Webinar “Safeguarding India’s Border and strengthening cyber Security” By Aditi Nayak
The webinar conducted on “Safeguarding India’s Border and strengthening cyber Security” was quite insightful with inputs from Dr. Sameer Patil and Dr. R.K. Arora. It was interesting to gain knowledge on the intersection of Border and Cyber Security. The key takeaways from the webinar are summarized as follows.
Security of the cyber- systems is important in today’s time as the databases, biometrics and even air traffic controls etc are all digitized and automated. Data breaches, disruptions and degradation of systems, espionage and physical attacks are some of the threats to cybersecurity in today’s world. Malicious hackers often target critical infrastructure systems of a country such as railways, power grids, passport systems etc. as an attack on its security and disrupt the functioning. Currently, Ransomware poses a major threat in terms of cybersecurity. There have been several instances of ransomware attacks such as in 2017, one such attack affected the operations of Jawaharlal Nehru Port Trust. Also, in 2021, Port of Nagoya was attacked by a pro-russia ransomware group. Behind all these cyber attacks, there’s often an alleged implicit support and sanction by the state actors. This increases the vulnerability of such attacks.
Dark net is another important component of cyber terrorists and hackers. It provides a secure platform for the hackers to exchange information. Moreover, the dark web also facilitates and supports the operations of offline drug syndicates. It is observed how 90% of the dark net lists various narcotics substances. India is located between the two largest opium producing regions called the Golden Crescent and the Golden Triangle. The Golden Crescent includes Pakistan, Afghanistan and Iran whereas the Golden Triangle includes Thailand, Myanmar, Laos and Vietnam. Myanmar is known for high levels of Morphine and Heroin productions. Being sandwiched between such areas makes India more vulnerable to drug trafficking. Hence, it is imperative to maintain the cyber-security and thwart illicit activities of the dark net. The National Critical Information Infrastructure Protection Centre (NCIIPC) in India is one such government agency that undertakes the charge of the security of the CyberSpace.
(Read More: Key takeaways from webinar on Safeguarding India’s Borders and Strengthening Cybersecurity)
When it comes to Border security, there are four main critical targets – the physical infrastructure, technology, human resources and information/data of the country.The countries protect their borders in two ways – either through Unilateral Border Security or Cooperative Border security. Unilateral Border security is needed when the state has an environment of constant conflict and confrontation with another state. This leads to one state spending more resources to protect their borders in the anticipation of any possible threat such as in the case of India and Pakistan where India is spending more resources. On the other hand, we have a Cooperative Border Security strategy on our Eastern borders with Bangladesh where there is a mutual understanding and common security goals built on trust.
The major problem with Border Security is that physical barriers are now turning irrelevant with the advent of drones. Such drones are often used by narcotic syndicates to supply their consignments. Highly sophisticated drones are used with GPS technology that pose a serious challenge to land borders. In recent reports, around 103 drones were shot down by the border security forces as per official records whereas the unofficial estimates of such insurgencies might be higher. The western borders have been quite active in such cases and authorities suspect further developments in such insurgency.
Terrorists have also evolved their communication strategies by using gaming platforms as messaging mediums. The law cannot track such platforms they switch over incase traced. VPNs also pose a big threat while tracking such terrorists and criminals over dark web and gaming platforms.
There also has been an evolving threat to information security. High risk of information leak, data breaches etc. prevail. Prominent use of social media makes people vulnerable to such attacks. It has been observed that the social media groups of army personnels are being penetrated which leads to sensitive information being extracted and misused. Jawans and even their families are often targeted, tracked and forced to share information.
There has, however, been difficulties in mitigating these challenges. One such difficulty arises due to the fact that threat perceptions are totally different when the personnels are rotating (For eg. from Kashmir to West Bengal). It takes time for the army personnels to adjust and acclimatize to the new area. There is also a shift in the attacking patterns such as new financial frauds coming up now and then. People are also not robustly trained and aware of such threats. There is also a lacunae in the coordination between the local administrations and border security forces. People are also migrating from borders which make the borders more vulnerable. Border Area Development Programmes are in place, however, there is a need to create a stronger and comprehensive network of State administrations, Panchayats, Police and Border Guarding forces.
The demand for border security is high, but in return the requirements are not being adequately met. Interesting to note was the fact that the US has been spending 7 times more to protect its borders (especially the US-Mexico border) than the BSF budget but the BSF guards more territory.
The border security infrastructure, boots on the ground, technological solutions and local environments are some key areas to focus and revamp in order to enhance and boost up the border security of the state along with spreading awareness.
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