Fearing that ever-increasing cases of cyber-attacks in India could result in helplessness among citizens, the cybersecurity experts have stressed the need for stronger and effective measures to tackle the issue.
The thoughts on the problem were shared during a release of a report – ‘The Invisible Hand’- by PRAHAR, an NGO, which focuses on such issues.
It is expected that India will start attracting nearly one trillion cyber-attacks annually by 2033. By the time the country turns 100 in 2047, it will face a target of 17 trillion cyber-attacks.
“This staggering scale underscores the urgent need for a robust, large-scale cyber defense apparatus to safeguard the nation,” the report said.
Expressing serious concerns on cyber-attacks, Abhay Mishra, national convenor and president, PRAHAR, said there are two types of cyber-attacks.
“The first involves traditional hackers who exploit vulnerabilities in systems for financial gain or disruption.
The second, the more insidious form, targets citizens, recruiting them to engage in anti-national activities through manipulation, coercion or threats. Such tactics are most likely to be used on illegal betting apps,” he said.
India has already experienced over 79 million cyber attacks, ranking it third globally in terms of the number of such incidents, it added.
This marked a 15 per cent increase from the previous year. The escalation continued into 2024, the report said.
In the first quarter, the report indicated a sharp rise in cyber attacks, with over 500 million incidents blocked in just three months.
“Communities must be involved to bear upon our youth to deter them from falling prey to illegal social media platforms, Anuj Agarwal, a renowned techno-legal expert and chairman of the Centre for Research on Cyber Crime and Cyber Law, said.
Commenting on the issue, former IPS officer Muktesh Chander, said, “A situation has arisen where not only individual hackers or disgruntled people but also state-sponsored actors and states themselves are engaging in activities that sabotage important parameters of the economy.”
Recently, none other than Prime Minister Narendra Modi also flagged the issue of fraudsters targeting people with the cyber-crime of “digital arrests” and urged people to adopt the mantra of “stop, think and take action”.
In his monthly ‘Mann ki Baat’ radio broadcast on Sunday last, Modi said investigative agencies were working with the states to deal with the issue but awareness is essential in protecting oneself from this crime.
