‘Citizen Data if hacked may lead to physical harm’

Pallav Gupta, head, government, vertical, F5 Networks

GN Bureau | June 20, 2012



You are looking at a time bomb which is ticking and ready to explode. There are several layers of security and a cyberattack can be on any layer.

Ninety-eight percent of the experiment is made on level three securities. But hackers are no fools; they target other layers. They prefer to attack where it leads to monetary loss. A citizen data can be most attractive and vulnerable as far as cyberattacks are concerned. It will not only inflict financial loss but it may also do physical harm. This means identity papers may be hacked by terrorists who can misuse them. 

Still the government is oblivious and keeps on building third layer security. I would suggest protecting the data at the lowest layer. There are gateways where public and private networks merge. We need to enhance our security there.

Also, in the online world, forensic trails are important. The officials have to learn the art of digital forensics and have to be taught not to leave their own trails in the cyberspace which may create trouble. Therefore, imparting special training and education is necessary. Education of the stakeholders, therefore, becomes the key. Learning from global best practices and implementing them will be the best solution right now.

Cyberlaws are another area to ensure e-security and the government has been wonderful in framing laws. But one place where it lacks is the penalty aspect. There is virtually no penalty attached to cybercrime and there are no deadlines to implement cybersecurity policy.

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