Vol. III, Issue 6

India’s cyberspace was targeted by hackers based in Malaysia, Yemen, Pakistan and other countries, accompanied by a sustained disinformation campaign on social media, following derogatory remarks against Prophet Mohammad made by certain BJP functionaries. Instances of violation of the Intermediary Guidelines and Digital Media Ethics Code (IT Rules, 2021) by Twitter and other platforms, on content take-down notices, were a matter of concern to the Indian authorities.
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To meet the challenges of cyber criminals, the Indian Government barred its employees from using third-party virtual private networks (VPN) and app-based scanner and anonymisation services. Suggestions for accountability of technology providers were also made by India at the meeting of the UN Open-Ended Ad Hoc Committee of Experts to elaborate a comprehensive international convention on countering the use of ICTs for criminal purposes.

While the approval of a 5G spectrum auction by the Union Cabinet was welcomed, its ruling on direct allotment to enterprises for private networks has generated a rift between telecom operators and technology companies. The spectrum in the 700 MHz band, long ignored for 4G spectrum auction by telecom operators, is likely to be assigned for railway communications to prevent economic loss to the nation.

India has stepped up efforts to become a major investment destination for semiconductors, and will reportedly spend some $30 billion to overhaul its tech industry and build up a chip supply chain.

Notwithstanding a perceptible ineffectiveness of cyber warfare in the ongoing kinetic battle in Ukraine, a report released by Microsoft during the month cited disruptive activities by Russia against Ukraine since the commencement of hostilities on February 24.

The US and the EU are trying to forge an alliance with Taiwan to reinforce a ‘silicon shield’ against Chinese aggression.

China has sought public comments on a proposed regulation that would require social media platforms to review every single post and comment by users before publishing.

The XIV BRICS Summit recognised the potential of ICT for growth and development, while expressing concern at the rising level and complexity of criminal misuse of ICT. Leaders of the G-7 launched a “Partnership for Global Infrastructure (PGII)” and pledged $600 million for a submarine telecommunications cable connecting Singapore to France.