How Safe Are We In This Digital India?
Updated: Jul 29, 2020
|By- Komal Yadav|
Countries like the US, UK and Singapore have single umbrella organisation dealing with cyber security unlike India where 36 different central bodies exist, each state government has its own Indian Computer Emergency Response Team (CERT) to deal with. China and Singapore have advanced towards creating cyber defend networks while we are still thriving for an up gradation. In a report, 60-70% are unaware of such crimes in India and nobody seems to give a damn about the issue with the ongoing digital pave that we have certainly underway. Whether be it the breaking news of Facebook leaking the data or the recent news of China attempting 40,300 cyber-attacks on India's IT sectors and banking sectors, nothing is close to clear from keeping their data safe and sound. Even the government is driving the Digital India campaign without safeguarding us by the cybercrooks. So what are we supposed to do?
In every 10 minutes, one case of cybercrime is witnessed in India yet every conviction in such cases continues to below. Mostly 60% of youngsters are prone to be perpetrators more than being a victim, according to the National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB). It’s the main reason why youth should worry! As the IoT (Internet of Things) evolves and smart devices going popular cybercriminals are benefiting in a much broader style. As the saying goes there’s more than one way to skin a cat, similarly, there’s a variety of ways to make money as a cybercriminal. Experts estimate that the cybercrime damages will reach $6 trillion annually by 2021.
Thanks to TV’s and movies that have cultivated an image of cybercriminal or hackers which are typically seen hidden behind a dark hoodie. Merely a sketchy guy camped out in a dark basement typing so furiously. But the real picture is far from the reality. In today’s juncture, even a class 6th student knows how to hack a Wi-Fi password through Google Baba and every such offender claims to be an ethical hacker whereas there is nothing called as Ethical Hacker as per the law-abiding in the country.
Under section 84, of IT Act, the law of India penalizes a hacker unless he is employed by the government. Anyone who gains unauthorised access to a computer resource would be found guilty or liable, in the context of unauthorised access, as a crime! However, “ETHICAL HACKER” does not find a reference in the constitution putting the spotlight on grey areas of law as its need of the hour. In short, even an attempt to offence is a crime.
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Cybercrime, also called computer crime, is the use of the computer as an instrument to further illegal ends. There are myriad different cybercrimes such as malware, identify theft (phishing, pharming, keylogging, sniffing) cyberbullying, cryptojacking (hackers break into your device & mint cryptocurrency without your consent), cyber extortion (digital version of a nightmare like ransomware), cyberespionage, etc. It is ideally organized and professionalised at its best keeping. It has emerged as a big threat. Moreover, during this corona time, it has escalated the insecurity of ballooning cybersecurity challenges.
In India, highly devoted cybercrimes are related to social media and Bank thefts. Today’s competition has become to win more followers by any means irrespective of what it could cost to them. From sharing personal images in WhatsApp or to posting every single time spent of their lives, everything is on their tip to go. Unfortunately, nobody knows the punishment of what they are liable for…for instance, if you’re posting/publishing/sharing any obscene content online you are punishable for 3 years or 5 lakh rupees and if the content is sexual explicit it goes to 5 years behind the bars or 10 lakh rupees. When we talk about financial institutions, in 2016, banks had reportedly announced a leak of evidence of 3.2 million debit cards. In 2018, Cosmos Bank, Pune based, lost Rs. 94 crores in a malware attack and the list goes on. People are hardly conscious of fraud phone calls made with the intention of making them lose their hard-earned penny. Interestingly, more than 50% of cyber crime in India are traced to Jamtara in Jharkhand.
The question occurs can we take some steps to safeguard ourselves rather than just relying on administration. The answer is yes! Here are some common basic tips that can be carried out to defend the cyber attack.
1. Scatter the word. Awareness is the key. If you’re account or data have been hacked don’t keep it to yourself. In case of the bank frauds, the first step is to block your card by informing your banking officials and next to lodge an online/ offline complaint to the local cop which will further take it to the cyber cell. Most of the victims go to the cop first which take a long time to tackle the situation instead of firstly blocking the card turning out to be enough time for the fraudsters to make your account Nil and explore more!
2. Change your settings. Don’t download anything from unknown sources. Don’t allow permissions to the app unless trusted. Always apply Auto-update for the software’s as they fix security vulnerabilities.
3. Do not click on links randomly that are unsecured. (Check for the lock sign as it indicates the website is legitimate)
4. Be wary of emails with any attachments or sceptical links that you didn’t expect.
5. Make sure you’re on a legitimate website before entering any personal info. Moreover, I feel it would be better if you don’t save your personal details on any website unless necessary.
6. Don’t use unencrypted public Wi-Fi without a VPN. Many of us do just to get access for even a minute during shops, airports, coffee, etc. & that one minute could cost you at a major risk.
7. Never ever reuse the same passwords across multiple accounts. Always have a strong & unique password.
8. Make the practice of 2-factor authentication whenever possible. For e.g., have you ever thought of the importance of the CVV no.? A CVV no is the acronym for Card Verification Value which is the 3 digit code on the backside of your card on the magnetic strip. It is the first step to complete transactions using debit/credit cards along with OTP (One Time Password) which is the second step providing added security. As per the Per Payment Card Industry Data Security Standard, no portals or virtual payment gateways can save your CVV no. Of cardholder. Consequently, even if the vendor has all the other data of your card they cannot access the CVV making it impossible to use your credit card.
9. Boost your router security to safe your home network.
10. Lastly, it would be better if you log out/ sign out after your visits in any social media platforms as it creates a chance of your data being hacked.
An incident took place wherein the Kerala Hackers group took an expedition in highlighting the issue of “how is the government cybersecurity vulnerable” by hacking the data of 80,000 Covid-19 patients through the Delhi state health Mission website.
They claimed it took lesser than 10 minutes to access their servers which clearly shows how easy it was to tackle and gain personal information without struggling any kind of heavy security interventions. It’s that easy to procure a personal data here when countries other than India have already taken a step ahead in upgradation of their cybersecurity cell. India shouldn’t wait for an attack to update its infrastructure.
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I want people to be mindful of cyber laws in their country. Establishment of empowered cybersecurity society wherein youths are trained in ADR format (Attack, Defence, Response). Be a part of government-driven digital security campaigns and spread wisdom. Educational pillars to catch up the pace with IoT, digital and cyberspace, train them from the core by making headway as a subject in their curriculum. Thus, to see a trusted digital world will have to have ZERO tolerance towards Cybercrime and that is only viable when the laws are enforced stringent simultaneously we taking care of it too.
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