Cyber threats to grow as citizen services and data go online, but MHA prepared: Amit Shah | India News

NEW DELHI: While acknowledging that cyber crimes such as malware and phishing attacks, targeted hits on critical infrastructure, data thefts, online frauds and child pornography, etc may increase as 40 crore users are added by 2025 to the existing base of 80 crore Indians with online presence, home minister Amit Shah on Monday assured that ministry of home affairs (MHA) is fully vigilant and strengthening its cyber prevention and security infrastructure to prevent, contain and counter these challenges.
Addressing the National Conference on Cyber Safety and National Security, organised by MHA to create mass awareness about prevention of cyber crimes as India celebrates 75 year of its Independence, Shah underlined the link between cyber security and national security. “Those who do not want to see our country safe, also attempt various types of cyber-attacks. Some nations have even created a cyber-armies,” he stated without taking any names. He assured that the government is fully alert to various cyber threats and is upgrading its systems which operate under the umbrella of Indian Cyber Crime Coordination Centre (I4C) that falls within purview of MHA’s cyber and information security (CIS) division. CIS divsion was created by the Narendra Modi government in 2017.
The components of I4C comprise the National Cyber Crime Reporting Portal, National Cyber Threat Analytics Unit, National Cyber Crime Forensic Laboratory, Joint Cyber Crime Coordination Team, National Cyber Crime Training Centre, National Cyber Crime Research and Innovation Centre and National Cyber Crime Eco-system and Management Unit.
Shah said there was a need to be more careful in the context of critical information security, as it involves the privacy of citizens. “Both data and information are going to become a huge economic force in the coming days, so we have to prepare ourselves for the security of data and information,” he said while claiming that India would have the most secure cyber atmosphere in the world when it celebrates 100 year of its Independence.
Pointing to growing reportage of cybercrimes over the years, Shah said that from 3,377 cyber crimes reported in 2012, the figure had reached 50,000 in 2020. He said in the three years since the launch of national cybercrime reporting portal, 11 lakh crimes have been reported with over 2 lakh complaints related to social media crimes. “This volume is going to increase day by day. There has been a 231% increase in internet connections in the last 8 years and data cost per GB has come down by 96% and is expected to fall further,” he noted.
Shah, while pointing to various citizen-centric initiatives of the Narendra Modi government such as DBT transfers, said it is not possible to imagine India’s development and carry on with the digital revolution without cyber safety.
“Today 130 crore Indians get the benefit from the government directly in their bank accounts through DBT. 45 crore new accounts have been opened under the Pradhan Mantri Jan Dhan Yojana alone and 32 crore RuPay debit cards have been distributed in last 8 years. Transactions on UPI have crossed US 1 trillion dollars in FY 2022. UPI and BHIM apps have been accepted in Singapore, the UAE, Bhutan, Nepal and now also in France.
He added that BharatNet is also developing very fast, with 5.75 lakh km of optic fiber laid and the number of connected villages up from 10,000 to 1.80 lakh over the last 8 years. “We should be aware of how big the challenge is going to be before all of us. But the Ministry of Home Affairs, Government of India is also fully aware about prevention of cyber fraud in a very vigilant way and is moving fast,” said the home minister.