With Internet becoming a new tool for terrorists, India and the US on Wednesday decided to promote closer cooperation and timely exchange of information to fight cyber crimes. According to a statement by the US Embassy in the Capital, the two countries signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) in this regard.

The agreement was signed by Jane Holl Lute, Deputy Secretary for the US Department of Homeland Security (DHS) and India Department of Information Technology Secretary R Chandrashekhar.

The MoU will establish the best practices for exchange of critical cyber security information and expertise between the two governments through the Indian Computer Emergency Response Team (CERT-In) and the US Computer Emergency Readiness Team (US-CERT).

CERT-In is the India's nodal agency for responding to cyber security incidents. US-CERT serves as the operational arm of DHS’ National Cyber Security Division.

The MoU helps fulfill the commitment of both nations to advancing the global security and countering terrorism, one of the pillars of the US-India Strategic Dialogue, launched on July 20, 2009.

The respective governments and cyber security communities in the US and India will now have the ability to coordinate with each other on a broad range of technical and operational cyber issues. IT and Communication Minister Kapil Sibal later in the day met US security officials and discussed matters related to cyber security.

India, like many other countries, faces new security threats from the cyber world, especially in the aftermath of increasing convergence of technologies. There are serious concerns that terrorists might hack the department portals to and cripple the government functions.

Secretary of Homeland Security Janet Napolitano had travelled to India in May to launch the US-India Homeland Security Dialogue (HSD) with Home Minister P Chidambaram. This was the first comprehensive bilateral dialogue on homeland security issues between the US and India.

During Napolitano's visit, the two countries had agreed to create the MoU, and negotiations for the non-binding arrangements.

US-CERT's mission is to improve the nation's cyber security posture, coordinate cyber information sharing and proactively manage cyber risks to the nation while protecting the constitutional rights of Americans.