Vol. II, Issue 11

Vol. II, Issue 11

Date: December 03, 2021
By

The month began with an aggressive social media campaign from China threatening military action in the Tawang sector, with fake videos and photos of People's Liberation Army (PLA) troops. While India has seen a 261 percent increase in Chinese-backed cyber-attacks, Chinese State Media blamed India for several attacks targeting government and military enterprises in China, Pakistan, and Nepal.

The National Cyber Security Coordinator is steering a project called Indian Citizens Assistance for Mobile Privacy & Security (I-CAMPS), in a public-private collaboration, to identify privacy and security issues in mobile phones. The ‘Personal Data Protection Bill 2019’ and the ‘Cryptocurrency and Regulation of Official Digital Currency Bill, 2021’ are slated to be tabled during the Winter session of Parliament. With the ongoing trials and impending rollout of 5G, Indian innovators are also exploring 6G technology. India will adopt IPV6 internet address which will facilitate 5G technology-backed adoption of Internet of Things (IoT).

Several measures are being taken by the US and Europe aimed at criminal gangs and crypto currency exchanges which have been behind ransomware attacks that have crippled critical infrastructure and businesses. Separately, a joint Cybersecurity Advisory was issued by the US, Australia and UK highlighting “ongoing malicious cyber activity by an advanced persistent threat (APT) associated with the government of Iran”.  Taiwan's defence ministry warned that Chinese hackers had infiltrated at least 10 Taiwan government agencies and gained access to around 6,000 email accounts in an attempt to steal data.

The U.S. President signed the ‘’Secure Equipment Act 2021” during the month to ban Chinese tech companies on US networks, while the Australian PM announced a Bill to make social-media companies liable for defamatory comments published on their platforms. China’s Personal Information Protection Law (PIPL), regulating transfer of data outside China’s borders, took effect from November 1.

The first meeting of the India-UK Joint Working Group on Cyber Deterrence was held in virtual mode to step up bilateral cooperation for building effective cyber deterrence strategies.
UNESCO has unanimously adopted comprehensive recommendations to provide Artificial Intelligence (AI) with a strong ethical basis, which are intended to protect and promote human rights and contribute to the achievement of the sustainable development goals.