‘Digital awareness key to tackling cybercrimes’
New Delhi: “This digital revolution has not only created vast opportunities for success, but has also given rise to a dirty world of cyber criminals who exploit vulnerabilities for personal gains. For many years now, India has been experiencing a surge in cyber incidents, ranging from financial fraud and data breaches to identity theft and sophisticated hacking attacks. Phishing attacks, where individuals are tricked into revealing sensitive information have become alarmingly common. Our financial system also faces threats from online fraud and ransomware attacks, jeopardising the hard-earned money of millions,” said Anil Rajput, President, Corporate Affairs, ITC Ltd and Chairman, FICCI CASCADE.
He was speaking during an address at the plenary track 1 of the International Conference on Cyberlaw, Cybercrime and cybersecurity held in New Delhi. With cyber criminals running amok, the three-day conference will see experts brainstorming over a raft of issues in the cyberworld, including how enterprises, policymakers and financial institutions can help build a secure ecosystem for all stakeholders.
Speaking on the rapid strides made by digitisation in the country, he said: “In 2015, the government launched the Digital India programme, which aimed at transforming India into a digitally empowered society and knowledge economy. Under this programme, the government launched several initiatives to promote digital literacy, digital infrastructure, and digital services. One of the key initiatives under Digital India was the Aadhaar programme, which provides a unique identification number to every citizen of India. This programme has made it easier for people to access government services and has helped the government to plug leakages in the delivery of subsidies and other welfare measures. India’s digital economy has also been driven by the private sector, with several startups and established players investing heavily in the sector. The country’s startup ecosystem is one of the fastest-growing in the world, with several unicorns emerging in recent years. In addition, our IT sector has also been a major contributor to the digital economy, with Indian IT firms providing services to clients across the world.”
Rajput said India is currently experiencing a “technological golden age”, with a growing number of skilled professionals and a supportive govt policy with initiatives like the BharatNet project and the Digital Saksharta Abhiyan fuelling the rapid digitisation
growth.
