networking sites, suggesting that a third of women aged 18 to 34 check their Facebook pages when they wake up in the morning before even going to the toilet, while 21 per cent of those in the same age group check the social networking site before going to bed.</p>
<p>Alarmingly, the same study, by UK-based Oxygen Media and Lightspeed Research-also suggest that 42 per cent from the same age group have no problems posting pictures of them drunk on Facebook.</p>
<p>"I’ve been on Facebook for about a year and a half,” admitted 26-year-old Kate who doesn’t like to tell her real name. “It has sort of become a regular thing. Apart from attending meetings or on important work, I quite naturally check the posts others have made and regularly update my status on FB."</p>
<h3>Personal space</h3>
<p>She denies that Facebook has gradually crawled into her personal life or could have even contributed to her remaining single. "It’s ridiculous (to say that FB has an impact on my life). I think it’s the best way to catch up with friends and family."</p>
<p>Smartphones with Facebook apps and growing usage of the internet on mobile phones have also opened up the possibility of logging on to social networking sites often and on the move and quite naturally, tech savvy urban women are taken into it, according to cyber researchers.</p>
<p>A cursory glance at many of the dating sites also suggest that women of all ages use the relative anonymity to reach out to new friends or to talk their minds out. Surprisingly, a few of them are also from small towns and places not on the radar for prolific internet usage.</p>
<p>A recent study by Google to understand the profiles of people using various internet browsers suggested that nearly 36 per cent of Indian women are using Chrome — Google’s own browser — for its seemingly faster performance that would make updating Facebook status or accessing videos and photos much easier.</p>
<p>"Women mostly use the internet for accessing entertainment and would like it to be fast,” Nikhil Rungta, country marketing head, Google India said. “It became clear that most of them use Chrome either for social networking or accessing multimedia or entertainment content."</p>
<blockquote>However, Nishant Shah, a researcher on cyber behaviour and director of research at Bangalore-based Centre for Internet and Research, is sceptical about the numbers. "There aren’t any specific studies to suggest that Indian women are on social networking more than men," he said.<br /></blockquote>
<blockquote>"This doesn’t look possible when researches have shown that men outnumber women in overall internet usage. It may even be possible that many men are posing as women in social networking sites."</blockquote>
<p>Bangalore-based writer and social commentator Vaasanthi feels that social networking provides the space women always look for. “It may be called ‘Facebook’, but you aren’t talking to a real face. This gives the freedom and the courage for women to freely express themselves,” she said.</p>
<p>"Given that most women today come from nuclear families, they actually don’t have that many people to talk to in real world. The virtual world provides them what they can’t get in real world."</p>
<p>She also said there is no need to feel alarmed about the Facebook phenomenon. "Facebook or social networking phenomenon is a new change and any change would initially cause concerns. But surely this would fade away," she said.</p>
<p>Read the original <a class="external-link" href="http://www.deccanherald.com/content/143962/women-love-facebook.html">here</a></p>
<p>
For more details visit <a href='https://cis-india.org/news/women-love-facebook'>https://cis-india.org/news/women-love-facebook</a>
</p>
No publisherpraskrishnaInternet Governance2011-05-27T11:35:51ZNews ItemWomen Arrested in Mumbai for Complaining on Facebook
https://cis-india.org/news/india-blogs-nytimes-nov-19-2012-neha-thirani-hari-kumar-women-arrested-in-mumbai-for-complaining-on-facebook
<b>For over 30 hours following the death of the Shiv Sena leader Bal Thackeray on Saturday, stores throughout Mumbai closed their shutters and taxis and autorickshaws stayed off the streets.</b>
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<p style="text-align: justify; ">This article by Neha Thirani and Hari Kumar was <a class="external-link" href="http://india.blogs.nytimes.com/2012/11/19/women-arrested-in-mumbai-for-complaining-on-facebook/">published in New York Times</a> on November 19, 2012. Pranesh Prakash is quoted.</p>
