New Delhi: With cyber war topping the list
of threats being faced by India`s IT industry and government,
CBI Monday signed an agreement with industry body Nasscom for
sharing of expertise to contain the menace of cyber crime,
generally being perpetrated from outside the country.
As part of the agreement, Nasscom and Data Security
Council of India (DSCI) will act as knowledge partners for the
CBI in the area of cyber security.
"Cyber security is emerging as a major corporate and
government concern worldwide. This partnership will enable
Nasscom to play the role of a facilitator and bring the latest
technological developments to the CBI," National Association
of Software and Services Companies (Nasscom) President Som
Mittal told reporters here.
CBI Director Ashwani Kumar said, "it is feared that enemy
countries are now focusing on waging a low cost and low
investment war which can be highly damaging. A cyber war
targeting the economy and services of the country is a
possibility instead of a conventional war."
Kumar said that cyber crime had become a major threat to
security and economy at international level. "New types of
cyber crimes are surfacing and new modus operandi are coming
to notice each day. The concern increases even more as even
traditional and conventional crimes now have a cyber angle.
"The use of modern technology has resulted in traditional
crime becoming global. This has made the task of investigation
more difficult and complex. There are several examples of
kidnapping, terrorist attacks, economic crimes, bank frauds
and financial scams being committed with the help of
computers," he said.
The CBI Director, while stressing on the need to solve
the cyber crime cases, said "cyber crime detection and
investigation are crucial to both the government and private
sector due to its implications for security and economy. The
government and law enforcement agencies on the one hand and
the private sector led by the IT companies on the other can
come together and forge a collaboration to fight this threat."
The CBI had created the Cyber Investigation Cell (CIC)
for investigating computer crime, crimes committed in
computerised environment and other hi-tech crime in areas like
telecom in August 1999.
The various types of offences being investigated by the
CIC include website defacement, phishing attacks, pornography,
credit card frauds and other economic offences using computer
as a medium and counterfeiting of software.
Asked about the areas of coordination, Mittal said,
"Though the specific areas are being worked out, Nasscom will
regularly impart training through workshops and events. We
could also provide our expertise on specific cases if that is
required."
PTI
