Was MHA website hacked?

In the backdrop of digital economy push, the incident raises concerns over cyber security

GN Bureau | February 13, 2017


#Cyber Security   #Rajnath Singh   #MHA Website   #MHA   #Ministry of Home Affairs   #Hacking  
Representational illustration
Representational illustration

Home ministry, which is supposed to maintain the internal security in the country, has reportedly fallen prey to cybercrime. On February 12, reports of ministry of home affairs (MHA) web portal getting hacked came to the fore. The website was immediately taken down for some time by national informatics centre in response to threat.

Although, the ministry has denied any hacking activity and stated that the website was shut down because of technical glitches, concerns regarding cyber security have emerged again. In the backdrop of the government’s major push to digital economy and growing internet proliferation and internet-based services, cyber security has become a serious issue.

Is the government prepared to deal with potential risk of the growing digital ecosystem in the country? Available data on cyber security breaches doesn't reflect any preparedness.

According to the Indian Computer Emergency Response Team (CERT-In) data more than 50,000 cyber security incidents were reported during 2016. The number has only increased in recent years. A total number of 44,679 and 49,455 cyber security incidents were observed during the year 2014 and 2015, respectively, minister of state for electronics and IT P P Chaudhary said in a written reply to Lok Sabha this month.

The cyber security incidents included phishing, scanning or probing, website intrusions and defacements, virus or malicious code and denial of service attacks.

Furthermore, as per the official data from MHA, number of government websites being hacked remains high.

The MHA said, as many as 189, 165, 164 and 199 websites of central ministries or department and state governments were hacked in the year 2013, 2014, 2015 and 2016, respectively.

Cybercrime cases in the country are registered under the Information Technology Act of 2000.
 

Comments

 

Other News

PM visits crash site, meets the injured

Prime minister Narendra Modi on Friday visited the Air India flight crash site in Ahmedabad to assess the situation first-hand. He met officials and emergency response teams working tirelessly in the aftermath of the disaster. He also condoled the loss of numerous lives in the tragic air accident. He con

Air India flight crashes in Ahmedabad

The Air India flight to London crashed in Ahmedabad within munites of the take-off Thursday afternoon. There were 232 passengers and 10 crew members aboard, and reports suggest there was slim chances of anyone surviving. The Boeing 787 Dreamliner crashed and exploded in a fireball barely out

Cabinet approves two multitracking projects of Railways

The Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs, chaired by prime minister Narendra Modi, on Wednesday approved two projects of the railways ministry with a total cost of Rs. 6,405 crore. These projects include:  1. Koderma – Barkakana Doubling (133 Kms): The project sec

Unlocking the boundless possibilities within

The legendary Jack Canfield (co-creator of Chicken Soup for the Soul series, and author who has sold more than 500 million books) says, “This is the book we’ve all been waiting for.” That is ‘Manifest of Your Infinite Riches’ by Pushkar Anand, founder of the Centre for Infinit

The Good, the Bad and the Ugly of AI

From ‘The Matrix’ to ‘Iron Man’, AI has long captivated our imagination. But what was once fiction has rapidly become foundation. AI is now transforming industries, economies and daily life. Nations are investing heavily – recognizing AI`s role not only as a technological marv

The Tricolour flies high over Chenab Rail Bridge: PM

Prime minister Narendra Modi celebrated the hoisting of the tricolour on the iconic Chenab Rail Bridge, the world’s highest railway arch bridge which was inaugurated on Friday, describing it as a moment of immense national pride and a testament to India’s growing capability to build futuristic

Visionary Talk: Amitabh Gupta, Pune Police Commissioner with Kailashnath Adhikari, MD, Governance Now





Archives

Current Issue

Opinion

Facebook Twitter Google Plus Linkedin Subscribe Newsletter

Twitter