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<p style="text-align: justify; ">While analysts throughout Mumbai debated whether the citywide shutdown following the death of Mr. Thackeray was inspired by fear or respect, one 21-year-old woman and her friend were arrested for raising a similar question.</p>
<p style="text-align: justify; ">On Sunday, the police in Palghar, in Thane district, on the outskirts of Mumbai, arrested Shaheen Dhadha after she posted a status update on Facebook that questioned the shutdown, also known as a bandh. A local daily, the Mumbai Mirror, <a href="http://www.mumbaimirror.com/article/2/2012111920121119043152921e12f57e1/In-Palghar-cops-book-21yearold-for-FB-post.html" target="_blank">reported</a> that Ms. Dhadha, 21, had written, "People like Thackeray are born and die daily and one should not observe a bandh for that." The police also arrested her friend who "liked" the post, whom NDTV <a href="http://www.ndtv.com/article/world/two-women-arrested-for-facebook-post-on-mumbai-shutdown-294239" target="_blank">identified </a>by her first name, Renu.</p>
<p style="text-align: justify; ">The women were arrested under Section 505 of the Indian Penal Code for “statements creating or promoting enmity, hatred or ill will between classes.” Srikant Pingle, station house in charge of the Palghar police, told India Ink that the local Shiv Sena chief, whom he identified as “Mr. Bhushan,” filed the complaint against Ms. Dhadha because her comment on Facebook hurt Shiv Sena’s sentiments. Mr. Pingle declined to comment further on the details of the arrests.</p>
<p style="text-align: justify; ">Sudhir Gupta, the defense counsel for the two women, told NDTV, “Their posts don’t incite violence. It can’t be said they have made any derogatory remarks. They don’t belong to any political ideology.”</p>
<p style="text-align: justify; ">In a phone conversation with India Ink, a police officer of the Palghar station, who identified himself only as Gavali, said that the arrest took place on Sunday night and that the pair had been taken to court on Monday.</p>
<p style="text-align: justify; ">The two women, who were sentenced to 14 days in jail by the court, received bail after a bond of 15,000 rupees ($270) was paid, <a href="http://www.ndtv.com/article/world/two-women-arrested-for-facebook-post-on-mumbai-shutdown-294239" target="_blank">reported NDTV</a>.</p>
<p style="text-align: justify; ">The Times of India <a href="http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/21-year-old-girl-arrested-for-Facebook-post-slamming-Bal-Thackeray/articleshow/17276979.cms" target="_blank">reported</a> that a mob of 2,000 Shiv Sena workers vandalized her uncle’s orthopedic clinic in Palghar. Repeated calls made to the Dhada orthopedic hospital in Thane went unanswered, while Harshal Pradhan, a Shiv Sena spokesman, said that he was unaware of the incident.</p>
<p style="text-align: justify; ">A police officer at the Palghar Police Station, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said that no one has been arrested in the attack on the clinic.</p>
<p style="text-align: justify; ">Pranesh Prakash, program manager with the Center for Internet and Society, said the arrests of the two women were a violation of free speech and the misapplication of the law. “There were thousands of people on Facebook, Twitter and in person who were saying the exact same kinds of things that this girl is alleged to have said,” said Mr. Prakash. “And the fact that only she and one other person who liked that comment have been arrested shows a clear arbitrariness in the application of the law.”</p>
<p style="text-align: justify; ">In <a href="http://justicekatju.blogspot.in/2012/11/a-letter-to-maharashtra-cm.html?m=1" target="_blank">an open letter</a> addressed to the chief minister of Maharashtra, the former Supreme Court Judge Markandey Katju defended the two women, saying, “To my mind it is absurd to say that protesting against a bandh hurts religious sentiments.” He further said that the arrest appears to be a criminal act as it is a crime to wrongfully arrest or wrongfully confine someone who has committed no crime.</p>
<p style="text-align: justify; ">On social networking sites, people came out in support of Ms. Dhadha and her friend. The Facebook group “<a href="http://www.facebook.com/pages/BAN-Shiv-Sena/296699900777?fref=ts" target="_blank">Ban Shiv Sena</a>” had about 36,400 "likes" as of Monday afternoon, while <a href="http://www.facebook.com/shivsena.official?fref=ts" target="_blank">the party’s official Facebook page</a> had just under 2,700. On Twitter, several commenters expressed solidarity with the two women, including <a href="https://twitter.com/milinddeora" target="_blank">Milind Deora</a>, the government minister of state, communications and information technology, who <a href="https://twitter.com/milinddeora/status/270431926022701057" target="_blank">said</a>, "To learn who rules over you, simply find out who you are not allowed to criticize ~ Voltaire."</p>
<p style="text-align: justify; ">In Maharashtra, Shiv Sena has a history of banning books, movies and other popular culture that are critical of the political party. In 2010, Rohinton Mistry’s book, "Such a Long Journey," was <a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2010/oct/19/mumbai-university-removes-mistry-book" target="_blank">withdrawn from the syllabus</a> of Mumbai University after Shiv Sena officials complained that the book insulted Bal Thackeray. Ironically, in <a href="http://www.ndtv.com/video/player/walk-the-talk/walk-the-talk-with-bal-thackeray-aired-on-january-28-2007/253252" target="_blank">a January 2007 interview</a> with Shekhar Gupta, the editor in chief of The Indian Express, Mr. Thackeray said that what differentiated him from the mafia is that journalists and others were free to disagree with him and criticize him.</p>
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For more details visit <a href='https://cis-india.org/news/india-blogs-nytimes-nov-19-2012-neha-thirani-hari-kumar-women-arrested-in-mumbai-for-complaining-on-facebook'>https://cis-india.org/news/india-blogs-nytimes-nov-19-2012-neha-thirani-hari-kumar-women-arrested-in-mumbai-for-complaining-on-facebook</a>
</p>
No publisherpraskrishnaSocial mediaFreedom of Speech and ExpressionPublic AccountabilityInternet GovernanceCensorship2012-11-21T11:32:04ZNews Item Women arrested for Facebook post: Did cops act under Sena pressure?
https://cis-india.org/news/ndtv-video-ndtv-special-ndtv-24x7
<b>After Bal Thackeray's death, during the Mumbai Bandh, a 21-year-old criticised the shutdown on her Facebook page — her friend approved of it — next thing they know, they are facing a case, and this morning they were arrested. </b>
<p style="text-align: justify; ">YP Singh, Alyque Padamsee, Rohan Joshi, Karuna Nundy and Pranesh Prakash took part in a discussion about the arrest of two girls over a Facebook comment. The discussion was aired in NDTV on November 19, 2012.</p>
<p style="text-align: justify; ">The anchor asked Pranesh Prakash:</p>
<p style="text-align: justify; ">Who are these people scrolling through people's Facebook posts and Twitter accounts, finding these comments and taking action?</p>
<p style="text-align: justify; ">Pranesh Prakash said that it could be anyone. The reality is doesn't really matter because the laws are written in such a way that if it is public and stuff that is on Facebook for different purposes can either be public or private, if it is public these laws can very often apply and that is a problem. We haven't quite figured out to what extent these laws apply. The IT Act section 66A for instance, is unconstitutional, section 295 A which has been applied, and section 505 which also seems to have been applied in this case make it a clear case of misappropriation of those provisions. These kind of arrests will happen. It doesn't quite matter if we have right laws at one level and it clearly doesn't help if we have bad laws. What we need to do at least in part to remedy the situation is to amend the IT Act to make it consonant and consistent with civil and political rights and to do so in multi-stakeholder fashion involving civil society, industry and government. Right now it doesn't protect privacy and freedom of speech as much as it should.</p>
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<p style="text-align: justify; "><a class="external-link" href="http://www.ndtv.com/video/player/ndtv-special-ndtv-24x7/women-arrested-for-facebook-post-did-cops-act-under-sena-pressure/255407?hp&video-featured">Watch the full video aired on NDTV</a></p>
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For more details visit <a href='https://cis-india.org/news/ndtv-video-ndtv-special-ndtv-24x7'>https://cis-india.org/news/ndtv-video-ndtv-special-ndtv-24x7</a>
</p>
No publisherpraskrishnaIT ActFreedom of Speech and ExpressionInternet GovernanceVideoCensorship2012-11-21T11:17:37ZNews Item